Paul Harrison, Marta Massi & Kathryn Chalmers have written Beyond Door-to-Door: The Implications of Invited In-Home Selling, 48 J. Consumer Affairs 195 (2014). Here is the abstract: Over the past 20 years, consumer groups and policymakers have expressed concerns about the high-pressure selling techniques used during in-home selling, often highlighting the distinction between typical door-to-door […]
When an essential consumer safety rule is issued after a prolonged delay, do you cheer the life-saving rule, or bemoan the delay? For me, some of each. We've posted before about the problem of deadly "backover" crashes (collisions in which a vehicle moving in reverse strikes a person behind the vehicle, whom the driver can't […]
I don't like repeating posts, but an exception is warranted here. I am reproducing Jeff Sovern's post about the "Making the fine print fair" conference set for this Friday, April 4, at Georgetown law. Note that the conference is free and open to the public. So, if you are in D.C. on Friday, feel free to […]
Our readers may be interested in a couple new items about the minimum wage. First, this piece by Emily Badger discusses the difficulties faced by low-wage workers living in places where the cost of housing is high. Badger highlights a new report by the Naitonal Low Income Housing Coalition, which claims that a minimum-wage worker […]
J Michael Collins has written Protecting Mortgage Borrowers through Risk Awareness: Evidence from Variations in State Laws, 48 J. Consumer Affairs 124 (2014). Here is the abstract: In the wake of historic levels of mortgage defaults, regulators have debated how to regulate certain high-risk loans because of the risks of foreclosure involved. This study examines […]
Registration is now open for the Teaching Consumer Law Conference, to be held in Santa Fe, New Mexico, May 30-31. Presented by the Center for Consumer Law at the University of Houston Law Center, this year's Conference features more than thirty speakers discussing issues of importance to those teaching consumer law, interested in teaching consumer […]
by Jeff Sovern The Journal of Consumer Affairs published my paper, Fixing Consumer Protection Laws So Borrowers Understand Their Payment Obligations, 48 Journal Consumer Affairs 17 (2014). Here is the abstract: The millions of consumers who defaulted on their mortgages in recent years should all have received disclosures mandated by the federal Truth in Lending […]
Larry Kirsch, Roert N. Mayer and Norman I. Silber of Hofstra have authored, The CFPB and Payday Lending: New Agency/Old Problem, 48 Journal of Consumer Affairs 1 (2014). Here's the abstract: The Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 brings nonbank payday lenders under federal regulation for the first time. The question of precisely how to regulate the payday […]
by Paul Alan Levy I have blogged a few times about the libel suit brought by Washington, DC contractor Christopher Dietz against one of his customers, Jane Perez, who posted on Angie’s List and Yelp unfavorable reviews of his work on her newly purchased condo and included an assertion that, after their contractual relationship broke […]
Here is the groups' press release: New Report Examines Both the Promise and the Potential Dangers of the New Financial Marketplace Leading Reform Groups Call for New Regulations to Protect Consumers from Unfair and Discriminatory “Big Data” Practices, Groups File Report with the White House “Big Data” Review Proceeding Washington, DC: U.S. PIRG Education Fund […]