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Consumer Protection
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October 25, 2024
Dental Exec Flees Ahead Of Possible 7-Year Fraud Sentence
An arrest warrant was issued Friday for the former CEO of a dental device company who pled guilty to defrauding investors out of $10.7 million after he did not show up for his sentencing hearing, where Washington federal prosecutors were asking for seven years in prison.
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October 25, 2024
Lyft To Pay $2.1M FTC Fine Over Driver Earnings Claims
Lyft Inc. will pay $2.1 million and clarify its claims about driver pay in order to settle allegations from the Federal Trade Commission that the ride-hailing company made deceptive statements about what drivers could expect to earn hourly and through special incentives, according to a Friday announcement from the agency.
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October 25, 2024
Va. Man Gets 7½ Years For $15M Gov't Contract Investor Scam
A Virginia man was sentenced Friday to over seven years in prison for defrauding dozens of investors out of $15 million by misleading them into believing that his company had millions of dollars in contracts with federal and state government agencies.
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October 25, 2024
Photo App Says BIPA Ignorance Warrants Insurance Coverage
The company behind a website and app that allow families to view photos of their children at summer camp told an Illinois federal judge it had no idea about the state's biometric privacy law, and thus couldn't have knowingly violated it, arguing that means insurers cannot shirk their responsibility to defend it in an underlying suit.
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October 25, 2024
Pa. House Advances State Bill To Protect Crypto Payments
Pennsylvania's House of Representatives advanced a bill that would codify businesses' and individuals' ability to accept digital assets as payment, maintain personal control over their digital assets and protect them from additional taxes when paying in crypto.
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October 25, 2024
FCC Didn't Play Favorites For Soros In Audacy Deal, GOP Told
The Federal Communications Commission's approval of radio station chain Audacy's recent ownership change mirrored the way it handled similar media deals in past years, the FCC's chief told critics alleging it fast-tracked the Audacy plan to benefit Democratic donor George Soros.
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October 24, 2024
Colo. Says Grocers' Execs Get Paid, No Matter The Fallout
Colorado told a state judge Thursday that consumers bear the risk in a proposed $24.6 billion merger between Kroger Co. and Albertsons, arguing grocery executives will still get their multimillion-dollar payouts even if prices go up or stores close.
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October 24, 2024
FTC Official Doubts Election Will Deter Antitrust 'New Era'
The Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Competition director defended the agency's new guidelines and its track record during a wide-ranging discussion at the 34th annual Golden State Institute on Thursday, and he expressed confidence that whichever presidential candidate wins, a new administration won't deter this "new era" of FTC antitrust enforcement actions.
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October 24, 2024
LinkedIn Hit With €310M Irish Fine For Targeted Ad Practices
Ireland's data protection commission has handed down a €310 million ($335 million) penalty against LinkedIn for allegedly failing to have an adequate legal basis for processing European Union users' personal data for targeted advertising purposes, the regulator announced Thursday.
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October 24, 2024
Mich. AG Claims Express Scripts, Optum Fueled Opioid Crisis
The state of Michigan has taken aim at Express Scripts and OptumRx for their role in the opioid crisis in a complaint filed in state court Thursday, the latest state to claim the companies for years boosted sales of opioids by giving them favorable placement on drug lists in exchange for rebates.
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October 24, 2024
Colo. Justices Grill State On Biz Names, ID Theft Law
Colorado Supreme Court justices pressed state prosecutors Thursday on why a man's reversed conviction for identity theft should be reinstated, saying the identity theft law's use of "name" as a type of personal information seems to suggest the law refers only to people and not corporations.
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October 24, 2024
Bank Groups Appeal Loss In Suit Over CFPB Small Biz Rules
Lender trade groups that sued the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over its reporting requirements for small businesses have appealed to the Fifth Circuit after a Texas federal judge granted the bureau's request for summary judgment in August.
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October 24, 2024
FINRA Says Its Regs Apply To Metaverse, Seeks Comments
Broker-dealers and other firms that are weighing incorporating the metaverse into their business operations should be mindful of how Financial Industry Regulatory Authority rules apply to such activities and reach out with any concerns about regulatory ambiguities, the regulator said Thursday.
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October 24, 2024
Walmart Sued Over Deceptively Marketed Avocado Oil
A Florida woman filed a proposed class action accusing Walmart Inc. of falsely advertising its avocado oil, deceiving consumers into thinking it was pure when it was actually cut with cheaper oils.
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October 24, 2024
AMA Latest To Sue MultiPlan Over Out-of-Network Pricing
The American Medical Association and the Illinois State Medical Society are the latest to accuse MultiPlan and the nation's largest health insurers of colluding through the use of the data firm's pricing tools to systematically underpay out-of-network providers, alleging in Illinois federal court Thursday that the "far-reaching and unlawful cartel" inhibits its members from offering critical care.
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October 24, 2024
Trade Orgs Back Google's Bid For 9th Circ. Play Store Pause
Trade groups and cybersecurity experts have told the Ninth Circuit to extend the pause on the mandate forcing Google to open up its Play Store and help rival app stores compete through that distribution mechanism, backing Google with amicus briefs warning of major disruptions to the app ecosystem.
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October 24, 2024
CFPB Cautions Over 'Unchecked Surveillance' Of Workers
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Thursday it is taking action to protect consumers from "unchecked surveillance" in the labor force, issuing guidance that warns companies to get consent from workers when using algorithmic hiring scores or other outside profiling data for employment purposes.
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October 24, 2024
DOJ, DOT Launch Inquiry Into Air Travel Competition
The U.S. departments of Justice and Transportation said Thursday that they're launching a joint inquiry into the state of competition in air travel, the latest in a run of Biden administration competition- and consumer-driven initiatives.
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October 24, 2024
FCC's Data Cap Study Tees Up Unjustified Ban, Think Tank Says
As the Federal Communications Commission launches an inquiry into how data cap practices affect the public, a free market think tank is stepping into the fray to say it's worried any regulation limiting data caps would be "misguided."
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October 24, 2024
FCC Won't Hold Off Prison Phone Rate Caps During Suits
The Federal Communications Commission has turned down three bids for the agency to shelve new prison phone service rate caps during legal appeals of the FCC's rule, saying such lawsuits are unlikely to prevail.
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October 24, 2024
DOJ Pushes Justices To Revive Bid-Rigging Conviction
Federal prosecutors told the U.S. Supreme Court that the Fourth Circuit got it wrong last year when it vacated the bid-rigging conviction of aluminum pipe maker Contech's former executive, arguing Wednesday that agreements between firms can be per se unlawful even when they have a vertical relationship.
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October 24, 2024
Broadcasters Doubt Legality Of FCC Blackout Reporting Regs
TV broadcasters questioned a Federal Communications Commission plan to require cable and satellite companies to report programming "blackouts" caused by carriage disputes to a central database, saying the agency appears to lack legal authority to impose such a requirement.
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October 24, 2024
Berkshire Hathaway Unit's RV Recall Doesn't End Defect Suit
A Montana federal judge won't let a Berkshire Hathaway unit escape a suit alleging that its RVs had a dangerous wiring defect by pointing to a 2024 recall, saying the recall doesn't offer a complete remedy for the plaintiff's claims.
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October 24, 2024
LinkedIn Intercepts Health Info On CityMD's Site, User Says
LinkedIn was hit with a proposed invasion-of-privacy class action on Wednesday in California federal court that accused the social network platform of illegally intercepting users' sensitive health information when they book medical appointments through CityMD's website, then selling the data for targeted advertising.
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October 24, 2024
NYC Council Passes Bill Requiring Hotel Licenses
The New York City Council passed a bill Wednesday that requires hotel operators to be licensed with the government in order to do business in the city.
Expert Analysis
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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.
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Unpacking Jurisdiction Issues In 3rd Circ. Arbitration Ruling
The Third Circuit's recent ruling in George v. Rushmore Service Center could be interpreted to establish three principles regarding district courts' jurisdiction to enter arbitration-related orders under the Federal Arbitration Act, two of which may lead to confusion, says David Cinotti at Pashman Stein.