Consumer Protection

  • September 19, 2024

    Wells Fargo Judge Says NDA Isn't A 'Gag' In Loan Bias Case

    A California federal judge on Thursday challenged Wells Fargo's arguments seeking to prevent a former underwriter from testifying as an expert in a proposed class action claiming the bank discriminated against non-white borrowers, saying a confidentiality agreement the ex-employee purportedly signed couldn't be used as a "gag" to silence him.

  • September 19, 2024

    Publishers 'Did Not Trust Google,' Former Ad Tech Exec Says

    A former Google executive acknowledged Thursday that at least some website publishers sought a workaround to the search giant's advertising placement technology because they didn't trust the company's consolidated control, which the Justice Department has challenged in a Virginia federal courtroom.

  • September 19, 2024

    Dems Seek School Lunch 'Junk Fee' Ban After CFPB Report

    A group of Democratic senators has called on the Biden administration to crack down on payment processing fees in school lunch programs, citing a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau report that raised concerns about the charges parents pay to fund their kids' online lunch money accounts.

  • September 19, 2024

    Safeway Touts Bogus Wine Discounts For Members, Suit Says

    Safeway faces a proposed false advertising class action filed Wednesday in California federal court alleging it advertises bogus, limited-time offers of discounted prices on wine sold at its stores for its rewards program members, which misleads customers into thinking they're scoring a bargain. 

  • September 19, 2024

    Congress Clears Bill Setting Aside Space Launch Spectrum

    Congress has sent a bipartisan bill to the White House that would set aside certain airwaves specifically for use in commercial space launches in a bid to drive space industry growth.

  • September 19, 2024

    Republicans Air Grievances At House Hearing on FTC Practices

    The Federal Trade Commission ought to stick to combating consumer scams and leave the competition regulation alone — that was the general tenor of Republicans on Wednesday morning at a House hearing about the agency's past and present practices.

  • September 19, 2024

    Birkin Bag Lovers Must Rework Antitrust Suit, Judge Says

    A California federal judge said Thursday that consumers behind a proposed antitrust class action accusing Hermes of unlawfully tying the sale of its iconic Birkin handbag to other expensive items should amend their complaint, since the current version doesn't show how the luxury fashion retailer has foreclosed competition.

  • September 19, 2024

    CFPB's Chopra Sounds Alarm On Home Insurance 'Crisis'

    Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra called Thursday for concerted policy action to tame spiking homeowners insurance costs and said he's looking into streamlining rules on mortgage refinancing to help consumers take advantage of the Federal Reserve's shift into rate-cutting mode.

  • September 19, 2024

    FCC Chief Tanks Trump Call To Pull ABC Licenses

    The government has no intention of seeking to revoke ABC's broadcast licenses at the behest of former President Donald Trump, the head of the Federal Communications Commission told lawmakers Thursday.

  • September 19, 2024

    GM Asks Full 6th Circ. To Rehear Truck Emissions Fraud Suit

    General Motors LLC is asking the full Sixth Circuit for an en banc rehearing of a split decision that revived state law claims from four plaintiffs who alleged that GM misleadingly marked Chevrolet Silverado and Sierra vehicles as being more environmentally friendly than they were.

  • September 19, 2024

    FTC's Holyoak Offers 'Alternative Vision' For Privacy, AI Work

    The Federal Trade Commission needs to rein in its work on data privacy and artificial intelligence rather than pursue sweeping actions that exceed its regulatory authority and threaten to compromise the support and funding the agency gets from Congress, according to one of its Republican commissioners. 

  • September 19, 2024

    Roblox Can't Ax Negligence Claims In Online Gambling Case

    Roblox must face claims it was negligent for failing to shield minor players from gambling through its platform after a California federal judge ruled Thursday that the plaintiffs adequately alleged it was foreseeable that the players would head to online casinos and gamble away their digital currency known as "Robux."

  • September 19, 2024

    Union Pacific Contractors Again Escape Texas Enviro Claims

    A Texas appeals court on Thursday affirmed a trial court's decision to dismiss without prejudice the claims scores of people lodged against two Union Pacific Railroad Co. contractors in their litigation over cancer-causing contamination related to a Houston rail yard.

  • September 19, 2024

    Food Safety Org Says EPA Stalling On Sharing Pesticide Info

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is illegally failing to provide important records about how it assesses pesticides' ecological impact and human health risks, the Center for Food Safety said in a new lawsuit.

  • September 19, 2024

    Scammers Bilked At Least $230M In Bitcoin, Feds Say

    Two people were arrested and charged with conspiring to steal and launder at least $230 million in bitcoin, allegedly using online monikers like "Anne Hathaway" and "VersaceGod," federal prosecutors said Thursday.

  • September 19, 2024

    Shot Put Pro Alleges Cannabis Ended His Athletic Career

    A champion collegiate athlete who's won numerous medals in the shot put has filed suit against half a dozen hemp retailers in New Jersey state court, claiming their products caused him to develop a cannabis-induced psychosis that spurred a suicide attempt and ended his professional athletic career.

  • September 19, 2024

    Crypto Exchange Must Refund Bitcoins, But In 2013 Dollars

    A New York judge held Thursday that bygone cryptocurrency exchange Bitfloor improperly failed to return more than 200 of its customers' bitcoins upon shutting down in 2013, but said damages will be limited to the dollar value of the digital assets over a decade ago.

  • September 19, 2024

    Live Nation Looks To Trim Gov't Antitrust Case

    Live Nation has asked a New York federal court to toss claims seeking damages in the government's antitrust case, arguing that consumers were not harmed by its dealings with concert venues and promoters, and also asked to nix a tying claim from the case.

  • September 19, 2024

    Tyson Foods Hit With Greenwashing Suit For 'Net-Zero' Claim

    Tyson Foods Inc. has been slapped with a complaint by the Environmental Working Group in D.C. Superior Court, accusing the country's second-largest meat company of falsely claiming it will be net-zero by 2050 and misrepresenting its industrial beef products as "climate-smart."

  • September 19, 2024

    Puerto Rico, Navient Ink $7.7M Student Loan Forgiveness Deal

    Navient Corp. has reached an agreement with Puerto Rico's attorney general to forgive at least $7.7 million in private student loans after being accused of past predatory lending to student borrowers and pervasive loan servicing failures.

  • September 19, 2024

    GOP's Broadband Permit Overhaul 'Dangerous,' Localities Say

    Local governments urged congressional leaders to reject a Republican-backed plan to revamp permitting laws that delay new broadband deployment projects, calling the proposal a "dangerous" step toward limiting city and county rights.

  • September 19, 2024

    No Coverage For Santander Shareholder Suit, Allianz Says

    Allianz told a Massachusetts federal court that it doesn't owe coverage to Santander Holdings for an underlying class action brought by shareholders over the company's $2.5 billion deal to take its consumer finance entity private, arguing that multiple exclusions bar coverage for claims arising from the transaction.

  • September 19, 2024

    H&R Block Again Asks 8th Circ. To Remove ALJs In Ad Suit

    H&R Block asked the Eighth Circuit to reconsider its denial of the company's request to stop administrative law judges from presiding over its coming false-advertising hearing before the Federal Trade Commission, saying the court's one-sentence ruling lacked any explanation despite the significant constitutional issues involved.

  • September 19, 2024

    Feds Oppose Overturning Guilty Verdict For Crypto Trader

    Federal prosecutors told a New York federal judge that the crypto trader convicted of fraudulently draining more than $100 million from platform Mango Markets is wrongly attempting to recast factual issues as legal questions in his bid for acquittal.

  • September 19, 2024

    Calif. Vape Co. Says Mich. Store Is Selling Counterfeit G Pens

    California-based GS Holistic LLC is suing a Michigan smoke shop in federal court, alleging that it is selling counterfeit versions of its G Pen e-cigarettes without authorization at a fraction of the price, infringing its trademarks and harming its reputation.

Expert Analysis

  • How Uyghur Forced Labor Law Affects Importing Companies

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    Amid a growing focus on forced labor in supply chains and a likely increase in enforcement under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, companies may face costly import delays unless they develop and implement compliance best practices, say Thad McBride and Lauren Gammer at Bass Berry.

  • What Companies Should Consider Amid Multistate AG Actions

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    The rise of multistate attorney general actions is characterized by increased collaboration and heightened scrutiny across various industries — including Big Tech and gaming — and though coalitions present challenges for targeted companies, they also offer opportunities for streamlined resolutions and coordinated public relations efforts, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Series

    Glassblowing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    I never expected that glassblowing would strongly influence my work as an attorney, but it has taught me the importance of building a solid foundation for your work, learning from others and committing to a lifetime of practice, says Margaret House at Kalijarvi Chuzi.

  • 3 Surprising Deposition Dangers Attorneys Must Heed

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    Attorneys often do not think of discovery as a particularly risky phase of litigation, but counsel must closely heed some surprisingly strict and frequently overlooked requirements before, during and after depositions that can lead to draconian consequences, says Nate Sabri at Perkins Coie.

  • Careful Data Governance Is A Must Amid Enforcement Focus

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    Federal and state regulators' heightened focus on privacy enforcement, including the Federal Trade Commission's recent guidance on consumer protection in the car industry, highlight the importance of proactive risk management, compliance and data governance, say Jason Priebe and Danny Riley at Seyfarth.

  • 5 Critical Factors Driving Settlement Values In Cyber Litigation

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    Recent ransomware incidents and their legal repercussions offer five valuable insights into the determinants of settlement values in cyberattack-related litigation, and understanding these trends and their implications can better prepare organizations for the potential legal fallout from future breaches, says Peter Kamminga at JAMS.

  • Opinion

    Paid Noncompetes Offer A Better Solution Than FTC's Ban

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    A better alternative to the Federal Trade Commission's recent and widely contested noncompete ban would be a nationwide bright-line rule requiring employers to pay employees during the noncompete period, says Steven Kayman at Rottenberg Lipman.

  • How Associates Can Build A Professional Image

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    As hybrid work arrangements become the norm in the legal industry, early-career attorneys must be proactive in building and maintaining a professional presence in both physical and digital settings, ensuring that their image aligns with their long-term career goals, say Lana Manganiello at Equinox Strategy Partners and Estelle Winsett at Estelle Winsett Professional Image Consulting.

  • Firms Must Rethink How They Train New Lawyers In AI Age

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    As law firms begin to use generative artificial intelligence to complete lower-level legal tasks, they’ll need to consider new ways to train summer associates and early-career attorneys, keeping in mind the five stages of skill acquisition, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.

  • High Court's BofA Ruling Leaves State Preemption Questions

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    A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Cantero v. Bank of America sheds light on whether certain state banking regulations apply to federally chartered banks, but a circuit split could still force the Supreme Court to take a more direct position, says Brett Garver at Moritt Hock.

  • Cyber Takeaways For Cos. From Verizon Data Breach Report

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    Camilo Artiga-Purcell at Kiteworks analyzes the key findings of the 2024 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report from a legal perspective, examining the implications for organizations' cybersecurity strategies and compliance efforts.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing

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    When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Lessons From Epic's Dutch Fine For Unfair Marketing To Kids

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    Dutch regulators' imposition of a €1.1 million fine on Epic Games for unfair commercial practices targeting children marks a significant moment in the ongoing scrutiny of digital market practices, and follows an increased focus on children's online safety in the U.S. and European Union, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Opinion

    California Has A Duty To Curtail Frivolous CIPA Suits

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    As plaintiffs increasingly file class actions against companies for their use of website tracking cookies and pixels, the Legislature should consider four options to amend the California Invasion of Privacy Act and restore the balance between consumer privacy and business operational interests, say Steven Stransky and Jennifer Adler at Thompson Hine and Glenn Lammi at the Washington Legal Foundation.

  • Risks And Promises Of AI In The Financial Services Industry

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    Generative artificial intelligence has immense potential to revolutionize the financial services industry, but firms considering its use should first prepare to show their customers and the increasingly divided international regulatory community that they can manage the risks inherent to the new technology, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

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