Entries by taulersmith

FTC Rule Proposal on Automatic Renewals

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) may soon pass new rules that strengthen federal protections for consumers who purchase products or services that are automatically renewed. The FTC rule proposal on automatic renewals would impose strict requirements on companies that offer automatic renewal subscriptions, or negative options, to consumers. Federal statutes and rules typically refer to […]

Federal Law on Automatic Renewals

Federal law on automatic renewals has gotten stronger and more far-reaching in recent years. This has come in response to states like California that have started to take the lead when it comes to protecting consumers against deceptive advertising and business fraud. There are several prominent laws at both the California state level and the […]

CIPA Lawsuit Against Nationwide Mutual Insurance

A CIPA lawsuit was recently filed against Nationwide Mutual Insurance for illegal wiretapping and invasion of privacy, and now a federal judge in California has ruled that the case can proceed to trial. The U.S. District Court judge issued the ruling in response to a motion to dismiss the wiretapping claims under Section 631 of […]

NBC Bay Area News Report on California Automatic Renewal Law

Companies that do business in California are legally required to disclose an automatic renewal policy to customers before auto-renewing their subscription. A recent NBC Bay Area News report on the California Automatic Renewal Law (ARL) details how Chegg, an education technology company, has been accused of deceptively renewing subscriptions to a textbook rental service and […]

Tauler Smith Files ARL Claim Against Textbook Company Chegg

Tauler Smith LLP filed an ARL claim against textbook company Chegg for allegedly renewing customer subscriptions without notice or authorization. KNTV, which serves as the NBC outlet for the San Francisco Bay Area, reported that the civil lawsuit was filed in federal court on behalf of a student who rented a book for her law […]

NBC Los Angeles News Report on California’s ARL

  When a customer uses the internet to sign up for a subscription service that automatically renews, there are rules that the subscription company needs to follow in order to comply with both federal and state consumer fraud laws. For example, the California Automatic Renewal Law (ARL) imposes disclosure requirements on businesses. The ARL also […]

Motions for Terminating Sanctions in California

Motions for terminating sanctions in California are an important tool that judges can use to compel litigants to comply with discovery rules when they are intentionally withholding information. If one of the parties in a lawsuit repeatedly uses stall tactics and refuses to follow court orders to share evidence and participate in discovery, it may […]

Tauler Smith Wins Motion for Terminating Sanctions

In a recent employment law matter filed in Los Angeles, Tauler Smith LLP won a motion for terminating sanctions. Los Angeles litigation attorney Wendy Miele represented a media production company that was being sued by a former contractor who worked as a personal assistant for the company. When the plaintiff refused to respond to discovery […]

California Invasion of Privacy Act & Website Wiretapping

It is important for consumers who interact with businesses online to have a solid understanding of the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) and website wiretapping. When you have a conversation with someone on the phone or via the computer, there is usually a reasonable expectation that the conversation will remain between the two parties. […]