Consumer Protection Law Commons^™

The Dark Side Of The Pharmaceutical Industry: A Compound Of Issues, Geoffrey A. Marcus

University of Miami Inter-American Law Review

No abstract provided.

Makeup Call: How Cosmetic Product Use Affects Women Absent Federal Regulation, Gabrielle Eriquez

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Planned Obsolescence And Consumer Protection: The Unregulated Extended Warranty And Service Contract Industry, Larry A. Dimatteo, Stefan Wrbka

Cornell Journal of Law and Public Policy

This Article analyzes the billion-dollar market, mostly unregulated, for Extended Warranties and Service Contracts (EWSCs). EWSCs are ubiquitous in the modern marketplace, offered at every automobile dealership, electronics and appliance store either by a salesperson or the cashier. Incredibly, there is little legal scholarship in this important area where manufacturer-sellers often overreach by preying on consumer vulnerabilities. It will be argued that most sales of EWSCs result in price gouging due to informational asymmetry and behavioral manipulation. This Article looks at two core concepts that are inexorably interconnected- one in the legal world and the other in the world of …

States Empowering Plaintiff Cities, Eli Savit

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Across the country, cities are becoming major players in plaintiff’s-side litigation. With increasing frequency, cities, counties, and other municipalities are filing lawsuits to vindicate the public interest. Cities’ aggressive use of lawsuits, however, has been met with some skepticism from both scholars and states. At times, states have taken action—both legislative and via litigation—to preempt city-initiated suits.

This Article contends that states should welcome city-initiated public-interest lawsuits. Such litigation, this Article demonstrates, vindicates the principles of local control that cities exist to facilitate. What is more, a motivated plaintiff city can accomplish public-policy goals that are important not just to …

Coty, Amazon, And The Future Of Vertical Restraints: Evolving Distribution Norms On Both Atlantic Shores, Chris Sagers

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

No abstract provided.

Procompetitive Justifications In Antitrust Law, John M. Newman

Indiana Law Journal

The Rule of Reason, which has come to dominate modern antitrust law, allows defendants the opportunity to justify their conduct by demonstrating procompetitive effects. Seizing the opportunity, defendants have begun offering increasingly numerous and creative explanations for their behavior.

But which of these myriad justifications are valid? To leading jurists and scholars, this has remained an “open question,” even an “absolute mystery.” Examination of the relevant case law reveals multiple competing approaches and seemingly irreconcilable opinions. The ongoing lack of clarity in this area is inexcusable: procompetitive-justification analysis is vital to a properly functioning antitrust enterprise.

This Article provides answers …

Time For A Fresh Look At Strict Liability For Pharmaceuticals, Mary J. Davis

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

Part I provides a brief and basic explanation of pharmaceutical liability treatment. Part II explains the impact of federal preemption doctrine, which has dramatically limited the operation of tort law in pharmaceutical liability cases. Part III explains the parallel trends in the marketing and use of pharmaceuticals that increase the incidence of adverse drug events, affect prescribing practices, and fail to enhance informed practitioner and consumer choice in use of pharmaceuticals. Part IV provides support for the application of strict liability given the convergence of these trends. This Part also provides a theoretical justification for strict liability in tort for …

Legal Implications Of "Organic" Seafood Labeling Based On Foreign Standards, Read Porter, Kathryn Kulaga

Sea Grant Law Fellow Publications

No abstract provided.

Why Consumer Defendants Lump It, Emily S. Taylor Poppe

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Why The Latest Ruling In The Sandy Hook Shooting Litigation Matters, Heidi Li Feldman

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

On March 19, 2019 the Connecticut Supreme Court officially released its opinion in Soto v. Bushmaster Firearms International, LLC. Because the decision greenlights civil discovery and trial for the Sandy Hook plaintiffs seeking compensation from the maker, distributor,and retailer of the gun used by the shooter, the ruling received much attention in the popular press. It is, however, very easy to get the wrong impression about the significance of the Connecticut Supreme Court’s decision and the avenues it creates for both the plaintiffs and the defendants in the litigation. The decision is both more and less significant than it seems …

Digital Market Perfection, Rory Van Loo

Faculty Scholarship

Google’s, Apple’s, and other companies’ automated assistants are increasingly serving as personal shoppers. These digital intermediaries will save us time by purchasing grocery items, transferring bank accounts, and subscribing to cable. The literature has only begun to hint at the paradigm shift needed to navigate the legal risks and rewards of this coming era of automated commerce. This Article begins to fill that gap first by surveying legal battles related to contract exit, data access, and deception that will determine the extent to which automated assistants are able to help consumers to search and switch, potentially bringing tremendous societal benefits. …

The "Uncontroversial" Controversy In Compelled Commercial Disclosures, Lauren Fowler

Fordham Law Review

Federal and state administrative agencies increasingly advance public health goals through the use of mandatory disclosures, like warning labels on cigarettes, that are intended to both inform and influence consumer decisions. However, the standard for determining whether these requirements violate a commercial speaker’s First Amendment rights is unsettled. In Zauderer v. Office of Disciplinary Counsel, the U.S. Supreme Court adopted a test that defers to the government’s determination that the compelled disclosure of “factual and uncontroversial information” is justified. Since Zauderer was decided, lower courts have disagreed about the meaning of “uncontroversial.” A recent Supreme Court case, National Institute …

Given Today's New Wave Of Protectionsim, Is Antitrust Law The Last Hope For Preserving A Free Global Economy Or Another Nail In Free Trade's Coffin?, Allison Murray

Loyola of Los Angeles International and Comparative Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Ever-Changing Landscape Of Informed Consent And Whether The Obligation To Explain A Procedure To The Patient May Be Delegated, Samuel D. Hodge, Maria Zambrano Steinhaus

Arkansas Law Review

Informed consent is an integral part of the shared decision making process and requires a patient be informed of the benefits, risks and alternatives to a medical procedure. This information, which requirement has been codified into the law and practice of every healthcare provider, helps a patient decide whether to proceed with the recommended treatment plan. Informed consent has its foundation in the ethical notion of patient autonomy and fundamental human rights. After all, it is the patient’s decision to determine what may be done to his or her body and to ascertain the risks and benefits before undertaking a …

Table Of Contents, Seattle University Law Review

Seattle University Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Misuse Of Product Misuse: Victim Blaming At Its Worst, Robert A. Adler, Andrew F. Popper

William & Mary Business Law Review

This Paper addresses the legal consequences that surface when a consumer uses a product in a manner not specifically intended by that product’s designer or manufacturer. If a product is used in a reasonably foreseeable manner, the fact that the use is at odds with a manufacturer’s intention should not be a basis to deny tort liability or limit the regulatory options of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. If a product proves to be unsafe, defective, dangerous, or otherwise hazardous to users and consumers, use patterns should not be the primary determinant in assessing regulatory and common law sanctions or …

Market-Based Innovation In Consumer Protection, Kelli Alces Williams

Scholarly Publications

In the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2008, low-income borrowers have been virtually shut out of the housing market. The spectacular failure of overzealous subprime lending at the beginning of the century is the culprit. Creditworthy borrowers exist in that underserved population, though regulation and the continued dominance of traditional banks in the mortgage market have conspired to deny those borrowers access to credit. A market solution to this problem exists and is gaining momentum. Financial technology firms have begun to focus on the borrower experience and to create tools to help unsophisticated borrowers navigate complex financial products. This …

Gorsuch's Purgatory: Attempting To Define Debt Collector Under The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Matthew Haan

Georgia State University Law Review

Part I of this Note provides background on the FDCPA and the federal agencies charged with its enforcement. Part I also provides background on judicial analysis of the FDCPA before Henson v. Santander and explains the nature of the Supreme Court’s decision. Part II analyzes the ramifications of Henson v. Santander for debtors and debt purchasers. Part II also analyzes how the Supreme Court’s decision can affect the CFPB. Part III proposes and discusses a three-tiered solution that involves congressional and CFPB action and discusses what would happen if Congress and the CFPB left the solution up to the courts.

A Flood-Not A Ripple-Of Harm: Proximate Cause Under The Fair Housing Act, Justin P. Steil, Daniel Traficonte

Cardozo Law Review

Over the past decade, several city governments across the country have filed suits against banks pursuant to the Fair Housing Act seeking redress for municipal damages caused by the banks' discriminatory lending practices. Following the ruling in Bank of America Corp. v. City of Miami, lower courts are now confronting the question of where to "draw the line" of proximate causation under the Fair Housing Act, and specifically whether the harms experienced by cities as a result of banks' discriminatory lending meet the requirements of proximate causation. In suggesting a direction for lower courts, the Court in City of …

Data-Informed Duties In Ai Development, Frank A. Pasquale

Faculty Scholarship

Law should help direct—and not merely constrain—the development of artificial intelligence (AI). One path to influence is the development of standards of care both supplemented and informed by rigorous regulatory guidance. Such standards are particularly important given the potential for inaccurate and inappropriate data to contaminate machine learning. Firms relying on faulty data can be required to compensate those harmed by that data use—and should be subject to punitive damages when such use is repeated or willful. Regulatory standards for data collection, analysis, use, and stewardship can inform and complement generalist judges. Such regulation will not only provide guidance to …