As we wrote last year when the U.S. House of Representatives was debating a series of bills on narrow issues related to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), a broader push to reform the agency was likely to come in late 2019 or early 2020. Now, at least one shoe of that overhaul has dropped. Continue Reading Taking the Safety Off: Legislation Would Eliminate Failsafe Against Inaccurate CPSC Disclosures
In an uncommon move, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) on Wednesday issued a unilateral press release warning consumers of the need to anchor a particular brand and model of dressers. In its release, the CPSC wrote that it “intends to continue pressing the case for a recall with” the manufacturer. Continue Reading Going Old School: CPSC Issues Rare Safety Warning on Dressers
A U.S. Supreme Court ruling from last summer may have changed the trajectory of a high-profile pending commercial speech case. In National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra, the Court modified the traditional commercial speech tests, perhaps placing a greater burden on the government when it seeks to regulate commercial speech. Becerra could influence the D.C. Circuit Court’s decision in Cigar Association of America v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration as to whether FDA-mandated cigar health warnings violate the First Amendment. If cigar regulations are found to violate the First Amendment, it could lead to a new wave of litigation. Continue Reading You Can’t Make Me Say It: Does <em>Becerra</em> Make it Harder for the Government to Require Product Health Warnings?
As 2020 dawns – and with it jokes about perfect vision – the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is feeling its way through a foggy vision of its future, but there are a few signs in view for CPSC-regulated companies.
The CPSC’s future, of course, hinges on what its leadership will look like, and that is an open question. The five-member CPSC is down one commissioner and without a permanent chairman. Democrat Bob Adler is the acting chair, but he may find his ability to drive official agency actions limited by a 2-2 party split: Adler is joined by fellow Democrat and former chair Elliot Kaye opposite Republicans Peter Feldman and Dana Baiocco. Continue Reading 2020 CPSC Outlook: A Busy Year Is Unlikely
Entities regulated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) should have greater confidence in sharing confidential business information with the agency following a U.S. Supreme Court decision earlier this year that addressed the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s duty to disclose information in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.
Continue Reading Private Eyes: When is Company Information Shared with the CPSC Confidential?
Environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are pursuing litigation against EPA to force companies that have never intentionally used asbestos in a product to file reports linking their products to asbestos. Manufacturing and chemical companies should keep an eye on Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization v. Wheeler – currently pending in California federal court – where the NGOs seek to dramatically increase companies’ obligations to disclose that their products contain asbestos – even where it is just present as an impurity. Continue Reading District Court Decision on EPA Reporting Could Affect Asbestos Litigation
It has been two years since the U.S. Supreme Court decided Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court (BMS). In BMS, the Court held that state courts lacked personal jurisdiction over out-of-state defendants relating to state-law mass tort claims that had no connection to the forum state. We have followed this decision closely on the blog here and here. Continue Reading On the Road Again: Does <em>Bristol-Myers Squibb</em> Limit Courts’ Jurisdiction Over Claims by Out-of-State Class Members?
Technology has changed all of our day-to-day lives. It also has impacted how lawyers practice. While having the internet at our fingertips is a convenience for most of us, it can cause headaches for judges and lawyers when jurors use the internet during trial to post or search online about the case. This means that lawyers must be more tech-competent than ever before. Here are two ways that technology has changed how lawyers practice: Continue Reading Two Ways Technology Has Changed How Lawyers Practice
Have you eaten “America’s Favorite Pasta”[1] or received a “record-breaking” [2] footbag with your fast-food meal? While these products may seem to have little in common, they have a shared experience – each was the target of a false advertising claim. The statements raise the always-burning question for manufacturers: what is mere puffery and what constitutes false advertising? Continue Reading Not Another Puff Piece: The Difference Between Puffery and False Advertising
Imagine you try to flush a wipe that is branded flushable and discover it won’t flush. You are angry enough to sue the manufacturer for damages for “consumer fraud,” but should you also be able to force the manufacturer to change the label, even though your experience means you now know the “truth” about the product? Continue Reading Flush with Uncertainty: Do Plaintiffs Have Standing to Seek Injunctive Relief for “Consumer Fraud” When They Are No Longer “Defrauded”?