Consumer Protection

  • November 05, 2024

    GOP Pennsylvania County Prosecutor Wins AG Race

    Pennsylvania Republican Dave Sunday, York County's district attorney who touted his record as a tough-on-crime prosecutor and his endorsements from several law enforcement organizations, captured the position of state attorney general Wednesday morning.

  • November 05, 2024

    Ex-US Attorney Wins Wash. Attorney General Race

    Seattle's former U.S. attorney Nick Brown will become Washington's next attorney general and the first Black man to hold the position, beating a mayor from the eastern part of the state who ran on his record as a gun rights advocate, the Associated Press projects.

  • November 05, 2024

    Wash. AG With Antitrust Focus Wins Governor's Race

    Bob Ferguson, a three-term Washington attorney general who drew national attention as an antitrust leader and a staunch advocate for consumer protection, was elected the state's governor Tuesday.

  • November 05, 2024

    Meta Hit With $15M South Korean Sensitive Data Use Fine

    South Korea's data protection regulator Tuesday revealed it has handed down a 21.62 billion won ($15.67 million) penalty against Meta Platforms Inc. for allegedly collecting Facebook users' sensitive personal information, including religious and political views, and sharing this data with thousands of advertisers without permission.

  • November 05, 2024

    Peet's Sinks ADA Bias Suit Over Alt Milk Surcharge, For Now

    A California federal judge on Tuesday freed Peet's Coffee from a proposed class action accusing it of discriminating against customers with lactose intolerance and milk allergies by levying a surcharge for non-dairy milk alternatives, saying customers who sued failed to show that only disabled customers would incur the extra cost.

  • November 05, 2024

    FTC Says Dave Mobile Banking App Deceives Customers

    The Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday accused mobile banking app Dave of misleading customers about the actual amount of cash advance they're likely to receive while also charging them undisclosed fees, including "tips" via a guilt-inducing interface, according to a complaint filed in California federal court.

  • November 05, 2024

    Ford To Face Punitives Bid At Next Ga. Trial Over Truck Roof

    Ford Motor Co. must face a punitive damages request at an upcoming jury trial over allegations that a defective pickup truck roof caused a husband and wife to suffocate during a rollover crash, a Georgia federal judge held Tuesday.

  • November 05, 2024

    Pa. AG Gets Order To Stop Glass Plant Dismantling

    The investment-firm parent of kitchenware company Anchor Hocking Holdings can't dismantle a recently shuttered glass plant in Pennsylvania until the state attorney general argues her case that the purchase and closure of the plant may be anticompetitive, according to a court order unsealed Monday.

  • November 05, 2024

    Public Interest Groups Press For 60-Day Phone 'Unlocking'

    Three big consumer advocate groups are throwing their weight behind a Federal Communications Commission proposal to require mobile providers to unlock a customer's device within 60 days of their signing up, saying the move would "most benefit lower-income customers."

  • November 05, 2024

    Immigrant Bond Cos. Slam 'Knee-Jerk' CFPB In $811M Fight

    Immigrant bond companies appealing an order to pay $811 million for allegedly abusive bonding practices have told the Fourth Circuit that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's attempt to uphold that sanction is "aimed at the heartstrings and meant to evince a knee-jerk reaction to conduct that was distasteful" but said there is "nothing that can be done to alter the past."

  • November 05, 2024

    SEC Beats Stockbroker Challenge To BSA Enforcement

    A Utah federal judge on Tuesday tossed Scottsdale Capital Advisors' lawsuit accusing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of wrongfully enforcing the suspicious activity reporting regulations under the Bank Secrecy Act, finding the microcap broker-dealer didn't show that the underlying enforcement action is subject to judicial review.

  • November 05, 2024

    Allow More High Power Use In Shared Airwaves, Org. Says

    The Federal Communications Commission is looking at overhauling the Citizens Broadband Radio Service, and the group that helped develop the standards for it originally says it's time to allow high power use in the midband spectrum.

  • November 05, 2024

    Eye-Rolling Must Stop, Judge Warns Before False Ad Trial

    A California federal judge overseeing a false advertising dispute set to go to trial Wednesday between Guardant Health and Natera cautioned lawyers for the medical diagnostic testing companies on Tuesday to stop their "eye-rolling" when opposing counsel speaks and also urged the rivals to keep trying for a last-minute settlement.

  • November 05, 2024

    Google Escapes Play Store Gift Card Scam Suit, For Now

    A California federal judge on Monday tossed a woman's proposed class action accusing Google of profiting millions of dollars stolen from victims of Google Play gift card scams but rejected the tech giant's contention that the woman was subject to a heightened pleading standard for claims predicated on fraud.

  • November 05, 2024

    CFPB Gets Good Grade On Info Security, But Gaps Remain

    The inspector general for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has given the agency a generally clean bill of health on its information security while flagging several weak points for improvement, including finding that it lacks a specific plan for handling a ransomware attack scenario.

  • November 05, 2024

    Fubo Defends Block Of Sports Streaming Service At 2nd Circ.

    Fubo is defending a New York federal judge's order blocking the launch of a sports-only streaming service from ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery at the Second Circuit, telling judges there that competitors wouldn't stand a chance in the sports streaming market without the programming that the three behemoths control.

  • November 05, 2024

    DC Circ. Wary Of FTC Changes To $5B Meta Privacy Deal

    The Federal Trade Commission faced a skeptical D.C. Circuit panel Tuesday in its bid to modify a $5 billion privacy deal with Meta, with judges questioning why any private company would settle with the agency if the deal could later be reopened.

  • November 05, 2024

    FTC Defends Noncompete Ban In 11th Circ. Appeal

    The Federal Trade Commission told the Eleventh Circuit the agency is authorized to make rules like the one banning the use of employee noncompetes and argued that a lower court was wrong to block the commission from enforcing the rule against a retirement community.

  • November 05, 2024

    Hagens Berman Defends Bid To Ditch AWOL Apple Suit Client

    A Washington federal judge expressed skepticism on Tuesday that Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP was within its rights to substitute a proposed class representative in an antitrust case against Amazon and Apple earlier this year when the lead plaintiff stopped communicating with the firm.

  • November 05, 2024

    Binance Says New SEC Complaint Suffers Same Old Flaws

    Cryptocurrency exchange Binance told a Washington, D.C., federal judge the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission can't continue to argue that secondary sales of digital assets are securities transactions in its enforcement suit against the trading platform after the regulator acquiesced that the tokens themselves aren't investment contracts.

  • November 05, 2024

    Amazon Bashes Wash. Supreme Court's Price-Gouging Ruling

    Amazon urged a Washington federal judge Monday to toss an updated proposed consumer class action alleging price gouging during the pandemic, saying the claims remain overly broad and the Washington Supreme Court's interpretation of the state's consumer protection law is unconstitutionally vague.

  • November 05, 2024

    Edge Providers Say Data Centers Key To Network Growth

    Data centers will be buzzing with ever more activity in the coming years, and edge providers like Netflix and Amazon want to make sure that U.S. agencies keep up with the network traffic flow, according to a new filing from their national trade group.

  • November 05, 2024

    Target Inks Individual Deals Over 'Non-Drowsy' Flu Medicine

    Target Corp. has reached individual settlements with three consumers who launched a proposed class action alleging its over-the-counter cold and flu medicine is misleadingly labeled as "non-drowsy" despite containing an ingredient known to cause sleepiness, according to a Minnesota federal judge's order.

  • November 05, 2024

    Conagra Settles False Ad Suit Over 'Sustainable' Fish

    Conagra and a proposed class of consumers have settled a suit accusing the food giant of deceptively labeling its seafood products as sustainable despite using ocean-harming methods to source them, according to a minute order entered Tuesday.

  • November 05, 2024

    Some Hertz Del. Insurance Claims Tossed In False Arrest Saga

    A Delaware state judge has branded as "unreasonable" and based on "contractual gymnastics" Hertz Corp. arguments for aggregating separate settlements to limit its retained liability payout duty before insurance picks up the balance of customer wrongful arrest suit settlements.

Expert Analysis

  • Navigating New Enforcement Scrutiny Of 'AI Washing'

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    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.

  • What's Next For Federal Preemption In Financial Services

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    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.

  • Employer Arbitration Lessons From Calif. Consumer Ruling

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    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.

  • Unpacking Jurisdiction Issues In 3rd Circ. Arbitration Ruling

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    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.

  • Why Attorneys Should Consider Community Leadership Roles

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    Volunteering and nonprofit board service are complementary to, but distinct from, traditional pro bono work, and taking on these community leadership roles can produce dividends for lawyers, their firms and the nonprofit causes they support, says Katie Beacham at Kilpatrick.

  • 'Pig Butchering': The Scam That Exploits Crypto Confusion

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    Certain red flags can tip off banks to possible "pig-butchering," and with the scam's increasing popularity, financial institutions need to take action to monitor entry points into the crypto space, detect suspicious activity and provide a necessary backstop to protect customers, say Brandon Essig and Mary Parrish McCracken at Lightfoot Franklin.

  • Opinion

    Agencies Should Reward Corporate Cyber Victim Cooperation

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    The increased regulatory scrutiny on corporate victims of cyberattacks — exemplified by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's case against SolarWinds — should be replaced with a new model that provides adequate incentives for companies to come forward proactively and collaborate with law enforcement, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • How Transaction Lookbacks Can Guide Fintech Companies

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    As transaction lookbacks continue to be a key focus of enforcement actions, newer financial institutions like fintech companies should know they can benefit from proactively investigating their potential failure to identify suspicious activity, creating a compliance road map and building trust with regulators in the process, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • Firms Must Offer A Trifecta Of Services In Post-Chevron World

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision overturning Chevron deference, law firms will need to integrate litigation, lobbying and communications functions to keep up with the ramifications of the ruling and provide adequate counsel quickly, says Neil Hare at Dentons.

  • Opinion

    CFPB's AI Stance Backslides On Innovation Issues

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recent response to a Treasury Department's request for information about artificial intelligence in the financial services sector uses alarmist rhetoric about the technology's risks, ceding an opportunity to help shape this important discussion, says Mike Silver at Husch Blackwell.

  • How Ripple Final Judgment Fits In Broader Crypto Landscape

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    The Southern District of New York's recent $125 million civil penalty levied in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Ripple will have a broad impact on the crypto industry as it was the first to hold that blind sales of digital assets are not securities, even if deemed securities in other circumstances, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

  • 5 Tips To Succeed In A Master Of Laws Program And Beyond

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    As lawyers and recent law school graduates begin their Master of Laws coursework across the country, they should keep a few pointers in mind to get the most out of their programs and kick-start successful careers in their practice areas, says Kelley Miller at Reed Smith.

  • The Bank Preemption Ripple Effects After Cantero, Flagstar

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    The importance of federal preemption for financial institutions will only increase as technology-driven innovations evolve, which is why the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Cantero v. Bank of America and vacatur of Kivett v. Flagstar Bank have real modern-day significance for national banks, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • IP Hot Topic: The Intersection Of Trademark And Antitrust Law

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    Antitrust claims – like those in the U.S. Department of Justice’s recent case against Apple – are increasingly influencing trademark disputes and enforcement practices, demonstrating how antitrust law can dilute the power of a trademark, say attorneys at Dentons.

  • When Trauma Colors Testimony: How To Help Witnesses

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    As stress-related mental health issues continue to rise, trial attorneys must become familiar with a few key trauma-informed strategies to help witnesses get back on track — leaning in to the counselor aspect of their vocations, say Ava Hernández and Steve Wood at Courtroom Sciences.

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