Consumer Protection

  • January 30, 2025

    Google Judge Leery Of Administration Of $90M Antitrust Deal

    A California federal judge overseeing Google's $90 million antitrust deal with Play Store developers expressed "doubt" Thursday about the decision of counsel representing smaller developer plaintiffs to stay with an administration company handling the settlement distribution, two months after criticizing the administrator's work as "the worst performance I've seen."

  • January 30, 2025

    Circle K Gas Franchise Hit With Data Breach Class Action

    Gas and convenience store chain Circle K was hit with a proposed class action in Georgia federal court over allegations that it failed to adequately safeguard the sensitive personal information of its employees during a May 2024 data breach.

  • January 30, 2025

    Consumers Want L'Oréal Acne Products Suits In Hawaii

    Plaintiffs suing L'Oréal for selling acne products that could break down into the carcinogen benzene took a second stab at consolidating their lawsuits, asking the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation on Thursday to join the suits in Hawaii.

  • January 30, 2025

    Symetra To Pay $2M To End Structured Settlement Suit

    Insurance conglomerate Symetra has agreed to pay more than $2.1 million to settle a proposed class action in Washington federal court accusing two Symetra entities of luring roughly 2,000 recipients of personal injury settlements into selling their future stream of payments for a heavily discounted lump sum.

  • January 30, 2025

    Senate Bill Requiring AM Radio In Cars Is Back Again

    Almost half the Senate has signed on to co-sponsor a bill that would block automakers from removing AM radios from the cars they produce, with the reintroduced AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act already set for a committee hearing early next month.

  • January 30, 2025

    Amazon Can't Lob 'Hail Mary' In Price-Gouging Suit, AG Says

    Washington's attorney general said Wednesday that Amazon can't dodge a proposed class action alleging price-gouging during the COVID-19 pandemic, telling a federal judge that a pivotal state high court ruling in the case was clear on how Washington law allows the consumers to sue.

  • January 30, 2025

    Ga. Businesses 'Over The Moon' With Tort Reform Proposals

    Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp unveiled a long-awaited tort reform package Thursday that, if passed, would limit businesses' premises liability, limit plaintiffs' attorneys' rhetoric around damages and require increased disclosures for third-party litigation funding, among a slew of other proposals.

  • January 30, 2025

    FCC Hunting For Ads On NPR, PBS Local Stations

    The newly installed head of the Federal Communications Commission says he plans to investigate whether local NPR and PBS stations are using underwriting spots to air commercial advertising.

  • January 30, 2025

    YouTube's 'Nelk Boys' Sued Over 'Snake-Oil' NFTs

    A buyer of an apparently worthless crypto product has filed suit against a pair of influencers behind the YouTube channel "Nelk Boys," calling them "snake-oil salesmen" and claiming they talked up the products online, saying they were valuable when, in reality, the promised perks and returns on investment never materialized.

  • January 30, 2025

    DOJ Calls UnitedHealth Dismissal Bid A Discovery 'End Run'

    The U.S. Department of Justice assailed UnitedHealth Group on Wednesday for "masquerading" a "premature" discovery bid as a motion to dismiss the government's Maryland federal court lawsuit challenging the $3.3 billion purchase of home health and hospice giant Amedisys Inc.

  • January 30, 2025

    Nutrisystem Hit With Privacy Suit In Philly

    Philadelphia-based diet food company Nutrisystem has been hit with a potential class action alleging that it shared customer information with a web tracking company without users' consent.

  • January 30, 2025

    Amex GBT Calls Judge's Sept. DOJ Trial 'Manifest Injustice'

    American Express Global Business Travel Inc. asked a New York federal judge Wednesday to reconsider waiting until September to hear the U.S. Department of Justice challenge to its planned $570 million purchase of CWT Holdings LLC, arguing it needs an answer much sooner.

  • January 30, 2025

    Turkey Buyers' $32M Cargill Price-Fix Deal Scores Early OK

    Turkey buyers' proposal for a $32 million settlement of price-fixing claims against Cargill sailed through the initial approval stage Thursday as an Illinois federal judge praised the deal as "substantial" relief for the class.

  • January 30, 2025

    NC Biz Court Bulletin: Sanctions Miss, Philip Morris Refund

    In the second half of January, the North Carolina Business Court tussled with sanctions against a biogas company, heard claims an insurer tried to deliberately embarrass Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft LLP and ordered an $11 million tax refund for Philip Morris.

  • January 30, 2025

    Mass. High Court Backs Insurers' Lost Resale Value Exclusion

    Language in Massachusetts auto insurance policies limiting coverage to "tangible losses" lets MAPFRE Insurance subsidiary Commerce and other companies off the hook for claims based on lost resale value after an accident, the state's highest court said on Thursday.

  • January 30, 2025

    Rumors Fly As Trump Seeks Deal To Keep TikTok Alive

    President Donald Trump seems to be getting exactly the "bidding war" he wanted as multiple entities fight for a role in keeping TikTok available in the U.S. Here, Law360 provides a rundown of the latest rumors and developments in the TikTok saga, along with other notable rumors from the past week.

  • January 29, 2025

    'DO NOT RESPOND': CFPB Union Calls Buyout Email A Trap

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's union has urged staff at the agency to refrain from responding to the Trump administration's buyout offer for federal employees, describing it as a potential trap and suggesting they consider marking it as spam instead.

  • January 29, 2025

    Turkey Producers Say Burford Unit's Suit Is Purely Profit-Led

    Turkey producers fighting consolidated price-fixing claims in Illinois urged a federal judge Tuesday to kick a Burford Capital Investment unit's claims out of the case on summary judgment, arguing the action exists solely because of the litigation funder's drive to profit from a lawsuit.

  • January 29, 2025

    Apple Will Appeal Denial Of Bid To Defend Google Search Deal

    Apple said Wednesday that it will appeal an order refusing to let it intervene in the government's search monopolization case against Google to defend a multibillion-dollar revenue-sharing deal that makes Google the default search engine for the Safari browser.

  • January 29, 2025

    Calif. Privacy Agency Keeps Up Pressure On Data Brokers

    The California Privacy Protection Agency continued to build on its scrutiny of data brokers Wednesday, announcing a settlement with a Connecticut-based company that allegedly failed to comply with the registration requirements of a groundbreaking state data deletion law. 

  • January 29, 2025

    Sports Co., Ex-CEO Must Pay $1.8M In SEC Fraud Suit

    A D.C. federal judge has ordered sports business Crystal World, its ousted CEO and a related investment group to pay approximately $1.8 million in disgorgement and civil penalties for securities violations, lowering the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's bid for a $4.1 million total judgment.

  • January 29, 2025

    Mich. Judge Doubts Discovery Dispute Should DQ Firm

    A Michigan federal judge on Wednesday said a law firm's alleged "bad behavior" doesn't necessarily mean it can't represent a former CEO of a solar energy company, telling residents who sought to disqualify the firm because of a supposed conflict that their complaints may be better dealt with through discovery motions.

  • January 29, 2025

    5th Circ. Rejects Outside Bid To Defend CFPB Small-Biz Rule

    The Fifth Circuit on Wednesday stood by its decision to refuse two advocacy groups' request to help defend the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's small business lending data rule, a day after the bureau and the suing banking trade groups pushed back and said they are fine to litigate themselves, without intervention.

  • January 29, 2025

    GOP Sen. Wants 'New' FCC To Review Soros-Audacy Deal

    Now that the Federal Communications Commission is under Republican leadership, one Republican senator wants the new chair to review the agency's decision to approve Soros Fund Management's acquisition of an ownership interest in radio station owner Audacy.

  • January 29, 2025

    CPSC Wants Baby Sleep Co.'s Weighted Blanket Suit Tossed

    The Consumer Product Safety Commission urged a D.C. federal court to toss a suit brought by Dreamland Baby Co., saying it and one of its commissioners acted within their authorities when warning the public against using weighted blankets for infants, like the ones the company makes.

Expert Analysis

  • An Associate's Guide To Career Development In 2025

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    As the new year begins, associates at all levels should consider establishing career metrics, fostering key relationships and employing other specific strategies to help move through the complexities of the legal profession with confidence and emerge as trailblazers, say EJ Stern and Amanda George at Fractional Law Firm.

  • The Securities Litigation Trends That Will Matter Most In 2025

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    2025 is shaping up to be a significant year for securities litigation, as plaintiffs and defendants alike navigate shifting standards for omission theories of liability, class certification, risk disclosure claims and more, say attorneys at Willkie.

  • Predicting The Lasting Changes CFPB May Face In 2025

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    President-elect Donald Trump and the incoming Republican-controlled Congress' likely attempts to reshape the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau could significantly alter its rulemaking, supervisory and enforcement abilities for years to come, says Jim Sandy at McGlinchey Stafford.

  • The Justices' Securities Rulings, Dismissals That Defined '24

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's 2024 securities rulings led to increased success for defendants' price impact arguments, but the justices' decisions not to weigh in on important issues relating to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act's pleading requirements may be just as significant, say attorneys at Skadden.

  • 10 Noteworthy CFPB Developments From 2024

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    In a banner year for consumer finance regulation, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau made significant strides in its efforts to rein in Big Tech and nonbank financial firms, including via rules regarding open banking, credit card late fees, and buy now, pay later products, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Series

    Fixing Up Cars Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    From problem-solving to patience and adaptability to organization, the skills developed working under the hood of a car directly translate to being a more effective lawyer, says Christopher Mdeway at Kaufman Dolowich.

  • 2024 Has Been A Momentous Year For ESG

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    Significant developments in the environmental, social and governance landscape this year include new legislation, evolving global frameworks, continued litigation and enforcement actions, and a U.S. Supreme Court decision that has already affected how lower courts have viewed some ESG challenges, say attorneys at Katten.

  • 2024's Most Notable FTC Actions Against Dark Patterns And AI

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    In 2024 the Federal Trade Commission ramped up enforcement actions related to dark patterns, loudly signaling its concern that advertisers will use AI to manipulate consumer habits and its intention to curb businesses' use and marketing of AI to prevent alleged consumer deception, say attorneys at Goodwin.

  • Making The Pitch To Grow Your Company's Legal Team

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    In a compressed economy, convincing the C-suite to invest in additional legal talent can be a herculean task, but a convincing pitch — supported by metrics and cost analyses — may help in-house counsel justify the growth of their team, say Elizabeth Smith and Roger Garceau at Major Lindsey.

  • The Story Of 2024's Biggest Bank Regs, And Their Fate In 2025

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    U.S. federal bank regulators were very active in 2024 with initiatives ranging from antitrust and capital to proposals regarding controlling shareholders and incentive-based compensation, but many regulations face an uncertain future under the new administration, say attorneys at Latham.

  • Data Privacy Landscape After Mass. Justices' Wiretap Ruling

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    In Vita v. New England Baptist Hospital, Massachusetts’ highest court recently ruled that the state’s wiretap law doesn’t prohibit all tracking of website user activity, but major financial and reputational risks remain for businesses that aren't transparent about customer’s web data, says Seth Berman at Nutter.

  • Opinion

    1 Year After Rule 702 Changes, Courts Have Made Progress

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    In the year since amendments to the Federal Rules of Evidence went into effect, many federal judges have applied the new expert witness standard correctly, excluding unreliable testimony from their courts — but now state courts need to update their own rules accordingly, says Lee Mickus at Evans Fears.

  • Conducting A 'Reasonably Expected Market Area' Analysis

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    Regardless of whether the incoming administration scales back on redlining examinations and investigations, lenders should take steps to understand how regulators define "reasonably expected market areas," and how to conduct analyses of such areas, say attorneys at Mitchell Sandler.

  • Opinion

    Justices Rightly Corrected Course In Nvidia And Facebook

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    By dismissing both the Nvidia and Facebook class actions, over investors' ability to hold corporations accountable for fraud, the U.S. Supreme Court was right in refusing to favor corporations over transparency, and reaffirmed its commitment to corporate accountability, investor protection and the rule of law, says Laura Posner at Cohen Milstein.

  • Gov't Scrutiny Of Workplace Chat Apps Set To Keep Growing

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    The incoming Trump administration and Republican majorities in Congress are poised to open numerous investigations that include increasing demands for entities to produce communications from workplace chat apps, so companies must evaluate their usage and retention policies, say attorneys at Orrick.

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