In a move that's sure to make nonbank financial institutions even more uncomfortable, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has decided to shine a brighter light on those that have been alleged to violate consumer...more
6/11/2024
/ Compliance ,
Consent Order ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
EFTA ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
FDCPA ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FTC Act ,
NMLS ,
Nonbank Firms ,
Registration Requirement ,
Section 5 ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA) ,
UDAP
State attorneys general (AGs) are the chief legal officers of their states or territories and can bring actions to protect the “public interest” in almost any area of law. They represent the state government and the general...more
Last week, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against the world’s largest beef producer JBS USA Food Company and JBS USA Food Company Holdings (JBS Group). The lawsuit challenges the company’s claim that...more
3/7/2024
/ Advertising ,
Audits ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Climate Change ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Claims ,
False Advertising ,
Greenwashing ,
Misleading Statements ,
NAD ,
Net Zero
It’s that time of year again—Ad Law Symposium is back!
Please join us in DC for this highly anticipated event focused on providing you with the information you need to promote your brand with confidence. Combining the...more
2/22/2024
/ Advertising ,
Advertising Substantiation ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Automatic Renewals ,
Best Practices ,
Defense Strategies ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Events ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Green Marketing ,
Lanham Act ,
Legal Ethics ,
Marketing ,
Pricing ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Social Media ,
State Privacy Laws ,
Telemarketing ,
Text Messages
Tractor maker Kubota North America Corporation will pay a $2 million civil penalty for falsely labeling its replacement parts as “Made in USA,” the largest civil penalty ever in a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Made in USA...more
1/31/2024
/ Advertising ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Country of Origin ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Labeling ,
Made in the USA ,
Manufacturers ,
Product Labels
Last week, the Fifth Circuit handed down an across-the-board rejection of four constitutional challenges raised by gene sequencing company Illumina in defending against the Federal Trade Commission’s merger challenge. Bah!...more
Environmental advertising claims remain a hot area of regulator action, with the Federal Trade Commission in the process of updating the FTC Green Guides. State legislatures like California’s also remain active in the area,...more
11/22/2023
/ Advertising ,
Class Action ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Claims ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Green Guides ,
Green Marketing ,
NAD ,
New Legislation ,
Recycling ,
State Regulators ,
Webinars
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) won a large battle in its extended war with Intuit, the makers of TurboTax tax-preparation software. An administrative law judge (ALJ) issued a lengthy initial decision, ruling...more
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and six states permanently banned Roomster Corp. and its owners, John Shriber and Roman Zaks, from purchasing or incentivizing consumer reviews as part of a settlement over...more
Marketers and lead generators have new guidance in the form of enforcement orders on what the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) appears to consider required practice when obtaining consumer consent prior to the sale, transfer,...more
8/1/2023
/ Consent ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Lead Generators ,
Marketing ,
Personal Information ,
Prior Express Consent ,
Settlement ,
Telemarketing Sales Rule ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
With the end of the Supreme Court’s term in June, most eyes have been on the release of the last remaining merits decisions. In the midst of issuing the final opinions of the term, the Court also granted certiorari on a...more
7/10/2023
/ Administrative Authority ,
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Seventh Amendment
The Federal Trade Commission’s recent settlement with Dalal A. Akoury and AWAREmed Health & Wellness Resource Center provides a good overview of how today’s FTC approaches medical claims it believes are unsubstantiated. The...more
3/23/2023
/ Advertising ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug & Alcohol Abuse ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Health Claims ,
Health Clinics ,
Opioid ,
Settlement ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
Gather your W-2’s and call your CPAs! Tax season is upon us, and that means one thing for the FTC—another flurry of activity in its ongoing action against Intuit, Inc., one of the largest online tax-filing services. Recently,...more
As the dust settles from the Supreme Court’s decision in AMG Capital Management, LLC v. FTC, 141 S. Ct. 1341 (2021), which gutted the Federal Trade Commission’s authority to obtain equitable monetary relief in court, the...more
Last week the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it had issued a complaint and proposed consent order against Instant Brands LLC for allegedly marketing products as “Made in the USA,” when they were actually made in...more
This week the Federal Trade Commission unveiled hefty settlements with Epic Games Inc.—the creator of the video game Fortnite—to resolve separate actions alleging violations of Section 5 of the FTC Act and the Children’s...more
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general in Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York, and Texas settled with advertising giants Google and iHeartMedia for deceptive...more
12/2/2022
/ Advertising ,
Celebrity Endorsements ,
Endorsements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Google ,
iHeart Media ,
Influencers ,
Misrepresentation ,
Settlement ,
State Attorneys General
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a press release, announcing a $100 million settlement with Vonage, an internet-based telephone service company, for alleged violations of the Restore Online Shoppers’...more
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission turned its attention to the mortgage relief industry once again. In its most recent enforcement action, the FTC joined forces for the first time with the California Department of...more
9/23/2022
/ AMG Capital Management LLC v FTC ,
Asset Freeze ,
California Consumer Financial Protection Law (CCFPL) ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Debt-Relief Industry ,
Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Loan Modifications ,
Mortgage Assistance Relief Services (MARS) ,
Mortgages ,
Restraining Orders ,
Telemarketing Sales Rule
On August 30, the Federal Trade Commission announced a complaint and proposed order for Ohio-based Electrowarmth Products, LLC and its owner, alleging they improperly claimed that their heated fabric truck bunk...more
The Federal Trade Commission’s recent action against Credit Karma serves as a reminder to advertisers that optimizing consumer conversion is not - and cannot be - the be-all and end-all. Regardless of what split or A/B...more
When the COVID-19 pandemic began, and consumers swarmed the stores for disinfectant sprays, masks, and household items, state price-gouging laws grew increasingly relevant as sellers sought to cash in on the heightened...more
Last week, the FTC brought and settled enforcement actions against two manufacturing companies for allegedly limiting customers’ right to repair purchased products under unlawful warranty terms. The FTC alleged that the two...more
Last week, the United States Department of Justice, acting on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission, took action against Twitter, Inc. for allegedly using private account security data to sell targeted advertisements without...more
6/1/2022
/ Advertising ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Security ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU-US Privacy Shield ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Misrepresentation ,
Online Advertisements ,
Swiss Privacy Shield ,
Targeted Digital Advertising ,
Twitter
Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) moved to dismiss its long-running enforcement action against Electronic Payment Solutions (EPS) pending in the District of Arizona after the Commission voted 4-0 to approve a...more