Consumer Protection

Expert Analysis

• Series

  Pursuing Wellness: When A Firm Brings Counseling On Site

  

  One year ago, our firm signed the American Bar Association's well-being pledge and embraced a commitment to providing on-site behavioral health resources, which has since become a key aspect of our well-being program, say Meg Meserole and Kimberly Merkel at Akin Gump.

• Outsourcing Facilities Face Rising Drug Compounding Risks

  

  Recent actions by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and lawsuits filed by drug manufacturers indicate that it is more important than ever for outsourcing facilities to comply with FDA policies regarding bulk drug substances allowed for use in compounding, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

• Dorian Update: How State Laws Protect Service Members

  

  In the wake of Hurricane Dorian's devastation, creditors should take note of the laws Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas have in place to protect members of the National Guard called to service as part of response efforts, say attorneys at Buckley.

• Series

  Pursuing Wellness: Inside A Firm Meditation Program

  

  After our firm signed the American Bar Association’s well-being pledge one year ago, we launched two key programs that included weekly meditation sessions and monthly on-site chair massages to help people address both the mental and physical aspects of working at a law firm, says Marci Eisenstein at Schiff Hardin.

• Consumer Class Standing Faces Uncertainty In 11th Circ.

  

  An eventual resolution of whether unnamed class members are required to establish Article III standing by the Eleventh Circuit, together with its recent Telephone Consumer Protection Act decision in Salcedo v. Hanna, may alter the continued viability of TCPA class actions, as well as class claims brought under other consumer protection laws, say attorneys at Stumphauzer Foslid.

• Utah Blazes Trail With Law Shielding Data From Gov't Search

  

  Utah's recently enacted Electronic Information or Data Privacy Act and other states' laws that follow it will change long-standing practices in how companies that collect or store users’ personal data respond to law enforcement requests, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

• Early Sampling Of Electronic Info Is Underutilized In Discovery

  

  The early and prompt provision of samples from all electronically stored information sources as a part of ESI protocol search methodology is consistent with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and may allow for significant cost savings during discovery, says Zachary Caplan at Berger Montague.

• How Amendments Changed The Calif. Consumer Privacy Act

  

  Friday was the final day to pass amendments to the California Consumer Privacy Act, and the most notable changes for businesses are addition of limited exemptions for the personal information of employees and business-to-business contacts as well as changes to the definition of personal information, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

• CFPB Remittance Rule Fine Spotlights Cash-Transfer Conduct

  

  The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's first-ever enforcement action for violations of the law governing money-transfer services offers a good reminder of these businesses' compliance obligations, including the option to self-report, say Kara Kuchar and Donald Mosher at Schulte Roth.

• Calif. Privacy Law Could Alter Litigation Risks Nationwide

  

  Perhaps the greatest challenge to businesses covered by the California Consumer Privacy Act is that the CCPA creates a private right of action, with substantial statutory damages, a change that will likely reset data breach litigation risks in California as well as the rest of the country, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

• The Factors Courts Consider In Deposition Location Disputes

  

  In the absence of a federal rule governing deposition location, federal courts are frequently called on to resolve objections to out-of-state deposition notices. Recent decisions reveal what information is crucial to courts in making the determination, says Kevin O’Brien at Porter Wright.

• FDCPA Takeaways From 3rd Circ. QR Code Opinion

  

  The Third Circuit's decision in DiNaples v. MRS BPO that a debt collection letter with a QR code on the envelope violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act may seem straightforward, but the opinion sheds light on how two common FDCPA defense tools remain somewhat viable, say Jason Tompkins and Jonathan Hoffmann at Balch & Bingham.

• What To Consider Before Filing For A Rule 57 Speedy Hearing

  

  Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 57 and its state counterparts provide a method for expediting claims for declaratory judgment that warrants closer attention than it has historically received from litigants and courts, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

• Nevada Spousal Credit Sharing May Conflict With Federal Law

  

  A new law in Nevada that allows borrowers to use their spouse’s credit history attempts to expand access to credit, but may be at odds with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and Regulation B's anti-discrimination provisions, as well as the Fair Credit Reporting Act's permissible purposes for obtaining credit reports, say attorneys at Buckley.

• YouTube Fine Showcases Expanded Enforcement Of COPPA

  

  As demonstrated by the recent record fines issued to Google and YouTube by the Federal Trade Commission and New York attorney general, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act is finding momentum among both federal and state regulators amid growing concerns about data privacy, say attorneys at Brownstein Hyatt.