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Consumer Protection
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May 07, 2024
Gronk, Others To Pay $2.4M In Voyager Crypto Promoter Suit
Retired football star Rob Gronkowski, NBA player Victor Oladipo and NASCAR driver Landon Cassill have agreed to collectively pay $2.4 million to settle allegations they helped promote failed cryptocurrency exchange Voyager Digital Holdings Inc.
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May 07, 2024
Colo. Judge Iffy On DOJ's Missive In Kroger Merger Challenge
A Colorado state judge said he was unsure Tuesday about how to handle the Department of Justice's recent filing defending the state's authority to challenge Kroger's $24 billion merger with Albertsons, as Kroger claimed federal regulators were flip-flopping their antitrust stance.
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May 07, 2024
Atty Dons Muppet Head To Open Sesame Place Race Bias Trial
A federal jury in Philadelphia on Tuesday gazed at the googly eyes and blue fur of an attorney who donned the head of Sesame Street's Grover to tell them that performers wearing the fluorescent bodysuits of other beloved Muppets discriminated against children at a Pennsylvania theme park because of the color of their skin.
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May 07, 2024
CFPB Fines Chime Financial Over Delayed Consumer Refunds
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Tuesday ordered fintech company Chime Financial to pay more than $4.5 million for allegedly leaving thousands of its users waiting weeks and sometimes months for their balance refunds after their accounts were closed.
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May 07, 2024
Panera To Nix 'Charged' Drink At Center Of Death Suits
Panera Bread Co. will soon no longer serve its "Charged Lemonade," the caffeinated drink at the center of two lawsuits that claim the restaurant chain is liable for the wrongful death of two patrons.
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May 07, 2024
Russian Charged Over $100M LockBit Ransomware Scheme
Federal prosecutors said Tuesday they have charged a Russian national with founding and heading the prolific ransomware group LockBit, which is accused of stealing more than $100 million from its victims.
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May 07, 2024
TikTok Urges DC Circ. To Ax 'Unprecedented' Divestment Bill
TikTok on Tuesday lodged its highly anticipated challenge to a new federal law that would exclude the popular app from the U.S. market unless it cuts ties with its Chinese parent company, telling the D.C. Circuit that the measure amounts to an unconstitutional and unprecedented ban on free speech.
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May 07, 2024
Attys Denied $10M Fees As Family Dollar Deal Is Approved
A Tennessee federal judge has given final approval to a settlement to end consumer claims stemming from a rodent infestation at a Family Dollar Stores Inc. warehouse, but denied a bid by class counsel for $10 million in fees.
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May 07, 2024
Birth Control Cos. Can't Dodge Conn. Injury Suit, Court Told
An Illinois woman who sued after her Filshie Clip birth control device migrated inside of her and "wreaked havoc on her body" has urged a state court not to let the manufacturers of the device and the seller's parent companies dodge her claims.
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May 06, 2024
Google's $62M Location-Tracking Settlement Gets Green Light
A California federal judge has granted final approval to Google's $62 million settlement resolving allegations it illegally collected and stored smartphone users' private location information, a deal that includes $18.6 million in fees for the lawyers representing the consolidated class.
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May 06, 2024
Coinbase Operates As Unregistered Broker, Investors Say
Coinbase and its CEO have been hit with a proposed class action in California federal court alleging the crypto exchange "has been a part of a shadowy crypto ecosystem operating just outside of the law since formed over 10 years ago."
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May 06, 2024
Monsanto Says Ruling Undoes $438M School PCB Loss
Monsanto said Friday that a $438 million judgment in a polychlorinated biphenyls poisoning case at a Washington school should be thrown out, citing a recent state appellate court ruling undoing a $185 million jury verdict in a similar case involving chemical-caused illnesses at the same school campus.
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May 06, 2024
New EPA Policy Could Increase Criminal Enforcement
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has rolled out a new policy intended to foster communication and coordination between its civil and criminal enforcement offices, a move experts say could result in an increase in criminal investigations and cases.
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May 06, 2024
Judge Turns Down Realtek's Patent 'Conspiracy' Case
A California federal judge has found that Taiwanese chipmaker Realtek can't use the federal courts to sue one of its major rivals for allegedly using a "bounty" to fund "patent troll" litigation against it because that doesn't break any federal antitrust laws.
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May 06, 2024
Fed Law Doesn't Preempt Colo.'s Kroger Deal Challenge: DOJ
The U.S. Department of Justice weighed in on Kroger and Alberton's arguments that the Colorado attorney general should not be able to challenge their national merger, arguing instead that states have an important solo role and there is nothing stopping a state court judge from blocking a deal regionally.
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May 06, 2024
GM Tells Mich. Justices Not To Heap On More Auto Regulation
General Motors urged the Michigan Supreme Court to reject a call to expand the reach of a state consumer protection law to the automotive industry and others, saying federal and state oversight already protects car buyers.
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May 06, 2024
Crypto Platform's Ex-Brass Charged With $783M Fraud
Three former executives behind bankrupt cryptocurrency investment platform Cred Inc. face wire fraud and money laundering charges after they allegedly lied to customers about the firm's lending and investing practices ahead of a collapse prosecutors say wiped out $783 million in customer crypto.
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May 06, 2024
Biotech Co. Wants To Appeal Red Cross Antitrust Immunity
A biotech company has told a Massachusetts federal court that giving the American Red Cross immunity from claims that it smothered competition in the platelet bacteria mitigation market is unprecedented and leaves the organization free to fix prices or buy up its competitors.
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May 06, 2024
Warranty Claims Trimmed From Bone Graft Tuberculosis Suit
A North Carolina federal judge has thrown out breach of warranty claims against three companies in a suit alleging their bone repair product gave a woman tuberculosis, saying it's subject to a state law blocking warranty liability for services involving human tissue.
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May 06, 2024
CFPB Sues Pa. Student Loan Servicer, Trusts For $5M
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking $5 million in penalties against a Pennsylvania public corporation that services almost $18 billion in student loans and a group of 15 securitization trusts, accusing them in federal court of ignoring or wrongly denying borrowers who requested relief.
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May 06, 2024
UChicago Can't Ditch Data Sharing Privacy Claim
A University of Chicago Medical Center patient accusing the hospital of illegally sharing her and other patients' identifying information with Meta can pursue her claims that the info sharing constitutes a federal wiretap violation, an Illinois federal judge said.
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May 06, 2024
Ga. Insurance Agency Hit With Suit Over 'Unwanted Calls'
A Georgia-based insurance agency was hit with a proposed class action Monday alleging it makes "aggressive" telemarketing calls to seniors advertising final expense and life insurance products, even when the seniors are on the national do-not-call list or ask that the calls stop.
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May 06, 2024
5th Circ. Revives Airline Workers' Hearing-Loss Suit
A pair of flight attendants seeking to hold Boeing liable over hearing loss they suffered due to an aircraft's allegedly faulty smoke alarm have successfully convinced a Fifth Circuit panel to allow them to refile their case, bringing their claims back from the brink almost three years after the appeals court tossed them.
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May 06, 2024
Class Actions Target Conn. Dealership Prices For 'VIN Etching'
Three proposed class actions seeking to represent thousands of automobile buyers have accused Connecticut dealerships of overcharging for a service called VIN etching, which is designed to make it harder for thieves to offload stolen vehicles.
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May 06, 2024
Schools, Towns Reach Deal With Artificial Turf Maker
A class of New Jersey school districts and municipalities has asked a New Jersey federal judge to give preliminary approval to a settlement with FieldTurf USA Inc. to resolve multidistrict litigation over claims its synthetic turf fields are defective.
Expert Analysis
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A Post-Mortem Analysis Of Stroock's Demise
After the dissolution of 147-year-old firm Stroock late last year shook up the legal world, a post-mortem analysis of the data reveals a long list of warning signs preceding the firm’s collapse — and provides some insight into how other firms might avoid the same disastrous fate, says Craig Savitzky at Leopard Solutions.
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Predicting DeFi Regulations At Home And Abroad In 2024
Though decentralized finance has advocates on both sides of the Atlantic in figures like U.S. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce and U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, DeFi in 2024 seems likely to be folded into existing regulatory frameworks in the U.K. and EU, while anti-crypto scrutiny may discourage DeFi’s growth in the U.S., say Daniel Csefalvay and Eric Martin at BCLP.
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Retailers Must Be Mindful Of Sale Ads As Class Actions Rise
A recent uptick in class actions filed against retailers over a breadth of allegedly deceptive pricing practices — including misleading reference prices for sales and discounts offered on a perpetual basis — show no sign of slowing down, indicating that class counsel are laser-focused on challenging advertising strategies, say Louis DiLorenzo and Paavana Kumar at Davis+Gilbert.
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NY's Revamped Card Surcharge Ban Is Unique Among States
Newly revised New York legislation bolsters the state's ban on credit card surcharges, potentially reinvigorating similar laws across the country despite the fact that many of them have been ruled unconstitutional, say Tom Witherspoon and Audrey Carroll at Stinson.
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Understanding SEC's Focus Amid Lack Of Final AI Rules
Although the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's proposed rules to govern artificial intelligence are likely far from being finalized, understanding existing regulatory provisions that could address AI risks with respect to development, disclosure, compliance and data protection could help firms anticipate and avoid pitfalls, say attorneys at Skadden.
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Legislative And Litigation Trends In Environmental Advertising
Companies that tout their products' environmental benefits can significantly reduce the risk that they will face allegations of greenwashing by staying up to date on related Federal Trade Commission guidance, state requirements and litigation trends, say Raqiyyah Pippins and Kelsie Sicinski at Arnold & Porter.
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What's On The Horizon In Attorney General Enforcement
A look at recent attorney general actions, especially in the areas of antitrust and artificial intelligence, can help inform businesses on what they should expect in terms of enforcement trends as 10 attorney general races play out in 2024, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.
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Considering The Logical Extremes Of Your Legal Argument
Recent oral arguments in the federal election interference case against former President Donald Trump highlighted the age-old technique of extending an argument to its logical limit — a principle that is still important for attorneys to consider in preparing their cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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Reducing The Risk Of PFAS False Advertising Class Actions
A wave of class actions continues to pummel products that allegedly contain per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances, with plaintiffs challenging advertising that they say misleads consumers by implying an absence of PFAS — but there are steps companies can take to minimize risk, say attorneys at Keller and Heckman.
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CFPB Overdraft Rule Could Mean Big Shift In Banking Biz
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has proposed "to close a longstanding loophole" in the Truth in Lending Act by changing how it regulates overdraft fees, but underneath the headline-grabbing proposal is a foundational shift in how the bureau views overdraft services, say attorneys at Katten.
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Storytelling Strategies To Defuse Courtroom Conspiracies
Misinformation continues to proliferate in all sectors of society, including in the courtroom, as jurors try to fill in the gaps of incomplete trial narratives — underscoring the need for attorneys to tell a complete, consistent and credible story before and during trial, says David Metz at IMS Legal Strategies.
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Navigating The FCC's Rules On AI-Generated Robocall Voices
The Federal Communications Commission's declaratory ruling issued last week extends the agency's regulatory reach under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act to calls that use artificial intelligence technology to generate voices, laying out a compliance roadmap, but not making AI-cloned voices in robocalls illegal per se, say attorneys at Wiley Rein.
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Aviation Watch: 737 Max Blowout Raises Major Safety Issues
The sudden in-flight loss of a side panel on an Alaska Air 737-9 Max last month, leaving a gaping hole in the side of the plane's cabin, highlighted ongoing quality issues at Boeing, the jet's manufacturer — but the failure also arose from decisions made by the airline, says Alan Hoffman, a retired attorney and aviation expert.
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Mass Arb. Rule Changes May Be A Hindrance For Consumers
The American Arbitration Association's recent changes to its mass arbitration supplementary rules and fee schedule, including a shift from filing fees to initiation and per-case fees, may reduce consumers' ability to counteract businesses' mandatory arbitration agreements, say Eduard Korsinsky and Alexander Krot at Levi & Korsinsky.
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3 Principles For Minimizing The Risk Of A Nuclear Verdict
In one of the latest examples of so-called nuclear verdicts, a single plaintiff was awarded $2.25 billion in a jury trial against Monsanto — revealing the need for defense attorneys to prioritize trust, connection and simplicity when communicating with modern juries, say Jenny Hergenrother and Mia Falzarano at Alston & Bird.