Consumer Protection

  • April 30, 2025

    Senate Panel Clears Trump's Pick For 3rd FCC Republican

    A key U.S. Senate committee on Wednesday advanced President Donald Trump's nominee for the third Republican seat on the Federal Communications Commission.

  • April 30, 2025

    Honeywell, Sourcing Co. End Scuffle Over Soured Supply Deal

    Honeywell has dropped its lawsuit accusing a sourcing company of making up quality concerns to bail on a contract for medical-grade gloves, according to a notice filed in the North Carolina Business Court.

  • April 30, 2025

    Amazon Can't Claw Back 'Inadvertent' Discovery Docs

    A Seattle federal judge has ruled that documents Amazon.com Inc. produced as part of three proposed antitrust class actions may not be clawed back, finding that despite the online retailer's claims that they were produced "inadvertently," there was no indication the document-sharing was a mistake.

  • April 30, 2025

    Judge Orders Mediation In Riley Pope Data Breach Suit

    A South Carolina federal judge on Tuesday ordered parties in a proposed class action over a 2024 cyberattack impacting the employees of law firm Riley Pope & Laney LLC's clients to conduct mediation ahead of trial — one day after the firm asked the court to toss the case, claiming the plaintiff has not alleged any actual misuse of his personal information.

  • April 30, 2025

    DOJ Fights Firm's Bid To Halt Tax Collection During Suit

    A boutique Connecticut consumer protection law firm cannot block the IRS from collecting 2022 and 2023 payroll taxes while the firm challenges the government's alleged failure to process CARES Act payroll credit requests in 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice has argued.

  • April 30, 2025

    Kratom Cos. Get False Ad, Addiction Suit Tossed

    A California federal judge has dismissed a proposed class action alleging Thang Botanicals and FTLS Holdings LLC mislead consumers about addictive qualities of their kratom products after the plaintiffs failed to file an amended complaint on time.

  • April 29, 2025

    Duke Energy Rival Tells Justices Not To Review Monopoly Suit

    Independent power producer NTE Energy is urging the U.S. Supreme Court not to review a decision that revived its monopoly suit against Duke Energy, saying the North Carolina-based company is asking the justices to issue an advisory opinion answering a hypothetical question.

  • April 29, 2025

    2nd Circ. Not Sure FCC Fine Denied Verizon's Trial Right

    Second Circuit judges questioned Tuesday why the feds couldn't fine Verizon millions of dollars for location data misuse since the telecom carrier has the option of refusing to pay and demanding a jury trial if the U.S. Department of Justice comes to collect.

  • April 29, 2025

    Ex-CFPB Senior Attys Sign On With Democracy Forward

    Democracy Forward, a legal advocacy group that's emerged as a top court brawler with the Trump administration, said Tuesday that it has hired several more of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recently departed senior litigators, adding to its ranks of agency alums.

  • April 29, 2025

    FTC Defends John Deere Right-To-Repair Suit

    Farm machinery-maker Deere & Co. is trying to get out of an FTC enforcement action using the same arguments that didn't help it escape multidistrict litigation accusing the company of breaking antitrust laws by restricting access to repair services, the government says.

  • April 29, 2025

    State Telecom Roundup: Funding Security Without The Feds

    The Trump administration has made it clear that it expects states to take the reins regarding cybersecurity infrastructure and disaster preparedness and that the feds plan to step back, but not all states are equally prepared for that task.

  • April 29, 2025

    SEC Abandons Investigation Into PayPal's Dollar Stablecoin

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped its investigation into PayPal's dollar-pegged stablecoin "without enforcement action," PayPal said in a disclosure filed Tuesday, the latest cryptocurrency probe abandoned by the agency under President Donald Trump's administration.

  • April 29, 2025

    Justices Wary Of Issuing 'Advisory' Ruling In Class Cert. Row

    The U.S. Supreme Court's latest attempt to address a pressing question about class certification standards may be doomed by a procedural hiccup, with a majority of justices expressing concern Tuesday that they didn't have the authority to wade into a dispute over approval of a class that contains uninjured members.

  • April 29, 2025

    Fla. AG Drops Claims FEMA Avoided Trump Supporters' Homes

    Florida's attorney general said Monday that he has settled a lawsuit against the Federal Emergency Management Agency's administrator over an alleged directive instructing hurricane relief workers to avoid homes displaying signs in support of Donald Trump.

  • April 29, 2025

    CFPB Aims To Mediate Colony Ridge 'Reverse Redlining' Suit

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and a Houston-based real estate developer asked a Texas federal judge Tuesday to pause the bureau's reverse redlining suit so they can engage in mediation to resolve the case.

  • April 29, 2025

    Examining The EPA's Forever Chemical Plans

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says it plans to clarify who is liable for forever chemical contamination and hold polluters accountable, though questions remain as to whether current standards could be loosened and how much help could be needed from Congress.

  • April 29, 2025

    Adviser Renews Bid To Toss SEC Suit Over Liquidity Rule

    Pinnacle Advisors LLC has again urged a New York federal judge to toss a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission suit accusing the wealth management firm of exceeding its allowed allotment of illiquid investments, standing by its arguments that the so-called liquidity rule was wrongly promulgated.

  • April 29, 2025

    Amazon Can't Shake Return Policy Suit, Wash. Judge Rules

    A Washington federal judge refused Tuesday to dismiss claims accusing Amazon of unlawfully recharging consumers under its "advanced refund" return policy, ruling that the e-commerce giant could face tort and quasi-contract liability alongside breach of contract allegations.

  • April 29, 2025

    Judge Mulls If Google Could Still Vie To Be Default Search

    A D.C. federal judge probed potential middle grounds Tuesday for how to give Google's search engine rivals a leg up against the company's monopoly, asking how to avoid a "duopoly" with Microsoft and if Google might be permitted to continue paying browsers and phonemakers for default placement.

  • April 29, 2025

    Conn. Watchdog Urges Probe Into Avangrid Phishing Scam

    Connecticut's Office of Consumer Counsel has asked the state utilities regulator to open a probe into Avangrid Inc.'s alleged public dissemination of customer information, telling the agency in a petition that two of its natural gas subsidiaries in the state fell victim to a phishing scam.

  • April 29, 2025

    Gore-Tex Maker Seeks Dismissal Of PFAS Suit

    The company behind the waterproof fabric brand Gore-Tex urged a Washington federal court to dismiss a lawsuit accusing it of manufacturing with toxic forever chemicals while also "greenwashing" its image, arguing that the buyers, who did not actually test their garments, provide no proof that the clothing they bought contains these substances.

  • April 29, 2025

    Honda America Asks To Halt Faulty Brakes Suit

    American Honda Motor Co. urged a California federal judge Monday to throw out an amended proposed class action alleging some of the automaker's vehicles equipped with automatic emergency braking are unsafe, arguing the claims are meritless because the owner's manuals disclose the possibility of false activations of the braking system.

  • April 29, 2025

    North Georgia Healthcare Provider Sued Over Data Breach

    A regional healthcare provider and a collections agency have been hit with a proposed class action in Georgia federal court over allegations that their lax cybersecurity practices allowed hackers to steal the protected health information of patients during a July 2024 data breach.

  • April 29, 2025

    Kim Kardashian, Celebs Challenge Crypto Buyers' Cert. Bid

    The co-founder of the EthereumMax crypto token and celebrities who allegedly promoted the offering told a California federal judge that a group of spurned buyers should not be able to certify their class action since they have not provided a way to determine how many transactions would fall in each category.

  • April 29, 2025

    23andMe Agrees To Privacy Ombudsman In Ch. 11

    A Missouri bankruptcy judge on Tuesday signed off on a consumer privacy watchdog for 23andMe's Chapter 11 after the genetic testing group and 30 states agreed that a statutorily authorized ombudsman would be the best way to vet a Chapter 11 sale that includes 15 million users' DNA information.

Expert Analysis

  • 6 Tips For Cos. To Comply With Influencer Gifting Rules

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    A January decision in a National Advertising Division case concerning Revolve Group provides new insights on how the NAD expects companies to manage certain influencer campaigns, including preapproving posts before they go live and considering how they present the disclosure instructions to influencers, says Gonzalo Mon at Kelley Drye.

  • 4 Potential Effects Of 3rd Circ.'s Coinbase Ruling

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    The Third Circuit's recent landmark decision in Coinbase v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that the SEC's refusal to engage in rulemaking to clarify its stance on crypto enforcement was "insufficiently reasoned" could have wide-ranging impacts, including on other cases, legislation and even the SEC's reputation itself, says Daniel Payne at Cole-Frieman.

  • Improving Comms Between Trial Attys And Tech Witnesses

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    In major litigation involving complex technology, attorneys should employ certain strategies to collaborate with companies' technical personnel more effectively to enhance both the attorney's understanding of the subject matter and the expert's ability to provide effective testimony in court, say attorneys at Buchalter.

  • CFPB's Message To States Takes On New Weight Under Trump

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's January guidance to state enforcers has fresh significance as the Trump administration moves to freeze the bureau's work, and industry should expect states to use this series of recommendations as an enforcement road map, say attorneys at Brownstein Hyatt.

  • National Bank Act Rulings Facilitate More Preemption Analysis

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    Two recent National Bank Act preemption decisions from an Illinois federal court and the Ninth Circuit provide the first applications of the U.S. Supreme Court’s May ruling in Cantero v. Bank of America, opening the potential for several circuit courts to address the issue this year, say attorneys at Moore & Van Allen.

  • Series

    Collecting Rare Books Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My collection of rare books includes several written or owned by prominent lawyers from early U.S. history, and immersing myself in their stories helps me feel a deeper connection to my legal practice and its purpose, says Douglas Brown at Manatt Health.

  • What NHTSA's Autonomous Vehicle Proposal Means For Cos.

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    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's recently proposed framework for review and oversight of vehicles equipped with automated driving systems offers companies a more flexible, streamlined approach to regulatory approvals for AVs, including new exemption pathways, assessments by independent experts and other innovations, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Tips For Pharma-Biotech Overlap Reporting In New HSR Form

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    While there’s no secret recipe for reporting overlaps to the Federal Trade Commission in the new Hart-Scott-Rodino Act form, there are several layers of considerations for all pharma-biotech companies and counsel to reflect on internally before reporting on any deal, say attorneys at A&O Shearman.

  • Complying With Calif. Price-Gouging Law After LA Fires

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    The recent tragic Los Angeles fires have brought attention to the state's sometimes controversial price-gouging protections, and every California business should keep the law's requirements in mind, despite the debate over whether these statutes help consumers, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Opinion

    Judge Should Not Have Been Reprimanded For Alito Essay

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    Senior U.S. District Judge Michael Ponsor's New York Times essay critiquing Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito for potential ethical violations absolutely cannot be construed as conduct prejudicial to the administration of the business of the courts, says Ashley London at the Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University.

  • Aviation Watch: Litigation Liabilities After DC Air Tragedy

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    While it will likely take at least a year before the National Transportation Safety Board determines a probable cause for the Jan. 29 collision between a helicopter and a jet over Washington, D.C., the facts so far suggest the government could face litigation claims, says Alan Hoffman, a retired attorney and aviation expert.

  • How Cos. Can Use Data Clean Rooms To Address Privacy

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    Implementing comprehensive administrative controls, security processes and vendor management systems are vital steps for businesses leveraging data clean rooms for privacy compliance, especially given the Federal Trade Commission's warnings of complicated user privacy implications, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • Lights, Camera, Ethics? TV Lawyers Tend To Set Bad Example

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    Though fictional movies and television shows portraying lawyers are fun to watch, Hollywood’s inaccurate depictions of legal ethics can desensitize attorneys to ethics violations and lead real-life clients to believe that good lawyers take a scorched-earth approach, says Nancy Rapoport at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

  • SEC Motion Response Could Reveal New Crypto Approach

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    Cumberland DRW recently filed to dismiss the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s enforcement action against it for the unlawful purchase and sale of digital asset securities, and the agency's response should unveil whether, and to what extent, the Trump administration will relax the federal government’s stance on digital asset regulation, say attorneys at O'Melveny.

  • A Compliance Update For Credit Card Reward Partnerships

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    While the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's interest in credit card rewards programs could fade under the new administration, a recent circular focusing on both issuers and their merchant partners means that co-brand credit card partnerships with banks could be subject to increased scrutiny ahead, say attorneys at Goodwin.

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