A newsletter by Reuters and Westlaw |
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The Federal Trade Commission has sued the operators of gym chain LA Fitness and other fitness centers, alleging they made membership cancellations exceedingly difficult. It’s the latest move by the FTC targeting hard-to-cancel subscriptions and recurring charges, despite an appeals court striking down the consumer protection agency's 'click to cancel' rule last month. Here’s what to know: |
- The FTC filed a lawsuit in California federal court against Fitness International and Fitness & Sports Clubs, saying they forced members to use complicated methods such as speaking to specific managers, who were often unavailable, in order to cancel memberships. Read the complaint.
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"The FTC will not hesitate to act on behalf of consumers when it believes companies are stifling consumers’ ability to choose which recurring charges they want to keep," said Christopher Mufarrige, head of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.
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In July, business groups secured an 8th Circuit ruling blocking the FTC’s 'click to cancel' rule passed during the Biden administration. The rule would have required cancellation methods to be at least as simple as the sign-up process. Learn more about the blocked rule here.
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The FTC sued Uber in April over claims of deceptive marketing for its Uber One subscription. The agency said in its lawsuit that Uber falsely claimed that users would save about $25 a month through the service and deceived them about how easy it was to cancel. Read more about the lawsuit here.
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The agency will go to trial in September against Amazon over claims that it enrolled users in Prime without their consent and made cancellations difficult. Amazon has denied the allegations. Read more.
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Lyle and Eric Menendez will make their case for parole to the California Board of Parole Hearings. The final decision will rest with Governor Gavin Newsom, who can either accept or reject the board's recommendation.
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The FTC will urge U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Cummings in Chicago to block medical device coatings maker Surmodics' acquisition by private equity firm GTCR. The FTC says the deal would contribute to high healthcare costs.
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Court calendars are subject to last-minute docket changes. |
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- Hampton Dellinger, the former head of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel who was fired by President Trump, joined Foley Hoag as a litigation partner in D.C., the firm said. More on that here.
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Moves: Buchalter added IP partner Noel Gillespie from Procopio, Cory … Alston & Bird hired former FTC official Alexis Gilman as an antitrust partner.
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