Consumer Protection

  • June 03, 2024

    Jury Trials Dwindle In State Courts; Fall Started Before COVID

    Jury trials have continued to "vanish" from state courts, despite seeing a slight bump following the pandemic shutdowns, with 2021 seeing fewer than half the number of jury trials as 2019 and one-third the number held in 2007, according to a new report from the National Center for State Courts.

  • June 03, 2024

    Attys Get $10M In Fees In Family Dollar Infestation Deal

    A Tennessee federal judge has granted $10 million in fees to attorneys representing consumers following a settlement to resolve multidistrict litigation stemming from a rodent infestation at a Family Dollar Stores Inc. warehouse, finding the fees reasonable for the work done on the case.

  • June 03, 2024

    CFPB Unveils Registry To Track Nonbank 'Repeat Offenders'

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Monday finalized plans to begin centrally tracking court and regulatory enforcement orders against nonbank financial firms, issuing a rule that will create a public registry intended to help shine a light on companies that have recurring run-ins with authorities.

  • June 03, 2024

    Pool Co. Says It Won't Survive $16M Judgment In Bid For Stay

    The American arm of a Chinese swimming pool equipment maker told a North Carolina federal judge it faces insolvency if forced to fork over a $16 million false advertising and unfair business practices judgment, asking instead for a stay without bond while it appeals the verdict.

  • June 01, 2024

    Blockbuster Summer: 10 Big Issues Justices Still Must Decide

    As the calendar flips over to June, the U.S. Supreme Court still has heaps of cases to decide on issues ranging from trademark registration rules to judicial deference and presidential immunity. Here, Law360 looks at 10 of the most important topics the court has yet to decide.

  • May 31, 2024

    Live Nation Confirms Data Breach Days After Consumer Suit

    Live Nation confirmed in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing Friday that there was "unauthorized activity" in a third-party database and that a hacker claimed to have Ticketmaster consumer data for sale on the dark web, days after a lawsuit alleged the companies failed to secure customer data.

  • May 31, 2024

    Monsanto PCB Plaintiffs Want $185M Wash. Win Restored

    A group of public school teachers is urging the Washington State Supreme Court to review a state appellate court decision overturning their $185 million win in a PCB tort against Monsanto, contending the ruling stifles plaintiffs' rights in cases stemming from the same school site and other product liability litigation.

  • May 31, 2024

    Caremark Cut Loose From CVS Price-Gouging Case

    A Rhode Island federal judge on Thursday dismissed Caremark from long-running litigation alleging CVS schemed with pharmacy benefit managers to overcharge insured health plans for generic drugs, finding Caremark's contracts with the funds have enforceable arbitration clauses.

  • May 31, 2024

    Thrivent Unit To Pay FINRA $325K Over Lax Forgery Controls

    Financial services company Thrivent Investment Management Inc. has agreed to pay $325,000 to resolve Financial Industry Regulatory Authority allegations that it failed to have adequate controls in place to prevent its registered representatives from forging customer signatures over a seven-year period.

  • May 31, 2024

    'You Didn't Do It': Antitrust Judge Rips Apple's Doc Production

    A California federal judge deciding whether Apple complied with her ban on App Store anti-steering rules ordered Apple for a second time Friday to produce documents, telling Apple's counsel "the whole point" is to get documents relevant to Apple's decision-making regarding its new 27% fee "and you didn't do it."

  • May 31, 2024

    Colo. AI Bias Law Lays 'Foundation' For New State Patchwork

    Colorado's trailblazing legislation for regulating high-risk uses of artificial intelligence is likely to inspire other states to act, although a host of "reservations" about the measure from advocates and even Colorado's governor are likely to result in a fragmented national landscape as other states' legislatures use the measure as a launching point rather than a model they'd want to fully replicate. 

  • May 31, 2024

    Dunkin' Near Tossing Milk-Alternative Bias Case, For Now

    A California federal judge indicated Friday she's inclined to dismiss a proposed class action claiming Dunkin Donuts LLC violates the Americans with Disabilities Act by charging extra for beverages with nondairy milk, but said she'll likely allow the plaintiff customers to amend their complaint.

  • May 31, 2024

    T-Mobile Gets Investor Data Consolidation Suit Tossed In Del.

    T-Mobile US Inc. has escaped a shareholder suit claiming its board centralized customer data to enrich its corporate parent, which resulted in compromised data security and cyberattacks, with a Delaware vice chancellor saying the suit only shows that T-Mobile and its parent company centralized the data to make it easier to access and nothing more.

  • May 31, 2024

    Martinelli & Co. Sued Over Arsenic In Apple Juice

    A consumer hit S. Martinelli & Co. with a proposed class action in New York federal court Friday over allegations that the company failed to disclose that its apple juice contains arsenic, saying a recent recall campaign has been "a complete and abject failure."

  • May 31, 2024

    Subaru Drivers Reach Class Deal Over Defective Fuel Pumps

    A group of Subaru of America Inc. drivers asked a New Jersey federal judge Thursday to greenlight a settlement resolving proposed class claims that they bought or leased cars containing defective fuel pumps, saying the deal would provide "concrete, real-world benefits" via reimbursements and extended warranties.

  • May 31, 2024

    Zillow Rival Tells 9th Circ. Listing Snub Not 'Optional'

    Defunct brokerage platform REX-Real Estate Exchange Inc. urged the Ninth Circuit to revive its deceptive practices suit against Zillow, arguing a Washington federal judge wrongly let the property listing giant off the hook for relegating REX home sale listings to a secondary tab on its website.

  • May 31, 2024

    Orrick's $8M Deal To End Data Breach Claims Nears Prelim OK

    A California federal judge indicated Friday that she'll preliminarily approve Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP's $8 million deal to end putative class claims over a 2023 data breach that purportedly exposed personal information for 638,000 individuals, but said the "very broad" scope of the settlement's release "raised my eyebrows."

  • May 31, 2024

    Class Wants Holland & Hart Deposed Over Discovery Lapses

    A Washington consumer bringing a class action against High 5 Games is seeking to depose the company's defense team, accusing its employees and attorneys of a "years-long campaign of discovery misconduct" that hid records showing the game seller targeted gambling addicts for profit on its social casino apps deceptively marketed as free-to-play.

  • May 31, 2024

    Judge Axes Class Claims In Navy Federal Discrimination Suit

    A Virginia federal judge has cut claims and denied class certification in a suit accusing Navy Federal Credit Union of racial lending discrimination, saying the statistical evidence from media reports does not establish intentional discrimination.

  • May 31, 2024

    Intelsat Worries Over Reg Fee Spike For FCC Space Bureau

    Satellite network provider Intelsat is calling on the Federal Communications Commission to slow down with fee increases for its new Space Bureau, telling the commission in a series of meetings that rate changes proposed in March would bring about massive hikes for the industry.

  • May 31, 2024

    Fla. Judge Won't Nix SEC Suit Over $112M Ponzi Scheme

    A Florida federal judge declined on Friday to let the owner of a Florida trucking and logistics company escape allegations by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that he scammed more than 1,500 investors out of about $112 million in a Ponzi scheme aimed at Haitian Americans.

  • May 31, 2024

    9th Circ. Says LA's COVID-19 Eviction Ban Was No Taking

    The Ninth Circuit on Friday declined to reinstate a Los Angeles landlord's $100 million suit challenging the city's pandemic-era eviction ban, finding it didn't constitute a physical taking since the landlord "voluntarily opened" his property to tenants, and that loss of rental income itself doesn't establish a governmental taking.

  • May 31, 2024

    Haleon Sued Over 'Natural Flavors' Emergen-C Labels

    Pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Holdings, now Haleon PLC, was hit with a proposed class action in California federal court by two consumers who allege the company falsely labels its vitamin C drink mix as containing natural flavors even though its made with artificial ingredients.

  • May 31, 2024

    DOJ Slams Apple's Planned Bid To Dismiss Antitrust Suit

    The U.S. Justice Department has hit back against Apple's proposed bid to exit the department's antitrust suit claiming that the company is monopolizing the smartphone market, arguing that the technology giant ignores "well-pleaded facts" and misinterprets the law.

  • May 31, 2024

    DOJ's Ad Tech Case May Go To Judge, Not Jury, After All

    A Justice Department lawyer told a Virginia federal judge Friday the government is "perfectly happy" to have a bench trial accusing Google of monopolizing key digital advertising technology after the judge signaled the search giant may have short-circuited the government's original and unusual bid for a jury trial.

Expert Analysis

  • Meta Data Scraping Case Has Lessons For Platforms, AI Cos.

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    The California federal court ruling that artificial intelligence company Bright Data's scraping of public data from Meta social media sites does not constitute a breach of contract signals that platforms should review their terms of service and AI companies could face broad implications for their training of algorithms, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Independence Is Imperative This Election Year

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    As the next election nears, the judges involved in the upcoming trials against former President Donald Trump increasingly face political pressures and threats of violence — revealing the urgent need to safeguard judicial independence and uphold the rule of law, says Benes Aldana at the National Judicial College.

  • 2nd Circ.'s Binance Locus Test Adds Risk For Blockchain Cos.

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    The Second Circuit’s recent use of the irrevocable liability test to rule a class action may proceed against decentralized crypto exchange Binance heightens the possibility that other blockchain-based businesses with domestic customers and digital infrastructure will find themselves subject to U.S. securities laws, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Legal Issues When Training AI On Previously Collected Data

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    Following the Federal Trade Commission's recent guidance about the use of customer data to train artificial intelligence models, companies should carefully think through their terms of service and privacy policies and be cautious when changing them to permit new uses of previously collected data, says James Gatto at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Protested CFPB Supervisory Order Reveals Process, Priorities

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s order announcing its first use of special oversight power to place installment lender World Acceptance Corp. under supervision despite resistance from the company provides valuable insight into which products and practices may draw bureau scrutiny, and illuminates important nuances of the risk assessment procedures, say Josh Kotin and Michelle Rogers at Cooley.

  • Series

    Riding My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Using the Peloton platform for cycling, running, rowing and more taught me that fostering a mind-body connection will not only benefit you physically and emotionally, but also inspire stamina, focus, discipline and empathy in your legal career, says Christopher Ward at Polsinelli.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: March Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses four notable circuit court decisions on topics from consumer fraud to employment — and provides key takeaways for counsel on issues including coercive communications with putative class members and Article III standing at the class certification stage.

  • Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents

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    Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.

  • 3 Litigation Strategies To Combat 'Safetyism'

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    Amid the rise of safetyism — the idea that every person should be free from the risk of harm or discomfort — among jurors and even judges, defense counsel can mount several tactics from the very start of litigation to counteract these views and blunt the potential for jackpot damages, says Ann Marie Duffy at Hollingsworth.

  • How AI May Be Used In Fintech Fraud — And Fraud Detection

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    Recent enforcement actions in the fintech and finance industries show that the government is increasingly pursuing fraud enabled by artificial intelligence — at the same time it’s using AI innovations to enforce regulations and investigate fraud, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Takeaways From Groundbreaking Data Transfer Order

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    A recent first-of-its-kind executive order and related proposed rulemaking lay the groundwork for important outbound U.S. data protections, but they may have unintended consequences related to the types of data and the subjects within their scope, say attorneys at Kirkland.

  • What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks

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    Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.

  • Innodata Suit Highlights 'AI Washing' Liability Risk For Cos.

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    A class action against software company Innodata over so-called AI washing, one of the first of its kind, underscores the litigation and enforcement risks that can arise from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's novel theory about misleading artificial intelligence capabilities, say attorneys at Bracewell.

  • The Epic Antitrust Cases And Challenges Of Injunctive Relief

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    The Epic cases against Apple and Google offer a window into the courts' considerable challenges in Big Tech litigation and establishing injunctive relief that enhances competition and benefits consumers, say Kelly Lear Nordby and Jon Tomlin at Ankura Consulting.

  • Banks Should Continue To Prep For CFPB Data Rule Rollout

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    Consumer Financial Protection Bureau-supervised banks should not expect industry pressure to delay the rollout of proposed Section 1033 open banking rules, which regulate how consumer financial information flows between financial institutions, and prepare their required data access portals and compliance procedures now, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

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