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Namrata Kang

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Namrata (Nam) is an associate in the firm’s Regulatory Investigations, Strategy + Enforcement (RISE) Practice Group, based in the Washington, D.C. office. She routinely advises clients on a wide variety of state and federal regulatory matters, with a particular emphasis on state consumer protection laws relating to consumer financial services and marketing and advertising. Nam’s experience transcends multiple industries, including financial services, telecommunications, media, and sports betting.

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Massachusetts Attorney General (AG) Andrea Joy Campbell announced Massachusetts’ new consumer protection regulations prohibiting “junk fees” and providing consumers with greater transparency regarding trial and subscription offers, prohibiting unfair marketing tactics that obscure the true cost of a product or service. The regulations are intended to help consumers understand the total cost of products and services at the outset of a transaction, avoid fees, and make it easier to cancel unwanted costs associated with trial and subscription offers.

The New York Attorney General’s (AG) Office announced a $16.75 million settlement with DoorDash, the prominent delivery platform. The settlement relates to claims that DoorDash misled both consumers and delivery workers (Dashers) regarding the handling of tips. Specifically, AG Letitia James alleged that DoorDash employed a guaranteed pay model that was supposed to ensure that delivery workers knew their pay upfront. However, DoorDash allegedly used the model to redirect customer tips to subsidize the wages the company had guaranteed to the Dashers. Instead of giving Dashers the full tips as intended, the tips were used to reduce DoorDash’s payment obligations that were needed to satisfy the guaranteed payment amount.

Warnings of an impending regulatory focus on hidden and junk fees materialized following President Joe Biden’s call to Congress during his 2023 State of the Union address to eliminate them. On December 17, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced its final rule, Trade Regulation rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees (Junk Fees Rule), which bans junk fees associated with live-event ticket and short-term lodging (hotels and vacation rentals). By focusing exclusively on the live-event ticket and short-term lodging sectors, the rule is notably narrower in scope than the originally proposed rule from October 2023, which targeted junk and hidden fees across all industries nationwide.

State attorneys general (AGs) have increased their scrutiny of the use of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly in relation to data privacy laws, consumer protection statutes, and anti-discrimination laws. Our state AG team has issued a new white paper examining this trend, including a detailed look at the recent advisory opinion issued by the Massachusetts AG’s office, which provides guidance on how existing laws apply to AI. Understanding the potential legal implications of AI use is important to any consumer-facing business, include private equity firms and other investors.

On February 16, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) made a significant move to combat consumers’ receipt of unwanted communications. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) already regulates automated calls and texts absent an exemption or the prior express consent of the called party. The FCC has now adopted new measures aimed at empowering consumers with the option to further prevent automated calls and texts.

In a recent ruling, the California Court of Appeal largely affirmed a lower court’s decision from March 2022, finding that Ashford University (now known as University of Arizona Global Campus), an online, for-profit college, had engaged in deceptive recruitment practices vis-à-vis veterans eligible for federal GI Bill educational benefits. California Attorney General (AG) Rob Bonta initiated the action in November 2017, alleging that Ashford University had caused harm to a significant number of students, many of whom were veterans, by disseminating false and misleading statements about career outcomes, cost and financial aid, pace of degree programs, and transfer credits.

In an era where privacy, security, and artificial intelligence are at the forefront of many business operations, staying informed about the latest developments is crucial. Our 2023 Privacy Year in Review is an in-depth analysis of the past year’s significant advancements and challenges in these areas.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently amended requirements concerning artificial or prerecorded voice calls, effective July 20.[1] See Proposed 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200. Notably, the FCC amended requirements concerning prerecorded noncommercial and nontelemarketing commercial calls by (1) placing a cap on the number of calls to up to three calls within a consecutive 30-day period, unless the caller has obtained prior express consent, and (2) requiring callers to provide specific opt-out mechanisms.

This article was originally published in Bloomberg Law. Reproduced with permission. Published February 2023. Copyright © 2023 The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.

The American Veterinary Medical Association estimates that over 65% of US households own a pet. Puppies are a particularly popular choice. But sometimes, after a puppy comes home to its new family, it might appear lethargic or in pain, and stumble when walking.

The Federal Trade Commission seems poised to regulate hidden fees in services from a range of industries, joining state attorneys general and the CFPB to act on behalf of consumers, Troutman Pepper attorneys Clayton Friedman, Chris Carlson, and Namrata Kang say. They advise companies to take steps now to avoid regulatory scrutiny.

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