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Consumer Protection
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February 25, 2025
Calif. Wins Remand Of Exxon Plastic Suit, Green Groups Lose
California convinced a federal judge to remand to state court its lawsuit alleging Exxon Mobil Corp. is responsible for plastic waste and pollution due to deceptive public messaging about recycling, but environmentalists' similar suit will stay in federal court.
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February 25, 2025
FCC Probes IHeart Practices Amid Broadcast Payola Inquiry
The Federal Communications Commission's chief, who says he wants to crack down on payola practices, has launched a probe into whether iHeart is forcing musicians to accept cut-rate pay to entertain crowds at the company's upcoming Austin, Texas, event in return for more favorable airtime.
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February 25, 2025
FTC Pick Concerned But Won't 'Prejudge' Censorship Claims
Kressin Meador Powers LLC partner Mark Meador walked a fine line during his confirmation hearing Tuesday when asked for his views on GOP claims of censorship on online platforms, expressing an "overarching concern" about content moderation practices while nevertheless asserting he'll keep an open mind on specific allegations if confirmed as the Federal Trade Commission's newest Republican member.
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February 25, 2025
Sidley Brings On Dentons Consumer Safety Pros In Calif.
Sidley Austin LLP continues expanding its West Coast team, announcing it is adding a pair of Dentons consumer products safety litigators as partners in its San Diego and Los Angeles offices.
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February 25, 2025
Referral Co. Barred From $5.54B Swipe Fee MDL Settlement
A New York federal judge has blocked a referral partner of a claims filing service from any role in the $5.54 billion settlement of long-running multidistrict litigation accusing Visa and Mastercard of charging improper merchant fees, after the referral partner allegedly improperly used class member information to submit claims.
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February 25, 2025
Vape Cos. Want To Stop Iowa Law Banning Some E-Cig Sales
A group of vape companies and users is again asking an Iowa federal court to block a state law banning the sale of some e-cigarette products, saying it is preempted by federal law and the Constitution.
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February 25, 2025
Insurers Owe Chubb $3.3M For Safelite Defense Costs
Two insurers must contribute $1.65 million each toward costs a Chubb unit incurred defending windshield repair company Safelite against a competitor's suit, an Ohio federal court ruled, finding the pair were not prejudiced by breaches of their policies' notice and voluntary payment provisions.
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February 25, 2025
8th Circ. Says Mo. Law Bars $60M Asbestos Coverage Suit
An Eighth Circuit appeals panel affirmed that an insurer could not make arguments in Missouri federal court regarding payment of over $60 million for asbestos litigation because it had been battling its insured "for years" over the same issues in state court.
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February 25, 2025
FCC Hires US House Lawyer As Regulator's Deputy GC
The Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday named a top lawyer from the legislative branch as the agency's new deputy general counsel for litigation.
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February 24, 2025
9th Circ. Axes Fee Award In California Pizza Kitchen Hack Deal
The Ninth Circuit on Monday scrapped an attorney fee award of $800,000 given to class counsel as part of a deal resolving data breach litigation against California Pizza Kitchen, finding that the lower court had failed to properly compare the "actual value" of the settlement — which the panel put around $950,000 — to the requested fees.
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February 24, 2025
FDIC Scraps 10th Circ. Brief Backing Colo.'s Opt-Out Law
In a pivot, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on Monday withdrew a Tenth Circuit brief that had supported Colorado in industry litigation against the state's "opt-out" law aimed at curbing higher-cost online lending.
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February 24, 2025
DC Judge Wary Of Constitutionality Of Musk's DOGE
A D.C. federal judge on Monday questioned the constitutionality of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency while expressing skepticism that groups challenging the department's access to federal systems housing Americans' sensitive data had established the irreparable harm needed to block access.
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February 24, 2025
FCC Set To Change View On Online Platforms' Liability Shield
The Federal Communications Commission appears ready to make some changes to how it views the legal protections afforded to online platforms for content posted by their users.
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February 24, 2025
SEC Crypto Task Force Wants Input, Commissioner Says
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Commissioner Hester Peirce urged firms to bring their input to her Crypto Task Force in a Friday statement that outlined a series of questions the group is grappling with, including the taxonomy of tokens.
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February 24, 2025
Comerica Bank Wants Dismissal Of CFPB's Benefits Card Suit
Comerica Bank has urged a Texas federal judge to toss a suit brought by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, accusing the bank of multiple failures in administering a government benefits card program, arguing the case overextends the agency's authority, among other things.
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February 24, 2025
Bigelow Says Class Trial Is On 'Road To Nowhere'
Counsel for R.C. Bigelow Inc. urged a California federal judge Monday to call off an upcoming class action damages trial over the tea-maker's "manufactured in the USA" labels, saying the proceeding would be a "road to nowhere" because of fatally flawed sales data.
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February 24, 2025
Baby Bottle Cos. Get Parts Of Microplastics Suit Tossed
Parents who sued Philips over allegations that microplastics leach from its "BPA free" baby bottles and sippy cups saw their lawsuit partially trimmed, after a California federal judge said that the company's label isn't misleading because it doesn't promise the products are "devoid of all harmful plastic."
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February 24, 2025
Norfolk Southern's Tank Car Co. Liability Claims Head To Trial
An Ohio federal judge said that Norfolk Southern can pursue its claims seeking to have tank car companies pay at least some of the damages over 2023's East Palestine derailment, teeing up for trial key questions of liability concerning the tank cars' maintenance and transport of toxic chemicals.
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February 24, 2025
Insurer Needn't Cover Hospital's $2.5M Virus Vax Probe Costs
A Chubb unit has no obligation to pay an Illinois hospital for $2.5 million in legal costs associated with responding to federal and state probes into its COVID-19 vaccine distribution program, a federal court ruled, finding that the policy's $1 million regulatory claims sublimit applies.
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February 24, 2025
'Fraternal Duty' No Grounds For Conspiracy, 11th Circ. Told
A Georgia man found guilty last year of participating in a bid-rigging and price-fixing scheme for tens of millions of dollars of ready-mix concrete contracts asked the Eleventh Circuit Friday to throw out his conviction, arguing federal prosecutors failed to prove a wide-ranging conspiracy that captured the coastal concrete market.
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February 24, 2025
Robinhood, OpenSea Say SEC Closed Crypto Inquiries
Robinhood said Monday that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission "has officially closed" an investigation into its cryptocurrency arm without any enforcement action, joining a growing number of crypto matters the SEC has dropped or paused under the new Trump administration.
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February 24, 2025
PBMs To Challenge FTC Case At 8th Circ., But Without Pause
A Missouri federal judge summarily refused, again, on Monday to temporarily block the Federal Trade Commission's in-house case accusing Caremark Rx, Express Scripts and OptumRx of artificially inflating insulin prices, letting the case proceed while the pharmacy benefits managers appeal to the Eighth Circuit.
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February 24, 2025
Vape Interests Urge 6th Circ. To Halt Kentucky E-Cig Law
A coalition of e-cigarette interests is urging the Sixth Circuit to halt enforcement of a new Kentucky law regulating vaping products while their appeal plays out.
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February 24, 2025
DraftKings Rips 'Flawed' Privacy Suit Over Meta Tracking Pixel
DraftKings Inc. wants a New York federal judge to toss a "fundamentally flawed" suit that accuses the company of disclosing customer information to third parties for targeted advertising, arguing the plaintiff is attempting to expand the Video Privacy Protection Act beyond its intended purpose.
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February 24, 2025
NY Regulator Imposes $20.4M In Fines Against Auto Insurers
New York's insurance regulator announced Monday the agency has concluded a multiyear investigation into auto insurers' failure to report vehicle information to the state Department of Motor Vehicles in a timely manner, resulting in $20.4 million in fines across 37 separate consent orders.
Expert Analysis
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Compliance Considerations Of DOJ Data Security Rule
Under the U.S. Department of Justice's proposed rule aiming to prevent certain countries' access to bulk U.S. sensitive personal data, companies must ensure their vendor, employment and investment agreements meet strict new data security requirements — or determine whether such contracts are worth the cost of compliance, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.
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Balancing Health Tech Advances And Clinical Responsibility
To maintain their clinical responsibilities and mitigate potential legal risk, health professionals should incorporate the benefits of new medical technology powered by artificial intelligence while addressing its risks and limitations, says Kathleen Fisher Enyeart at Lathrop GPM.
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Defense Insights As PFAS Consumer Product Claims Rise
Amid the recent proliferation of lawsuits seeking damages for failure to disclose the presence of PFAS in consumer products, manufacturers, distributors and consumer product companies should follow the science and consider a significant flaw in many of the filings, say attorneys at Farella Braun.
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AI Monitoring And FCRA: Employer Compliance Essentials
As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission signal determination to treat AI-based workplace surveillance as a potential Fair Credit Reporting Act issue, employers must commit to educating HR and compliance staff on these quickly evolving regulatory expectations, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.
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Series
Circus Arts Make Me A Better Lawyer
Performing circus arts has strengthened my ability to be more thoughtful, confident and grounded, all of which has enhanced my legal practice and allowed me to serve clients in a more meaningful way, says Bailey McGowan at Stinson.
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Crypto Cos. Add New Play In Their Offense Against SEC
Consensys and Crypto.com have adopted a novel strategy of preempting U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement actions by moving to crypto-friendly Texas and filing declaratory lawsuits challenging the SEC's jurisdiction to regulate crypto-assets — an aggressive approach that may pay off, say attorneys at Herrick Feinstein.
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Recent Listeria Outbreaks Hold Key Compliance Lessons
Listeria outbreaks in ready-to-eat foods from Boar's Head and other companies, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Food and Drug Administration responses to these outbreaks, should be closely evaluated from an overall compliance and risk management perspective by food manufacturers, retailers and industry investors, say attorneys at Kirkland.
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3 Ways To Train Junior Lawyers In 30 Minutes Or Less
Today’s junior lawyers are experiencing a skills gap due to pandemic-era disruptions, but firms can help bring them up to speed by offering high-impact skill building content in bite-sized, interactive training sessions, say Stacey Schwartz at Katten, Diane Costigan at Winston & Strawn and Lauren Tierney at Freshfields.
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8 Tech Tips For Stress-Free Remote Depositions
Court reporter Kelly D’Amico shares practical strategies for attorneys to conduct remote depositions with ease and troubleshoot any issues that arise, as it seems deposition-by-Zoom is here to stay after the pandemic.
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How To Safely Leverage AI In The Digital Assets Industry
Digital asset businesses that use or plan to implement artificial intelligence should assess their risk management frameworks to ensure that AI-related business areas, including customer support and fraud detection, are in compliance with applicable laws and regulatory guidance from the last year, say attorneys at Winston & Strawn.
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What Cos. Can Learn from Water Microplastics Class Actions
Class actions against companies whose bottled spring water allegedly contains microplastics, challenging claims such as "natural" and "100% spring water," seem to be drying up — but these cases serve as a good reminder to other businesses to review regulatory standards, and carefully vet plaintiff allegations at the outset, say attorneys at Keller and Heckman.
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$3B TD Bank AML Settlement Is A Wake-Up Call For All Banks
TD Bank’s historic settlement over anti-money laundering violations, resulting in over $3 billion in penalties, reminds banks of all shapes and sizes why they need to take financial crime compliance seriously, and highlights three areas that may be especially vulnerable to enforcement, says Jack Harrington at Bradley Arant.
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Opinion
The Right Kind Of Deregulation In Commercial Airline Industry
Similar to the economic deregulation that occurred more than four decades ago during the Carter administration, the incoming Trump administration should restore the very limited federal regulatory role in the economics of the airline industry, says former U.S. transportation secretary James Burnley at Venable.
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Unpacking The CFPB's Personal Financial Data Final Rule
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's personal financial data rights rule includes several important changes from the proposed rule, and hundreds of pages of supplementary information that provide important insights into the manner in which the bureau will enforce the final rule, say attorneys at Sidley.
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Opinion
Feds May Have Overstepped In Suit Against Mortgage Lender
The U.S. Department of Justice's lawsuit against Rocket Mortgage goes too far in attempting to combat racial bias and appears to fail on the fatal flaw that mortgage lenders should be at arm's length from appraisers, says Drew Ketterer at Ketterer & Ketterer.