Author Archives: Adam Pulver

Trump DOT to drop air passenger delay compensation reg plans

Last week, the Trump Administration finally got around to posting its Spring 2025 semiregulatory agenda. Among the notable consumer-related items, the Department of Transportation intends to withdraw an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued by the last administration that was considering regulations relating to compensation, rebooking, and accommodations for delays and cancellations that were within […]

Ninth Circuit finds no standing to challenge use of session-replay technology

Many commercial websites have adopted the use of “session-replay” technology, by which embedded code on a website records the visitor’s communications within that website, including their mouse movements, clicks, keystrokes, and pages visited. Businesses can then use this information in deciding how and whether to tweak their websites, and gain other consumer data. In Popa v. […]

Sixth Circuit rejects challenges to FCC data breach rule

In 2024, various telecom industry associations sued the FCC in the Sixth Circuit, challenging an order that imposed reporting requirements in the event of data breaches involving consumers’ personally identifiable information. Last week, the Sixth Circuit rejected those challenges. First, it held that the order was within the scope of the FCC’s authority under the […]

Divided California Supreme Court holds non-payment arbitration waiver not preempted

Last Monday, the California Supreme Court issued its decision in Hohenshelt v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County, and held that California Code of Civil Procedure section 1281.98, a provision of the California Arbitration Act that governs the payment of fees in employment and consumer arbitrations, is not preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act. That provision […]

Third Circuit holds unprofitable tribal lender not entitled to sovereign immunity

When do investments by outsiders turn a tribal business into one that does not share in the tribe’s sovereign immunity?  In a case decided today, the Third Circuit attempted to answer that question. The Fort Belknap Indian Community, a Montana-based Indian tribe, created a corporation called the Island Mountain Development Group, which manages another tribe-created […]

Ninth Circuit holds unfair business practices claims against credit unions are preempted

The National Credit Union Administration has promulgated regulations regarding the applicability of state laws to federal credit unions, including 12 C.F.R. s. 701.35(c), which, after setting out how a federal credit union may may determine the types of fees affecting the maintenance of its accounts, provides: “State laws regulating such activities are not applicable to […]

Car manufacturer cannot enforce customer’s arbitration agreement with dealers, says California Supreme Court

Yesterday, the California Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in Ford Motor Warranty Cases.  In each of the consolidated cases, plaintiffs who had purchased Ford vehicles sued Ford, alleging defects in the cars they purchased, violations of express and implied warranties, and fraudulent concealment. Ford moved to arbitrate on the grounds that the sales contracts between […]

CFPB can’t fully unring the amicus bell, says district court judge

Some of the little work that the Administration has authorized the CFPB to undertake has been motions to withdraw amicus briefs filed in pending cases. In one case, though, a judge has in part rejected such a motion. In the case, Salom v. Nationstar Mortgage, the CFPB had filed an amicus brief  explaining “explains why […]

Can a defendant forfeit an objection to a Rule 23(b)(2) class?

In Pickett v. City of Cleveland, the defendant appealed the district court’s certification of a class of Black homeowners or residents who had been obligated to pay certain debts to a water utility that were secured by their property, pursuant to both Rule 23(b)(2) and Rule 23(b)(3). A panel of the Sixth Circuit unanimously affirmed the […]

First Circuit Rejects Preemption and Vagueness Challenges to Puerto Rico Credit Card Surcharge Ban

In 2008, Puerto Rico adopted a law prohibiting merchants from charging credit card surcharges, while allowing merchants to offer cash discounts. In 2013, the legislature dropped the provision allowing cash discounts, and the Puerto Rico Department of Consumer Affairs has since issued an interpretation that cash discounts are forbidden. A group of merchants sued, arguing […]