Monestier article on Amazon comingling manufacturers’ products as deception

Tanya J. Monestier of Buffalo has written Amazon’s Dirty Little Secret, 69 Villanova Law Review 521 (2024). Here’s the abstract: You need new earbuds because one of yours just went missing. You log onto Amazon and scroll through the endless array of options. You finally select a pair “Sold by” Amazon and click “Buy Now.” […]

Home Depot to pay almost $2 million for false advertising, unfair competition

The Hill reports that Home Depot has agreed to pay nearly $2 million to settle a civil complaint from multiple California district attorneys alleging the company took part in false advertising and unfair competition. The story is here.

CFPB’s Seth Frotman remarks on consumer protection law as poverty law

Here, at the Poverty Law Center. Here’s an excerpt (footnote omitted): * * * I am increasingly worried about where we are headed today. After decades of more and more and more lending, the American people now have a significant debt burden. Yet there is no shortage of venture capital, private equity, and other pools […]

Green article on forced arbitration of discrimination claims

Michael Z. Green of Texas A&M has written Expanding the Ban on Forced Arbitration to Race Claims, 72 Kansas Law Review  455 (2024). Here’s the abstract: When Congress passed the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (“EFASASHA”) in March 2022, it signaled a major retreat from the Supreme Court’s broad enforcement […]

CFPB moves to ban Navient from federal student loan servicing

In a long-running litigation filed in Pennsylvania federal district court, the CFPB today filed a proposed stipulated order, which, if entered, would largely remove Navient from the federal student loan market, and require the company to pay a $20 million penalty and provide $100 million in relief to borrowers. The case includes allegations that Navient […]

CFPB fines TD Bank $28M for wrongful credit reporting practices

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau just announced that it ordered TD Bank to pay $28 million in fines and in consumer redress over the bank’s credit reporting practices. It is the CFPB’s second enforcement action against TD Bank. “For years, the bank repeatedly shared inaccurate, negative information about its customers to consumer reporting companies. The […]

NACA announces $8K stipend for Summer Fellowships for law students representing consumers

Here’s the announcement: NACA 2025 Consumer Law Summer Fellowship Program The National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA) are seeking motivated law students to apply for our Summer Consumer Law Fellowship Program. Interested students should arrange an internship position, contingent on funding, with a Legal Services/ Public Interest Organization’s consumer law unit or a private consumer […]

CFPB, FTC highlight medical debt, dark patterns in debt collection reports

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission this week issued their annual reporting of their debt collection activities. The CFPB, required under the Consumer Financial Protection Act to report to Congress annually on its activities to administer the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, recounted its ongoing work on medical debt. Notably, in […]

Craig Cowie article on compliance climates

Craig Cowie of Montana has written Creating Compliance Climates, 75 UC Law Journal (2024). Here’s the abstract: Relatively few regulated entities are the targets of enforcement activity or otherwise have direct contact with regulators. Given that absence of direct contact, this Article posits that regulators influence behavior by creating “compliance climates” that project regulators’ priorities into […]