: Introduction Like many widows, Sandy Meadows faced economic uncertainty after her husband passed away. She, however, had a knack for arranging flowers and found... The post When Rational Basis Review Bit appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: Absent alcohol, dormant commerce clause doctrine is mostly familiar. Courts use strict scrutiny when state laws discriminate — facially, in purpose, or in effect — against... The post Does the Twenty-First Amendment Displace Pike Balancing? appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: Courts often consult entrenched, preratification sources such as Blackstone’s Commentaries and The Digest of Justinian when rendering decisions in common law actions. These authorities... The post Elam v. Early appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: Drug detection dogs are critical tools in the fight against drug trafficking. However, law enforcement canines are imperfect: They sometimes incorrectly alert when performing... The post United States v. Johnson appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: The Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment provides that when the government takes private property for a public purpose, it must compensate the property... The post “Background Principles” and the General Law of Property appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: In 2009, President Barack Obama set off a “radioactive” debate when he told the White House Press Corps that he would seek a judge... The post Bad Boy Jurisprudence appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: The United States makes bad choices when it comes to psychoactive drugs. Under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), U.S. drug law has simultaneously fueled mass incarceration, inhibited needed access, and enabled an opioid crisis. The post Drug Scheduling as Institutional Design appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: When an employer-sponsored health plan covers mastectomies for cancer but excludes them for gender dysphoria, is that sex discrimination under Title VII? The Eleventh... The post Lange v. Houston County appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr.* In a bench statement delivered when the Supreme Court convened on May 9, 2025, Chief Justice Roberts offered... The post In Memoriam: Justice David H. Souter appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: Our society generally agrees that possessing, producing, and distributing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) is morally reprehensible. This societal judgment is represented in sentencing... The post When All Files Count the Same: The Problem of Undifferentiated Images in Child Pornography Sentencing appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States . . . . — U.S. Const. art. I, § 1 Typically, when Congress... The post Separating the Powers in the Administrative State: Article I appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: Throughout American history, dance has been the “stepchild” of the arts family, an afterthought when it comes to recognition, protection, and celebration. Even as... The post Dancing on Their Own: Alternatives to Copyright for the Choreographic Community appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: Modern textualism has long criticized the use of practical, or consequentialist, reasoning when construing statutes. And yet in practice, textualist jurists long have invoked practical consequences arguments to help justify their statutory constructions. The post Practical Consequences in Statutory Interpretation appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: On March 15, 2025, the White House announced that President Trump had invoked an eighteenth-century wartime authority to order the summary removal of noncitizens who were believed to be members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.Proclamation No. 10,903, 90 Fed. Reg. 13033 (Mar. 14, 2025). The post Protecting Noncitizens’ Liberty When the Executive Seeks to Punish appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: One of the early lessons we learn in life is that things seek balance. When a parent pushes their child on a swing set,... The post Federalism Rebalancing and the Roberts Court: A Departure from Historical Patterns appeared first on Harvard LawReview
: First Consumer Review Fairness case takes on promoter’s “big bucks on Amazon” claim lfair August 6, 2018 | 11:11AM First Consumer Review Fairness case takes on promoter’s “big bucks on Amazon” claim By Lesley Fair T he marketers behind a purported money-making promotion called Sellers Playbook appear to have skipped the chapter about complying with federal and state consumer protection laws. That’s the allegation in a complaint filed by the FTC and the Minnesota Attorney General . In addition, it’s the FTC’s first case charg ing violations of the Consumer Review Fairness Act. The roots of the allegations go back to another venture sued by the FTC earlier this year: FBA Stores, also known as Amazing Wealth System and Amazon Wealth Systems. The defendants in that case ran online ads and in-person workshops that claimed to reveal the secret s of making major money on Amazon. But few, if any, of the consumers who forked over thousands of dollars and implemented their “plug-and-play systems” earn ed the kind of c[...]
: First INFORM Consumers Act enforcement case filed against online marketplace Temu kkrown September 5, 2025 | 10:00AM First INFORM Consumers Act enforcement case filed against online marketplace Temu Online marketplaces and third party sellers looking for a refresher on the INFORM Consumers Act should look no further than the recent settlement with Whaleco, Inc., which operates the online marketplace Temu. The complaint alleges the company failed to provide online shoppers with required information and tools. This is the first case brought to enforce the INFORM Act. The INFORM Act, which went into effect in 2023, seeks to make online transactions more transparent. Among other things, the law requires online marketplaces to collect, verify, and disclose certain information about high-volume third party sellers. ( Informing Businesses about the INFORM Consumers Act has more on how the law defines terms, what’s required of online marketplaces, and the substantial penalties the FTC and state law enforcers may se[...]
: By: Susannah Tredwell , Manager of Library Services at DLA Piper (Canada) LLP and James Bachmann , Instructional Librarian, Law Library, University of British Columbia Since 1988, when CALL/ACBD’s Copyright Committee was first set up, CALL/ACBD has advocated for its members' interests in the area of copyright. While the primary focus of CALL/ACBD’s copyright advocacy over the last few years has been on Crown copyright and primary law, CALL/ACBD has also made submissions about such areas as fair dealing and licencing. CALL/ACBD sees this work as not only supporting the needs of its members but also as serving the interests of access to justice as a whole. Continuing this work, on January 18, 2022 CALL/ACBD, along with Library Futures Institute, will act as an intervener in the Supreme Court of Canada case Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, et al. v. Entertainment Software Association, et al. Kim Nayyer, CALL/ACBD’s President, and Robert Janes of JFK Law will be representing CALL[...]
: Buckle up for a two-lane look at car buying lfair July 30, 2020 | 1:04PM Buckle up for a two-lane look at car buying By Lesley Fair It’s one of the biggest purchases people make, but two new FTC staff reports examine some common pitfalls when consumers are in the market for a car. Buckle down and read the Bureau of Consumer Protection’s Buckle Up: Navigating Auto Sales and Financing , which focuses on the challenges buyers face in getting accurate, understandable information when shopping for a vehicle. Not in the auto business? Not so fast. The deep-dive analysis of Buckle Up and an accompanying report by BCP staff and the Bureau of Economics – The Auto Buyer Study: Lessons From In-Depth Consumer Interviews And Related Research – offer insights into the perception and behavior of consumers in the study that can apply to other industries. The FTC’s interest in auto-related transactions goes back decades. (Check out Volume 1 of Federal Trade Commission Decisions for a 1919 case regarding deception in the s[...]
: Franchise Fundamentals: Taking a deep dive into the Franchise Disclosure Document lfair May 23, 2023 | 6:41PM Franchise Fundamentals: Taking a deep dive into the Franchise Disclosure Document By Lesley Fair Love at first sight may (or may not) be a real thing, but when it comes to investing your money, it’s unwise to fall for a franchise without first subjecting it to tough-minded scrutiny. The third in the FTC’s Franchise Fundamentals blog series walks through an essential part of that evaluation: an in-depth review of the Financial Disclosure Document (FDD) required by the FTC’s Franchise Rule . You must receive the Franchise Disclosure Document at least 14 days before you’re asked to sign any contract or pay any money to the franchisor or one of its affiliates. In fact, you have the right to the FDD once the franchisor has received your application and agrees to consider it. So speak up if you don’t receive it and ask questions – lots of them – as you review the FDD and any attached documents. Image Ind[...]
: Amazon will pay $2.25 million in civil penalties to settle Federal Trade Commission allegations that the online retail giant knowingly violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) by refusing to provide transaction records to consumers whose personal information was used by identity thieves to commit fraud. The complaint , filed by the Department of Justice upon notification and referral from the FTC, alleged that in numerous instances, Amazon.com Inc. failed to comply with Section 609(e) of the FCRA, which requires companies to, within 30 days of a consumer’s request, provide victims of identity theft with application and business transaction records about fraudulent transactions made in their names. According to the complaint, Amazon had no written policy to respond to Section 609(e) requests until early 2025, after it learned of the FTC’s investigation, despite prior outreach from FTC staff advising the company to review its compliance with Section 609(e). “Amazon often put identity theft victims through[...]
: A clothes look at the RN database: Q&A with FTC staff lfair October 5, 2017 | 11:18AM A clothes look at the RN database: Q&A with FTC staff By Lesley Fair It’s not much bigger than a postage stamp, but the label on many textile, wool, and fur products provides important information, including fiber content, country of origin, and a company name or Registered Identification Number (RN). The FTC administers the RN system and industry members will want to check out recent upgrades to the RN website . With RNs and labels on our mind, we asked some common RN-related questions to attorney Josh Millard, whom we’d label as one of the FTC’s go-to people on the subject. First things first. What’s an RN? JOSH: A Registered Identification Number (RN) is a numerical designation – the prefix RN followed by a set of digits – that identifies the company responsible for marketing, distributing or otherwise handling a product covered by the Textile, Wool, and Fur Acts. Because some labels are small and some company names a[...]