Subro Sense Podcast - Unpacking Product Claims Against Amazon
Last month, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) jointly hosted a public meeting of the interagency “Strike Force on Unfair and Illegal Business Practices.” The meeting was a continuation of...more
On August 1, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) virtually cohosted the first public meeting of the multiagency Strike Force on Unfair and Illegal Pricing (Strike Force), focused on antitrust...more
Bill C-59 was presented to the House of Commons on May 6 with significant amendments from the Standing Committee on Finance. These changes further strengthen the deceptive marketing provisions of the Competition Act with...more
Picture this: At a meeting of local landlords, one participant raps his knuckles on the table and announces his grand idea for increasing the group’s collective profits. Each landlord should “independently” contract with a...more
On February 7, a coalition of 19 state attorneys general (AG) filed a comment letter supporting the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) proposed Trade Regulation Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees (Rule). The state AGs echoed the...more
On October 11, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) published its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for a new “Rule on Unfair and Deceptive Fees” — popularly referred to as the “junk fee” rule. The new rule, which will be...more
Following years of debate about whether the Competition Act should be amended, the Canadian government has announced plans to “carefully evaluate potential ways to improve its operation”, touching on several concerns...more
While price gouging is often discussed in the context of existing products, new products and services may be covered as well. As a result, businesses looking to introduce new products during a price gouging emergency can seek...more
Long before COVID-19 affected retail companies had already started shifting to e-commerce platforms, marked by retail giants exclusively in the e-commerce space. ...more
Over the past month, state enforcers have declared a war on price gouging, but some of the most effective enforcers have not been the states. Online platforms and other large retailers have taken extraordinary steps to...more
In the past month, Florida’s Attorney General has received thousands of complaints about price gouging across the state. As a result, Florida is taking action...more
At the end of 2019, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo released the 10th proposal of his 2020 State of the State Agenda, which aims to eliminate the so-called “pink tax,” a gender-based pricing phenomenon that allegedly results in...more
Historically, many jurisdictions have held that Amazon was not a “Seller” when considering products sold on its website by third-party vendors. Recently, a U.S. Court of Appeals held for the first time that Amazon was a...more
The Gap, Inc. recently settled a class action lawsuit alleging that the retailer employed a misleading pricing scheme in The Gap and Banana Republic outlets and factory stores. The plaintiffs claimed that the company, which...more
The Actuarial Standards Board (ASB) exposed wholesale changes to Actuarial Standard of Practice No. 2 - Nonguaranteed Charges or Benefits for Life Insurance Policies and Annuity Contracts (ASOP 2), which has not changed since...more
The French Competition Authority ("FCA") found that Sanicorse, a monopoly provider of services to hospitals in Corsica, abused its dominant position by having imposed significant, sudden and unjustified price increases upon...more
The Situation: The recent EU Commission proposal for a tightening of consumer protection regulations envisages, in one of its pillars, to step up government enforcement of EU consumer rules, including by introducing a...more
In two recent cases decided by the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, the Court held that consumers cannot make out claims under Massachusetts’ Consumer Protection Act, M.G.L. c. 93A, where the only claimed...more
The growth of e-commerce and the resulting increase in price transparency and price competition have a significant impact on companies’ distribution strategies and consumer behavior. While the emergence of e-commerce has the...more
Over the past several years, there has been a rise in class action lawsuits against retailers for allegedly deceptive price comparison advertising. Many of these lawsuits have alleged that retailers advertised “phantom”...more
In order to protect brand image, the quality of pre-sale service, and the pricing structure of their products, manufacturers undertake a variety of measures to sell products to their retailers. Thus, clauses which prohibit...more
“Was that retail ‘bargain’ you received really a bargain?” That is the question being asked by a recent spate of lawsuits filed against prominent retailers. Most of these actions have been brought as private party class...more
The Brexit referendum result in June last year created many uncertainties for the British economy and continues to do so. In this Breakfast Seminar, Robert Bell will focus his remarks on what he sees will be the likely...more
One of the biggest trends in retail today is dynamic pricing, where retailers can quickly change prices based on data-driven algorithms that incorporate demand, inventory, and competitors’ prices. This pricing technique...more
From April 2017, the following legal changes are coming into effect. Make sure your business is prepared! Part of this publication originally published by Drapers - March, 2017...more