Consumer Law

FDA Investigates 5 Deaths Linked to Monster Energy Drinks

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced it is investigating five deaths and one nonfatal heart attack, linked to Monster Energy, a highly caffeinated beverage. Last week, the Associated Press reports, a wrongful death suit was filed against the Corona, Calif., company by the parents of a 14-year-old girl who…

Oct 22, 2012 10:23 PM CDT

Missouri Plaintiffs Lawyer Starts Program to Target Distracted Driving

Douglas Horn, a Missouri plaintiffs lawyer, thinks that texting while driving has become more dangerous than drinking and driving. Laws that prohibit phone use while driving don’t go far enough, he recently told Kansas City’s WDAF TV, and he’s launched his own driver safety program. Called Drive By Example, it…

Oct 22, 2012 5:30 PM CDT

NH Asks Judge for Broad Access to Hospital Patient Records, Seeking Full Info re Hepatitis Outbreak

In an ongoing effort to determine how many patients at a New Hampshire medical center may allegedly have been infected by a rogue medical technician with hepatitis C, an assistant state attorney general has asked a Merrimack Superior Court judge to order Exeter Hospital to provide broad access to patient…

Oct 19, 2012 4:35 PM CDT

Report: Verizon Sells Smartphone App Usage, Browsing and Location Data; Critics Claim Wiretap Issues

A CNET News report that Verizon Wireless is selling aggregated information about its customers’ geographic location, application use and Internet browsing habits has raised questions about whether this practice could violate laws against wiretapping. Verizon says that its Precision Market Insights program, which offers reports to third-party marketers about customers’…

Oct 18, 2012 8:33 PM CDT

Ex-Client Awarded $867K Against Lawyer Who Stole $75K and Law Firm That Referred Her to Him

A woman whose lawyer misappropriated most of the $100,000 she was supposed to get in a probate case has had her day in court and was teary-eyed after a $867,000 jury verdict Monday in Bexar County, Texas. “I am very pleased. The jury believed in me,” Isabel Sloan told the…

Oct 16, 2012 6:30 PM CDT

Judge Orders Paralegal and His Legal Nonprofit to Pay $2.2M, Bars Further Work for Inmates in NJ

A New Jersey judge has ordered a paralegal and his nonprofit legal assistance organization to pay $2.2 million and stop doing work for inmates in the state. The order last week in the Essex County Superior Court case came after Bruce Buccolo and the Project Freedom Fund failed to respond…

Oct 16, 2012 4:45 PM CDT

Consumer Bureau Considers Lawsuit Protection for Lenders in Some Foreclosure Suits

The new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is considering rules that would give lenders protection from some lawsuits contesting foreclosures. The safe harbor rule would apply when lenders make certain high-quality loans, the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) reports. Loans qualifying for protection may be those in which the borrower’s total…

Oct 16, 2012 11:35 AM CDT

ACLU Suit Accuses Morgan Stanley of Encouraging Predatory Loans

The American Civil Liberties Union claims in a lawsuit that Morgan Stanley encouraged predatory loans when it lent money to the New Century Financial Corp. The would-be class action suit claims Morgan Stanley encouraged New Century to make risky loans with high costs that disproportionately targeted African American borrowers, report…

Oct 15, 2012 3:19 PM CDT

Will Chinese Drywall Plaintiffs Collect? One Company Settles, Another Contests Jurisdiction

Two recent rulings favor plaintiffs suing over allegedly defective Chinese drywall, but the possibility of eventual collection from the foreign manufacturer is unclear. The rulings—one last month by a federal judge in Louisiana and the other on Aug. 31 by a Florida state judge—found that U.S. courts had jurisdiction, the…

Oct 15, 2012 12:42 PM CDT

New Facebook Program Matching Users, Brick-and-Mortar Retail Data Sparks Complaint to FTC

Facebook users, knowing that they might be targeted by advertisers based on what they posted online, have been willing to trade some privacy for the convenience of easy online access to other individuals throughout the country and globally. But the social networking site has now embarked on a new marketing…

Oct 3, 2012 7:53 PM CDT

Supreme Court Considers US Liability for Flub on Credit Card Receipts

A Chicago lawyer who noted the federal government failed to comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to allow his class action suit against the federal government. Lawyer James Bormes contends the government has no sovereign immunity from suit, report the Associated Press and…

Oct 3, 2012 12:38 PM CDT

Judge Approves $37.5M FEMA Trailer Settlement

A $37.5 million class-action settlement involving FEMA trailers with high formaldehyde levels was approved today by a New Orleans federal judge. Approximately 55,000 individuals, who lost their homes during Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, will be eligible for the payment, the Associated Press reports. Government tests performed on the trailers found…

Sep 27, 2012 9:25 PM CDT

7 Retailers Settle with FTC, Agree to Stop Spying on Up to 400,000 Computer Rental Customers

Seven rent-to-own companies and a software design firm have agreed to a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission concerning computers that the retailers rented to customers and then used to spy on them without disclosing in advance that the companies intended to do so. They will not be fined, but…

Sep 26, 2012 4:40 PM CDT

Long-Lasting Lipstick Claims Challenged in Suit

Saying Maybelline’s line of long-lasting lipsticks is anything but, a group of women have filed suit alleging violations of consumer protection laws and asking for damages. The suit filed in federal court in Manhattan maintains the company’s claims regarding Super Stay 10HR Stain Gloss and Super Stay 14 HR Lipstick…

Sep 26, 2012 4:03 PM CDT

Colo. Man Who Claimed Daily Popcorn Habit Caused Lung Injury Is Awarded $7.2M

Federal jurors in Denver have awarded $7.2 million to a Colorado man who claimed his lungs were injured by inhaling fumes from microwave popcorn he ate on a daily basis. Wayne Watson, 59, says he at about two bags of popcorn a day. His suit claimed the popcorn manufacturer should…

Sep 20, 2012 4:03 PM CDT