In early August, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas ruled that the civil money penalty (CMP) provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) for tobacco products, 21 U.S.C. § 333(f)(9), is unconstitutional. Specifically, the court found that the FDCA improperly allows the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to bring an administrative action to collect CMPs because the Seventh Amendment guarantees the right to a jury trial in such cases.

On July 28, the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs issued a reminder to more than 3,000 auto dealerships regarding their obligations under the New Jersey data deletion law, N.J.S.A. § 56:12-18.1. This law, enacted and effective in January 2024, requires dealerships to offer data deletion services for consumer information stored in vehicles accepted for resale or lease. Dealerships are now on notice of their compliance obligations under the law.

In July 2025, a bipartisan coalition of 32 state and territorial attorneys general (AG) sent a letter to congressional leaders urging the passage of the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act. Their letter emphasizes that the legislation — a long-stalled federal reform — would provide legal clarity and a safe harbor for banks and financial institutions to serve state-licensed cannabis businesses. Such clarity, they argue, is urgently needed to address public safety risks and to improve the states’ ability to regulate and tax the booming cannabis industry.

Ashley Taylor, Clayton Friedman, Michael Yaghi, Natalia Jacobo, and Jay Myers of Troutman Pepper Locke LLP discuss stepped up enforcement efforts among state attorneys general in the face of the Trump administration’s broad deregulatory agenda and as federal agencies appear to shift litigation priorities.

Read the full article at Reuters and Westlaw Today.

On April 29, Michigan Attorney General (AG) Dana Nessel filed a lawsuit against Roku, Inc. (Roku), the smart TV and device provider and streaming service, alleging Roku violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), federal and state privacy laws, the Michigan Consumer Protection Act, and other laws by collecting children’s personal data and selling it without proper parental consent. The lawsuit sought damages and equitable relief on behalf of Michigan consumers who subscribed to Roku’s streaming service. More information regarding this lawsuit can be found here.

Register Here
Wednesday, August 20 • 1:00 – 3:10 p.m. ET

Members of Troutman Pepper Locke’s State Attorneys General (AG) team, Ashley Taylor, Clayton Friedman, and Namrata Kang, will participate in an upcoming CLE with myLawCLE for an in-depth exploration of AG investigations. This presentation will focus on multistate actions, recent trends, and emerging regulatory challenges. With decades of experience in both single and multistate AG investigations, the panelists will provide essential tools to help you effectively manage these complex processes.

What Happened

On July 28, Florida Attorney General (AG) James Uthmeier announced investigations into two environmental, social, and governance (ESG) scoring organizations for potential violations of state consumer protection and antitrust laws. This investigation is consistent with a continuing trend among Republican AGs to scrutinize entities directly and indirectly involved in encouraging ESG-based initiatives. For example, in the last three years, Republican AGs have targeted the Net-Zero Banking Alliance and the Net-Zero Asset Managers over antitrust and fiduciary duty concerns related to ESG. Membership in both organizations dwindled as a result.

On July 23, President Trump announced efforts to position the U.S. at the forefront of the global artificial intelligence (AI) race. “Winning the AI Race: America’s AI Action Plan” details how the federal government will advance the AI industry and was issued pursuant to the president’s January 23 Executive Order (EO) 14179, “Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence.”