That's the name of this article by consumer reporter Michelle Singletary. Here are excepts: Outstanding consumer revolving debt — mostly credit card debt — hit an all-time peak of $1.021 trillion in June, according to the Federal Reserve. This should be a scary statistic. The last time the debt level was nearly this high was in 2008, […]
So, you didn't predict that Trump would turn his sickening response to the white nationalist terror attack in Charlottesville into a faux pro-consumer attack on high prescription-drug prices? Me neither. Here goes: As this article by Glenn Thrush explains, "Merck’s chief executive, Kenneth C. Frazier, resigned from the president’s American Manufacturing Council on Monday, saying he objected to the […]
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 […]
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, […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]

