Consumer Protection

  • August 09, 2024

    Citibank's $29.5M Deal To End Robocall Row Gets First Nod

    An Arizona federal judge has signed off on a deal that requires Citibank NA to pay $29.5 million to settle long-running litigation pressed by a class of noncustomers who accused the bank of bombarding them with unauthorized robocalls in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.  

  • August 09, 2024

    Jackson Lewis Adds East Coast Principals In Virginia, Florida

    Jackson Lewis PC announced Thursday that it had hired two principals in Florida and Virginia whose practices focus on separate but essential areas of labor and employment law, one of whom is joining after spending his entire legal career at his previous firm.

  • August 08, 2024

    Jurors Weigh $200M For Carbon Monoxide Leak Victims

    Counsel asked jurors during closing arguments Thursday in a Dallas County court to give his two child clients a voice after a carbon monoxide leak allegedly left them partially mute, saying that while his clients can't speak, the jurors can deliver a verdict to "speak for them."

  • August 08, 2024

    In Reddit Hot Seat, Chopra Touts CFPB Medical Debt Proposal

    Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra took to social media on Thursday to pitch the agency's proposed ban on medical debt reporting, defending it against concerns that the plan could interfere with credit scores and encourage people to skip out on medical bills.

  • August 08, 2024

    FCC Told To Drop Weiss For Broadband Funding Bank Ratings

    More voices are lending themselves to the chorus calling on the Federal Communications Commission to look beyond Weiss Ratings' bank grading system when setting the standard for letters of credit that companies can use to back federally funded broadband networks.

  • August 08, 2024

    Oracle's $115M Deal For Selling Internet Users' Data Gets OK

    A California federal judge on Thursday preliminarily approved Oracle's $115 million deal to end a proposed class action alleging that the software company illegally sold internet users' electronic profiles, but expressed concern over an "overly burdensome" opt-out process that Oracle's lawyer said would prevent "mass" opt-outs.

  • August 08, 2024

    House Rep. Wants Calif. To Pump Brakes On AI Safety Bill

    Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren, who represents Silicon Valley in Congress, has taken the rare step of voicing her opposition to a proposed California bill to set safety standards for large artificial intelligence models, arguing that the measure lacks a "sound evidentiary basis" and would stifle innovation without addressing real-world harms. 

  • August 08, 2024

    Fed Hits Customers Bank With Crypto-Related Consent Order

    The Federal Reserve said Thursday that it had entered into an enforcement action with Pennsylvania-based Customers Bank, pointing to risk management and anti-money laundering compliance deficiencies tied to the bank's "digital asset strategy."

  • August 08, 2024

    CFPB Urges 5th Circ. To Revive Anti-Bias Exam Policy

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has appealed to the Fifth Circuit to reinstate a 2022 policy that expanded the scope of the agency's anti-discrimination oversight, saying a Texas federal judge's decision to strike it down last year could allow even so-called debanking to go unexamined.

  • August 08, 2024

    Credit Repair Software Co., CEO To Pay $3M CFPB Fines

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Thursday said a California-based software company and its CEO have agreed to pay a combined $3 million in fines to resolve a lawsuit alleging that the company assisted credit repair businesses that charged illegal advance fees to consumers.

  • August 08, 2024

    9th Circ. Revives Negligence Claims In Uber Sex Assault Suit

    The Ninth Circuit on Thursday revived a woman's negligence claim against Uber Technologies Inc. over her sexual assault by a suspended driver, saying the company had a duty of care because it contributed to the situation that led to her being assaulted.

  • August 08, 2024

    2 States Eyeing Mark Cuban-Backed App's Cash Advances

    Dave Inc., the maker of a digital banking app backed by billionaire Mark Cuban, is facing scrutiny from Maryland and Connecticut regulators in the wake of recent state efforts to treat paycheck advance products more like small-dollar loans, the financial technology company has told investors.

  • August 08, 2024

    J&J Settles Suit Alleging Sunscreen With Benzene Killed Boy

    Johnson & Johnson has reached an agreement to end a personal injury suit by a father who claimed his 14-year-old son died from leukemia after prolonged exposure to its benzene-tainted sunscreen products, according to a settlement notice filed in North Carolina federal court Thursday.

  • August 08, 2024

    Alaska Airlines Passengers' Safety Suit Claims Are Trimmed

    Alaska Airlines Inc. has evaded much of a passenger-led lawsuit claiming it allowed an off-duty crew member to enter their flight's cockpit, where he allegedly tried to crash the plane, with a Washington state court judge ruling that most of the suit is preempted by federal law.

  • August 08, 2024

    Equifax Not Responsible For Mortgage Denial, 7th Circ. Rules

    A split Seventh Circuit on Wednesday refused to revive an Illinois woman's suit claiming she was denied a mortgage because Equifax didn't accurately report her credit history, finding Equifax could not be held liable for errors in another company's report combining data from all three major credit bureaus.

  • August 08, 2024

    Delta's Boies Attys Slam CrowdStrike's 'Blame The Victim' Ploy

    Delta Air Lines' attorneys at Boies Schiller Flexner LLP on Thursday blasted CrowdStrike's "blame the victim" defense over last month's catastrophic global IT outage, and pledged to haul both the cybersecurity firm and Microsoft to court to recoup what Delta estimates to be over $500 million in revenue losses.

  • August 08, 2024

    Amazon Must Face Pandemic Price-Gouging Claims In Wash.

    Washington's high court said on Thursday that Amazon can be sued under the state's Consumer Protection Act over alleged price-gouging early in the COVID-19 pandemic, but stopped short of agreeing with customers that the law bars specific markup percentages. 

  • August 08, 2024

    Pot Cos. Get Creative To Boost Brands Despite Feds' TM Ban

    The marijuana industry still lives in the shadows of trademark law while the drug remains federally illegal, leaving businesses and their lawyers to seek workarounds to protect their brands.

  • August 08, 2024

    Home Security Co. Can't Recreate $12.1M Contract, Court Told

    The home security arm of building firm Toll Brothers on Thursday asked a Connecticut Superior Court judge to nix three counterclaims from a contract lawsuit accusing another home security company of botching a $12.1 million home monitoring account purchase, saying the company was impermissibly reading language into the contract at issue and pressing duplicate allegations.

  • August 08, 2024

    FCC Adopts New Emergency Code For Missing Persons

    The Federal Communications Commission has established a new alert code for missing and endangered persons that will deliver critical messages through television, radio and cellphones, a move the federal agency says will be of particular benefit to tribal communities that have a disproportionate risk of violence, murder or vanishing.

  • August 08, 2024

    Apple Must Produce Docs In Epic Antitrust Fight By Sept. 30

    A California federal judge overseeing discovery in Epic Games' antitrust compliance fight with Apple gave the iPhone-maker a Sept. 30 deadline to hand over documentation on its response to foreign antitrust regulations and other internal documents, rejecting Apple's suggested December deadline and calling the 92,000-document review large but "not huge."

  • August 08, 2024

    SEC Wins Jurisdiction Over German As Sanction For Default

    A German national who the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission says has ignored discovery requests in its attempt to recover proceeds from a $150 million international pump and dump scheme involving his son is subject to personal jurisdiction in the U.S., a Boston federal judge ordered as a sanction.

  • August 08, 2024

    Google Says Epic's Own Tech Experts Undermine Remedies

    Google continued Wednesday to battle what it says would be a dramatic and costly overhaul of its Play Store if Epic Games is allowed to dictate the terms of an antitrust remedy, telling a California federal judge claims of a cheaper, easier solution are undermined by Epic's own experts.

  • August 08, 2024

    FCC Takes Closer Look At Geolocation Plan For 900 MHz

    The Federal Communications Commission asked the public to weigh in on a geolocation company's bid for more airwaves in the lower 900-megahertz spectrum band for technologies to back up GPS.

  • August 08, 2024

    DOJ Investigating Formula 1 Over Andretti Denial

    Formula One's owner Liberty Media Corp. disclosed Thursday that the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating antitrust concerns surrounding the denial of Andretti Formula Racing LLC's bid to join the F1's championship series, following a letter from lawmakers.

Expert Analysis

  • FDIC Bank Disclosure Rules Raise Important Questions

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    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s new rules mandating disclosures for nonbanks offering deposit products leave traditional financial institutions in a no-man's land between fintech-oriented requirements and the reality of personal service demanded by customers, say Paul Clark and Casey Jennings at Seward & Kissel.

  • Setting Goals For Kicking Corruption Off FIFA World Cup Field

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    The unprecedented tri-country nature of the 2026 men's World Cup will add to the complexity of an already complicated event, but best practices can help businesses stay on the right side of anti-corruption rules during this historic competition, say Sandra Moser and ​​​​​​​Emily Ahdieh at Morgan Lewis.

  • Don't Use The Same Template For Every Client Alert

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    As the old marketing adage goes, consistency is key, but law firm style guides need consistency that contemplates variety when it comes to client alert formats, allowing attorneys to tailor alerts to best fit the audience and subject matter, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.

  • Takeaways From FDIC's Spring Supervisory Highlights

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    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s spring 2024 consumer compliance supervisory report found that relatively few institutions had significant consumer compliance issues last year, but the common thread among those that did were inadequacies or failures in disclosures to consumers, says Matthew Hanaghan at Nutter.

  • Online Portal Helps Fortify Feds' Unfair Health Practices Fight

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    The Federal Trade Commission, U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently launched an online portal where the public can report potentially unfair healthcare practices, effectively maximizing enforcers' abilities to police anti-competitive actions that can drive up healthcare costs and chill innovation, say attorneys at Seyfarth.

  • Series

    Walking With My Dog Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Thanks to my dog Birdie, I've learned that carving out an activity different from the practice of law — like daily outdoor walks that allow you to interact with new people — can contribute to professional success by boosting creativity and mental acuity, as well as expanding your social network, says Sarah Petrie at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.

  • Key Issues Raised By Colorado's Brain Data Privacy Bill

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    Colorado recently became the first state to provide consumer privacy protections for data generated from a person's brain waves, and despite the bill’s ambiguity and open questions introduced, the new law has helped turn the spotlight on neurodata, says Sara Pullen Guercio at Alston & Bird.

  • Birkin Bag Case Carries Competition Lessons For Retailers

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    A recently proposed antitrust class action alleging that Hermès violated federal and California law when selling its iconic Birkin and Kelly handbags highlights some issues that other brands and retailers should consider, particularly given a prevailing landscape that seems to prioritize antitrust scrutiny, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Expect Tougher Bank Exams 1 Year After Spring 2023 Failures

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    With federal banking agencies still implementing harsher examinations with swifter escalations a year after the spring 2023 bank failures, banks can gain insight into changing expectations by monitoring how the Federal Reserve Board, Office of the Comptroller of Currency and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. are coordinating and updating their exam policies, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Follow The Iron Rule Of Trial Logic

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    Many diligent and eager attorneys include every good fact, point and rule in their trial narratives — spurred by the gnawing fear they’ll be second-guessed for leaving something out — but this approach ignores a fundamental principle of successful trial lawyering, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Breaking Down EPA's Rule On PFAS In Drinking Water

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    Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finalized the first enforceable federal drinking water regulation for PFAS, which, along with reporting and compliance requirements for regulated entities, will have a number of indirect effects, including increased cleanup costs and the possible expansion of existing Superfund sites, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • The Art Of Asking: Leveraging Your Contacts For Referrals

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    Though attorneys may hesitate to ask for referral recommendations to generate new business, research shows that people want to help others they know, like and trust, so consider who in your network you should approach and how to make the ask, says Rebecca Hnatowski at Edwards Advisory.

  • The Drawbacks Of Banking Regulators' Merger Review Plans

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    Recent proposals for bank merger review criteria by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. share common pitfalls: increased likelihood of delays, uncertainties, and new hurdles to transactions that could impede the long-term safety and soundness of the banks involved, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • Opinion

    The FTC's Noncompete Rule Is Likely Dead On Arrival

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    The Federal Trade Commission's April 23 noncompete ban ignores the consequences to the employees it claims to help — but the rule is unlikely to go into effect provided the ideological makeup of the U.S. Supreme Court remains the same, say Erik Weibust and Stuart Gerson at Epstein Becker.

  • 'Beauty From Within' Trend Poses Regulatory Risks For Cos.

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    Companies capitalizing on the current trend in oral supplements touting cosmetic benefits must note that a product claim that would be acceptable for an externally applied cosmetic may draw much stronger scrutiny from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration when applied to a supplement, say Natalie Rainer and Katherine Staba at K&L Gates.

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