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Articles 1 - 15 of 15
Full-Text Articles in Consumer Protection Law
Endorsing After Death, Andrew Gilden
Endorsing After Death, Andrew Gilden
William & Mary Law Review
An endorsement is an act of giving one’s public support to a person, product, service, or cause; accordingly, it might seem impossible for someone to make an endorsement after they have died. Nevertheless, posthumous endorsements have become commonplace in social media marketing and have been increasingly embraced by trademark and unfair competition laws. Entities representing Marilyn Monroe, for example, have successfully brought trademark claims for the unauthorized use of Monroe’s name, have successfully brought false endorsement claims under section 43(a) of the Lanham Act, and regularly have promoted products through the Instagram-verified “@marilynmonroe” page. Marilyn Monroe survives today as a …
Vectors: Immunity In Commercial Aviation, Timothy M. Ravich
Vectors: Immunity In Commercial Aviation, Timothy M. Ravich
William & Mary Business Law Review
COVID-19 nearly wiped out demand for commercial air travel in 2020, driving down passenger traffic by a jaw-dropping 94.3% from the previous year. The airline industry thus understandably lobbied for a government bailout to manage what was nothing short of an existential crisis, with losses exceeding $35 billion. Less worthy of sympathy, however, were the ad hoc policies airlines unhelpfully put in the path of their customers even while securing for themselves $25 billion in payroll grants together with a similar sum in low-interest loans. For example, carriers refused to provide refunds or liquidate travel credits in a straightforward way …
Coronavirus "Cures" And The Courts, Chad G. Marzen, Michael Conklin
Coronavirus "Cures" And The Courts, Chad G. Marzen, Michael Conklin
William & Mary Business Law Review
The coronavirus pandemic has drastically affected nearly every aspect of American life. Unfortunately, it has also created an opportunity for those willing to exploit vulnerable citizens by selling fake “cures.” This Article analyzes a lawsuit against televangelist Jim Bakker for doing just that. This Article also calls for increased protection for individuals when a global health pandemic and national emergency have been declared. This Article advocates a novel proposal—the enacting of a federal statute making it a felony for an individual to knowingly sell a fraudulent cure for any disease that has been designated a pandemic by the World Health …
In Conspicuous Terms-- Arbitration Agreements For The Modern Reasonable App User, Michelle Dunbar
In Conspicuous Terms-- Arbitration Agreements For The Modern Reasonable App User, Michelle Dunbar
William & Mary Business Law Review
Two recent decisions regarding the validity of arbitration agreements in mobile apps have come to opposite conclusions despite utilizing the same legal standard and concerning the same app—Uber. While the Federal Arbitration Act strongly favors the validity and importance of arbitration agreements, it appears that judge’s subjectivity based on common knowledge and understanding of apps is influencing the outcome of cases concerning the validity of these arbitration agreements. To the modern app user, are these terms really inconspicuous? For businesses, this could mean that instead of competing in an already saturated app market by enhancing their design and integrating branding …
Non-Transparent Pbm Cash Flows: Balancing Market Forces Under A Reluctant Legislative Regime, John Mcguinness
Non-Transparent Pbm Cash Flows: Balancing Market Forces Under A Reluctant Legislative Regime, John Mcguinness
William & Mary Business Law Review
No abstract provided.
Determining The Deception Of Sexual Orientation Change Efforts, John M. Satira
Determining The Deception Of Sexual Orientation Change Efforts, John M. Satira
William & Mary Law Review
No abstract provided.
Viewing Unconscionability Through A Market Lens, David Gilo, Ariel Porat
Viewing Unconscionability Through A Market Lens, David Gilo, Ariel Porat
William & Mary Law Review
This Article calls for a move to a new phase in courts’ attitudes toward consumer contracts. Currently, courts applying the unconscionability doctrine to consumer contracts focus on the characteristics of the parties and the transaction. We suggest that rather than examining each consumer contract in isolation, courts should inquire whether there is competition, or potential competition, over contracts in the supplier’s market. As we show, competition over contracts is different from competition over products or services. In order to assess the degree of competition, or potential competition, over contracts, courts should look at the particular features of the supplier’s market …
Renting The Good Life, Jim Hawkins
Renting The Good Life, Jim Hawkins
William & Mary Law Review
Academic literature and court decisions are replete with calls to ban or severely inhibit the rent-to-own industry. The argument is simple enough: Rent-to-own firms charge exorbitant prices to the most needy and vulnerable segments of society. The case for burdensome regulations, however, is much more difficult to make out than past scholarship has admitted. For the most part, academics have proceeded directly to proposing specific regulations for the industry without first carefully analyzing the rent-to-own business or the reasons for imposing drastic regulations. This Article examines the theoretical justifications for regulating the rent-to-own industry against the backdrop of interviews I …
Rolling Over Borrowers: Preventing Excessive Refinancing And Other Necessary Changes In The Payday Loan Industry, Richard J. Thomas
Rolling Over Borrowers: Preventing Excessive Refinancing And Other Necessary Changes In The Payday Loan Industry, Richard J. Thomas
William & Mary Law Review
No abstract provided.
Are Credit Card Late Fees Unconstitutional?, Seana Valentine Shiffrin
Are Credit Card Late Fees Unconstitutional?, Seana Valentine Shiffrin
William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal
State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. v. Campbell articulated serious and specific constitutional constraints upon the imposition of punitive damages. Justice Kennedy's majority opinion announced that, apart from exceptional cases, punitive damages should not exceed nine times the amount of the actual losses sustained by the plaintiff and should usually be far lower. Indeed, the opinion observed, they typically should be much lower, citing double, treble, and quadruple multipliers as "instructive" examples. Some commentators have worried that the decision could adversely affect consumer interests by offering insulation for tortious behavior that is difficult to detect or litigate. This Article will …
Toward A New Model Of Consumer Protection: The Problem Of Inflated Transaction Costs, Jeff Sovern
Toward A New Model Of Consumer Protection: The Problem Of Inflated Transaction Costs, Jeff Sovern
William & Mary Law Review
Contrary to the predictions of conventional economic theory, firms often benefit by increasing consumer transaction costs. Firms do so by, for example, obscuring contract terms in a variety of ways, such as providing them after the contract is agreed to, enclosing them with other more interesting information, using small print, and omitting important terms such as arbitration fees from the written contract. Firms also benefit by taking advantage of predictable consumer behaviors, such as the tendency of consumers not to seek rebates, to overload when provided with too much information, and to ignore dull information when overshadowed by vivid information. …
Pharmaceutical Dispensing In The "Wild West": Advancing Health Care And Protecting Consumers Through The Regulation Of Online Pharmacies, Sean P. Haney
William & Mary Law Review
No abstract provided.
Reporting Substantial Product Safety Hazards Under The Consumer Product Safety Act: The Products Liability Interface, Timothy Zick
Reporting Substantial Product Safety Hazards Under The Consumer Product Safety Act: The Products Liability Interface, Timothy Zick
Faculty Publications
No abstract provided.
Consumer Arbitration As An Alternative To Judicial Preseizure Replevin Proceedings, Alan N. Resnick
Consumer Arbitration As An Alternative To Judicial Preseizure Replevin Proceedings, Alan N. Resnick
William & Mary Law Review
No abstract provided.
Protecting The Low Income Consumer: Procedural Due Process Revisited
Protecting The Low Income Consumer: Procedural Due Process Revisited
William & Mary Law Review
No abstract provided.