Daniel B. Heidtke, Jessica Stewart and Spencer Weber Waller, all of Loyola of Chicago's School of Law and its Institute for Consumer Antitrust Studies have written The Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991: Adapting Consumer Protection to Changing Technology. Here is the abstract: In the late 1980’s, spurred on by advances in technology, the telemarketing industry […]
Yesterday I blogged about a Times report on medical debt. Today the Times published an editorial, Alarming Abuses of Medical Credit Cards, as well as some letters on the matter.
Yesterday, Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed an action that claimed that the structure of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the enforcement powers granted it violate separation-of-powers principles. The decision, in a case called Morgan Drexen v. CFPB, is here. The dismissal was on procedural grounds that […]
by Jeff Sovern The Times published an article on medical debt earlier this week, Patients Mired in Costly Credit From Doctors. The gist of the article was that doctors establish relationships with lenders which then give credit to patients so that patients can obtain medical treatment. That sounds innocent, and even helpful, to patients who […]
The Supreme Court has protected the right under the First Amendment to anonymous speech, except when it hasn't (as when it has upheld campaign contribution disclsoure laws, where the interest in anonymity was overriden by other important social goals). In Does 'The Freedom of the Press' Include a Right to Anonymity? The Original Understanding Robert Natelson […]
We have covered extensively (for instance, here, here, and here) the ban on the sale of large, sugary drinks by New York City's health department. A state-law-based challenge to the ban by merchants and others succeeded in a New York trial court and an intermediate court of appeals. Yesterday, however, New York's highest court (the […]
Neil M. Richards of Wash U. has written Why Data Privacy Law Is (Mostly) Constitutional, forthcoming in his book, Intellectual Privacy, Oxford University Press (2014). Here's the abstract: This essay argues that privacy critics arguing that most privacy rules create constitutional problems overstate their case. Since the New Deal, American law has rested on the […]
In a significant victory for plaintiffs, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled yesterday that a putative class of plaintiffs who work at Family Dollar Stores and allege disparate payment practices based on sex should be allowed to amend their complaint, and that they might be able to satisfy commonality under the […]
Joshua Fairfield of Washington and Lee University has written Do-Not-Track as Default, 11 Northwestern Journal of Technology and intellectual Property (2013). Here's the abstract: Do-Not-Track is a developing online legal and technological standard that permits consumers to express their desire not to be tracked by online advertisers. Do-Not-Track has the ability to change the relationship between […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's student loan ombudsman, Rohit Chopra, issued his annual report today. Here is the executive summary: * In the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, Congress established an ombudsman for student loans within the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The CFPB began accepting student loan complaints in March 2012. * This […]