Consumer Protection Law Commons^™

How The World's Largest Economies Regulate Data Privacy: Drawbacks, Benefits, & Proposed Solutions, Alexander J. Pantos

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

National data privacy regimes are quickly gaining traction and ubiquity around the globe. Moving forward, countries will face a range of difficult decisions surrounding how best to engage internationally in cross border data flow, particularly in the context of personal information (PI).

This article takes a bird's-eye view of the current state of data privacy regimes in the world's four highest GDP regions. In part, this article hopes to provide a succinct analysis of these data privacy regimes, with a focus on the balance they strike between granting individuals rights in their data and placing responsibilities on businesses that deal …

Widening The Lens On Content Moderation, Jenna Ruddock, Justin Sherman

Joint PIJIP/TLS Research Paper Series

No abstract provided.

You’Ve Got Mail: How The Eleventh Circuit Will Now Allow Debt-Collectors To Collect Time-Barred Debts, Alejandro Guarin

Mercer Law Review

Lending, borrowing, and collecting money is one of the most essential aspects of a capitalist society. Lenders often take risks when lending money to borrowers under the known risk that the lenders may not get their money back. As such, it should come to no surprise that, at times, borrowers may not pay the money they have borrowed. Consequently, debt-collectors’ practices in the United States, at one point in time, became abusive, which led to the passing of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) in 1977. The FDCPA serves as a shield of protection from abusive practices from debt-collectors. …

Bursting The Auto Loan Bubble In The Wake Of Covid-19, Pamela Foohey

Articles

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, auto loans outstanding in the United States had soared to record highs. The boom in lending spanned new and used cars and traditional and subprime loans. With loan delinquencies also hitting new highs almost every quarter, predictions that the auto lending market could burst soon abounded. When the economy came to a grinding halt and unemployment skyrocketed in the wake of the pandemic, auto lenders knew they were facing a crisis. Throughout 2020, auto lenders granted more payment forbearances to consumers, while slashing interest rates on new loans. Auto manufacturers similarly made promises to buyers, such …

Testimony Before The U.S. House Of Representatives Committee On Financial Services On “Addressing Climate As A Systemic Risk: The Need To Build Resilience Within Our Banking And Financial System” In June 2021, Hilary J. Allen

Legislative Testimony & Comments

No abstract provided.

Data Privacy Issues In West Virginia And Beyond: A Comprehensive Overview, Jena Martin

Consumer Law Scholarship

This white paper was commissioned by the Center for Consumer Law and Education, a joint initiative launched by West Virginia University and Marshall University to “coordinate the development of consumer law, policy, and education research to support and serve consumers.”

As such, this paper has a dual purpose. First, it provides a comprehensive overview of the many different legal issues that affect data privacy concerns (both nationally and in West Virginia). Second, it documents and discusses the result of a survey and specific focus groups that were undertaken throughout the fall of 2019 into January 2020 where individuals within the …

Article Iii Standing, The Sword And The Shield: Resolving A Circuit Split In Favor Of Data Breach Plaintiffs, R. Andrew Grindstaff

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

The recent proliferation of data breaches is one such event requiring a rethreading of standing doctrine. The Courts of Appeal are currently split on whether to allow or deny standing for data breach plaintiffs—those persons seeking recourse from the entities that fell victim to the breach and therein lost plaintiffs’ data to an unknown third party. Standing requires plaintiffs to show some injury, and how courts approach the concept of injury in these data breach cases determines whether plaintiffs will survive the standing analysis. Despite the disparate treatment of litigants across the circuits, the Supreme Court has repeatedly punted when …

Consumer Protection In Ecommerce: A Case Study Of Egypt, Heba Habib

Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines electronic contract regulation in the context of business-to-consumer transactions. The technological advancement and cross-border nature of e-commerce have posed significant challenges to the Egyptian legal framework highlighting the limitations of general commercial contract rules with regards to electronic contracts. This thesis argues that access to the courts is hindered by restrictive terms in the electronic contracts over which the Egyptian law has no jurisdictional power. Accordingly, private institutions set the rules in the e-contracts and enforce them through private methods leaving no room for state intervention to ensure the protection of consumers. Hence, the application of national …

Throw The Book At Them: Why The Ftc Needs To Get Tough With Influencers, Christopher Terry, Eliezer Joseph Silberberg, Stephen Schmitz

Journal of Law and Policy

The Federal Trade Commission is an administrative agency that has traditionally been aggressive when deploying its delegated authority. At the core of these actions is the FTC’s interpretive definition of deception as based upon a reasonable consumer standard. Specifically, the commission has regularly used Section 5(a) of the FTC Act, in tandem with its interpretive definition of deception, as a sword in a variety of contexts, including enforcement actions for deceptive advertising, endorsements, and claim substantiation against a range of industries. These include successfully brought actions or consent decrees obtained in enforcement proceedings against powerful economic entities, including Google and …

Bully No More: Why Trademark Owners Engage In Trademark Overreach And How To Prevent It, Quynh La

Washington Law Review

At its core, trademark law exists as a tool for consumer protection. Thus, trademark owners use policing and enforcement to maintain a trademark’s goodwill, which in turn protects consumers from confusion. But policing and enforcement can lead to trademark overreach and bullying—which undermine the goal of trademark law. This Comment explains that trademark owners are incentivized to engage in aggressive enforcement tactics because courts weigh enforcement efforts in favor of trademark strength. And strong trademarks receive strong protection because such marks are more likely to succeed in trademark infringement litigation. To curb trademark bullying and realign trademark law with its …

Cy Prés Settlements In Privacy Class Actions / Acuerdos Cy Prés En Acciones De Clase Sobre Privacidad, Thomas E. Kadri, Ignacio N. Cofone

Articles

This essay considers the potential for using cy prés settlements in privacy class actions. These settlements are a procedural mechanism to overcome distribution challenges in class actions. When it is too burdensome to prove individual claims or too costly to distribute damages to class members, courts on occasions award damages to a charity or non-profit organization involved in work serving the class members' interests. These controversial settlements have been gaining attention in various legal systems. The U.S. Supreme Court recently considered their propriety in Frank v. Gaos, while courts in Canada and several Latin American countries have been experimenting with …

Predatory Fintech And The Politics Of Banking, Christopher K. Odinet

Faculty Scholarship

With American families living on the financial edge and seeking out high-cost loans even before COVID-19, the term financial technology or “fintech” has been used like an incantation aimed at remedying everything that’s wrong with America’s financial system. Scholars and supporters from both the public and private sector proclaim that innovations in financial technology will “bank the unbanked” and open new channels to affordable credit. This exuberance for all things tech in finance has led to a quiet yet aggressive deregulatory agenda, including, as of late, a federal assault via rulemaking on the ability of states to police the cost …

Let's Stop Playing Games: Why Better Congressional Interaction Is Required To Protect Young Gamers, Dominick Tarantino

Brooklyn Journal of Corporate, Financial & Commercial Law

This Note addresses the predatory nature of video game microtransactions, the serious risks they pose, and why an improved plan of legislative intervention is necessary to protect young, vulnerable video game consumers. With loot box microtransactions driving a flourishing industry that has reached unprecedented levels of success, adequate consumer protection cannot properly be achieved through self-regulation. Senator Josh Hawley’s Protecting Children from Abusive Games Act is a step in the right direction, but its broad language will result in unintended consequences that can cripple the entire industry. Revising the bill’s language will protect the intended young consumer and allow for …

The Commodification Of Personal Data And The Road To Consumer Autonomy Through The Ccpa, Blaire Rose

Brooklyn Journal of Corporate, Financial & Commercial Law

The internet has transformed into a museum of personal information collected through the digital footprint we leave behind after each act performed on the web. Businesses have monetized this collection of personal data in various ways. For instance, many companies analyze this information through predicting analytics and data profiling to identify consumer interests that they can exploit as a means to generate revenue. Though user data promotes many benefits for businesses and consumers alike, the recent data breaches of massive companies, coupled with hazy privacy disclosures that beget consent disputes, have left both users and businesses perturbed and exposed to …

Consumer Electronic Right To Repair Laws: Focusing On An Environmental Foundation, Joshua Turiel

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Getting Away With Murder: How California State Law Determined Recovery In First Roundup Cancer Case Johnson V. Monsato Co., Eliza L. Quattlebaum

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

A Storm Is Brewing: How Federal Ambivalence Regarding Below-Cost Pricing Turns A Blind Eye To Monopoly Risk In The Beer Market, Daniel Croxall

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

Large beer manufacturers, known colloquially as “Big Beer,” have been steadily losing market share to small, independent craft breweries. Big Beer wants it market share back, and in some cases will go to great lengths to try to defend its dominance—even anticompetitive conduct. Below-cost pricing is one avenue that presents a risk to independent craft breweries. This Article examines how Big Beer can manipulate the beer market in its favor by engaging in predatory pricing. Further, this Article proposes a solution that could be implemented on a nation-wide scale to curtail Big Beer’s anticompetitive activities with respect to pricing.

No Shirt, No Shoes, No Mask, No Entry, And (Hopefully) No Lawsuits Under The Georgia Covid-19 Business Safety Act!, Franklin Schrum

Mercer Law Review

The COVID-19 Pandemic continues to send shockwaves throughout the United States and all other nations by impacting much more than just the way we live and go about our normal day. Today, in most states, it is considered a common norm to see someone wearing a mask, frequently using sanitizer, or even stocking up on an abnormal amount of household items like toilet paper. Globally, over a million lives have been lost, businesses have become bankrupt, and the economy initially fallen substantially due to the Pandemic. Prominent retailers such as Brooks Brothers, J. Crew, and JCPenney have all filed for …

Attempting—And Failing—To Balance Fairness And Efficiency In The Arbitral System: How Arbitration Institutions Are Defeating The Purpose Of Arbitration, Hannah N Myslik

Texas A&M Law Review

The Supreme Court has actively expanded the Federal Arbitration Act into realms not originally contemplated by Congress. This harms consumers who are parties to pre-dispute, binding arbitration agreements. If consumers sign a contract containing an arbitration agreement, they may be required to arbitrate everything within the agreement’s scope, including their statutory rights. Simultaneously, the Court has restricted class action arbitration—a device on which consumers have relied when they are forced to arbitrate.

The Court’s expansion of arbitration and restriction of class action arbitration has led many to distrust and advocate for changing the arbitral system. Arbitration institutions have directly reacted …

Preparing Halal Tourism Regulations In Indonesia, Deden Effendi, Aden Rosadi, Yoyok Prasetyo, Cucu Susilawati, Mohamad Anton Athoillah

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

The study discusses the preparation of halal tourism regulations in Indonesia. The aim is to illustrate the importance of halal tourism regulations and how this may strengthen the Indonesian economy. This study is a qualitative one, using academic books and articles in addition to a review of law and regulations as the analysis method. It demonstrates that halal tourism requires principal regulations to be used as guidelines for halal tourism implementation. These can be used both by halal tourism business operators and tourists as halal tourism consumers. Law Number 33 of 2014 concerning Halal Product Guarantee and Government Regulation Number …