Opioids include morphine, heroin, codeine, oxycodone, and hydrocodone. Many opioids are available by prescription to treat pain. Addiction to these drugs is on the rise. (Addiction to the illegal opioid heroin also is on the rise.) Earlier this month, the federal Food and Drug Administration released its plan to reduce abuse of prescription opioids. Read about the […]
by Julie A. Murray, guest blogger Today Public Citizen submitted a citizen petition to the Department of Education asking it to issue a rule that requires colleges to agree, as a condition on receipt of certain federal funding such as Stafford loans and Pell grants, not to include pre-dispute arbitration clauses in enrollment or other […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau yesterday took two separate actions against Citibank for illegal debt sales and debt collection practices. In the first action, the CFPB ordered Citibank to provide nearly $5 million in consumer relief and pay a $3 million penalty for selling credit card debt with inflated interest rates and for failing to […]
David Adam Friedman of Willamette has written Refining Advertising Regulation. Here's the abstract: Why did the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) aggressively pursue Volkswagen’s claims about “clean-diesel” technology, while ignoring widespread practices like deceptive discount pricing? Why did the FTC offer formal guidance to industry about “native advertising,” but only casual guidance to consumers about widely-used, […]
by Paul Alan Levy Until recently, a Dallas, Texas pet-sitting service called Prestigious Pets enjoyed a fairly high rating on Yelp – most of the reviews gave it five stars. There were, however, two one-star dissents, one from Michelle D and one from Tatiana N, each of whom objected, in fairly mild terms, to some […]
It's tragic, but not news, that rich people live longer than poor people. What is news is this new Brookings Institution study that finds that the life-expectancy gap between rich and poor has grown a good bit in recent years. This article by Sabrina Tavernise summarizes the Brookings findings and notes: In the early 1970s, a 60-year-old man […]
The FBI's demand that Apple help it unlock the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone — and Apple's refusal to do so — have been big news over the last few days. The Huffington Post has a helpful guide to the arguments on each side, including everything from what it could mean for the cybersecurity of ordinary […]
Brigitta Lurger of Graz and four co-authors have written Consumer Decisions Under High Information Load: How Can Legal Rules Improve Search Behavior and Decision Quality?. Here's the abstract: EU consumer protection legislation is designed to enable consumers to make "good" contract decisions in the market place. This legislation heavily relies on the model of rational […]
Danielle Keats Citron of Maryland, Yale and Stanford has written Privacy Enforcement Pioneers: The Role of State Attorneys General in the Development of Privacy Law, Forthcoming in the Notre Dame Law Review, Here's the abstract: Accounts of privacy law have focused on legislation, federal agencies, and the self-regulation of privacy professionals. Crucial agents of regulatory […]