. . . titled Is Discrimination Unfair? is now available. I would love to hear any comments anyone has. Here’s the abstract: Though multiple federal laws explicitly bar discrimination in consumer transactions, many consumer transactions fall in the gaps between those laws. But recently, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have attempted […]
Author Archives: Jeff Sovern
Here. The article is The Shape of Consumer Contracts, in the Denver Law Review, available here. Ballard Spahr’s Alan Kaplinsky hosted the conversation.
The bill would add unfairness and abusiveness to the NY UDAAP statute, increase statutory damages to $1,000, and allow businesses to recover under the statute, among other things. This follows NY’s blocking credit bureaus from reporting medical debt. More here.
Here, with Myriam Gilles of Cardozo, Prentiss Cox of Minnesota, and David Vladeck of Georgetown. Excerpt: Perhaps the most consequential documents ever produced in this country are the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. The Constitution identifies our most important rights, while the Declaration explains why the deprivation of those rights justified the fight for independence. […]
The article, by Kashmir Hill, is headlined Your Car Is Tracking You. Abusive Partners May Be, Too. Excerpt: Modern cars have been called “smartphones with wheels” because they are internet-connected and have myriad methods of data collection, from cameras and seat weight sensors to records of how hard you brake and corner. Most drivers don’t realize […]
Here, in the Los Angeles Lawyer (you might have to scroll to page 28). Among the topics discussed are FedNow and cryptocurrencey. Excerpt: Ominously, the introduction of consumer-facing chat-bots and other artificial intelligence devices has provided fraudsters with new and improved tools for deceiving consumers. At the same time, consumer transactions now routinely involve “click […]
Buy Now Pay Later, or BNPL, probably would never exist in its current form but for regulation. The Truth in Regulation Act does not apply to loans which are to be repaid in no more than four installments, and BNPL usually provides for repayment in exactly four installments. In other words, BNPL was created to […]
USA Today’s Daniel de Vise has an interesting article, 62% of Americans say this zero-interest payment plan should be against the law, about a form of consumer lending called deferred interest plans. Here’s an excerpt: A popular payment plan offered by America’s big-box retailers promises no interest on your purchase if you pay it off in, […]
More information here. Here’s an excerpt: Consumers must be given a meaningful opportunity to choose how to proceed when disputes arise. Take-it-or-leave-it terms and conditions imposed in a consumer contract, through use of a product, or by signing up for a service does not allow that opportunity. Restoring consumers’ ability to make the choice about […]
I wrote The FAA Should Not Cover Consumer Claims, to appear in The Federal Arbitration Act: Successes, Failures, and a Roadmap for Reform (Richard A. Bales & Jill I. Gross eds., forthcoming 2024 Cambridge University Press). Here is the abstract: Consumer protection laws face a fundamental enforcement issue: because consumer claims are typically for small […]