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Consumer Protection

  • August 20, 2025

    Civil Rights Org. Urges FCC Not To Ditch Nat'l Ownership Cap

    A civil rights group founded by the Rev. Al Sharpton said it would be a bad idea for the Federal Communications Commission to strip away ownership regulations that cap how many television stations any one company can own.

  • August 20, 2025

    9th Circ. Told Apple, Google CEO Meeting Aids Antitrust Claim

    A California crane operator training school's attorney told a Ninth Circuit panel Wednesday that a lower court erred in dismissing his client's suit alleging an antitrust conspiracy between Apple and Google because a meeting between the companies' CEOs should have been taken into consideration as supporting the claim.

  • August 20, 2025

    Character.AI Founder Seeks Exit From Teen's Suicide Suit

    The co-founder of Character.AI has asked a Florida federal judge to toss certain claims in a suit alleging a teen's suicide was caused by a negligently designed artificial intelligence chatbot, saying he can't be sued individually in Florida because he's never done any business in the state.

  • August 20, 2025

    FTC Sues LA Fitness Over Difficult Gym Cancellation Policies

    The Federal Trade Commission sued gym chain LA Fitness in California federal court Wednesday, alleging it employs burdensome cancellation practices, such as requiring customers to come to the gym in-person to cancel memberships or send cancellation forms through registered or certified mail. 

  • August 20, 2025

    Alaska Telecom Fights Changes To Buildout Rules

    A small Alaskan telecom is continuing its fight against a proposal from GCI Communication Corp. that would lower standards for carriers to receive Alaska Connect Fund support, telling the Federal Communications Commission that GCI should lose funding if it can't meet its commitments.

  • August 20, 2025

    TikTok Can't Dodge NC Claims Over Addictive App Design

    Chinese internet behemoth ByteDance Inc. and its social media subsidiary TikTok Inc. can be sued in the Tar Heel State, North Carolina's business court ruled Tuesday, preserving a lawsuit that accuses the companies of exploiting minors through addictive app design.

  • August 20, 2025

    10th Circ. Says NM Gun Waiting Period Is Unconstitutional

    The Tenth Circuit has struck down New Mexico's seven-day waiting period on gun purchases as unconstitutional, finding in reversing a lower court's decision that the law aimed at reducing violence, including suicides, unduly limits the right to bear arms under the Second Amendment.

  • August 20, 2025

    Texas AG Threatens Suit Over Orgs. Mailing Abortion Pills

    Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sent cease-and-desist letters to three organizations he's accused of shipping abortion drugs to women in the state in violation of state and federal laws.

  • August 20, 2025

    WR Grace Beats Rival's False Ad, Patent Claims

    A Maryland federal judge has ruled in favor of chemical supplier W.R. Grace on one Lanham Act false advertising claim that competitor GW Aru LLC brought against Grace over disparaging claims it made about GWA in advertisements, finding that while Grace's actions might not have been commendable, GWA hadn't shown it suffered monetary harm as a result.

  • August 20, 2025

    Google To Pay $35M For Australian Search Antitrust Violations

    Google has agreed to pay $55 million to settle antitrust claims brought by Australia's competition regulator over deals to preinstall its search engine on Australian phones.

  • August 20, 2025

    Receiver Shielded In Senior Home Shutdown, 1st Circ. Says

    A court-appointed receiver for a Massachusetts assisted living facility is shielded by quasi-judicial immunity from claims that it orchestrated a "resident dumping" scheme, the First Circuit said Tuesday, reversing a lower court's decision.

  • August 20, 2025

    Crypto Groups Resist Banks' Stablecoin 'Loophole' Claims

    Cryptocurrency groups have told U.S. Senate lawmakers that banking industry groups are attempting to relitigate issues put to rest with a recently enacted federal law to regulate stablecoins, arguing that the banking groups' proposals to use separate, pending legislation to close alleged "loopholes" would disadvantage the crypto sector.

  • August 20, 2025

    State AGs Sidelined From Sandoz Price-Fixing Deal

    A group of over 40 states and territories cannot intervene in a $275 million settlement resolving generic-drug price-fixing claims against Sandoz because they only have a nominal interest in the suit that fails to confer standing, a Pennsylvania federal judge said.

  • August 20, 2025

    2nd Circ. Says Section 230 Can't Block EPA Defeat Device Suit

    The Second Circuit on Wednesday said makers of software that allegedly enables vehicles to bypass pollution controls can't use a Communications Decency Act provision intended to protect companies from third-party use of their products to dodge a federal lawsuit.

  • August 20, 2025

    Chemours Says Injunction Appeal Warrants Stay Of CWA Suit

    Chemours urged a federal judge to pause a Clean Water Act suit while it appeals a preliminary injunction ordering it to stop its Washington Works plant from discharging excessive amounts of a "forever chemical" into the Ohio River.

  • August 20, 2025

    4th Circ. Won't Rethink $190M TM Verdict Against Vivint

    The Fourth Circuit has declined Vivint Smart Home Inc.'s requests to rethink its decision affirming a $190 million verdict in a case accusing the company of deceiving customers of a rival home security business.

  • August 20, 2025

    FCC Denies Carrier's Bid To Avoid Rural Fund Clawback

    The Federal Communications Commission denied a Midwest broadband provider's request to waive a $24 million penalty for defaulting on its Rural Digital Opportunity Fund commitments, saying the company's due diligence was inadequate when it decided to pursue fund money for buildouts in areas that were already served by others.

  • August 20, 2025

    Property Manager Settles With Mass. AG Over Data Breaches

    One of the largest property management firms in Massachusetts will pay $795,000 to settle allegations by the state attorney general's office that it failed to prevent or address a series of five data breaches between 2019 and 2021.

  • August 20, 2025

    Insurers Say Gov't Misusing FCA To Get Medicare Cost Cap

    Insurers accused of paying brokers to steer customers to their Medicare Advantage plans asked a Massachusetts federal judge to dismiss a False Claims Act lawsuit, saying the government is mischaracterizing legal payments for marketing as kickbacks in an attempt to impose caps it has thus far been unable to obtain.

  • August 20, 2025

    Trump Says Fed's Cook 'Must Resign' Amid Loan Fraud Claim

    President Donald Trump's Federal Housing Finance Agency chief on Wednesday accused Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook of potential mortgage fraud and said he has referred the matter to federal prosecutors, prompting Trump to call for Cook's immediate resignation — a call she has rejected.

  • August 19, 2025

    ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ Ends 'Biased' Investigation Of Gun-Financing Fintech

    Credova, a fintech firm specializing in buy-now, pay-later financing for firearms and outdoor recreational goods purchases, is no longer facing what the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau now says was a "politically motivated" investigation on its part, the firm's parent company announced Tuesday.

  • August 19, 2025

    Another Suit Says Roblox Didn't Protect Child From Predator

    The mother of a 10-year-old girl has hit Roblox Corp. with a lawsuit joining the many that accuse the popular gaming platform of putting children in danger, claiming that a man the girl met on the company's app groomed her until she shared sexually explicit images of herself with him.

  • August 19, 2025

    Chamber Scorns Bid To Unseal FTC's Dropped Pepsi Complaint

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has asked a New York federal judge to deny an advocacy group's request to unseal the Federal Trade Commission's abandoned price discrimination case against Pepsi, saying it would reveal "confidential investigatory material that courts routinely keep under seal."

  • August 19, 2025

    Capitol Hill Aides See NTIA Renewal As Crucial This Year

    Congress will make it a priority to reauthorize the federal spectrum management agency this year, aides to key lawmakers on telecom issues said Tuesday.

  • August 19, 2025

    9th Circ. Revives App's Arbitration Bid In Video Privacy Row

    The Ninth Circuit has given Christian-based streaming service Yippee Entertainment Inc. another chance to force arbitration of claims that it illegally shared subscribers' video viewing information, after finding that the lower court erred in concluding that consumers weren't given adequate notice of the arbitration agreement.

Expert Analysis

  • Web Tracking Ruling Signals Potential Broadening Of CCPA

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    The Northern District of California's recent decision in Shah v. Capital One Financial Corp. is notable, as it signals a potential broadening of the California Consumer Privacy Act's private right of action beyond data breaches to unauthorized, nonbreach disclosures involving the use of now-ubiquitous tracking technologies, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.

  • Breaking Down 4th Circ. 'Actual Knowledge' Ruling For Banks

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    A recent decision from the Fourth Circuit finding that banks must have "actual knowledge" to be found liable for losses arising from an automated clearinghouse transfer warns that the more financial institutions know about a name mismatch issue for any particular transaction, the more liability they may face, say attorneys at Katten.

  • What New Study Means For Recycling Compliance In Calif.

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    Companies must review the California recycling agency's new study to understand its criteria for assessing claims of product and packaging recyclability under a law that takes effect next year, and then decide whether the risks of making such claims in the state outweigh the benefits, say attorneys at Keller & Heckman.

  • The Future Of Privacy Enforcement Under Ferguson's FTC

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    Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson's early actions indicate a marked shift toward a more traditional approach to privacy enforcement, so companies should expect the commission to maintain a strong focus on enforcing Section 5 of the FTC Act in the privacy area, says Kandi Parsons at ZwillGen.

  • AT&T Decision May Establish Framework To Block FCC Fines

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    The Fifth Circuit's recent decision in AT&T v. FCC upends the commission's authority to impose certain civil penalties, reinforcing constitutional safeguards against administrative overreach, and opening avenues for telecommunications and technology providers to challenge forfeiture orders, say attorneys at HWG.

  • Reassessing Corporate Separateness After Explosion Of LLCs

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    Following the dramatic increase of limited liability companies in the U.S., the Corporate Transparency Act's enactment and the Trump administration's subsequent narrowing of that law, it's worth revisiting the underlying legal principles that govern shell companies in order to remedy the problems that initially motivated the CTA, says Jeff Newton at Omni Bridgeway.

  • What Banks Should Note As Regulators Plan To Nix CRA Rule

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    While federal bank regulators’ recently announced intent to rescind a Biden-era Community Reinvestment Act final rule will loosen the framework for evaluating banks’ lending, service and investing activities, the decision means industry innovations and changes will remain unaddressed, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    Playing Guitar Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Being a lawyer not only requires logic and hard work, but also belief, emotion, situational awareness and lots of natural energy — playing guitar enhances all of these qualities, increasing my capacity to do my best work, says Kosta Stojilkovic at Wilkinson Stekloff.

  • Crisis Management Lessons From The Parenting Playbook

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    The parenting skills we use to help our kids through challenges — like rehearsing for stressful situations, modeling confidence and taking time to reset our emotions — can also teach us the fundamentals of leading clients through a corporate crisis, say Deborah Solmor at the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation and Cara Peterman at Alston & Bird.

  • High Court's Ruling May Not Stop Ghost Gun Makers

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    In Bondi v. VanDerStok, a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Gun Control Act applies to untraceable "ghost gun" kits under certain circumstances — but companies that produce these kits may still be able to use creative regulatory workarounds to evade government oversight, says Samuel Bassett at Minton Bassett.

  • Justices' Labcorp Questions Explore Class Cert. Tensions

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    At the recent oral argument before the U.S. Supreme Court in Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings v. Davis, the justices' questioning highlighted a fundamental tension between constitutional standing requirements, the procedural framework of Rule 23, and the practical challenges of managing large, diverse classes in complex litigation, say attorneys at Winston & Strawn.

  • 4 Ways To Leverage A Jury's Underdog Perceptions

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    Counsel should consider how common factors that speak to their client's size, power, past challenges and alignment with jurors can be presented to try and paint their client as a sympathetic underdog, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.

  • ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ Vacatur Bid Sheds Light On Agency Decision-Making

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    While the ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ's joint motion to vacate the settlement it reached with Townstone Financial last year won't affect precedent on the Equal Credit Opportunity Act's scope, it serves as a road map to ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ decisional processes and provides insight into how other regulators make similar decisions, says Jason McElroy at Saul Ewing.

  • Why Hiring Former Jurors As Consultants Can Be Risky

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    The defense team's decision to hire former juror Victoria George in the high-profile retrial of Karen Read shines a spotlight on this controversial strategy, which raises important legal, ethical and tactical questions despite not being explicitly prohibited, says Nikoleta Despodova at ND Litigation.

  • The Potential Efficiencies, Risks Of Folding PCAOB Into SEC

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    Integrating the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board into the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission offers the potential for regulatory efficiencies, as well as a more streamlined and consistent enforcement approach, but it also presents constitutional and operational uncertainties, say attorneys at Hilgers Graben.

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