Consumer Protection

  • April 15, 2024

    Mental Health Co. Cerebral To Pay $7M Over Data Failures

    Mental health service provider Cerebral Inc. will pay more than $7 million to settle claims from the Federal Trade Commission, saying it failed to protect users' sensitive health data and made it difficult for patients to cancel services and stop recurring charges, according to a Monday court filing.

  • April 15, 2024

    Dems Grill Chamber Over 'Outrageous' CFPB Card Fee Suit

    Two top Democratic senators are calling on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to explain why it sued to block the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's $8 credit card late fee rule, a case they say is "outrageous" and puts the interests of big banks over the group's rank and file.

  • April 15, 2024

    SeaWorld's Sesame Park Visitors Can't Get Cert. In Bias Fight

    A Pennsylvania federal judge refused Monday to certify a class of Hispanic and Black customers who allege performers at the SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment Inc.-owned theme park Sesame Place discriminated against and ignored minority children, finding that the proposed 130 children class size is based on inadmissible speculation.

  • April 15, 2024

    EPA Says Legacy Asbestos Poses Unreasonable Risk

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released on Monday its long-awaited draft for the second part of its asbestos risk evaluation, which determined handling asbestos associated with legacy uses presents undue human health risks.

  • April 15, 2024

    Calif. Cannabis Co. Stiiizy Sued Over Delta-8 Products

    California cannabis giant Stiiizy has been accused of selling products which were touted as federally compliant hemp wares but purportedly had high enough levels of psychoactive THC to qualify as marijuana products, according to a proposed class action in Illinois federal court.

  • April 15, 2024

    MGM Slams FTC Probe After Cyberattack During Khan Visit

    MGM Resorts International on Monday accused the Federal Trade Commission of launching an "unconstitutional" investigation into its data protection practices after FTC Chair Lina Khan stayed at an MGM hotel in Las Vegas during a major cyberattack last year, according to a suit filed in D.C. federal court.

  • April 15, 2024

    Whistleblower Says Lab Co. Ran COVID-Testing Scheme

    A California-based diagnostics firm and its CEO have been hit with a whistleblower suit in Washington federal court by an ex-lab director who claims an affiliated company flouted regulatory standards and fraudulently billed government healthcare programs for COVID-19 tests on patients with private insurance.

  • April 15, 2024

    4th Circ. Won't Let Borrower Pin Feds' Flub On Pa. Agency

    The Fourth Circuit refused Monday to revive a lawsuit brought by a borrower alleging that a state student-loan-servicing agency's misrepresentations thwarted a loan forgiveness opportunity, with a panel reasoning that the organization was immune from the lawsuit.

  • April 15, 2024

    House Rejects Bid To Overturn Spy Bill Authorization

    The U.S. House of Representatives on Monday rejected an attempt to overturn legislation reauthorizing a controversial foreign surveillance program after several Republican lawmakers took issue with the exclusion of a warrant requirement for accessing U.S. citizens' information.

  • April 15, 2024

    Minimize Nat'l Security Regs On Broadband, Verizon Says

    Verizon said the Federal Communications Commission should not impose national security reviews that could disrupt existing broadband service when it passes a net neutrality order as expected this month.

  • April 15, 2024

    Doc's NDAs Illegally Silenced Negative Reviews, Judge Says

    A Washington state plastic surgery practice illegally required patients to sign pretreatment nondisclosure agreements that threatened to punish them for posting negative online reviews, a Washington federal judge has determined.

  • April 15, 2024

    CFPB Hits Back At Bank Challenge To Small-Biz Lending Rule

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has urged a Texas federal judge to dispense with an industry-backed challenge to its now-stayed reporting requirements for lenders in the nearly $2 trillion small-business loan market, arguing much of the case boils down to a beef with Congress for mandating the requirements in the first place. 

  • April 15, 2024

    Apple Faces Two Suits Over IPhone Market Dominance

    Apple has been hit with a pair of suits alleging it has unfairly stifled competition in the smartphone market and that its practices and iPhone sales have violated federal securities and antitrust laws.

  • April 15, 2024

    Pet Food Brand Chicken Soup Says Supplier Hiked Costs

    A manufacturer that supplied the Chicken Soup for the Soul pet food brand bought ingredients from its own subsidiary, hiked prices and failed to deliver products, according to a response to the manufacturer's $3.1 million allegation that the name brand failed to pay for food already manufactured and sold to consumers.

  • April 15, 2024

    L'Occitane Privacy Suit Against Zimmerman Reed Trimmed

    A Los Angeles federal court is weighing ending a suit by L'Occitane against Zimmerman Reed LLP and thousands of clients who complained that the company's website tracking tools violated their online privacy, after denying a bid by defendants to compel arbitration and tossing a claim that Zimmerman Reed violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

  • April 15, 2024

    Apple Defends Anti-Steering Rule Compliance In Epic Case

    Apple told a California federal court it has fully complied with an order barring anti-steering rules in its App Store and said complaints from Epic Games, Microsoft and others about its compliance are just efforts by the companies to pad their own profits.

  • April 15, 2024

    Meta, FTC Pause Constitutionality Fight For High Court Ruling

    Meta and the Federal Trade Commission agreed Monday to pause Meta's challenge of FTC changes to a 2020 settlement over user privacy until the U.S. Supreme Court issues a ruling on a similar case involving the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

  • April 15, 2024

    Subaru Agrees To Replace And Refund Defective Windshields

    Subaru of America Inc. and a proposed class of customers have asked a New Jersey federal judge for the preliminary approval of a settlement that could cover 100% or more of out of pocket losses and conclude a 4-year-long dispute over spontaneously cracking windshields.

  • April 15, 2024

    LA County Tells FCC It Supports Plan To Georoute 988 Calls

    Support is growing for a Federal Communications Commission proposal to require georouting calls to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, with Los Angeles County backing the idea Friday in a filing with the agency, and other groups saying even more urgency is needed.

  • April 15, 2024

    Bond Co. Asks For Life-Saving Pause On $811M Fine

    Immigration bonding company Libre by Nexus Inc. has begged a Virginia federal court for more time to pay an $811 million judgment for predatory bonding practices, saying it would collapse if forced to pay before it can execute its transfer to a new owner.

  • April 15, 2024

    DC Judge Blocks Texas AG's Media Matters Investigation

    A D.C. federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton from investigating Media Matters over its reporting on the X social media platform, ruling that the probe deterred the progressive media watchdog's "core First Amendment activities."

  • April 15, 2024

    Senators Demand Info On CFTC Chats With Bankman-Fried

    Two U.S. senators have asked the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's chair to detail all of his communications and meetings with convicted FTX fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried.

  • April 15, 2024

    Justices Won't Nix FDA Labeling Preemption For State Claims

    The Supreme Court on Monday let stand lower court findings that the unique authority of the federal Food and Drug Administration preempted and, therefore, justified dismissing a proposed class action that alleged a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary broke Massachusetts law by misbranding Lactaid drug products as dietary supplements.

  • April 15, 2024

    Pain Patch Buyer Seeks Class Cert. In Kroger False Ad Suit

    A Chicago woman who accused The Kroger Co. of misleading consumers about the effectiveness of its over-the-counter lidocaine pain relief patches via the product's label has asked an Illinois federal judge to certify her proposed class of fellow Prairie State consumers who were purportedly duped by the grocer.

  • April 15, 2024

    Consumer Class Action Trio Joins Morgan Lewis From Crowell

    Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP said Monday that it has added three partners from Crowell & Moring LLP to its consumer class action and product liability practice.

Expert Analysis

  • 3 Litigation Strategies To Combat 'Safetyism'

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    Amid the rise of safetyism — the idea that every person should be free from the risk of harm or discomfort — among jurors and even judges, defense counsel can mount several tactics from the very start of litigation to counteract these views and blunt the potential for jackpot damages, says Ann Marie Duffy at Hollingsworth.

  • How AI May Be Used In Fintech Fraud — And Fraud Detection

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    Recent enforcement actions in the fintech and finance industries show that the government is increasingly pursuing fraud enabled by artificial intelligence — at the same time it’s using AI innovations to enforce regulations and investigate fraud, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Takeaways From Groundbreaking Data Transfer Order

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    A recent first-of-its-kind executive order and related proposed rulemaking lay the groundwork for important outbound U.S. data protections, but they may have unintended consequences related to the types of data and the subjects within their scope, say attorneys at Kirkland.

  • What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks

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    Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.

  • Innodata Suit Highlights 'AI Washing' Liability Risk For Cos.

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    A class action against software company Innodata over so-called AI washing, one of the first of its kind, underscores the litigation and enforcement risks that can arise from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's novel theory about misleading artificial intelligence capabilities, say attorneys at Bracewell.

  • The Epic Antitrust Cases And Challenges Of Injunctive Relief

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    The Epic cases against Apple and Google offer a window into the courts' considerable challenges in Big Tech litigation and establishing injunctive relief that enhances competition and benefits consumers, say Kelly Lear Nordby and Jon Tomlin at Ankura Consulting.

  • Banks Should Continue To Prep For CFPB Data Rule Rollout

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    Consumer Financial Protection Bureau-supervised banks should not expect industry pressure to delay the rollout of proposed Section 1033 open banking rules, which regulate how consumer financial information flows between financial institutions, and prepare their required data access portals and compliance procedures now, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • How Calif. Video Recording Ruling May Affect Insured Exams

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    A recent California appellate decision, Myasnyankin v. Nationwide, allowing policyholders to video record all parties to an insurance examination under oath, has changed the rules of the road for EUOs and potentially opened Pandora's box for future disputes, say John Edson and Preston Bennett at Sheppard Mullin.

  • 5 Things Trial Attorneys Can Learn From Good Teachers

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    Jennifer Cuculich at IMS Legal Strategies recounts lessons she learned during her time as a math teacher that can help trial attorneys connect with jurors, from the importance of framing core issues to the incorporation of different learning styles.

  • Fintech 'Prenups': Planning For A Card Program Breakup

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    After a year of economic downturns, some banks and their fintech partners are realizing they may have rushed to the altar without a good prenup, but planning ahead can curb both foreseeable and unexpected issues in the event of a termination of a bank-fintech card-issuing agreement, say Andrew Grant at Ketsal and Richard Malish at Community Federal Savings Bank.

  • Legal Considerations For Circular Economy Strategies

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    As circular economy goals — generating revenue at multiple points in a product's life cycle — become nearly ubiquitous in corporate sustainability practices, companies should reassess existing strategies by focusing on government incentives, regulations, and reporting and disclosure requirements, say Rachel Saltzman and Erin Grisby at Hunton.

  • 3 Notification Pitfalls To Avoid With Arbitration Provisions

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    In Lipsett v. Popular Bank, the Second Circuit found that a bank's arbitration provision was unenforceable due to insufficient notice to a customer that he was bound by the agreement, highlighting the importance of adequate communication of arbitration provisions, and customers' options for opting out, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Tips For Orgs Facing AI Data Privacy Compliance Challenges

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    Regulators around the world are actively seeking to enforce data privacy and consumer protection laws against companies providing artificial intelligence-related services, raising complex compliance questions in areas like transparency, data minimization, lawfulness of processing, data subject rights and higher risk activities, say attorneys at Hogan Lovells.

  • What's At Play In Rising Lanham Act Cases At The ITC

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    Amid an uptick in Lanham Act claims involving false advertising related to medical devices at the U.S. International Trade Commission, Brian Busey and Maryrose McLaughlin at MoFo discuss recent ITC complaints from Eli Lilly and R.J. Reynolds, Lanham Act claim limits under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, and the issues practitioners face in this realm.

  • Preempting Bottled Water Microplastics Fraud Claims

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    Food products like bottled water are increasingly likely to be targets of consumer fraud complaints due to alleged microplastics contamination — but depending on the labeling or advertising at issue, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act can provide a powerful preemption defense, say Tariq Naeem and Brenda Sweet at Tucker Ellis.

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