Week 4 — Feb. 17, 2020
Consumer Protection
Syllabus: The Role of the State Attorney General
Since the passage of state Unfair and Deceptive Practices Acts (UDAP) in the late 1970’s, all State Attorneys General have responsibility in the area of consumer protection, which increasingly includes privacy issues. This week discusses the broad nature of that authority and the development of multistate AG consumer litigation against the backdrop of increased use of arbitration in private consumer litigation.
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- Gen. L. ch 93A: Regulation of Business Practices for Consumer's Protection. (Massachusetts Consumer Protection Statute).
- Henry N. Butler & Joshua D. Wright, Are State Consumer Protection Acts Really Little-FTC Acts?, 63 Fla. L. Rev. 163 (2011) (edited).
- Minnesota Attorney General v. Accretive (various articles) (2008 – 2016).
- Collection of Uber Readings (2016 – 2019).
- NY Internet Access Consumer Case Readings (2018 – 2019).
- AG Ferguson, Judge Finds Comcast Violated Consumer Protection Statute Nearly Half a Million Times (June 6, 2019) (supplemental reading).
- Baldwin Accord Criticized, New York Times (Feb. 5, 1985).
- Thomas A. Schmerling, Stag Hunting with the State AG: Anti-Tobacco Litigation and the Emergence of Cooperation Among State Attorneys General, 25 Law & Policy 429 (2003).
- AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, 131 S. Ct. 1740 (2011) (edited).
- Law360, Supreme Court Ruling Cuts Off Avenue to Class Proceedings (April 24, 2019).
- Rent-A-Center, Inc. v Iowa Civil Rights Com'n, 843 N.W.2d 727 (Iowa 2014) (edited).