A recent New York Times story about the relationships between consumer-friendly state attorneys general and plaintiffs' lawyers that serve as outside counsel on enforcement cases that the outside lawyers themselves have recommended is worth a read — and a big caveat. The article is informative about how state AGs often need to turn to outside […]
Author Archives: Scott Michelman
The title of this piece, "When Nonprofit Hospitals Sue Their Poorest Patients," sums it up. The story raises important questions about nonprofit hospitals' social responsibility to low-income patients and highlights the harsh practices of one Missouri hospital that seizes more money from its patients than any other hospital in the state. The results are lawsuits, […]
In a must-read for consumers who value their right to criticize companies they do business with, Techdirt has compiled this list of businesses that employ contract language to try to silence criticism from customers. These companies threaten fines from $2,500 up to a mindboggling $100,000 for customer criticism. Earlier this year, as we've discussed, a […]
In a victory for consumers and the environment, the administration of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo will impose a statewide ban on the controversial technique known as hydraulic fracturing or "fracking" for gas. Reuters quotes state health commissioner Howard Zucker: "The potential risks are too great, in fact not even fully known, and relying on […]
The leaked text of a multi-national trade agreement currently under negotiation reveals some troubling implications, explains Public Citizen this week in this press statement and this report. The text at issue, from the Trade in Services Agreement (TISA), would apply in fifty nations. As explained in the release: With respect to privacy protections, the leaked […]
This week, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court affirmed a jury verdict against Walmart in favor of a class of more than 180,000 workers who were not paid for missed breaks and work after their shifts ended. The Court rejected Walmart's arguments against the form of the class proceedings. Our friends at Public Justice break down the […]
Check out this video of her speech — it's a great overview of what's wrong, both substantively and procedurally, with the Dodd-Frank amendment incorporated in the spending bill the House passed last night. (The speech was delivered Wednesday, before the House's vote Thursday.)
A productive week for the CFPB. The agency took enforcement actions against two debt-relief outfits who, according to the agency, charged illegal fees and made false promises about rates and/or results, among other nefarious activity. Read the details here. Separately, following up on its report focusing on the effect of unpaid medical debt on consumer […]
Colorado's cap on payday loan interest rates has had some success, Lauren explains, but it's not enough: she calls for a stricter cap and front-end underwriting requirements that ensure that borrowers are actually able to repay their loans. Read her whole piece here.
Today the Supreme Court denied BP's petition seeking review of a case interpreting the company's multi-billion dollar settlement over its 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The company claimed (both in court papers and via a public relations campaign) that it is improperly being forced to compensate losses unrelated to the spill. Read […]