Consumer Protection

  • October 01, 2026

    Google Beats Online Publishers' AI Overviews Antitrust Suit

    A D.C. federal judge on Wednesday dismissed antitrust suits from Chegg Inc. and Penske Media Corp. against Google, finding that their central claims that the search engine giant coerces publishers into supplying free content for its artificial intelligence products "fail to get out of the starting gate." 

  • October 01, 2026

    Merrill, But Not BofA, Must Face Cash Sweep Rates Suit

    Bank of America escaped account holders' allegations that they were paid unreasonably low interest rates under automatic cash sweep programs, but its wealth management division, Merrill Lynch, must still face most of the proposed class claims, according to a New York federal judge's ruling.

  • October 01, 2026

    Customers Ask 9th Circ. To Halt Paramount-Warner Bros. Deal

    Streaming service customers are asking the Ninth Circuit to step in and stop Paramount Skydance's planned $110 billion purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery until a court can decide if their antitrust suit challenging the merger will be dismissed.

  • October 01, 2026

    Classes Certified In Ford Diesel Fuel Pump Suit

    A Michigan federal judge has certified classes of truck owners in five states who allege that defective fuel pumps in Ford Motor Co.'s diesel trucks can suddenly fail and cost more than $10,000 in repairs, and, despite trimming some claims, also denied Ford judgment on the core causation issue in the case. 

  • October 01, 2026

    Water Utilities Say EPA Rule Defines Them Too Broadly

    The fate of a federal plan to eliminate the nation's lead drinking-water pipes may come down to a debate over the definition of a public water system.

  • October 01, 2026

    Google Ad Tech MDL Teed Up For Trial Largely Intact

    Gannett, the Daily Mail and a certified class of website publishers scored a major win with a New York federal court ruling largely refusing to let Google scrap antitrust allegations targeting its advertising placement technology business in sprawling multidistrict litigation.

  • October 01, 2026

    DOJ's RealPage Deal Doesn't End States' Antitrust Claims

    A North Carolina federal court has refused to toss antitrust claims from state enforcers accusing RealPage of providing software that allows residential building owners to inflate rents, despite RealPage's settlement in the case with the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • October 01, 2026

    Fla. Doc Says He Opposed Cruise Co.'s Billing, Got Fired

    A doctor has brought a federal whistleblower lawsuit against Norwegian Cruise Lines Holdings Ltd. in Florida federal court, alleging he lost his job after speaking out against what he believed were fraudulent practices to overcharge passengers for medical services that weren't necessary. 

  • October 01, 2026

    Ex-Actavis Exec Escapes Some Drug Price-Fixing Claims

    A Connecticut federal judge has dismissed a swath of claims against a former executive of Actavis and Taro in the generic drug price‑fixing litigation brought by state enforcers, holding that evidence was insufficient to prove he joined several alleged single‑drug conspiracies.

  • October 01, 2026

    CFPB Couldn't Verify Security Of Tech Left In Offices, IG Says

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau left computer equipment sitting in its now-closed regional offices for more than a year and a half without confirming that the hardware, and any sensitive material on it, was locked down, a federal watchdog said Thursday.

  • October 01, 2026

    Dems Want FHFA To Restore Internal Watchdog's Funding

    A group of 11 Democratic U.S. Senators told the Federal Housing Finance Agency not to proceed with "unlawfully slashing" the FHFA's Office of Inspector General budget for fiscal year 2027.

  • October 01, 2026

    NY, Wyo. To Collaborate For Faster Crypto Reviews, Exams

    Financial regulators in New York and Wyoming on Thursday said they have agreed to collaborate on crypto oversight in ways that could cut down on duplicative review processes and exams for fintechs operating in both states.

  • October 01, 2026

    Merrill Lynch To Pay $39M Over Retirement Cash Sweep Rates

    Bank of America's Merrill Lynch unit has reached a $39 million settlement with account holders in a suit alleging the wealth management division swept idle funds in customers' retirement accounts into low-interest accounts instead of paying the proper market interest rates.

  • October 01, 2026

    SmartSweets Sued Over Artificial Citric Acid In 'Natural' Candy

    A New York woman is suing SmartSweets Inc. in New York federal court, alleging its "better-for-you" candy, which is marketed as having no artificial flavors, contains artificial citric acid, deceiving consumers.

  • October 01, 2026

    Diageo Beats Tequila Purity Suit Due To Sparse Testing

    Global liquor giant Diageo North America Inc. has defeated claims that it falsely labeled tequilas Casamigos and Don Julio as 100% agave after a New York federal judge said the plaintiff consumers failed to show the alleged adulteration was widespread or found within their bottles.

  • October 01, 2026

    Kalshi Looks To Shield Sports Offerings At 2nd Circ.

    Prediction market giant Kalshi has asked the Second Circuit to shield its sports offerings from Connecticut gaming enforcers, drilling down on its position that those offerings ought to be immune from state scrutiny.

  • October 01, 2026

    Fla. AG Says Pfizer Hid COVID Vax Risks From Consumers

    Florida's attorney general sued Pfizer and its CEO on Thursday, claiming they deceptively marketed the pharmaceutical company's COVID-19 vaccines as safe despite knowing of reports of adverse events.

  • October 01, 2026

    Meta Beats Calif. Drivers' DMV Data Collection Suit

    A California federal judge has thrown out a proposed class action alleging Meta Platforms Inc. illegally obtained information from the state's Department of Motor Vehicles through its Pixel software, saying the plaintiffs leading the complaint haven't shown that Meta got any personal or embarrassing information.

  • October 01, 2026

    Google Shakes Suit Over Search Engine Default Agreements

    A proposed consumer class action accusing Google of monopolizing the online search market has been tossed by a California federal judge who said the plaintiffs didn't provide evidence showing that "better" options could have been available if Google hadn't struck default search engine deals with Apple and other companies.

  • October 01, 2026

    Online Vape Store Adds Junk Fees To Orders, Suit Claims

    A pair of vape buyers are suing Element Vape in California state court, alleging the vape seller adds junk fees to its orders in the form of a "route package protection fee" that adds virtually no value for the customer.

  • October 01, 2026

    US Adds Certain Faux Leather To Textiles Free Trade List

    Certain faux leather fabric that is bonded to a pile fabric will be added to the list of textiles that can enter the U.S. duty-free under the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement, the federal government said Thursday.

  • October 01, 2026

    Commerce Probes Aluminum Composite For Duty Evasion

    A Chinese company's aluminum composite panels may be designed to circumvent duties on common alloy aluminum sheet imported from the country, the U.S. Department of Commerce said Thursday, announcing an investigation.

  • October 01, 2026

    DOJ Outlines New Corporate Fraud Enforcement Priorities

    Federal prosecutors "must place great weight" on a new list of factors when considering potential charges in corporate fraud cases, including whether the matters involve government programs, threats to national security or immigration offenses, according to a memo released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • October 01, 2026

    Vape Co. Eyes Intervention In FDA E-Cigarette Suit

    The maker of the flavored e-liquid brand Naked 100 wants to defend the current U.S. tobacco policy allowing vape products to enter the market without full approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, telling a federal court that reversing the rule could push its products off shelves.

  • September 30, 2026

    9th Circ. Judges Doubt X's Claims Against Anti-Hate Group

    Ninth Circuit judges appeared skeptical Wednesday of X Corp.'s bid to revive claims against two nonprofits for scraping tweets to study online hate speech, with one judge questioning X's contract damages claim and another doubting that the nonprofits could be held liable for publishing true information.

Expert Analysis

  • Key Post-Proposal Shifts Likely In CFPB Loss Mitigation Rule

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    Mortgage servicers, borrowers and consumer advocates should prepare for a likely narrowed version of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's loss mitigation rule, which is likely to permit sequential reviews, defer to investor guidelines, extend compliance timelines and preempt conflicting state standards, say attorneys at Goodwin.

  • Series

    Teaching SEC Investigations Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Instructing a law school course on U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission investigations has made me a more thoughtful, deliberate practitioner because it requires me to continually reassess and challenge what I know about securities law enforcement, how I know it and how best to explain it, says David Chase at Miami Law.

  • Monsanto Ruling Bolsters Generic Drug Labeling Preemption

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Monsanto Co. v. Durnell concerns herbicide labeling regulated by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, but also carries weighty implications for preemption of state law labeling claims against drug manufacturers, say Terry Henry and Ann Querns at Blank Rome and Melanie Leney at Aurobindo Pharma.

  • What's Inside Proposed, Expanded NY Stablecoin Regulations

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    New York's recently proposed regulations for payment stablecoin issuers would, if adopted, increase the regulatory burdens of a state license, and midsize issuers considering a conversion to a federal charter should weigh the associated costs of both options, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • What Corporate Counsel Can Learn From OpenAI Test Breach

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    The significance of the recent artificial intelligence testing breach involving OpenAI and Hugging Face lies in what it reveals about the path of AI’s evolution, because legal professionals must translate that trajectory into actionable governance, contractual and advisory frameworks, says Jason Mueller at Vorys.

  • Assessing DOJ Antitrust's New, Faster Merger Review Option

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    The U.S. Justice Department Antitrust Division's recently announced targeted second request option and new model timing signal a commercially friendly stance and a departure from the prior administration's position, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

  • Discovery Ruling Shows How Extant Rules Mesh With AI Tools

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    A California federal court’s recent ruling in Schulte v. LinkedIn reinforces that existing discovery rules can and should accommodate emerging artificial intelligence technologies, providing litigants with confidence that well-designed AI-enabled workflows can satisfy reasonableness and proportionality standards, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • AG Watch: Minn. Defends Prediction Markets Ban

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    Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has aggressively defended the state's landmark statute banning prediction markets, but the court's July 27 temporary injunction in U.S. v. Minnesota blocking the law from taking effect could set the template for state authority across the country, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Series

    Judges On AI: Examining Administrative, Organizational Uses

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    U.S. District Judge Alan Albright of the Western District of Texas examines how artificial intelligence could transform a court's ability to deal with administrative work and organize materials when preparing for hearings or drafting opinions, thereby affording judges more time to resolve contested issues.

  • From Order To Regulation: How EOs Are Reshaping Banking

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    The pattern of regulatory activity emerging in the wake of the Trump administration's first 18 months of executive orders makes clear that financial institutions should treat presidential directives as early warning signs and not wait for final rules to assess the accompanying compliance impact, says Jonathan Kolodziej at Bradley.

  • Rhode Island Self-Checkout Law Signals National Trend

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    Rhode Island's law limiting self-checkout in retail stores is the first of its kind, but state and local lawmakers across the country are considering similar bills — and if enacted, they could create a patchwork of compliance requirements around issues including staffing, signage and restricted merchandise, says Hannah Flint at Hunton.

  • Why 4th Circ.'s Clean Water Act Injunction Ruling Matters

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    The Fourth Circuit's ruling last month in West Virginia Rivers Coalition v. Chemours, holding that a Clean Water Act permit violation does not automatically create a presumption of irreparable harm that requires a preliminary injunction, avoided a dramatic change in CWA enforcement, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • 4 Cert. Denials Keep Personal Jurisdiction Issues Percolating

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court's decisions in Ford Motor v. Montana and Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway expanded limits on personal jurisdiction, the justices' denials this term of four certiorari petitions suggest they are content to let jurisdiction questions brew in lower courts before weighing in, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • CFPB Fair Lending Litigation Reveals Compliance Complexity

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    A recent legal challenge to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's fair lending amendments underscores continuing uncertainty over disparate impact liability, discouragement standards and special purpose credit programs, signaling that financial services providers should avoid hasty compliance changes, say attorneys at Weiner Brodsky.

  • Cos. Should Act Now After US Ruling Reopens EU Data Fight

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Trump v. Slaughter may have inadvertently undermined the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, and given the importance of data transfers for U.S. businesses, companies should start preparing for a scenario in which the framework is no longer enforceable, says Fernanda Pires Merouço at Davis Wright.

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