Consumer Protection

  • April 28, 2026

    Musk Testifies Altman 'Looting' OpenAI Charity For Own Gain

    Billionaire Elon Musk testified in a California federal jury trial Tuesday that OpenAI executives Sam Altman and Greg Brockman illegally converted OpenAI into a for-profit company after he invested $38 million under the condition the ChatGPT-maker would remain a nonprofit, creating a potential precedent for "looting in every charity in America."

  • April 28, 2026

    Illinois Panel Limits BIPA Exemption For Gov't Contractors

    The Biometric Information Privacy Act's government contractor exclusion is not a categorical exemption and applies only to violations that occur within the scope of a vendor's government-contracted work, an Illinois state appellate panel said Tuesday.

  • April 28, 2026

    Smoke Shop Blames Vape Co. For Raids And Frozen $5M

    Two Texas smoke shop owners claim they suffered police raids, arrests and nearly $5 million of their business funds being frozen, all because one of their vape suppliers, Delta Munchies LLC, sold them products containing illicit levels of THC despite marketing them as legal hemp, according to a lawsuit filed in Texas state court.

  • April 28, 2026

    Kalshi Hit With Refer-A-Friend Text Suit In Wash.

    Kalshi has become the latest company to be hit with a lawsuit in Washington federal court over refer-a-friend texts that recipients say violate the state's Commercial Electronic Mail Act by encouraging texts to be sent to people who never consented to receive them.

  • April 28, 2026

    Exxon Misrepresentations Caused Stock Drop, Jury Hears

    Investors told a Texas jury that Exxon Mobil Corp. inflated the value of its stock by misrepresenting how much money its Kearl Lake operations were making, saying Tuesday that the oil giant hid the truth to snag a better interest rate in a bond offering.

  • April 28, 2026

    Pipeline Violations Trouble 4th Circ. As Gas Co. Fights Stay

    A Fourth Circuit panel repeatedly pressed state enforcers and counsel for Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC during oral arguments Tuesday, questioning how language baked into water quality certifications would protect local streams and wetlands given the company's history of permit violations.

  • April 28, 2026

    5th Circ. Judge 'Hung Up' On FDA Vape Denial Reasoning

    A Fifth Circuit judge on Tuesday pressed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on how it reviews applications from flavored vape manufacturers, asking why repeatedly denying applicants on similar grounds should not be treated as a rule requiring notice-and-comment.

  • April 28, 2026

    FTC Must Face Ticketers' Challenge To Its BOTS Act Case

    A Maryland federal judge Tuesday refused to let the Federal Trade Commission end a constitutional challenge to one of its first online ticketing cases by rejecting the agency's attempts to invoke sovereign immunity.

  • April 28, 2026

    CFTC Sues Wisconsin In Latest Prediction Market State Battle

    The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Tuesday added Wisconsin to the list of states it's taking to court to assert its "exclusive jurisdiction" over prediction markets after the state accused five platforms of offering illegal bets through their event contract offerings.

  • April 28, 2026

    Suit Says Bissell Misled Buyers About Faulty Steam Cleaners

    A Michigan resident hit Bissell Homecare Inc. with a proposed class action accusing the company of selling about 1.7 million defective steam cleaners without informing customers that their attachment tools could unexpectedly detach and create a risk of burns.

  • April 28, 2026

    FCC's Carr Orders ABC Station Probes Amid Kimmel Dispute

    The Federal Communications Commission's staff ordered an early license review of Disney-owned ABC stations Tuesday, a controversial move made just days after President Donald Trump demanded the network fire late-night host Jimmy Kimmel.

  • April 28, 2026

    Hartford HealthCare Misused Privilege, Teamsters Plan Says

    Hartford HealthCare should be forced to produce 182 documents withheld under the attorney-client privilege from an antitrust lawsuit, say a Teamsters health plan and a transit district that claim the hospital group is exercising monopoly power over regional health services markets within Connecticut.

  • April 28, 2026

    Tesla Seeks To Trim Mom's Suit Over Son's Death In Crash

    A Florida mother can't bring Georgia Fair Business Practices Act claims against Tesla over defects that allegedly caused the fiery crash that killed her son and his father, the auto company argued, urging a federal court to pare down the case.

  • April 28, 2026

    EU Flags Concerns Over Paper Joint Venture

    European enforcers launched an in-depth investigation Tuesday into a planned joint venture between paper manufacturers UPM and Sappi over concerns about the market for magazine paper and several other products.

  • April 28, 2026

    Mich. Deputy AG Joe Potchen Retiring After 32-Year Career

    Michigan's Deputy Attorney General Joe Potchen will retire on April 30 after more than 32 years working for the state, Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Tuesday.

  • April 28, 2026

    Calif. Judge Trims Wells Fargo Mortgage Loss Mitigation Suit

    A California federal judge tossed most of a proposed class action accusing Wells Fargo of saddling homeowners with unjustified fees by running an automated mortgage loan loss mitigation and remediation process, dismissing the suit's unjust enrichment and consumer protection claims.

  • April 28, 2026

    Fla. Utility Says NextNav's GPS Backup Would Be Disastrous

    Florida Power & Light Co. is not a fan of geolocation service provider NextNav's plan to use a chunk of the lower 900 megahertz band to launch a spectrum-based alternative to GPS, meeting with Federal Communications Commission officials to warn of its "strong opposition."

  • April 28, 2026

    Walgreens Can't Use Recording To Undo Investor Claim In Ill.

    An Illinois federal judge has said she won't toss a claim brought by shareholders alleging a former Walgreens president made a false and misleading statement during an investor conference, rejecting the company's argument that an audio recording of that conference warranted a second look at her dismissal ruling.

  • April 28, 2026

    FCC Floats 'Know Your Customer' Regs Against Robocalls

    The Federal Communications Commission will vote next month on a plan to require telecoms that originate voice traffic to follow "know your customer" standards before allowing robocall campaigns on their networks.

  • April 28, 2026

    9th Circ. Finds Section 230 Blocks Meta Genocide Claims

    The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday affirmed the dismissal of claims by two women who allege that Facebook's algorithms contributed to their villages being attacked as part of the genocide of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, saying that under circuit precedent, those claims are blocked by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

  • April 28, 2026

    Yale University Wants Meal Plan Class Suit Chewed Up

    A proposed class action alleging Yale University students are forced to buy meal plans at artificially inflated prices is aimed at common practices and fails to support its claims of wrongdoing, the school told a Connecticut judge in seeking to have each count either dismissed or struck.

  • April 28, 2026

    GrayRobinson Sued Over 'Reckless' Data Security Measures

    GrayRobinson PA has been hit with a proposed class action accusing the Florida-based firm of negligence following the revelation of a March 2025 data breach that exposed the personal data of around 65,000 people.

  • April 28, 2026

    Google Says EU's Android Measures Undermine Privacy

    European enforcers are calling on Google to give competing artificial intelligence services open access to key Android features and functions, but the tech giant said the changes are unnecessary and would undermine privacy and security protections.

  • April 28, 2026

    Paramount Seeks FCC OK For Foreign Stakes In WBD Deal

    Paramount has asked for the Federal Communications Commission's blessing for its $110 billion purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery to be completely foreign-owned, even if it only expects actual foreign ownership to come in at just under 50%.

  • April 28, 2026

    Solar Co. Attyx Is Accused Of Tricking Customers Into Loans

    A New York homeowner has hit solar energy company Attyx LLC and its lending partners with a proposed class action over an alleged deceptive financing scheme, echoing claims already brought by the state's attorney general that alleged hundreds of millions of dollars in potential consumer harm.

Expert Analysis

  • 3 Policy Lines To Revisit After Justices Nix Emergency Tariffs

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's invalidation of President Donald Trump's emergency-based tariffs could expose businesses to allegations of misrepresenting tariff effects and raise the prospect of consumer actions seeking refunds — underscoring the need for policyholders to potentially reposition their insurance portfolios, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

  • 5 Tips For Navigating Your Firm's All-Attorney Summit

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Law firm retreats should be approached strategically, as they present valuable opportunities to advance both the firm's objectives and attorneys' professional development through meaningful participation, building and strengthening internal relationships, and proactive follow-up, says James Argionis at Cozen O’Connor.

  • Duke Energy Settlement Raises Key Antitrust Questions

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    The recent federal court settlement in Duke Energy v. NTE Carolinas II comes in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's failure to address a Fourth Circuit decision in the matter, calling into question the core purpose and effect of antitrust laws, say attorneys at Clifford Chance.

  • AI Is Changing The Game For Lenders' Vendor Governance

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    Recent guidance from Freddie Mac and the Treasury Department reinforces that expectations surrounding AI oversight are beginning to shape how mortgage lenders operationalize vendor governance, which is emerging as a critical compliance challenge for the decade ahead, says Alexandra Temple at Mitchell Sandler.

  • Meta Coverage Ruling Could Erode Broad Duty To Defend

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    A Delaware court recently decided that Meta's insurers need not defend the company from lawsuits alleging addictive platform design — a troubling decision for policyholders that, if upheld, warns that insureds' business decisions can be weaponized to deny a duty to defend, say attorneys at Anderson Kill.

  • Series

    Coaching Soccer Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Coaching youth soccer for my 7-year-old son's team has sharpened how I communicate with clients, prepare witnesses, work within teams and think about leadership, making me a more thoughtful and effective lawyer in many ways, says Joshua Holt at Smith Currie.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: The Human Element

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    Law school teaches you to quickly apply intellect and logic when handling a legal issue, but every fact pattern also involves a person, making the ability to balance expertise with empathy critical to the growth of relationships with clients, colleagues and adversaries, says Rachel Adcox at Adcox Strategies.

  • Get Smart: Navigating The Genius Act's Regulatory Gaps

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    While some recent Genius Act rulemaking has covered consumer protection issues within the stablecoin market, the context is generally narrow and the final outcome remains uncertain for financial institutions or companies in the evolving landscape, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.

  • How Cos. Should Prepare For NY RAISE Act Compliance

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    With the New York Responsible AI Safety and Education Act taking effect March 19, state regulators will expect subject artificial intelligence governance policies to understand whether appropriate safeguards and protocols are in place to prevent or mitigate discriminatory or adverse outcomes by frontier models, says Michael Paulino at Gordon Rees.

  • Compliance Takeaways Amid Increased Auto Finance Scrutiny

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    Recent supervisory focus on consumer protection in auto finance by agencies such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. provides meaningful signals regarding areas of heightened regulatory scrutiny for lenders, including data accuracy, AI risk management and vendor oversight, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.

  • Opinion

    High Court's Hain Ruling Undermines Diversity Jurisdiction

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's most recent decision on the limits of federal jurisdiction, Hain Celestial Group v. Palmquist, further legitimizes the plaintiffs bar's long practice of intentionally pleading around diversity jurisdiction — and could have far-reaching implications for how future product liability and consumer fraud cases are litigated, say attorneys at Patterson Belknap.

  • The Benefits Of Choosing A Niche Practice In The AI Age

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    As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly accessible, lawyers with a niche practice may stand out as clients seek specialized judgment that automation cannot replicate, but it is important to choose a niche that is durable, engaging and a good personal fit, says Daniel Borneman at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Risk Disclosure Lessons For AI Cos. From Dot-Com Era

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    Regulatory responses following the dot-com collapse reflected a consistent emphasis on whether public disclosures enabled investors to understand the economic reality underlying reported performance, a focus that is likely to shape how artificial intelligence infrastructure disclosures are evaluated if market expectations similarly deteriorate, say Diana Connor, Adrienna Huffman and Bin Zhou at the Brattle Group.

  • The Practical Implications Of New FDIC Stablecoin Measures

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    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s recent proposal to create a formal process for issuing payment stablecoins arrives with several practical implications for FDIC‑supervised banks pursuing digital asset strategies, including a safe harbor for early applicants and a focus on ownership and governance, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • In Hain, Justices Increase Stakes For Jurisdictional Errors

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Hain Celestial Group v. Palmquist, addressing the consequences of a district court's erroneous dismissal of a nondiverse party before final judgment, has amplified the risk that a mistaken jurisdictional ruling in district court will render moot everything that comes after, says Steven Boranian at Reed Smith.

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