Following up on Brian's post early this morning about a failed Senate bill that would have rolled back the student-loan interest rate that doubled earlier this month: CNN is reporting that a "bipartisan groups of senators have reached a tentative deal to help students facing the doubled interest rate."
Author Archives: Allison Zieve
The FTC announced yesterday that the "world’s largest debt collection operation, Expert Global Solutions and its subsidiaries, has agreed to stop harassing consumers with allegedly illegal debt collection calls and to pay a $3.2 million civil penalty – the largest ever obtained by the Federal Trade Commission against a third-party debt collector." The FTC's press […]
In a blog post last June, we noted an Alabama Supreme Court ruling that a patient who took a generic version of a drug may sue a brand-name drug manufacturer for failing to warn about a drug’s risks. The court had reasoned that the brand-name manufacturer could have foreseen that a physician prescribing the brand-name […]
Although I am not able to find the announcement or the rule on the Bureau's website, Mondaq is reporting that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has issued a rule to implement Dodd-Frank's ban on mandatory arbitration clauses in mortgage contracts. The rule is available here. The rule implements changes required by Section 1414 of the […]
After 42 years as head of Public Citizen Health Research Group, Dr. Sidney Wolfe is handing the reins over to his deputy director Dr. Michael Carome, effective today. Sid founded the Group in 1971, with Ralph Nader. Under Sid’s direction, Public Citizen helped to have 25 dangerous drugs removed from the market and pushed the […]
A federal judge in Kentucky approved last week a $40 million class-action settlement between Skechers USA Inc. and consumers who bought Skechers' toning shoes from August 2008 – August 2012. The Skechers' ads made unfounded claims that the shoes would help people lose weight and strengthen muscles. Consumers with approved claims will be paid up […]
Rebecca Tushnet’s 43(b) blog reports today on the recent district court decision in Mason v. Nature's Innovation, Inc. (S.D. Cal.). The plaintiff sued the manufacturer of a skin care product for injunctive relief, alleging claims under California consumer statutes and warranty claims based on misrepresentations on the product’s label and website. The court found that […]
Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a petition for certiorari in Northwest, Inc. v. Ginsberg, which will give the Court yet another opportunity to address the preemptive scope of a federal statute. In 2005, Rabbi S. Binyomin Ginsberg, a long-time customer of Northwest Airlines, earned the highest level of membership benefits in Northwest’s customer loyalty […]
In In Re HP Inkjet Printers, the Ninth Circuit yesterday reversed the district court’s orders granting final approval to a class-action settlement between Hewlett-Packard Company and a nationwide class of consumers who purchased certain HP inkjet printers, and awarding attorneys’ fees. Here is the summary issued by the court: The panel held that the attorneys’ […]
Senator Franken today sent a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission urging it to "promptly exercise its authority under Section 921 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to prohibit the use of mandatory arbitration provisions in customer service agreements." His letter and press release are posted here.