On January 22, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) entered into a Stipulated Order for Permanent Injunction, Monetary Judgment, and Other Relief (the “Order”) with FloatMe Corp. (“FloatMe”), a fintech that offers short-term cash advances through its mobile app, to settle litigation brought earlier in the month against the fintech and two of its principals (collectively, “Defendants”).… Continue Reading

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced a proposed order settling a Complaint against California-based lead generator Response Tree LLC and its president, Derek Doherty, banning them from making or assisting anyone in making robocalls or calls to phone numbers on the FTC’s Do Not Call (DNC) Registry. The proposed order helps settle pending FTC charges that Response Tree and its president operated more than fifty (50) websites designed to trick consumers into providing personal information for supposed mortgage refinancing and other services.… Continue Reading

The New Jersey Attorney General (NJAG) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced settlements in concurrent actions against Sollers College, a for-profit college, its parent company, Sollers, Inc., and, in the case of the NJAG action, its owner, Siba Padhi  (collectively, “Sollers”), resolving allegations that Sollers lured consumers to enroll by inflating its job placement rates and falsely representing that its relationships with prominent employers would create jobs for its graduates. … Continue Reading

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) on September 11, 2023, settled a claim against a group of affiliated entities operating a background reporting business, Instant Checkmate, LLC, TruthFinder, LLC, The Control Group Media Company, LLC, Intelicare Direct, LLC, and PubRec LLC (“background report companies” or “companies”) for alleged misrepresentations that deceived consumers about whether they had criminal records and for operating as a consumer reporting agency without following the requirements of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”).… Continue Reading

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently proposed a rule that would impose a number of new substantive and disclosure requirements on auto-dealers in the car-buying process.  The FTC described the proposed Rule as one designed “to ban junk fees and bait-and-switch advertising tactics that can plague consumers throughout the car-buying experience.” … Continue Reading

On October 22, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued a policy statement providing further guidance on its enforcement of federal law with regard to negative option marketing. The FTC noted in an associated press release that they are “ramping up” enforcement efforts against companies that “trap consumers into subscriptions.”  The policy statement is intended to “put companies on notice that they will face legal action if their sign-up process fails to provide clear, up-front information, obtain consumers’ informed consent, and make cancellation easy.”… Continue Reading

The FTC recently announced a settlement of its lawsuit filed in a New York federal district court against a New York City car dealership and its individual general manager in which the FTC alleged that the defendants discriminated against African-American and Hispanic car buyers and engaged in other illegal business practices. … Continue Reading

The FTC announced settlements of two lawsuits filed in a California federal district court alleging similar violations of the FTC Act, the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), and the Truth in Lending Act by providers of student debt relief services, their principals, and a Minnesota-based company that provided financing to customers of the providers involved in both complaints. … Continue Reading

Less than a week after warning subpoena and CID recipients to take their obligation to respond “seriously,” the FTC took aim at perceived inadequacies in compliance reports submitted pursuant to FTC consent orders and litigated judgments. In its March 11, 2019 blog post, the FTC’s Bureau of Competition alleges that “some Respondents are not taking seriously their responsibility to provide detailed and timely” compliance reports that demonstrate compliance with the obligations imposed in FTC Orders.… Continue Reading

The FTC is cautioning recipients of FTC subpoenas and civil investigative demands (CIDs) that these requests “are legally enforceable demands, and recipients of subpoenas or CIDs need to take their obligation to comply seriously.”  Recipients are warned that “[d]elaying compliance with a CID or subpoena in hopes that you won’t have to comply at all rarely works, and most often results in follow up from the [Office of General Counsel].”… Continue Reading