Consumer Law

Freeze Cases Filed By 3 Law Firm ‘Foreclosure Mills,’ Fed’l Lawmaker Urges Top Fla. Court

Adding to the uncertainty created by a major mortgage servicer’s decision to call a temporary halt to foreclosures and related activity in 23 states, a federal lawmaker is urging the Florida Supreme Court to suspend all mortgage-related cases being handled by three state law firms he describes as “foreclosure mills,”…

Sep 22, 2010 11:20 PM CDT

Denied Admission to NY Bar Due to $430K Student Loan Debt, Law Grad Tries Again

Updated: Refused admission to the New York state bar in 2009 on character and fitness grounds because of a reported $430,000 delinquent student loan balance, Robert Bowman is trying again to persuade the authorities to license him. And this time, it appears, his effort may be successful. In a motion…

Sep 22, 2010 10:17 PM CDT

Wash. AG’s Settlement with LegalZoom Bars Fee Comparisons Absent Disclosure

The attorney general’s office in Washington state is requiring the do-it-yourself document service LegalZoom to be a little more cautious when making cost comparisons. A settlement bars the company from comparing its document costs to attorney fees unless it discloses that its service isn’t a substitute for a law firm,…

Sep 21, 2010 1:06 PM CDT

GMAC Suspends Foreclosures in 23 States After Questions About Legal Paperwork

One of the nation’s largest home mortgage servicers has temporarily halted foreclosures, eviction lockouts, cash-for-keys transactions and sales of foreclosed homes in 23 states, including Florida, Illinois, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. The move by GMAC Mortgage follows increasing questions about whether legal paperwork in the Sunshine State—and three high-volume…

Sep 20, 2010 10:22 PM CDT

Harvard Law Prof to Be Named Head of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Sources Say

President Obama this week will unofficially name Harvard law professor Elizabeth Warren to head a new consumer financial protection bureau at the center of the adminstration’s overhaul of Wall Street. Warren will take on a dual role as assistant to the president and special adviser to Treasury Secretary Timothy F.…

Sep 16, 2010 7:07 PM CDT

Publishers Clearing House Will Contact Big Purchasers Under New Settlement

Publishers Clearing House has settled a probe into its mailings for $3.5 million and an agreement to hire an ombudsman to review its solicitations. The company, which did not acknowledge wrongdoing, will boost efforts to make sure consumers are informed that a purchase does not increase their chances of winning,…

Sep 10, 2010 12:51 PM CDT

Represented by Skadden, Name Partner Wins Contempt Ruling re $30K Personal Loan

It isn’t only concerning major corporate matters that Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom is a powerhouse litigator. The firm won a contempt ruling this week on behalf of name partner Joseph Flom. He sought attorney’s fees after Andrew Stein, who formerly served as president of the New York City…

Sep 9, 2010 6:38 PM CDT

As New Whistle-Blower Law Ups Ante, Plaintiff’s Firms Are Flooded with Would-Be Claimants

Updated: Spurred by dreams of big-bucks awards under a new federal whistle-blower law, would-be claimants are flooding plaintiff’s firms with tips about alleged fraud at public companies. “We’re inundated with calls,” partner Erika Kelton of Phillips & Cohen in Washington, D.C., tells Corporate Counsel. And many of the tips seem…

Sep 9, 2010 5:01 PM CDT

ISPs Reportedly Raided in 14-Country File-Sharing Bust Targeting P2P Sites

Following a two-year investigation by Belgian police, authorities have reportedly raided Internet service providers in approximately 14 European countries, in an effort to shut down websites that violate copyright laws by facilitating illegal peer-to-peer downloading of games, software and, in particular, movies. The raids, which focused on “The Scene” in…

Sep 7, 2010 10:22 PM CDT

Adult Content Producers File Mass Tort Against Alleged Downloaders

Another lawyer has waded into the mass tort fray over alleged illegal downloading of copyrighted material. Attorney John Steele of Chicago is representing three adult content producers in separate federal court claims against hundreds of unidentified “John Doe” individuals accused of using BitTorrent to pirate material created by the plaintiffs,…

Sep 7, 2010 5:22 PM CDT

Suicide Attempt Survivor’s 39-Story Fall Destroys Muscle Car, But Owner Will Forgo Deductible Suit

A man who unsuccessfully attempted to commit suicide by reportedly jumping some 400 feet from a New York building totaled the 2008 Dodge Charger on which he landed feet-first, breaking both legs as he plunged through the roof and rear window. But in addition to miraculously surviving the approximately 39-story…

Sep 2, 2010 11:40 PM CDT

Gail Koff, Ex-Skadden Lawyer Who Pioneered Discount Legal Services, Dies at 65

Gail Koff, a onetime corporate lawyer who wound up serving as the public face of a pioneering consumer law firm has died of complications from leukemia treatment. She was 65 years old. After growing up in upscale Scarsdale, N.Y., she put herself through law school, as one of the few…

Sep 2, 2010 5:05 PM CDT

A Cancellation by Harvard Prof Fuels Speculation on Consumer Post

Harvard law professor Elizabeth Warren won’t be teaching her first-year contracts class this fall, fueling speculation that she will be tapped to head the new Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection. The Washington Post obtained an e-mail announcing the change in profs. Warren declined to comment, and White House spokesman Robert…

Sep 2, 2010 3:47 PM CDT

‘Abduction’ Star Seeks Punitives, Cites ‘Displeasure, Annoyance’ re $300K Set Trailer Delivery Delay

The actor who played a werewolf on the Twilight Saga is trying to take a bite out of the recreational vehicle dealership that allegedly failed to deliver a $300,000 movie set trailer on time. Contending that he suffered “displeasure, annoyance and emotional distress” when he wasn’t able to use the…

Aug 24, 2010 9:27 PM CDT

Calif. AG Sues ‘Tax Lady’ for $34M, Says Misleading Ads Promoted ‘Heartless’ Law Firm Scheme

Updated: A California attorney known as the “tax lady” whose law firm grosses some $25 million a year has been accused by the state attorney general of operating a “heartless scheme” that takes retainers from thousands of clients while doing little or nothing to help them. In fact, instead of…

Aug 24, 2010 5:19 PM CDT