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Full-Text Articles in Law
Smart Cars, Telematics And Repair, Leah Chan Grinvald, Ofer Tur-Sinai
Smart Cars, Telematics And Repair, Leah Chan Grinvald, Ofer Tur-Sinai
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
Recent years have seen a surge in the use of automotive telematics. Telematics is the integration of telecommunications and informatics technologies. Using telematics in cars enables transmission of data communications between the car and other systems or devices. This opens up a wide range of possibilities, including the prospect of conducting remote diagnostics based on real-time access to the vehicle. Yet, as with any new technology, alongside its potential benefits, the use of automotive telematics could also have potential downsides. This Article explores the significant negative impact that the growing reliance on telematics systems could have on competition in the …
Opening Schumer’S Box: The Empirical Foundations Of Modern Consumer Finance Disclosure Law, Hosea H. Harvey
Opening Schumer’S Box: The Empirical Foundations Of Modern Consumer Finance Disclosure Law, Hosea H. Harvey
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This Article explores the fundamental failure of Congress’ twenty-five-year quest to utilize disclosure as the primary tool to both regulate credit card issuers and educate consumers. From inception until present, reforms to this disclosure regime, even when premised on judgment and decision-making behavioralism, were nomothetic in orientation and ignored clear differences in population behavior and the heterogeniety of consumers. Current law prohibits credit card issuers from acquiring consumer socio-demographic data and prevents issuers and regulators from using market and policy experimentation to enhance disclosure’s efficacy. To explain why this regime was structured this way and why it must change, this …
Applying 42 U.S.C. § 1981 To Claims Of Consumer Discrimination, Abby Morrow Richardson
Applying 42 U.S.C. § 1981 To Claims Of Consumer Discrimination, Abby Morrow Richardson
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This Note explores several interesting legal questions regarding the proper interpretation of 42 U.S.C. § 1981, which prohibits racial discrimination in contracting, when discrimination arises in the context of a consumer retail contract. The Note further explores how the Fifth Circuit's and other federal courts' narrow interpretation of § 1981's application in a retail setting (which allows plaintiffs to invoke the statute only when they have been prevented from completing their purchases) is contrary to the statute's express language, congressional intent, and to evolving concepts of contract theory, all of which reflect a commitment to the strict enforcement of civil …
Arriving At Reasonable Alternative Design: The Reporters' Travelogue, James A. Henderson Jr., Aaron D. Twerski
Arriving At Reasonable Alternative Design: The Reporters' Travelogue, James A. Henderson Jr., Aaron D. Twerski
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
Substantial commentary and controversy have been generated by the requirement in the new Restatement (Third) of Torts: Products Liability that plaintiffs in most (but not all) cases involving claims of defective product design show that a reasonable alternative design was available and that failure to adopt the alternative rendered the defendant's design not reasonably safe. Henderson and Twerski explain the origins of that requirement in American products liability case law and show that it is not only the majority position but also comports with widely shared views regarding the proper objectives of our liability system. Although consumer expectations cannot serve …
Section 707(B) Of The Bankruptcy Code: A Roadmap With A Proposed Standard For Defining Substantial Abuse, David L. Balser
Section 707(B) Of The Bankruptcy Code: A Roadmap With A Proposed Standard For Defining Substantial Abuse, David L. Balser
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This Note examines these questions and proposes a standard for determining "substantial abuse." Part I provides an overview of Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code. Part II discusses the legislative history of section 707(b). Part III examines the jurisdictional and procedural questions raised by the section and attempts to define what Congress meant by "primarily consumer debts" and "on [a court's] own motion." Part IV proposes a two-part standard for determining "substantial abuse." This standard suggests that courts should find "substantial abuse" whenever a debtor acts in bad faith or is able to repay 100% of his debts over the …
Consumer Warranty Claims Against Companies In Chapter 11 Reorganizations, Elizabeth Warner
Consumer Warranty Claims Against Companies In Chapter 11 Reorganizations, Elizabeth Warner
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This article examines the rights of individuals who have purchased warranted goods from a business that subsequently undergoes reorganization under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978. Part I establishes that warranty rights are claims in bankruptcy and outlines the procedure that must be followed by a creditor for distribution from the debtor's estate. Part II focuses on how warranty claims are treated in Chapter 11. Part III discusses ways to alleviate the warranty creditor's representational burden, particularly through the intervention and aid of public interest groups. This article concludes that . warranty creditors will receive favorable treatment …
Efts: Consumer Protection Under The Ucc, Susan E. Jinnett
Efts: Consumer Protection Under The Ucc, Susan E. Jinnett
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
In view of the economic significance of the payments system, the laws governing it must be equitable and comprehensive. The development of the commercial law applicable to EFTS's, however, currently lags behind the growth of these systems. Threats to the integrity of EFTS's stem from lost, stolen, or forged access cards, illegal taps into communication lines, physical impairment of the equipment, or improper programming. The legal rights and liabilities of consumers where the integrity of an EFTS has been breached remains unclear, in part because the status of EFTS's under current law is uncertain. The rights of the parties involved …
Information Disclosure And Consumer Behavior: An Empirical Evaluation Of Truth-In-Lending, William K. Brandt, George S. Day
Information Disclosure And Consumer Behavior: An Empirical Evaluation Of Truth-In-Lending, William K. Brandt, George S. Day
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This article offers some empirical insight into the debate over the efficacy of disclosure legislation. The primary concern is the effect of the Act on (1) the level of consumer knowledge of interest rates and finance charges; (2) the extent of comparison shopping; and (3) the decisions to postpone purchases, to use cash instead of credit, or to reduce the finance charges by increasing the downpayment or reducing the number of payments. The article also evaluates patterns of consumer behavior and credit-granting procedures which may constrain the long-run potential of TIL.
New Jersey Retail Installment Sales Act, Eric A. Oesterle
New Jersey Retail Installment Sales Act, Eric A. Oesterle
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
The effect of the enactment of the New Jersey bill is that a "retail buyer" may now assert against an assignee of the installment contract or subsequent "holder" of the negotiable note any defenses he has against the retail installment seller. The new law would appear to be one of the most comprehensive laws of its type to be enacted. However, the draftsmen apparently left a significant loophole, appropriately termed the "specious cash sale,” which, if exploited, could negate the intended effect of the new law. This note will analyze the bill, compare it with the relevant provisions of the …
New York Specious Cash Sales Act, Craig D. Holleman
New York Specious Cash Sales Act, Craig D. Holleman
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
The New York Legislature recently moved to protect consumers in that state from unscrupulous retailers of consumer goods and financers of consumer loans by enacting the Specious Cash Sales Act. The new law is the third in a series of measures designed to remedy certain perceived inequities to which the holder in due course doctrine gives rise in the consumer goods field. Earlier this year, the Legislature undercut complicated mechanisms whereby a finance company could procure from a retailer contracts and obligations containing a waiver-of-defenses provision executed by the buyer-consumer. This law in turn complemented a still earlier statute which …
New York City Consumer Protection Law Of 1969, Thomas G. Morgan
New York City Consumer Protection Law Of 1969, Thomas G. Morgan
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
In recent years there has been growing concern over the lack of legal protection afforded the American consumer. Comprehensive consumer protection legislation has been introduced at all levels of government, and several significant proposals have been enacted into law. One such enactment at the municipal level is the New York City Consumer Protection Law of 1969, which establishes a framework for a broad ban against unfair trade practices and vests the city's Commissioner of Consumer Affairs with extensive powers of enforcement. In this note, the New York City ordinance will be analyzed and evaluated against the general background of existing …