National banks have long argued for broad preemption of state laws that would otherwise apply to their activities, and their federal regulator, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has often gone along. In an important decision issued Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that preemption is more limited than the banks […]
Author Archives: Scott Nelson
Wastewater systems nationwide have for some time been urging people not to flush anything except human waste and toilet paper down the toilet to avoid clogs that damage sewer lines. Kimberly-Clark and other manufacturers, however, market some of their moistened wipes as "flushable," a claim that has given rise to litigation from consumers as well […]
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Dick Durbin today issued a report giving Betsy DeVos and the Department of Education a failing grade on their handling of claims for loan forgiveness from students defrauded by for-profit colleges and trade schools. Fourteen other Democratic Senators joined Warren and Durbin in a letter calling on the Department to take […]
by Scott Nelson As Jeff noted earlier this morning, Equifax's offer of "complimentary" enrollment in "TrustedID Premier" to people potentially affected (and even people that it doesn't identify as potentially affected) by its data breach came with a catch: The TrustedID Premier terms and conditions include an arbitration clause and class action ban. The terms […]
By Scott Nelson The nation's three big credit-reporting companies have tremendous power over American consumers and collect the most sensitive data about us. With that great power should go great responsibility to protect that information. Now comes news, via CNN, that one of the big three, Equifax, discovered on July 29 that between May and […]
Those who follow the arbitration wars probably know that the upcoming Supreme Court term will kick off with an epic battle in those wars–literally. The first argument on the first Monday in October will be in the consolidated cases of Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, Ernst & Young LLP v. Morris, and NLRB v. Murphy Oil Corp.. The […]
Coming soon to a TV screen near you: An ad from the Chamber of Commerce exhorting viewers to tell their Senators to block the CFPB's arbitration rule so lawyers will stop bringing lawsuits over coffee. I kid you not. Never mind that the rule applies to rip-offs by banks, credit card companies, and other financial […]
The "Bargainista" columnist for the on-line news site TCPalm.com, a USA Today affiliate focusing on Florida's Treasure Coast, commonly covers subjects such as the availability of "mooncakes" at Denny's on eclipse day, the supply of pretzels at the Wawa convenience store chain, and special deals available on "holidays" like National Fajitas Day, National Bowling Day, National […]
Take a look at this image of a cell-phone displaying the registration page for the Uber ride-sharing app: If you enter your credit card information and hit "REGISTER," have you given up your right to bring a class action against Uber if you think it has engaged in illegal price fixing? Yes, says the […]
The National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) has a useful discussion here on the implications of this week's Supreme Court decision in Henson v. Santander Consumer USA. NCLC's principal point is that Santander leaves open the possibility of proving that a debt buyer is a debt collector under the FDCPA's alternative definition, under which the term includes anyone whose […]