Study on contingent-fee recoveries and contingent fees

Eric Helland, Daniel Klerman, Brenda Dowling, and Alexander Kappner have written Contingent Fee Litigation in New York City. The authors were able to conduct this study because, by court rule, lawyers practicing in parts of New York City must file data about contingent-fee settlements. (I wonder why other courts don't require the same.) One thing I […]

Hoofnagle on FTC Regulation of Cybersecurity and Surveillance

Chris Jay Hoofnagle of Berkeley has written FTC Regulation of Cybersecurity and Surveillance, in The Cambridge Handbook of Surveillance Law (David Gray and Stephen Henderson, eds)(Cambridge University Press 2017). Here's the abstract: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is the United States’ chief consumer protection agency. Through its mandate to prevent unfair and deceptive trade practices, […]

Edwards Article: Arbitration’s Dark Shadow

Benjamin P. Edwards of Nevada has written Arbitration's Dark Shadow, Nevada Law Journal, Forthcoming.  Here's the abstract: Arbitration has expanded broadly, removing disputes involving entire industries from judicial review. The absence of judicial review plunges these disputes and industries into shadow. This shadow causes the public to lose sight of vital information about industry practices […]

Paper on the Right to Be Forgotten in the US

Patrick O'Callaghan of University College Cork has written The Chance 'to Melt into the Shadows of Obscurity': Developing a Right to Be Forgotten in the United States, A. Cudd & M. Navin (eds) Privacy: Core Concepts and Contemporary Issues (New York: Springer, 2018) (Forthcoming). Here is the abstract: This chapter argues that there is some […]

Arbel Article Proposes that Administrative Agencies Sanction Filing of Baseless Claims Filed Against Consumers

Yonathan A. Arbel of Alabama has written Adminization: Gatekeeping Consumer Contracts, Vanderbilt Law Review, Forthcoming.  Here's the abstract: Large companies and debt collectors frequently file unmeritorious claims against consumers. Recent high-profile actions brought by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) against JP Morgan, Citibank, and large debt collectors illustrate the breadth and importance of this phenomenon. Due to […]

Can law bloggers be subjected to Bar discipline for misstating facts or law?

by Paul Alan Levy On Friday morning, a panel at the annual meeting in New York of the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers will be discussing an issue dear to the heart of blawgers who discuss subjects that make powerful figures in their own areas uncomfortable – to what extent should lawyers be subject to […]

David Dayen on Foreclosure Victims and Playing Politics

by Jeff Sovern The title of the piece, in The New Republic, is The Left’s Misguided Debate Over Kamala Harris. Perhaps non-Californians will be less interested in the parts about Kamala Harris and more interested in the parts about foreclosure victims (recall that Dayen wrote the excellent book Chain of Title about the foreclosure crisis). Here […]

Fed Study of Fintech Lending and Consumers

Julapa Jagtiani and Catharine Lemieux of the Fed have written Fintech Lending: Financial Inclusion, Risk Pricing, and Alternative Information. Here's the abstract: Fintech has been playing an increasing role in shaping financial and banking landscapes. Banks have been concerned about the uneven playing field because fintech lenders are not subject to the same rigorous oversight. There have also […]

“The FTC and FBI are shining the spotlight on your kid’s smart toys”

From an op-ed by Janis Kestenbaum, formerly of the Federal Trade Commission, in The Hill today: While children may be fans of talking dinosaurs, robots and stuffed animals, the federal government appears to have its concerns. At least that is the suggestion from a warning to parents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation that came […]

Who Regulates Arbitration?

That's the name of this article by law prof David Noll. Here is the abstract: One of the most important battles currently being fought in the United States' "arbitration wars" involves regulation by federal administrative agencies. Since 2014, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, National Labor Relations Board, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and Departments of Defense, […]