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Consumer Protection
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October 11, 2024
FCC Pressed To Revisit Local Network Unbundling Rules
An organization representing schools and libraries is once again urging the Federal Communications Commission to restore unbundling rules for local telecom incumbents, telling the agency that the FCC's Trump-era move to loosen the regulations has reduced competition among E-rate providers.
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October 11, 2024
BofA Must Face Iranian Bias Claims At 9th Circ.
A Bank of America customer wants the Ninth Circuit to revive his proposed class action alleging the financial giant discriminates against Iranian citizens, according to a notice of appeal.
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October 11, 2024
Promises Of Metaverse Art Club Were A Sham, Investors Claim
A group that claimed it would start a members-only art collection club in the Metaverse has been hit with a proposed class action alleging it misled investors about the value of the project and the benefits and returns investors would see.
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October 11, 2024
Stellantis Defeats Utah Class Cert Bid In Gearshift MDL
A Michigan federal judge declined to certify a class of Utah drivers seeking to hold Stellantis North America liable for defective gearshifts in certain Dodges, Chryslers and Jeeps, reasoning that each of the claims would have to be evaluated to determine if drivers noticed issues in the vehicles but purchased or leased them nonetheless.
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October 11, 2024
Conn. Judge OKs $5M Deal To Resolve AG's Vision Solar Case
A Connecticut state judge approved a $5 million judgment to resolve an unfair trade practices suit Attorney General William Tong brought against Vision Solar LLC.
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October 11, 2024
9th Circ. Backs Planned Parenthood's $14M Atty Fee Win
The Ninth Circuit upheld a nearly $14 million attorney fee award to Planned Parenthood after the reproductive health service provider won its suit claiming the Center for Medical Progress unlawfully recorded abortion service providers, saying Friday the award was not unreasonably disproportionate to the jury's $2.4 million damages award.
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October 11, 2024
UPS Bumped Stock With Bogus Statements, Investor Alleges
UPS was hit with a proposed investor class action from a shareholder who alleges that the shipping and logistics giant artificially boosted its earnings projections before revealing disappointing numbers this summer that sent the company's stock price tumbling down by over 12% in a single day.
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October 11, 2024
DOJ Tells Judge Boeing Plea Is 'The Best The Gov't Could Do'
The federal government told a Texas federal judge Friday that its proposed deal with The Boeing Co. over allegations that it lied to safety regulators about the 737 Max 8's development is "the best the government could do," pushing back against vehement objection from crash victims' families, who called the deal "rotten" and "morally reprehensible."
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October 11, 2024
Dems Ask FTC About Price-Gouging Ban After Hurricanes
The ravaging of the Southeast U.S. by Hurricanes Helene and Milton has left affected communities desperate for basic necessities, leading to concerns of price-gouging, and a group of Democratic lawmakers wants the Federal Trade Commission to weigh in on whether there should be a federal ban on the practice.
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October 11, 2024
Off The Bench: NCAA's NIL Deal Advances, QB Settles Again
In this week's Off The Bench, the NCAA and the athletes suing it over name, image and likeness money satisfy a judge with their proposed settlement revisions, an NFL quarterback settles yet another sexual assault accusation, and a legal battle between the NFL and one of its former reporters ends amicably.
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October 11, 2024
Nintendo, Epic Games Dropped From Addictive Gaming Suit
Nintendo of America Inc. and Epic Games Inc. have been dropped from a lawsuit filed against them and other well-known companies by a gamer who alleged they intentionally got users addicted to boost profits.
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October 11, 2024
Nippon To Sell JV Stake For $1 In Push To Close US Steel Deal
Japan's Nippon Steel said Friday it has agreed to sell its stake in a 50-50 joint venture with ArcelorMittal to the European steelmaker for just $1, as Nippon seeks to address any antitrust concerns over its planned $14.9 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel.
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October 11, 2024
TransUnion Agrees To Settle Suit Over Inaccurate Report
A Texas man who claims he lost a job opportunity after a faulty TransUnion background check identified him as a "drug offender" has agreed to end his lawsuit against the company, reaching a tentative settlement.
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October 10, 2024
Feds Slam Ex-FTX Exec's '11th Hour' Prison Delay Bid
Federal prosecutors slammed an "eleventh hour request" from former FTX co-CEO Ryan Salame to further delay the start of his prison sentence, telling a New York federal judge that Salame has apparently recovered from the dog attack that postponed his first surrender date and any remaining medical care appears "largely cosmetic and nonurgent."
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October 10, 2024
Amazon Must Give FTC Doc On Prime 'Upsells'
Amazon will have to turn over to the Federal Trade Commission the details of a presentation it made outlining how it upsells its Prime subscriptions as part of an enforcement lawsuit accusing the e-commerce behemoth of duping customers into signing up for the service.
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October 10, 2024
FTC's Final Merger Filings Overhaul Drops Labor Market Look
The Federal Trade Commission on Thursday finalized its long-awaited overhaul to U.S. merger filing rules, dropping initial proposed requirements to submit preliminary deal drafts and labor market details, while also reinstating the "early termination" of reviews of benign tie-ups.
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October 10, 2024
Social Media Apps Don't Need User Warnings, MDL Judge Told
A lawyer for TikTok urged a California state judge on Thursday to cut failure-to-warn claims from multidistrict litigation over social media's alleged effects on youth mental health, saying this theory is akin to suing newspapers for "not including a warning that reading the news could put you in a bad mood."
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October 10, 2024
Citadel Credit Union Reaches $6.5M Redlining Deal With DOJ
The U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced Thursday it reached a deal with Citadel Federal Credit Union to settle allegations it engaged in lending discrimination in Black and Latino neighborhoods, with the credit union agreeing to invest $6.5 million in neighborhoods of color in Philadelphia.
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October 10, 2024
SEC Sues Crypto Arm Of Proprietary Trading Firm DRW
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission accused the crypto-focused subsidiary of proprietary trading firm DRW Holdings of operating as an unregistered securities dealer by effecting more than $2 billion in crypto transactions, according to a complaint filed Thursday in Illinois federal court.
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October 10, 2024
Trade Group, Enviros Clash Over EPA Methylene Chloride Rule
American Chemistry Council and the Sierra Club are taking aim at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's methylene chloride rule, with the industry group telling the Fifth Circuit the agency overstepped when it outright banned most applications of the chemical for no valid reason and the conservation organization arguing it didn't go far enough.
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October 10, 2024
FCC Says Disabled Need More Access To Emergency Services
The Federal Communications Commission still has work to do to make sure telecom services are accessible to people with disabilities, particularly those who are visually and hearing impaired, the agency revealed in a new report.
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October 10, 2024
Ejudicate Ran 'Bogus' Student Loan Arbitrations, CFPB Says
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced Thursday that it has banned private dispute resolution platform Ejudicate from arbitrating disputes about consumer financial products, saying the company misled student borrowers about its neutrality and initiated "bogus" arbitration proceedings.
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October 10, 2024
OpenAI Calls Musk's Fraud, RICO Suit A Harassing Biz Move
OpenAI asked a California federal judge to toss Elon Musk's claims that the artificial intelligence venture and its top brass engaged in fraud by deciding to make OpenAI a for-profit company, claiming Musk "has been trying to leverage the judicial system for an edge" since launching a competing AI company.
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October 10, 2024
Oregon Gas Customers Sue Over 'Greenwashing' Program
Northwest Natural Gas Co. has been accused by customers of engaging in "greenwashing" by advertising its Smart Energy program as a way for them to offset their natural gas emissions, while directing the program's funds to methane-generating industrial dairy farms.
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October 10, 2024
Yale Hospital Says Pension Liens Breach $435M Sale Deal
A hospital operator's purported $4 million pension liability has saddled its properties with liens that breach a $435 million sale contract, Yale New Haven Health told a Connecticut state judge Wednesday in a letter suggesting it may add claims to litigation over its deal with Prospect Medical Holdings Inc.
Expert Analysis
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Opinion
A Fuzzy Label With Bite: FTC Must Define Surveillance Pricing
The Federal Trade Commission recently issued orders to eight companies — including Mastercard, McKinsey and Chase — seeking information on "surveillance pricing," but the order doesn't explain the term or make the distinction between legal and illegal practices, leaving any company that uses personalized pricing in the dark, says Chris Wlach at Huge.
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Assessing Algorithmic Versus Generative AI Pricing Tools
A comparison of traditional algorithmic pricing models and those powered by generative artificial intelligence can help regulators and practitioners weigh the pros and cons of relying on large language models to price products or services, say Maxime Cohen at McGill University, and Tim Spittle and Jimmy Royer at Analysis Group.
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How States Are Approaching AI Workplace Discrimination
As legislators across the U.S. have begun addressing algorithmic discrimination in the workplace, attorneys at Reed Smith provide an overview of the status, applicability and provisions of 13 state and local bills.
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A Preview Of AI Priorities Under The Next President
For the first time in a presidential election, both of the leading candidates and their parties have been vocal about artificial intelligence policy, offering clues on the future of regulation as AI continues to advance and congressional action continues to stall, say attorneys at Mintz.
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Opinion
Big Oil Climate Ruling Sets Dangerous Liability Precedent
The recent Maryland court dismissal of Baltimore's case seeking to hold BP responsible for climate damage mischaracterized the city's injuries as divorced from the conduct that caused them, and could allow companies that conceal the dangers of their products to escape liability, says Randall Abate at George Washington University Law School.
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DOJ Must Overcome Hurdles In RealPage Antitrust Case
The U.S. Department of Justice's recent claims that RealPage's pricing software violates the Sherman Act mark a creative, and apparently contradictory, shift in the agency's approach to algorithmic price-fixing that will face several key challenges, say attorneys at Clifford Chance.
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What To Know About CFPB Stance On Confidentiality Terms
A recent circular from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau represents a growing effort across government agencies to address overbroad confidentiality agreements, and gives employers insight into the bureau's perspective on the issue as it relates to the Consumer Financial Protection Act, say Holly Williamson and Elizabeth King at Hunton.
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Opinion
3rd. Circ. Got It Right On Cancer Warning Claims Preemption
The Third Circuit's recent, eminently sensible ruling in a failure-to-warn case against Roundup manufacturer Monsanto, holding that the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act preempts state law claims, provides a road map that other courts should adopt, says Lawrence Ebner at the Atlantic Legal Foundation.
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How Methods Are Evolving In Textualist Interpretations
Textualists at the U.S. Supreme Court are increasingly considering new methods such as corpus linguistics and surveys to evaluate what a statute's text communicates to an ordinary reader, while lower courts even mull large language models like ChatGPT as supplements, says Kevin Tobia at Georgetown Law.
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Finding Coverage For Online Retail Privacy Class Actions
Following recent court rulings interpreting state invasion of privacy and electronic surveillance statutes triggering a surge in the filing of privacy class actions against online retailers, companies should examine their various insurance policies, including E&O and D&O, for defense coverage of these claims, says Alison Gaske at Gilbert LLP.
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5 Ways To Confront Courtroom Technology Challenges
Recent cybersecurity incidents highlight the vulnerabilities of our reliance on digital infrastructure, meaning attorneys must be prepared to navigate technological obstacles inside the courtroom, including those related to data security, presentation hardware, video playback and more, says Adam Bloomberg at IMS Legal Strategies.
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The State Law Landscape After Justices' Social Media Ruling
Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent NetChoice ruling on social media platforms’ First Amendment rights, it’s still unclear if state content moderation laws are constitutional, leaving online operators to face a patchwork of regulation, and the potential for the issue to return to the high court, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
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Navigating New Enforcement Scrutiny Of 'AI Washing'
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent lawsuit against Joonko Diversity, its first public AI-focused enforcement action against a private company, underscores the importance of applying the same internal legal and compliance rigor to AI-related claims as other market-facing statements, say attorneys at Fried Frank.
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What's Next For Federal Preemption In Financial Services
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's review of its preemption interpretations and growing pressure from state regulators signal potential changes ahead for preemption in U.S. financial services, and the path forward will likely involve a reevaluation of the entire framework, say attorneys at Clark Hill.
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Employer Arbitration Lessons From Calif. Consumer Ruling
Although a California state appeals court’s recent arbitration ruling in Mahram v. Kroger involved a consumer transaction, the finding that the arbitration agreement at issue did not apply to a third-party beneficiary could influence how employment arbitration agreements are interpreted, says Sander van der Heide at CDF Labor Law.