Consumer Protection

  • November 20, 2024

    Apple Says DOJ Case Has Too Much Speculation To Survive

    Apple's attorneys pressed a New Jersey federal judge Wednesday to toss the U.S. Department of Justice's monopolization lawsuit, asserting in oral arguments that the government is simply trying to force them to work with rivals when attacking controls imposed on iPhone app developers.

  • November 20, 2024

    CPSC Misunderstands Magnet Risks For Kids, Court Told

    An attorney for the magnet industry told the Tenth Circuit on Wednesday that consumer safety regulators wrongly focused on the size of magnets when trying to protect children from the danger of swallowing them, when the real danger of high-powered magnets comes from swallowing multiple magnets, regardless of size, not single magnets that may be small enough to swallow.

  • November 20, 2024

    DC Circ. Skeptical Of Texas AG's Bid To Revive X Probe

    A D.C. Circuit panel seemed skeptical Wednesday of the Texas attorney general's claims that Media Matters lacks a valid claim to challenge the state enforcer's investigation into the media watchdog's reporting about the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, but one judge expressed uncertainty about the suit's readiness for judicial review.

  • November 20, 2024

    Cross-Border Sales Were Unlawful Monopoly, Feds Say

    Prosecutors have urged a Texas federal judge to deny a dismissal bid from two people accused of using violence to monopolize cross-border sales of used cars, saying the individuals were not operating the lawful clerical service they claimed to be running.

  • November 20, 2024

    Gas Bill Challenge Finds Little Purchase With Colo. Justices

    Colorado Supreme Court justices questioned Wednesday why a state regulator-backed plan to charge customers for extra natural gas ahead of a snowstorm was unreasonable, appearing to dash a company's challenge to its utility bill.

  • November 20, 2024

    Amid Legal Challenge, La. Hemp Law On Hold

    A Louisiana law that would issue new regulation on the potency of hemp-derived intoxicants along with where they can be sold will not go into effect until the end of March, allowing time for briefing from state officials and hemp interests challenging the law.

  • November 20, 2024

    Veggie Co. Hit With False Ad Suit Over E. Coli Outbreak

    A proposed class of consumers is suing Grimmway Enterprises Inc., alleging that it failed to disclose that its whole and baby carrot products were or could be contaminated with e. coli, deceiving buyers into thinking they were safe for consumption.

  • November 20, 2024

    Wells Fargo Must Turn Over E-Docs In TelexFree Litigation

    A Massachusetts magistrate judge on Wednesday ordered Wells Fargo Advisors LLC to hand over electronic files maintained by a compliance manager who investigated potential misconduct by an employee handling accounts of TelexFree associates under investigation in a $3 billion Ponzi scheme.

  • November 20, 2024

    Burger King Franchisee Escapes BIPA Coverage Counterclaim

    An Illinois federal judge has axed an AIG subsidiary's counterclaim in a Burger King franchisee's lawsuit seeking coverage for an underlying case accusing it of violating Illinois' biometric privacy law, concluding that the counterclaim is redundant and "adds nothing that will not be decided through resolution of the motions for summary judgment."

  • November 20, 2024

    Fla. Tax Preparer Gets 4 Years For Tax Fraud Scheme

    A barred Florida tax preparer was sentenced to four years in prison for falsifying returns to trigger inflated refunds for participants in a three-year tax fraud scheme called the "note program," the U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday.

  • November 20, 2024

    'Rip And Replace' Woes Underscored By Senate Hearing

    A major industry group has again called on lawmakers to address the lack of funding needed to completely remove risky Chinese-made gear from U.S. telecommunications networks.

  • November 20, 2024

    CFPB Subpoenas Trustee In Debt Relief Firm Bankruptcy Case

    The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has served a subpoena on the Chapter 11 trustee in charge of collapsed California debt relief law firm Litigation Practice Group's bankruptcy estate, the trustee's law firm said in a recent court filing.

  • November 20, 2024

    Infant Sleep Co. Says CPSC Wrongly Maligned Products

    Dreamland Baby Co. is suing the Consumer Product Safety Commission and other government agencies in D.C. federal court, alleging that the CPSC broke its own rules when a "rogue" commissioner told retailers that its infant weighted sleep products were dangerous.

  • November 20, 2024

    Conn. Regulator Slashes $35M From Utility Revenue Plans

    The Connecticut utilities regulator has rejected bids by two Avangrid Inc. units seeking a ratepayer-funded boost of $63 million, instead slashing their bottom lines by a collective $35 million in a move that was praised by the Constitution State's top enforcer. 

  • November 20, 2024

    3 Law Firms Can't Dodge TCPA Suit Over Camp Lejeune Claims

    A trio of law firms accused of calling a veteran dozens of times promising they could represent him in claims over toxic drinking water at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, despite his never having been stationed there, cannot evade the former soldier's lawsuit, a North Carolina federal judge ruled Tuesday.

  • November 20, 2024

    Biden Bank Regulators Punt Big-Ticket Rulemakings To Trump

    Top Biden administration banking regulators told House lawmakers on Wednesday that they don't plan to move forward on efforts to strengthen banks' requirements for capital, liquidity or long-term debt before President-elect Donald Trump takes office, although the Federal Reserve's supervision chief said he's not leaving anytime soon. 

  • November 20, 2024

    Bankman-Fried Tech Deputy Who Parsed Code Avoids Prison

    A Manhattan federal judge allowed tech expert Zixiao "Gary" Wang to avoid jail Wednesday for his role in the $11 billion FTX fraud, crediting his effort to detail programming "back doors" that enabled Sam Bankman-Fried to loot the bankrupt crypto exchange.

  • November 19, 2024

    Monsanto's Bid To Pause PCB Trial Again Shot Down

    A Washington state appellate commissioner on Friday again refused to undo a trial court's decision not to pause a chemical poisoning tort trial playing out in Seattle, rejecting Monsanto's contention that the court committed "obvious error" in letting the trial proceed while the state's highest court decides a similar case.

  • November 19, 2024

    High Court Urged To Let Courts Scrutinize Agency Rulings

    District courts should be allowed to question rather than grant "absolute deference" to the Federal Communications Commission's interpretation of key statutory terms in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, a chiropractic group contended Monday in calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to revive a junk fax class action.

  • November 19, 2024

    Keep Colo. Interest Rate Opt-Out Law Blocked, 10th Circ. Told

    A coalition of organizations representing the financial services industry has urged the Tenth Circuit to uphold a district court's injunction against a Colorado interest rate opt-out law, arguing the state's attempt to reframe the federal provision allowing the opt-out as a consumer protection measure ignores the underlying statute's history as rooted in federalist principles.

  • November 19, 2024

    Calif. Judge Says Crypto DAOs Are Entities That Can Be Sued

    A California federal judge has held that decentralized autonomous organizations and their governing members can indeed be sued, refusing to throw out a Golden State cryptocurrency investor's suit against Lido DAO that the judge said presents "several new and important questions" about liability in the crypto world.

  • November 19, 2024

    Online Lenders, Contractor Face Service Members' Fraud Suit

    California-based contractor Multitaskr Construction Inc. and several online lending companies were hit with a consumer lawsuit in California federal court alleging they conspired to originate lucrative fraudulent loans for home improvement projects that were never completed.

  • November 19, 2024

    All States Now Approved For Feds' Broadband Program

    Everyone who is eligible for a slice of the $42.5 billion BEAD Program pie has officially had their broadband deployment plans approved by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the agency revealed Tuesday.

  • November 19, 2024

    CFPB's Medical Debt Guidance Faces Industry Injunction Bid

    Debt collectors asked a D.C. federal court on Monday to put an immediate hold on recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau guidance aimed at the medical debt collection market, escalating their challenge to the document ahead of its looming effective date.

  • November 19, 2024

    What's On Deck At 10th Circ. Arguments In CPSC Magnet Case

    On Wednesday, the Tenth Circuit will hear arguments over whether a rule from the Consumer Product Safety Commission over safety standards for high-powered magnets is overly broad and unconstitutional. Here, Law360 looks at what the parties are expected to argue.

Expert Analysis

  • Notable Q3 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

    Author Photo

    Total loss valuation cases and labor depreciation cases dominated the past quarter of insurance class actions, with courts continuing to reject challenges to condition adjustments in the former, and a pro-insured trend persisting in the latter, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

  • Unpacking CFPB's Unwieldy Buy Now, Pay Later Guidance

    Author Photo

    Both the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recent interpretive rule regarding buy now, pay later transactions, and its FAQ guidance, place providers in murky waters with the unenviable position of attempting to place a square, closed-end product in a round, regulatory framework meant for open-end products, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • Legislation Most Likely To Pass In Lame Duck Session

    Author Photo

    As Congress begins its five-week post-election lame duck session, attorneys at Greenberg Traurig break down the legislative priorities and which proposals can be expected to pass.

  • Justices Must Weigh Reach Of Civil RICO In Cannabis Case

    Author Photo

    Oral arguments in Medical Marijuana Inc. v. Horn suggest that a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court may agree that a truck driver's losing his job after unknowingly ingesting THC and failing a drug test does not merit a racketeering claim — but the court may not buy the other side's theory of the case either, say attorneys at Lewis Baach.

  • What Trump's 2nd Presidency Could Mean For Crypto Sector

    Author Photo

    Trump's second term will bring a fundamental shift from the Biden administration's approach to crypto-asset regulation and banking supervision, with the most significant changes likely taking effect in the first two quarters of 2025 and broader policy shifts emerging over the next year, say attorneys at Cahill.

  • Putting NYDFS AI Cybersecurity Guidance Into Practice

    Author Photo

    New guidance from the New York Department of Financial Services explains how financial institutions should assess and mitigate cybersecurity risks associated with artificial intelligence, focusing on four main threats and highlighting how varying environments require specific mitigation measures, say attorneys at Saul Ewing.

  • Promoting Diversity In The Selection Of ADR Neutrals

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
    Author Photo

    Choosing neutrals from diverse backgrounds is an important step in promoting inclusion in the legal profession, and it can enhance the legitimacy and public perception of alternative dispute resolution proceedings, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Opinion

    In Visa Case, DOJ Continues To Misapply The Sherman Act

    Author Photo

    The recent U.S. Department of Justice debit market monopolization case against Visa fuels concerns that a misguided Biden administration DOJ is inappropriately expanding its interpretation of the Sherman Antitrust Act beyond the demonstrable economic effects that business conduct has on consumers, says Shubha Ghosh at Syracuse University.

  • Series

    Playing Ultimate Makes Us Better Lawyers

    Author Photo

    In addition to being fun, ultimate Frisbee has improved our legal careers by emphasizing the importance of professionalism, teamwork, perseverance, enthusiasm and vulnerability, say Arunabha Bhoumik and Adam Bernstein at Regeneron. 

  • Call For Input Shows How Banks, Fintechs Can Address Risks

    Author Photo

    A recent request for information by federal banking regulators suggests that watchdogs are zeroing in on the bank-fintech partnerships they have long perceived as risky to consumers, but analyzing the publication can help companies anticipate regulators’ chief concerns and take steps to avoid becoming enforcement targets, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Curious Case Of FTC's Amicus Brief In Teva Fed. Circ. Appeal

    Author Photo

    Attorneys at BCLP explore the Federal Trade Commission's backing of Amneal's Orange Book-delisting efforts on Teva ahead of a key Federal Circuit hearing in a case between the two pharmaceutical companies, and wonder if the FTC amicus brief indicates a future trend, especially in the next administration.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Metadata

    Author Photo

    Several recent rulings reflect the competing considerations that arise when parties dispute the form of production for electronically stored information, underscoring that counsel must carefully consider how to produce and request reasonably usable data, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • How New OCC Priorities Will Affect Bank Compliance

    Author Photo

    With the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency recently releasing a new bank supervision plan for fiscal year 2025, all banks, not only those primarily supervised by the OCC, should consider how compliance with its guidelines creates opportunities and challenges, says Andrew Karp at Cadwalader.

  • Comparing Antitrust Outlooks Amid Google Remedy Review

    Author Photo

    As the U.S. Justice Department mulls potential structural remedies after winning its recent case against Google, increased global scrutiny of Big Tech leaves ex post and ex ante antitrust approaches ripe for evaluation, say Nishant Chadha at the Indian School of Business and Manisha Goel at Pomona College.

  • Website Accessibility Ruling Leaves Circuit Split Unresolved

    Author Photo

    A New York federal court's recent decision in Mejia v. High Brew Coffee, holding that stand-alone websites are not "public accommodations" subject to the Americans with Disabilities Act, further complicates a long-running circuit split on this question — even as courts are burdened with thousands of similar lawsuits, say attorneys at Mandelbaum Barrett.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Consumer Protection archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!