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Consumer Protection
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May 07, 2024
DOJ Says Cross-Border Antitrust Trial Must Stay In Houston
Prosecutors have advised Houston's federal court against transferring a criminal case closer to the border, saying their witnesses fear testifying against defendants charged with using violence to control the cross-border sale of used vehicles and other goods in Central America.
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May 07, 2024
Amazon Says Zulily Lacks Standing To Bring Antitrust Claims
Amazon is asking a Washington federal court to throw out now-defunct online retailer Zulily's lawsuit accusing it of using its monopoly power to shut out competition from other online retailers, arguing that Zulily merely "parrots" allegations made by regulators and has singled out "plainly procompetitive practice."
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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.
Expert Analysis
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Data Protection Steps To Consider After Biden Privacy Order
A recent White House executive order casts a spotlight on the criticality of securing sensitive content communications, presenting challenges and necessitating a recalibration of practices, especially for lawyers, says Camilo Artiga-Purcell at Kiteworks.
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Highlights From The 2024 ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting
U.S. merger enforcement and cartels figured heavily in this year's American Bar Association spring antitrust meeting, where one key takeaway included news that the Federal Trade Commission's anticipated changes to the Hart-Scott-Rodino form may be less dramatic than many originally feared, say attorneys at Freshfields.
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The Future Of BIPA Insurance Litigation After Visual Pak
A recent Illinois appellate court decision, National Fire Insurance v. Visual Pak, may have altered the future of insurance litigation under the state's Biometric Information Privacy Act by diametrically opposing a prominent Seventh Circuit ruling that found insurance coverage for violations of the act, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.
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Consumer Privacy Takeaways From FTC Extraterritorial Action
With what appears to be its first privacy-related consent agreement with a non-U.S. business, the Federal Trade Commission establishes that its reach is extraterritorial and that consumer internet browsing data is sensitive data, and there are lessons for any multinational business that handles consumer information, say Olivia Greer and Alexis Bello at Weil.
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NC Rulings Show Bankruptcy Isn't Only For Insolvent Debtors
Two recent rulings from a North Carolina bankruptcy court show that lack of financial distress is not a requirement for bankruptcy protection, particularly in the Fourth Circuit, but these types of cases can still be dismissed for other reasons, say Stuart Gordon and Alexandria Vath at Rivkin Radler.
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Series
Whitewater Kayaking Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Whether it's seeing clients and their issues from a new perspective, or staying nimble in a moment of intense challenge, the lessons learned from whitewater kayaking transcend the rapids of a river and prepare attorneys for the courtroom and beyond, says Matthew Kent at Alston & Bird.
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Navigating Kentucky's New Consumer Privacy Law
On April 4, Kentucky passed a new law that imposes obligations on affected businesses relating to the collection, use and sale of personal data — and those operating within the state must prepare for a new regulatory landscape governing the handling of consumer data, say Risa Boerner and Martha Vázquez at Fisher Phillips.
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This Earth Day, Consider How Your Firm Can Go Greener
As Earth Day approaches, law firms and attorneys should consider adopting more sustainable practices to reduce their carbon footprint — from minimizing single-use plastics to purchasing carbon offsets for air travel — which ultimately can also reduce costs for clients, say M’Lynn Phillips and Lisa Walters at IMS Legal Strategies.
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New Proposal Signals Sharper Enforcement Focus At CFIUS
Last week's proposed rule aimed at broadening the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States' enforcement authority over foreign investments and increasing penalties for violations signals that CFIUS intends to continue expanding its aggressive monitoring of national security issues, say attorneys at Kirkland.
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What FinCEN Proposed Customer ID Number Change Means
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's recent request for comment on changing a requirement for banks to collect full Social Security numbers at account sign-up represents an important opportunity for banks to express their preferability, as communicating sensitive information online may carry fraud or cybersecurity risks, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
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Circumstantial Evidence Requires A Pointillist Approach
Because complex cases with sophisticated defendants are unlikely to reveal much, if any, direct evidence, attorneys must aggregate many pieces of circumstantial evidence into a cohesive narrative — much like the painting technique of pointillism, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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Questions Persist After Ruling Skirts $925M TCPA Award Issue
After an Oregon federal court's recent Wakefield v. ViSalus ruling that the doctrine of constitutional avoidance precluded it from deciding whether a $925 million Telephone Consumer Protection Act damages award was constitutionally sound, further guidance is needed on when statutory damages violate due process, says Michael Klotz at O'Melveny.
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Benzene Contamination Concerns: Drugmakers' Next Steps
After a citizen petition to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and a flurry of class actions over benzene contamination in benzoyl peroxide acne products, affected manufacturers should consider a thoughtful approach that includes assembling internal data and possibly contacting the FDA for product-specific discussions, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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Blocked JetBlue-Spirit Deal Illustrates New Antitrust Approach
The U.S. Department of Justice’s recent successful block of a merger between JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines demonstrates antitrust enforcers’ updated and disparate approach to out-of-market benefits versus out-of-market harms, say Lisa Rumin and Anthony Ferrara at McDermott.
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Back Labels In False Ad Cases Get Some Clarity In 9th Circ.
Courts in the Ninth Circuit have recently delivered a series of wins to advertisers, making clear that any ambiguity on the front of a product's package can be resolved by reference to the back label — which guarantees defendants a powerful tool to combat deceptive labeling claims, say attorneys at Patterson Belknap.