On April 2, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court extended the reach of Section 1964(c) of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act by holding that a plaintiff may seek treble damages for a business or property loss resulting from a personal injury.[1] The 5-4 decision has resolved a 3-2 circuit split over whether
Despite other sweeping changes to the federal government under the Trump administration, the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022 (MoCRA), passed under former President Biden, remains good law. Below, we report on recent trends in FDA’s implementation and enforcement of MoCRA in the early months of Trump’s presidency.
FDA is continuing to monitor the cosmetic industry’s compliance with MoCRA. On March 13, 2025, FDA released data summarizing the number of active facility registrations and product listings submitted pursuant to MoCRA’s requirements.Continue Reading MoCRA Under the Trump Era: A Look at FDA’s Monitoring and Enforcement Two Months In
“Right to Repair” laws are regulations that generally require manufacturers to give consumers and independent repair providers access to tools, parts, and information to repair certain consumer products and other equipment on fair and reasonable terms. Recently, six states—California, Colorado, Minnesota, New York, Massachusetts, and Oregon—have implemented their own comprehensive right to repair regulations. Click
Key takeaway #1 – The FTC’s request for public comment is a notable sign that the federal government is investigating online content moderation practices.
Key takeaway #2 – Companies should prepare for the possibility of a new legal landscape where content moderation practices face new legal challenges.
On February 20, 2025, the Federal Trade Commission launched an “inquiry” into “tech censorship” by calling for public comments from those who “may have been harmed by technology platforms that limited their ability to share ideas or affiliations freely and openly.” The deadline for comments is May 21, 2025.
While promulgated under the banner of protecting citizens’ rights to speech, this “inquiry” marks the Trump Administration’s first official action to address how businesses edit, moderate, and deliver user generated content online. The repercussions are widesweeping as any business with an online presence—whether selling products, allowing users to post content or commentary—may be at risk of further investigation. This also may be the precursor to changes in law that governs internet activity in the United States.Continue Reading The FTC’s Request for Public Comment on Online Content Moderation – Are You Ready for a Sea Change?
The FTC’s activity this week centers around data analysis. The agency released reports analyzing Bitcoin ATM scam data, followed by a report compiling issues with income disclosure statements from multi-level marketing (“MLM”) businesses. The Commission also sent a report to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on its activity related to fighting debt collection-related fraud against consumers. More information on these stories after the jump.Continue Reading FTC Updates (September 2-6, 2024)
Over the 2024 summer, new EU rules entered into force regarding unsold consumer products under the new ESPR (i.e. the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation – Regulation (EU) 2024/1781). The legal obligations themselves are relatively concise and short in number and therefore perhaps easy to overlook. However, companies selling or supplying consumer products in the EU/EEA – particularly companies in the clothing, footwear, apparel, textile and retail sectors – should beware and not underestimate their importance or impact.Continue Reading Companies Selling Consumer Products in the EU (Particularly Clothing, Apparel, and Footwear Companies) Beware: The New ESPR Rules on Unsold Consumer Products Have Now Entered into Force
Call it the summer of junk fees and drip pricing. In July, California’s new drip pricing law went into effect and in August the federal government announced further proposed rules into junk fees and subscription services. Regulators say these proposed price transparency laws and regulations are consumer protection tools that will save consumers money, help them avoid hidden fees and enable them to cancel recurring charges and subscriptions.
As we’ve previously reported, FTC practitioners and businesses alike have been anxiously awaiting details about the rule that will prohibit purportedly deceptive practices in connection with reviews and testimonials. Our readers likely recall the FTC’s advance notice of proposed rulemaking from November 2022, the notice of proposed rulemaking from June 2023, and the informal hearing on the proposed rule which occurred in February 2024. The wait is finally over: just yesterday, August 14, 2024, the agency announced the “Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials” (the “Rule”). The final Rule, which the Commissioners unanimously approved, is a formal step to address alleged ongoing non-compliance with Section 5 of the FTC Act and the agency’s Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (the “Endorsement Guides”), particularly in the consumer review space.Continue Reading Final Rule Announced: The FTC Strengthens Its Enforcement Capacity Against “Deceptive” Reviews and Testimonials
Gone are the days of hidden fees and tacked on surcharges in California. Starting July 1, 2024, SB478 prohibits businesses in California from adding automatic service charges onto consumer bills. The law applies to the sale or lease of most consumer goods, including hotel and restaurant fees.
Significantly, the laws requires transparency in the advertised price. This means that businesses must disclose all costs and fees upfront – no more surprises in your shopping cart before checkout, or that mandatory “large group” fee at restaurants. It’s not even enough to disclose all the fees before the consumer finalizes the transaction or hits “buy”. The total cost must be the advertised price, disclosed at the top of the funnel. Some exceptions apply, but they are limited to items such as mandatory sales tax, shipping and voluntary tips. Penalties are stiff: consumers can bring claims against businesses, with a max of $1,000 per violation, and consumers can recover attorneys’ fees.Continue Reading California Is Tightening the Pipes on Drip Pricing
France is ramping up its enforcement efforts against counterfeit fashion as the 2024 Paris Olympics open. As it readied Paris for the Olympics, France reinforced existing efforts to dissuade consumers from purchasing and carrying knockoff goods and to target the vendors of these goods. In anticipation of a flood of tourists for the 2024 summer games, the French government has placed notices at its airports, warning consumers of the significant penalties they may face from buying and wearing counterfeit clothing and accessories, up to a €300,000 fine and three years’ imprisonment. It has also conducted raids on vendors selling counterfeit items, including an early April one where police shuttered almost a dozen sellers and seized 63,000 counterfeits, including bags and shoes, at the famed Saint-Ouen flea market.Continue Reading Authorities Go for Gold on Fake Fashion Enforcement as Paris Olympics Begin