Consumer Protection

  • November 22, 2024

    New Congress Could Undo Rules On Drinking Water, Methane

    A consumer advocacy group is warning that Republicans may target a slew of recent and pending regulatory actions when they take control in Washington next year, saying they could make use of the Congressional Review Act to unwind new rules on competition, lead in drinking water, data protection and more.

  • November 22, 2024

    Nissan Automatic Brake Classes Dismantled By 6th Circ.

    A Sixth Circuit panel vacated class certification Friday for Nissan drivers who say their cars' automatic braking system activates unnecessarily, finding the trial judge failed to grapple with software upgrades that may have fixed the alleged flaw for some of the class vehicles.

  • November 22, 2024

    FTC Can't Block Amazon's Misconduct Defense In Prime Suit

    The Federal Trade Commission can't bar some of Amazon's defenses in an enforcement suit alleging consumers were duped into signing up for Prime delivery service, a Washington federal judge has ruled, allowing the e-commerce giant to argue the regulatory agency engaged in misconduct related to the litigation.

  • November 22, 2024

    Judge Revives Ford Fire Risk Suit After Feds Question Recall

    A Michigan federal judge on Friday reopened a putative class action alleging certain Ford Motor Co. Escapes and Bronco Sports SUVs have a defect that caused engine fires, ruling that a query letter from highway safety regulators gave new life to claims the automaker's recall didn't fix the underlying problem.

  • November 22, 2024

    DC RealPage Antitrust Suit Will Get New Judge In 2025

    The District of Columbia's case accusing a slew of landlords of using property management platform RealPage to fix the price of rentals is proceeding on schedule, but the judge who has been overseeing the case is going to be handing the matter off to another at the end of the year.

  • November 22, 2024

    Capital One 'Abuses' Cast Pall Over Discover Deal, Dems Say

    As the Biden administration winds down with Capital One's bid to buy Discover Financial still pending, progressive Democrats led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are putting renewed pressure on federal bank regulators reviewing the deal.

  • November 22, 2024

    Crypto Lobby Asks Trump, Congress To Prioritize Rulemaking

    Crypto industry group Blockchain Association sent a letter to President-elect Donald Trump and members of Congress on Friday detailing what the industry feels should be immediate priorities for the next administration, including implementing a regulatory framework for digital assets and installing more crypto-amenable agency heads.

  • November 22, 2024

    Social Media MDL Judge Threatens States With Contempt

    A California federal judge presiding over multidistrict litigation concerning social media platforms' allegedly addictive designs told counsel Friday that she's considering holding California and South Carolina state agencies in contempt for refusing to comply with discovery orders, telling counsel, "I can guarantee I will not let this stand."

  • November 22, 2024

    Insurer Owes $4.5M For Water Damage, Wash. HOA Says

    A Washington state homeowners association told a federal court that its insurer owes over $4.5 million in coverage to repair hidden water damage at its condominium community, arguing that no exclusions, conditions or limitations bar coverage under its policy.

  • November 22, 2024

    PFAS Foam MDL Attys Score $95.8M For Tyco, BASF Deals

    A South Carolina federal judge awarded nearly $96 million in combined fees and costs Friday to lead counsel representing public water systems for reaching a $316.5 million deal with BASF Corp. and $750 million with Tyco Fire Products LP over forever chemicals, lauding them as "some of the most qualified mass tort litigators in America."

  • November 22, 2024

    Debt Collector Awakened Illegal 'Zombie Loans,' Suit Says

    Real Time Resolutions Inc., a debt collection company, is facing a new proposed class action from two North Carolina homeowners, who have accused it of assessing an illegal interest on their mortgage that was charged off more than a decade ago.

  • November 22, 2024

    Bondi Vowed Trump Payback. Ex-Colleagues Aren't Worried.

    U.S. attorney general nominee Pam Bondi is an outspoken ally of President-elect Donald Trump and vowed during the campaign that his "prosecutors will be prosecuted," but people who've worked with her say she's well qualified to serve as the nation's top cop and downplayed concerns that she would politicize the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • November 22, 2024

    1st Circ. Affirms Volvo Win In Dealers' Maintenance Pay Suit

    The First Circuit affirmed a pretrial win granted to Volvo in a suit brought by two dealerships claiming the carmaker was underpaying them for maintenance they perform under prepaid service plans.

  • November 22, 2024

    FCC Passes New Rules For Smart Car Tech

    The Federal Communications Commission has adopted new rules governing cellular-vehicle-to-everthing technology in the 5.9 GHz band, officially carving out 30 megahertz of spectrum previously reserved for dedicated short-range radio communications for in-vehicle and roadside C-V2X units.

  • November 22, 2024

    High Court To Review Legality Of FCC's Subsidy Fees

    The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Friday to review whether fees collected to support the Federal Communications Commission's array of telecom subsidy programs for low-income consumers, schools and rural healthcare run afoul of constitutional limits on taxing authority.

  • November 22, 2024

    Glenn Agre Gains Longtime Foley & Lardner Litigator in NY

    Three-year-old boutique Glenn Agre Bergman & Fuentes LLP announced Friday that it has hired a longtime Foley & Lardner LLP litigator with a track record of victories in disputes ranging up to 10 figures.

  • November 22, 2024

    Pa. Rate Deal Halves FirstEnergy's $502M Customer Hike Bid

    FirstEnergy will be able to increase its base electrical rates in Pennsylvania to bring in an additional $225 million in annual revenue starting in 2025 — less than half of the rate hike the company initially proposed, according to a settlement approved by the state's Public Utility Commission.

  • November 22, 2024

    Off The Bench: NBA Ices Media Flap, Paul-Tyson Netflix Suit

    In this week's Off The Bench, the NBA settles a high-profile suit regarding its new media rights deal, and Netflix's buggy presentation of the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight draws a proposed class action.

  • November 21, 2024

    Snap Moves To Toss New Mexico's Child 'Sextortion' Suit

    Snap Inc. has moved to toss New Mexico's lawsuit accusing it of enabling child sexual exploitation on its instant messaging app, Snapchat, telling a New Mexico state court that the state's attorney general lodged a "sensationalist" lawsuit rife with patently false allegations.

  • November 21, 2024

    FDIC's 'Hot Money' Revamp Gets Bank, Fintech Cold Shoulder

    Banking and fintech lobbyists are calling on the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to scrap its proposal to overhaul rules on brokered deposits, also known as "hot money," arguing the effort represents a step backward for the industry that would raise costs for everyone.

  • November 21, 2024

    Sports Site Gets Video Privacy Suit Moved To Arbitration

    A California federal judge has sent to arbitration a putative class action accusing a high school sports streaming service of unlawfully sharing users' video-viewing information with third parties such as Meta Platforms Inc., finding that the plaintiff had agreed to these terms when he first signed up for an account on the site. 

  • November 21, 2024

    Social Media MDL Judge Rips State Attys Defying Orders

    A California federal magistrate judge overseeing discovery in multidistrict litigation over social media platforms' allegedly addictive designs on Thursday ordered states to provide the names and state bar numbers of agency counsel who have refused to comply with discovery orders, threatening sanctions and asking, "What happened to the rule of law?"

  • November 21, 2024

    Boehringer Trial Over Zantac's Cancer Link Ends In Mistrial

    A California state judge declared a mistrial Thursday, ending a monthslong trial over product liability claims by a bladder cancer survivor who alleges Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc. failed to disclose cancer risks associated with the company's Zantac heartburn medication, according to the plaintiff's counsel.

  • November 21, 2024

    FCC To Hit Video Doorbell Maker For Skirting Security Rules

    The Federal Communications Commission wants to slap Chinese smart home device maker Eken with a more than $700,000 fine for breaking agency rules that require foreign companies to have an agent located in the U.S.

  • November 21, 2024

    No New Trial In Suit Over Fatal Nissan Truck Fire In Texas

    A Texas appeals court on Thursday vacated an order for a new trial in a suit against Nissan North America Inc. over a fatal truck fire, saying the trial court abused its discretion when it found that juror misconduct and other cumulative errors prejudiced the plaintiff.

Expert Analysis

  • So You Want To Move Your Law Practice To Canada, Eh?

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    Google searches for how to move to Canada have surged in the wake of the U.S. presidential election, and if you’re an attorney considering a move to the Great White North, you’ll need to understand how the practice of law differs across the border, says David Postel at Henein Hutchison.

  • 3 Policyholder Lessons From NY Bad Faith Ruling

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    A New York appellate court's recent decision finding that Rockefeller University alleged viable bad faith claims against its insurers reinforces the principle that insurers may not elevate their own economic interests over those of their insureds, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: November Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses six federal court decisions that touch on Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and when individual inquiries are needed to prove economic loss.

  • Trump's 2nd Term May Be A Boost To Banking Industry

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    President-elect Donald Trump's personnel appointments could be instrumental in reshaping the financial regulatory landscape during his second administration, likely allowing for greater merger activity and halting or undoing some of the Biden administration's more restrictive financial services policies, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Notable Q3 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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
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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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.

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