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New York Attorney General Letitia James and the Federal Trade Commission recently announced via a Stipulated Order the recovery of $34.2 million for more than 46,000 servicemembers and veterans that were alleged deceived and defrauded by national jewelry retailer, Harris Jewelry. The company allegedly used deceptive marketing tactics to lure active-duty servicemembers to their financing…

FTC defense attorney Richard B. Newman recently authored an article for National Law Review titled “Supreme Court Decides to Rule on FTC’s Disgorgement Authority.” As previously blogged about here and here, the Supreme Court recently upheld the SEC’s disgorgement authority but imposed various limits, including the consideration of net profits and legitimate business expenses. The…

As state Attorneys General and other government regulatory agencies ramp-up efforts to battle price-gouging during the COVID-19 pandemic, the House and Senate are now contemplating various proposals to address the problem during any declared state of emergency. The first is H.R. 6264. Sponsored by Rep. Jason Smith, the proposed bill tasks the Secretary of Health…

As reported by numerous media outlets, FTC defense attorney Richard B. Newman recently represented developers of so-called “stalking app” in the first-ever case of its kind in the United States. Following an aggressive Federal Trade Commission investigation (CID), the firm successfully resolved charges that the respondents’ products compromised the privacy and security of the consumer…

New York Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood recently announced an agreement with Avvo – an online legal directory – to reform its attorney rating system and improve its disclosures to consumers. The announcement comes following an investigation revealed that the content and limits of Avvo’s rating system were not clearly disclosed. According to the NY…

FTC advertising lawyer Richard B. Newman was recently quoted in Communications Daily in an article entitled “FTC Hearing Called Potential Turning Point.” The article addresses the Federal Trade Commission public hearings concerning whether broad-based changes in the economy, evolving business practices, new technologies and international developments might require adjustments to competition and consumer protection law, enforcement priorities…