California recently passed a privacy law requiring businesses to provide greater transparency into their data practices and giving consumers more control over their personal information. The California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA) raced its way through the state legislature without opposition to avoid a November ballot initiative, which was widely viewed as more onerous [...]
Most states have laws regulating “automatic renewal contracts” (ARC), but Vermont’s new House Bill 593 is one of the strictest. The Act, which updates Vermont’s current ARC laws, became law on May 28, 2018. The new regulatory requirements will take effect on July 1, 2019 and are aimed at protecting consumers from deceptive business practices. [...]
It’s been a tough year for proponents of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (BCFP, formerly CFPB). A judge in the Southern District of New York recently ruled that the structure of the BCFP is unconstitutional (CFPB v. RD Legal Funding, LLC). In 2017, the BCFP filed a lawsuit against RD Legal Funding, a company [...]
A recent Supreme Court case overturning the 1992 Quill Corp. v. North Dakota (“Quill”) decision marks the beginning of a new era for many businesses with an online presence. On June 21, 2018, in South Dakota v. Wayfair, the Court revisited Quill, ruling that the existing standard for determining whether a business has a “physical [...]
The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (BCFP, formerly CFPB) has again found itself embroiled in controversy, with President Donald Trump announcing his plan to nominate Kathy Kraninger to lead the organization and replace Acting Director Mick Mulvaney. Kraninger is currently Associate Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), where Mulvaney also serves as [...]
On Wednesday, a California district court found that a business has a constitutional right to a jury trial when the state seeks to impose civil penalties for violations of California’s Business and Professions Code (Unfair Competition Law (“UCL”)) and Financial Code. Prior to the district court’s decision, it was well-known in California that there was [...]
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine has signaled his continuing support for a new Ohio law that would promote industrywide cybersecurity protections for consumers. Senate Bill (SB) 220, the Data Protection Act, encourages businesses to voluntarily adopt cybersecurity controls and best practices to protect consumer data. The Data Protection Act provides businesses ten suggested cybersecurity frameworks [...]
Andrew M. Smith was appointed Wednesday, May 16, 2018 as Director of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Consumer Protection Unit. Smith was confirmed by a vote split along party lines, with the FTC’s three Republican commissioners voting in favor and the agency’s two Democratic commissioners voting in opposition. Director Smith will be leaving his position [...]
Speaking recently before the National Association of Attorneys General, Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Mick Mulvaney indicated that some big changes may be coming to the way the CFPB handles its enforcement responsibilities. Mulvaney revealed that the CFPB will be reorienting its focus toward its statutory mission of consumer education rather [...]
In a big win for New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas, the Court of Appeals of New Mexico ruled that education services provider ITT Technical institute (ITT) must produce subpoenaed documents and cannot force the State to arbitrate alleged consumer protection violations. In State ex rel. Balderas v. ITT Educ. Services, the State of New [...]
