We've already blogged twice on this subject today (here and here). But there's something else you may want to check out. Jen Lavellee, a senior lawyer at the D.C. Legal Aid Society, posted this piece on a client who experienced some of the serious problems discussed in the FTC Report on the debt buying industry […]
Author Archives: Brian Wolfman
This morning, Allison posted this informative piece on the FTC's new report on the debt buying industry. The Consumerist has done a nice overview of the report, explaining in some detail what it sees as the report's eight key takeaways: (1) Debt-Buyers Only Pay About $.04 Per Dollar On The Accounts They Buy; (2) Debt-Buyers […]
If you have health insurance, you probably know that the charges for "out of network" services are more than services provided by doctors and hospitals that are "in network." This article by Chad Terhune explains just how much the differential can be and whether the system is in need of reform. Here's an excerpt: A […]
That's the name of this article by University of Chicago law profs Jonathan Masur and Eric Posner. When a federal regulatory agency proposes a rule–say, a rule seeking to promote product safety or environmental quality–the agency generally does an cost-benefit analysis. It often does a separate analysis of the the rule's effect on employment. In […]
Last week, Paul Levy posted about the NAACP's amicus brief supporting the soft-drink industry in its opposition to the New York City rules barring the sale of large sugary drinks. Paul thought that there was a link between the NAACP's position and the large amounts of money it takes from the Coca-Cola Company. Hazel Dukes, […]
by Paul Bland, Public Justice Consumer and plaintiffs' lawyers know that there have been a long string of cases where the Supreme Court has enforced arbitration clauses. In the course of doing that, though, the Court has always said that enforcing arbitration clauses won’t cause any harm, because (the Court has insisted and promised) arbitration […]
Legal reporter Jenna Greene says here that "[t]The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was dealt a devastating—if indirect—blow last week, when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that three recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board were invalid." That remains to be seen, as the D.C. Circuit likely won't have the […]
Some opponents of the Affordable Care Act claimed that the Act could self-destruct because providers would refuse to take on newly covered (supposedly, non-lucrative) patients, particularly those covered under the Act's massive Medicaid expansion. Not so, at least according to a new study in Michigan conducted by the Ann Arbor-based Center for Healthcare Research & […]
Consumers shop on the Internet for low prices and convenience. But both low prices and convenience are at risk because prices for consumer goods and services on the Internet change frequently, making it hard to get the best (or even a good) price without a lot of search and monitoring time. This article by Stephanie […]
by Brian Wolfman Last Thursday, Judge Arthur Spatt, a federal district judge in Brooklyn, postponed a decision on final approval of a settlement in a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) class action on the ground of inadequate notice. See Corpac v. Rubin & Rothman, 2013 WL 265318 (E.D.N.Y. Jan. 24, 2012). The plaintiff alleged […]