Consumer Protection

  • April 26, 2024

    Sen. Panel Set To Vote On Dems' Spectrum Auction Bill

    A Senate panel plans to vote on a bill that would renew the Federal Communications Commission's spectrum auction powers and address a shortfall in the agency's national security program.

  • April 26, 2024

    Feds Probe Tesla Autopilot Recall Fix Amid 'Misuse' Risks

    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating whether Tesla's software update following a December recall, intended to more clearly warn drivers to stay alert and attentive while using its vehicles' Autopilot advanced driver-assistance system, effectively addressed the risks of "driver misuse."

  • April 26, 2024

    Crypto Atty's Senate Bid Takes Detour For SEC-Coinbase Suit

    The pro-cryptocurrency attorney vying to unseat Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts added to his pro bono work in the digital asset space on Friday by taking up the mantle for Coinbase users in the crypto exchange's ongoing battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

  • April 26, 2024

    Google Urges Va. Court To End DOJ's Ad Tech Case

    Google urged a Virginia federal court on Friday to toss the U.S. Department of Justice case accusing it of monopolizing key digital advertising technology ahead of trial, saying the government cannot use antitrust law to force a company to help its competitors.

  • April 26, 2024

    Alaska Airlines Rogue Pilot Suit Not Grounded Yet

    A Washington state court judge ruled Friday that Alaska Airlines passengers' state negligence claims were entirely preempted by federal regulations, but gave them a chance to revise their suit to claim the airline violated federal safety rules by allowing an off-duty pilot into the cockpit who allegedly tried to sabotage the flight.

  • April 26, 2024

    Soccer Star Says Binance Is Target Of $1B Fla. Suit, Not Him

    Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo has urged a Florida federal judge to dismiss a $1 billion proposed class action lawsuit against him over promoting Binance.US, saying the embattled cryptocurrency exchange is listed as the target of the suit — in an "apparent Freudian slip" — instead of him.

  • April 26, 2024

    HomeServices Brokerage Reaches Deal With Home Sellers

    Berkshire Hathaway-owned brokerage firm HomeServices of America reached a deal Friday to settle claims that it forced a class of home sellers to pay inflated commissions, closely following the approval of a $418 million deal between the class and the National Association of Realtors.

  • April 26, 2024

    Wells Fargo Clients Seek Class Cert. In Race Bias Suit

    Mortgage applicants accusing Wells Fargo of discriminating against borrowers from racial minorities with higher interest rates, worse terms and more scrutiny than white clients have asked a California federal judge to approve their class.

  • April 26, 2024

    FTC's Bedoya Says Labor Concerns In Mergers Matter

    Federal Trade Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya said Friday that it's important for enforcers to consider the impact mergers can have on labor, even if they never did in the past, contending that concentration can lead to lower wages and dangerous working conditions.

  • April 26, 2024

    Apple Keeps Win Over Fortnite Player In Calif. Antitrust Suit

    A California state appeals court on Thursday refused to revive a putative class action brought by Fortnite players alleging that Apple's App Store policies violate the state's antitrust and unfair competition laws, saying because the tech giant's conduct is immune from antitrust liability it can't be held to be "unfair."

  • April 26, 2024

    Republic First Bank Fails In Biggest Bust Since 2023 Turmoil

    Republic First Bank, a roughly $6 billion bank based in Philadelphia, was shuttered Friday by Pennsylvania state banking regulators and sold to Fulton Bank NA, capping off a prolonged decline that only worsened in the wake of last spring's regional bank failures.

  • April 26, 2024

    NJ Solar Co. To Settle Claims It Ignored Do Not Call List

    Apollo Energy Co. and the Pennsylvania man who accused it of repeatedly calling consumers who had put their phone numbers on the national Do Not Call registry or who had already asked not to call them again have agreed to settle their dispute, the parties said.

  • April 26, 2024

    Insurers Say BASF Can't Seek Same PFAS Coverage In 3 Suits

    BASF Corp.'s insurers have said a South Carolina federal court lacked jurisdiction and should toss the chemical manufacturer's case in favor of similar New Jersey state litigation seeking coverage for thousands of underlying allegations that a substance made for firefighting foam caused pollution and injury.

  • April 26, 2024

    CVS Customers Say Colo. Co. 'Eavesdrops' On Web Activity

    Two consumers who used CVS.com to order prescription refills have filed a putative class action against a Colorado software service provider claiming it illegally eavesdrops on visitors' interactions with the website without their knowledge, even gathering information about specific drugs and dosages they purchased.

  • April 26, 2024

    Blackstone Must Face Claims Of Price-Fixing At Vegas Hotels

    A Las Vegas hotel price-fixing suit against Blackstone and others has survived the private equity firm's motion to dismiss, with a Nevada federal judge ruling the plaintiffs had shown enough to allege Blackstone was in control of one of the target hotels, the Cosmopolitan Hotel, at the time of the alleged scheme.

  • April 26, 2024

    FTC Claims Amazon Execs Destroyed Antitrust Evidence

    The Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general urged a Washington federal judge to force Amazon to produce documents detailing its preservation efforts in their high-stakes antitrust fight, arguing that discovery has revealed that ex-CEO Jeff Bezos and other executives used the encrypted app Signal to destroy relevant antitrust evidence.

  • April 26, 2024

    2 NC Sens. Seek Atty Fee Cap In Debt Collection Suits

    Two Republican North Carolina lawmakers have proposed state legislation that would close a loophole for attorney fees in debt collection actions while giving courts more power to determine a reasonable charge.

  • April 26, 2024

    Insurer Can't Avoid Coverage Suit Against Escrow Agent

    First American Title Insurance Co. must continue to be a party in Wesco Insurance Co.'s declaratory action seeking to avoid covering claims that Wesco's insureds improperly diverted escrow funds in real estate transactions to third parties with no valid claims to the funds, a Florida federal court ruled.

  • April 26, 2024

    Pa. Regulators To Probe FirstEnergy's $503M Rate Hike Bid

    The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission is opening an investigation into a FirstEnergy unit's proposed annual rate increase that would boost its revenue by over $503 million and raise consumer power bills in four districts by between 9.2% and 11.8%, according to a new order from the regulator.

  • April 25, 2024

    FTC Sues Bill-Payment Co. Over Misleading Ads, Junk Fees

    The Federal Trade Commission on Thursday filed suit against a Seattle-based, third-party bill-paying company for allegedly tricking online consumers into using the company's service by disguising itself as consumers' billers' official payment channel and tacking on junk fees.

  • April 25, 2024

    ​​​​​​​Legal Battles Set To Begin On Broadband 'Neutrality' Regs

    Now that the Federal Communications Commission's Democratic leadership brushed past GOP members' opposition to net neutrality rules, it faces what could be a higher hurdle — growing resistance in the courts to expansive views of agency powers.

  • April 25, 2024

    Objector Takes $125M PACER Overcharge Deal To Fed. Circ.

    An objector to a $125 million deal resolving class action claims that the federal judiciary overcharges users of its PACER court records system is taking his challenge to the settlement to the Federal Circuit.

  • April 25, 2024

    FCC OKs $1.35B T-Mobile, Mint Deal With Unlocked Phones

    The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday approved T-Mobile's $1.35 billion purchase of Ka'ena, the parent company of Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds' wireless brand Mint Mobile, adopting as a condition for approval the carrier's commitment to more quickly "unlocking" its phones so they can be transferred between service providers.

  • April 25, 2024

    Delta Illegally Shares Fliers' Info With Facebook, Suit Says

    Delta Air Lines Inc. was hit with a proposed class action lodged Thursday in California state court by two customers who accused it of unlawfully sharing their personal information with Facebook, including their travel dates, airport destinations, travel class, loyalty status, language and currency used to book flights on the airline's website.

  • April 25, 2024

    Microsoft, Nintendo And Others Sued Over Addictive Games

    A gamer sued Microsoft Corp., Nintendo of America Inc., Rockstar Games Inc. and other video game developers Wednesday in Georgia federal court over allegations that they are intentionally getting users addicted to boost profits, saying he's suffering from depression and anxiety because of his addiction.

Expert Analysis

  • Emerging Risks Affecting The Tech Legal Landscape

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    The tech industry has become a battleground for various legal challenges shaped by geopolitical events, partisan politics, regulatory initiatives, patent disputes and class action trends, but companies can adopt several proactive legal strategies to safeguard their interests, say Natasha Allen and Louis Lehot at Foley & Lardner.

  • 5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2024

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    Over the next year and beyond, litigation funding will continue to evolve in ways that affect attorneys and the larger litigation landscape, from the growth of a secondary market for funded claims, to rising interest rates restricting the availability of capital, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.

  • A Look At Consumer Reporting In 2023, And What's To Come

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    The legal landscape of consumer reporting is evolving as courts, federal regulators and state legislatures continue to weigh in — and while last year may have seen a slight downtick in the overall volume of Fair Credit Reporting Act litigation, 2024 is set to be a watershed year for this area of the law, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • Breaking Down The New FCC Lead Generation Rules

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    The Federal Communications Commission's new rules to close the so-called lead generator robocall and robotexts loophole herald a transformative halt to the traditional lead generation industry, necessitating the development of entirely new marketplace solutions to align with the impending compliance requirements, says Alexis Buese at Bradley Arant.

  • What To Know About FCA Cybersecurity Enforcement

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    Now is a good time for practitioners, government contractors and potential relators to review recent developments in cybersecurity-related False Claims Act enforcement, and consider best practices for navigating this space in the new year, say Ellen London at London & Stout, and Li Yu and Molly Knobler at DiCello Levitt.

  • 8 Privacy Law Predictions For 2024

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    As the new year begins, looking back to several of last year's privacy law developments may help companies forecast what to focus on when updating their privacy programs, including children's privacy, so-called dark patterns and the collection of data by connected cars, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • What One Litigator Learned Serving On A Jury

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    Kilpatrick attorney April Isaacson shares insights for trial lawyers from her recent experience serving on a jury for the first time, including lessons about the impact of frequent sidebars, considerations for using demonstratives, the importance of clear jury instructions, and the unconscious habits that can drive jurors mad.

  • Series

    Calif. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q4

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    As 2023 came to an end, we continued to see developments in California that are certain to have an impact on the financial services industry in 2024, including the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation's request for comments on the state's new digital asset law and the state's continued enforcement actions against debt collectors, say Jennifer Olivestone and Juan Azel at Winston & Strawn.

  • 4 Legal Ethics Considerations For The New Year

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    As attorneys and clients reset for a new year, now is a good time to take a step back and review some core ethical issues that attorneys should keep front of mind in 2024, including approaching generative artificial intelligence with caution and care, and avoiding pitfalls in outside counsel guidelines, say attorneys at HWG.

  • FTC Rite Aid Order Holds Biometrics And AI Compliance Tips

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    The Federal Trade Commission's recent enforcement action against Rite Aid over its use of facial biometric technology on customers provides lessons that can be leveraged to reduce and manage the risk of regulatory scrutiny of biometrics and artificial intelligence, says David Oberly at Baker Donelson.

  • What Brands Need To Know About Consumer Reviews In 2024

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    Testimonials, endorsements and consumer reviews have been on the Federal Trade Commission's radar for years — and since this evolving area will continue to be an enforcement priority in 2024, now is the time to ensure your house is in order, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Series

    In The CFPB Playbook: Rulemaking Rush Before Election Year

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    In this quarterly Consumer Financial Protection Bureau activity recap by former bureau personnel, attorneys at McGuireWoods explain the regulator's recent push to finalize new rules about data aggregators, digital payment apps and more before the election-year Congressional Review Act window opens.

  • Ill. BIPA Ruling May Spark Violation-Of-Law Exclusion Fight

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    An Illinois appeals court's recent holding in National Fire Insurance v. Visual Pak that a violation-of-law exclusion didn't preclude coverage for an underlying Biometric Information Privacy Act suit contradicts an earlier Seventh Circuit decision that aligns with long-standing insurance law principles — which may lead the state's high court to weigh in, says Tae Andrews at Pasich.

  • Securities Question Stands After Contradicting Crypto Rulings

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    The debate about the regulation of crypto-assets came to a head in 2023 when two New York federal judges came to opposite conclusions about whether crypto-assets were securities by using the Howey test, highlighting the uncertainty facing the crypto industry as it seeks to resolve definitional questions, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

  • 5 Privacy And Cybersecurity Resolutions For 2024

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    In 2023, companies grappled with an unprecedented array of data privacy and cybersecurity challenges that are likely to continue in 2024, meaning businesses will be well-served to incorporate strategies, such as data governance and website configuration, into their compliance programs, say Steven Stransky at Thompson Hine and Violet Sullivan at Crum & Forster.

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