Consumer Protection

  • December 05, 2024

    French Antitrust Regulator Fines Airlines €14.6M For Collusion

    France's competition authority has hit two airlines with fines totaling €14.6 million ($15.3 million) after it concluded that they had colluded to inflate ticket prices while reducing services for "captive customers" on French Caribbean islands.

  • December 04, 2024

    Ford Must Face Claims Over Vendor's Website Chat Access

    A California federal judge has narrowed but refused to toss a revised putative class action accusing Ford Motor Co. of allowing a third-party software provider to eavesdrop on website chats, finding that the plaintiff had adequately alleged that the automaker was "aware" of the vendor's allegedly unlawful conduct. 

  • December 04, 2024

    Meta Genocide Defense Spurs 'Yeah Right' From 9th Circ.

    Ninth Circuit judges doubted Wednesday whether women fleeing genocide of the Rohingya people in Myanmar could have realistically investigated Facebook's role in spreading disinformation and called a lawyer, with one judge calling the defense argument "silly" and another judge responding, "yeah right."

  • December 04, 2024

    Rep. Hill Vows To Tackle Crypto 'De-Banking' In Next Congress

    Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle plan to investigate alleged government efforts to cut off cryptocurrency businesses from the traditional banking system, Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., said Wednesday during a House Financial Services Committee hearing that also saw its retiring chair feted with a celebration of bow ties.

  • December 04, 2024

    Quaker Beats 'Simply Granola' False Ad Suit, For Now

    An Illinois federal judge has freed the Quaker Oats Company from a putative class action alleging it deceived consumers into believing its "Simply Granola" product contained only oats, honey, raisins and almonds, saying no reasonable consumer would conclude those were the only ingredients based on the products' label.

  • December 04, 2024

    Keesal Young Sued Over Data Breach Affecting 316K People

    Law firm Keesal Young & Logan failed to secure Social Security and passport numbers, medical information and other sensitive personal information of over 316,000 people and waited more than five months to inform potential victims of the data breach, a proposed class action filed Tuesday in California federal court alleges.

  • December 04, 2024

    Acima Can't 'Outrace' CFPB To Texas Court, Utah Judge Says

    A Utah federal judge has smacked down a bid by Rent-A-Center affiliate Acima to move its fight against a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau lawsuit to Texas, where the lease-to-own fintech filed a slightly earlier, preemptive challenge to the agency's jurisdiction that remains pending.

  • December 04, 2024

    Solar Co. Targeted By Conn. AG Denies Deceiving Consumers

    Bright Planet Solar Inc. has denied the Connecticut attorney general's claims that it lured unsuspecting consumers into signing long-term contracts without adequate consent and performed unauthorized home improvements, telling a court that it acted in concert with "reasonable commercial practices."

  • December 04, 2024

    Debt Relief Co. Agrees To Be Banned Under CFPB Settlement

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau informed a California federal court that a purported debt relief services company and its owner have agreed to cease operations and pay civil penalties for allegedly charging customers illegal upfront fees.

  • December 04, 2024

    Live Nation Shields Legal Strategy Emails From DOJ Scrutiny

    A Manhattan federal judge rejected the U.S. Department of Justice's bid to see emails between Live Nation Entertainment Inc. lawyers and counsel for arena operator Oak View Group, holding Wednesday that these communications discussed a joint legal strategy for the government's antitrust investigation.

  • December 04, 2024

    9th Circ. Won't Allow Bookseller Group In FTC's Amazon Suit

    An independent bookstore association can't join the government's antitrust lawsuit against Amazon, the Ninth Circuit said Wednesday, with the panel's majority agreeing with the Federal Trade Commission and e-commerce giant that the trade group's allegations involve different anticompetitive conduct in different markets.

  • December 04, 2024

    9th Circ. Mulls Waiting To Weigh In On Amazon Suicide Suit

    A Ninth Circuit panel Wednesday appeared open to waiting for the Washington Supreme Court to clarify the state's duty-to-warn statute before deciding whether to revive allegations Amazon.com negligently sold chemicals used in suicides while one judge observed that Amazon created an algorithm that recommended lethal product-mixes, "so it's intentional."

  • December 04, 2024

    Yelp Blasts Paxton's Anti-Abortion Center Suit As 'Bad Faith'

    Yelp is urging the Ninth Circuit to revive its bid to block Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's lawsuit alleging the review service misinformed users with disclaimers about limited medical services at crisis pregnancy centers, arguing Wednesday it should've been allowed to pursue discovery to show Paxton sued in bad faith.

  • December 04, 2024

    Boeing, Spirit Say Flyers Can't Forum-Shop 737 Blowout Suit

    Boeing, Spirit AeroSystems and Alaska Airlines have blasted an attempt by passengers to redo their suit over January's 737 Max 9 door plug blowout, saying the plaintiffs are improperly forum-shopping when their case is set for a consolidated bench trial in Washington federal court.

  • December 04, 2024

    Starbucks Brass Face Derivative Suit Over 'Reinvention' Flop

    Officers and directors of coffee chain Starbucks are facing shareholder derivative claims over the company's so-called Triple Shot Reinvention strategy after the company disappointed the markets in April with updates about the plan.

  • December 04, 2024

    RealPage Says DOJ's Antitrust Markets 'Hide The Ball'

    RealPage has urged a North Carolina federal court to throw out the government's antitrust case against it, arguing that enforcers have not shown that use of its software is raising rental rates in any part of the country and that landlords use it to offer competitive rents.

  • December 04, 2024

    Chase Will Settle Calif. Atty's Mortgage Rate-Lock Suit

    JPMorgan Chase Bank NA has reached a tentative, individual settlement with an attorney suing it for allegedly gouging him and other borrowers with sham mortgage rate-lock deals, heading off a potential class action.

  • December 04, 2024

    Frontier To Pay $288K FCC Fine Over Broadband Data

    Frontier Communications has agreed to pay almost $288,000 to end a Federal Communications Commission probe into a Wisconsin agency's claims that the internet service provider submitted inaccurate information to the FCC during a challenge to data used in mapping national broadband service, according to a consent decree made public Wednesday.

  • December 04, 2024

    Amazon Held To Prior Fights, Ongoing Rules In Antitrust Row

    Amazon.com Inc. can't duck updated consumer antitrust suits because it failed to raise some arguments against prior iterations and because plaintiffs adequately alleged substantial, ongoing anticompetitive conduct and effects from rules punishing sellers who offer their goods cheaper elsewhere, according to a decision unsealed in Washington federal court.

  • December 04, 2024

    Columbia Univ., Publisher Face Suit Over Reading Program

    Columbia University Teachers College and the creators and publishers of two widely used reading instructional programs have ignored concerns about their effectiveness for years, leaving many children functionally illiterate, a proposed class action filed Wednesday in Massachusetts state court alleges.

  • December 04, 2024

    SEC Taps New Co-Leaders For Crypto Enforcement Unit

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has promoted the assistant director of its crypto and cyber enforcement unit and a counsel to an outgoing Democratic commissioner to co-lead the regulator's crypto enforcement efforts ahead of a coming administration shake-up that could change the agency's approach to the digital asset industry.

  • December 04, 2024

    Outgoing FCC Chief Lacerates With A Grin At 'Telecom Prom'

    Lawyers who gathered for the telecom bar's marquee yearly dinner Tuesday were treated to the traditional night of sardonic wit as the outgoing head of the Federal Communications Commission took aim at the new power structure looming in Washington, D.C.

  • December 04, 2024

    Wells Fargo Wants Suits Over $300M Scheme Tossed

    Wells Fargo Bank NA urged a Florida federal judge on Wednesday to toss both a proposed class action and a receiver's lawsuit claiming the bank aided and abetted a $300 million Ponzi scheme that duped more than 1,000 investors, arguing that neither pleading sufficiently shows that Wells Fargo knew about the fraud.

  • December 04, 2024

    Amazon, Stanley Tumbler Maker Sue Alleged Counterfeiters

    Amazon and the maker of the popular "Stanley" tumbler are suing several marketplace vendors in Washington federal court, accusing them of peddling counterfeit drink ware in the e-commerce platform's latest legal push to crack down on brand-stealing sellers.

  • December 04, 2024

    Ace Hardware Looks To Nail Screw-Selling Rival Over TM Use

    Ace Hardware Corp. said Tuesday that a home improvement chain sharing the Ace name is watering down its decades of name recognition and goodwill while creeping in on Ace's turf and leading confused consumers astray.

Expert Analysis

  • Takeaways From Texas AG's Novel AI Health Settlement

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    The Texas attorney general's recent action against a health tech company marks another step in rapidly proliferating enforcement against artificial intelligence and privacy issues across multiple states, and highlights important risk mitigation considerations for health companies that implement AI systems, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • A Look At How De Minimis Import Rules May Soon Change

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    The planned implementation of executive actions focused on the de minimis rule as it applies to shipments means companies should use this interval to evaluate the potential applicability and impact of Section 301, Section 201 or Section 232 duties on their products, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Antitrust Issues To Watch Amid Google Ad Tech Trial

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    Regardless of the outcome of the U.S. Department of Justice's advertising technology antitrust suit against Google in Virginia federal court, matters ranging from market definition to unified pricing will likely have far-reaching implications for the digital advertising industry, competition and innovation, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • What To Know About Latest Calif. Auto-Renewal Law Update

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    While businesses have about nine months to prepare before the recently passed amendment to California's automatic renewal law takes effect, it’s not too early to begin working on compliance efforts, including sign-up flow reviews, record retention updates and marketing language revisions, say Gonzalo Mon and Beth Chun at Kelley Drye.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: September Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy identifies practice tips from four recent class certification rulings involving denial of Medicare reimbursements, automobile insurance disputes, veterans' rights and automobile defects.

  • How To Avoid Liability When Using Cookie Consent Managers

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    As companies attempt to comply with consumer protection laws by implementing cookie consent managers on their websites, they must be wary of separate legal risks that can stem from implementing or using these tools incorrectly, says Ian Cohen at LOKKER.

  • 6 Tips For Trying Cases Away From Home

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    A truly national litigation practice, by definition, often requires trying cases in jurisdictions across the country, which presents unique challenges that require methodical preparation and coordination both within the trial team and externally, say Edward Bennett and Suzanne Salgado at Williams & Connolly.

  • Taking Stock Of FCC's New Spectrum Rule For Drones

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    While an order recently adopted by the Federal Communications Commission is intended to provide drones with rapid access to a limited amount of spectrum in the 5030-5091 megahertz band, the commission envisions an incremental approach to full usage that will play out over the course of the coming months and years, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • 3 Coverage Tips As 2nd Circ. 'Swipes Left' On Tinder Claim

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    The Second Circuit's recent opinion in Match Group v. Beazley Underwriting, overturning Tinder's victory on its insurer's motion to dismiss a coverage action, reinforces three best practices policyholders purchasing claims-made coverage should adhere to in order to avoid late-notice defenses, say Lynda Bennett and Alexander Corson at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Proposed Legislation May Crack Down On Online Drug Ads

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    A bill recently proposed in Congress could serve as a sea change in how the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulates drug-related speech, with significant trickle-down effects on various corners of not only the drug industry but also on consumers and providers themselves, say Dominick DiSabatino and Arushi Pandya at Sheppard Mullin.

  • How Loper Bright Is Affecting Pending FCC Litigation

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    Pending challenges against Federal Communications Commission orders at the Sixth and Eleventh Circuits following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Loper Bright highlight that counsel must be familiar with the statutes, regulations and precedent relevant to the FCC to best navigate the rapidly changing compliance landscape, say attorneys at Davis Wright.

  • A Blueprint For Structuring An Effective Plaintiff Case Story

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    The number and size of nuclear verdicts continue to rise, in part because plaintiffs attorneys have become more adept at crafting compelling trial stories — and an analysis of these success stories reveals a 10-part framework for structuring an effective case narrative, says Jonathan Ross at Decision Analysis.

  • Series

    Round-Canopy Parachuting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Similar to the practice of law, jumping from an in-flight airplane with nothing but training and a few yards of parachute silk is a demanding and stressful endeavor, and the experience has bolstered my legal practice by enhancing my focus, teamwork skills and sense of perspective, says Thomas Salerno at Stinson.

  • Dealmaker Lessons From CFIUS' New Enforcement Webpage

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    The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ recently launched webpage, which details the actions — and inactions — that led to enforcement activity, provides important insights for dealmakers about filing requirements, mitigation commitments and the cost of noncompliance, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • What's In Colorado's 1st-Of-Its-Kind Neural Privacy Law

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    Colorado recently became the first U.S. state to directly regulate neurotechnology with new legislation amending the Colorado Privacy Act to specifically protect biological and neural data, offering an example of how lawmakers can tackle the perceived regulation gaps in this area, say attorneys at Goodwin.

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