The FTC today filed a complaint against Lending Club alleging that it deceived consumers by advertising loans with “no hidden fees” and subsequently concealing substantial loan origination fees. The complaint points to consumer complaints and internal compliance documents as evidence that Lending Club knew that consumers were being misled and continued to misrepresent the loans … Continue Reading
The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee held confirmation hearings yesterday for the four nominees to the Federal Trade Commission: Joseph Simons (nominated as Chair), Rohit Chopra, Noah Phillips, and Christine Wilson. We previously discussed the nominations of Simons, Chopra, and Phillips here. Wilson, currently a Senior Vice President at Delta Airlines and previously Chief … Continue Reading
Earlier today, an en banc panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that the CFPB was constitutionally structured, reversing an earlier decision by a divided three-judge panel and holding that the Dodd-Frank Act permissibly shields the CFPB Director from removal without cause. The Court’s 7-3 majority opinion only addressed the … Continue Reading
The FDA & FTC today posted warning letters to 11 marketers and distributors of opioid cessation products, alleging that such products were unapproved new drugs that violated the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) and that made unsubstantiated, deceptive claims in violation of the FTC Act. In addition to the 11 joint warning letters … Continue Reading
Last week, eHarmony agreed to pay up to $2.2 million to resolve allegations brought by four California counties and the city of Santa Monica over the company’s billing practices. That includes a payment of $1.2 million in penalties and up to $1 million in restitution to customers whose subscriptions were automatically renewed, but were denied … Continue Reading
The FTC released today Business Guidance Concerning Multi-Level Marketing, which offers answers to frequently asked questions to assist multi-level marketers in evaluating their business practices for compliance with the FTC Act. The Guidance begins by restating the general standard for pyramid schemes set forth in the FTC’s 1975 Koscot decision and then goes on to … Continue Reading
Last week, the Senate voted 51 to 50 (with Vice President Pence casting the tiebreaking vote) to override the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Arbitration Rule, which was finalized earlier this year in July. As previously discussed here and here, the Arbitration Rule would have prohibited providers of covered consumer financial products and services from using … Continue Reading
After months of speculation among the consumer protection and antitrust bars, Trump announced today his intention to nominate former Director of the Bureau of Competition and current Paul Weiss partner Joseph Simons as Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission. Trump also announced his plan to nominate Rohit Chopra, currently a senior fellow at the Consumer … Continue Reading
U.S. District Judge Haywood S. Gilliam Jr. said Friday that the court would pause the trial to consider whether the FTC presented sufficient evidence to support its allegations that DirecTV misled consumers by failing to adequately disclose the terms of its two-year subscription and introductory pricing offer. The judge instructed attorneys for DirecTV to file … Continue Reading
A bench trial began this week to resolve allegations by the FTC that DirecTV misled millions of consumers about the actual costs of its subscriptions. According to the FTC, DirecTV should be required to pay $3.95 billion dollars to compensate consumers for failing to disclose that it would raise its monthly subscription price after a … Continue Reading
A California jury in federal court ruled on Tuesday, June 20, that TransUnion violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) by erroneously linking certain consumers with similarly named terrorists and criminals in the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC’s) database. The jury awarded statutory and punitive damages in excess of $60 million, … Continue Reading
Last week the FTC announced that it had reached a settlement with NetSpend over allegations that NetSpend deceived consumers by promising “immediate access” with “guaranteed approval” to money loaded on its general purpose reloadable cards. Approved 2-1 with a vote by then-Commissioner Ramirez before her resignation, the order prohibits NetSpend from making misrepresentations about the … Continue Reading
Acting Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission Maureen Ohlhausen announced today that Thomas Pahl – a current partner at Arnall Golden Gregory with significant experience at both the FTC and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – will take over as Acting Director on February 17. Jessica Rich will depart as Director of the Bureau of … Continue Reading
Just over one week after being named acting chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Maureen Ohlhausen delivered the keynote address at the American Bar Association’s biennial Consumer Protection Conference in Atlanta on February 2. During her remarks, acting chair Ohlhausen offered insight into consumer protection priorities during her tenure as acting chair. First, acting … Continue Reading
In its latest action involving allegedly deceptive earnings claims, the FTC announced yesterday that Uber had agreed to settle charges that it misled potential drivers with inflated earnings claims. The complaint also alleges that Uber misrepresented benefits of its Vehicle Solutions Program, which connects potential drivers with auto companies to buy or lease a vehicle … Continue Reading
Federal Trade Commission Chairwoman Edith Ramirez announced today that she will resign her position effective February 10, leaving the Commission with three vacancies and just two remaining commissioners. Chairwoman Ramirez has been a commissioner since April 5, 2010 and became Chairwoman on March 4, 2013. In announcing her resignation, she remarked: “It has been the … Continue Reading
The FTC announced today that it had settled charges with multi-level marketer and seller of health and wellness drinks Vemma over allegations that it operated a pyramid scheme. The FTC initially filed the action in August 2015 in federal court in Arizona, alleging that Vemma encouraged participants to buy products to qualify for bonuses and … Continue Reading
Last week, FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez spoke at the Direct Sales Association (DSA) Business & Policy Conference in Washington, D.C. In her comments, Chairwoman Ramirez acknowledged that the direct selling industry was a $36 billion industry that “has the capacity to provide consumers with valuable goods and services and an opportunity to try an entrepreneurial … Continue Reading
Earlier today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a landmark decision against the CFPB, finding that the agency was unconstitutionally structured because it concentrates “enormous executive power in a single, unaccountable, unchecked Director.” However, the court stopped short of ordering a shutdown of the Bureau and instead held that the President … Continue Reading
Yesterday the CFPB released a final rule that will impose a variety of consumer protection requirements on prepaid products, such as requiring specified disclosures before product purchase and compelling financial institutions to limit consumer losses for lost or stolen cards. The CFPB had previously released a proposed rule, which we discussed here, and the final … Continue Reading
On September 27th, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a general oversight hearing of the FTC, which covered a multitude of major policy issues and included testimony from Chairwoman Edith Ramirez, Commissioner Maureen Ohlhausen, and Commissioner Terrell McSweeny. Chairman John Thune (R-SD) convened the hearing, joined by Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) who … Continue Reading
The FTC released last week a paper summarizing and reflecting on its October 30, 2015 public workshop, “Follow the Lead,” which we previously discussed here and focused on lead generation practices and related privacy and consumer protection issues. The paper expands upon many of the same principles addressed at the workshop, including how lead generation … Continue Reading
On advertisements, websites, and legal documents, disclosures are everywhere. But how do consumers notice, understand, and use disclosures in their decision-making? And how can businesses and advertisers effectively design and evaluate disclosures? These were questions that the Federal Trade Commission explored during its September 15 public workshop, “Putting Disclosures to the Test.” Throughout the one-day … Continue Reading
The CFPB recently released an outline of proposals that it is currently considering to overhaul the debt collection market. The proposals under consideration would significantly expand current regulations governing debt collection, including by requiring collectors to maintain specified information to substantiate a debt before contacting consumers, limiting the number of times that a collector can … Continue Reading
