State AGs In The News - March 27th, 2014

Antitrust

Attorneys General To Review $45 Billion Comcast And Time Warner Merger for Antitrust Violations

AGs will allegedly join the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to review the proposed $45 billion merger of Comcast and Time Warner Cable to determine the impact on their states and whether there are any antitrust violations. "We are part of a multistate group reviewing the proposed transaction along with the U.S. DOJ Antitrust Division," Florida AG Pam Bondi's office stated. In addition, Indiana AG Greg Zoeller's office confirmed that it would also be reviewing the deal, but did not disclose whether it was part of the multistate group. Pennsylvania AG Kathleen Kane's office confirmed that it would independently review the merger. Consumer Protection

Twenty Attorneys General And The City Attorney of San Francisco Settle Unsafe Energy Drink Allegations

Twenty AGs and the city attorney of San Francisco settled with Phusion Projects, LLC over allegations that it marketed and sold its energy drink, Four Loko, in violation of consumer protection and trade practice statutes. Four Loko is a flavored caffeinated alcoholic malt beverage. The AGs and the city attorney alleged that Phusion: promoted its drink to underage individuals; promoted dangerous and excessive consumption of its drink; failed to disclose to consumers the effects and consequences of drinking alcoholic beverages that are combined with caffeine; and before 2011, manufactured, marketed, and sold caffeinated beverages that were unsafe. Under the agreement, Phusion will pay $400,000 and agree to discontinue a number of practices related to the sale and distribution of its beverage, including promoting the misuse of alcohol or the mixing of alcohol with caffeine. Illinois Attorney General Sues Lender for Allegedly Evading State Reforms for Short-Term Loans

Illinois AG Lisa Madigan sued short-term lender CMK Investments, Inc., which operates All Credit Lenders, for allegedly selling short-term loans intended to evade state protections against predatory lending. The complaint alleges that CMK violated the state Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act and the Dodd-Frank Act by: including mandatory account protection fees that acted as interest when factored into the total cost of the loan and exceeding the state's 36 percent interest cap; misrepresenting the true cost of the loan; and failing to inform consumers that they must pay more than the minimum to pay off the loan...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT