State AG Monitor

State AGs in the News

By Bernard Nash , Divonne Smoyer , and Ann-Marie Luciano on Posted in Antitrust, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Consumer Protection, Data Privacy, Insurance, Pharmaceuticals

Hot News

Webcast Recording for Conversation with Kamala Harris Now Available

Dickstein Shapiro recently held its fourth webcast series, “A Conversation with State Attorneys General.” State AG Practice Partner Milton Marquis interviewed Kamala Harris, Attorney General of California, about her role and priorities as California’s chief legal officer. The discussion began with a review of the structure, functions, and responsibilities of the California AG office so that attendees could understand how to best work with the office when an issue arises. General Harris discussed her role in the national mortgage settlement, as well as her other priorities focusing on online privacy and security, and disruption of transnational gangs. Please click here to register for access to the link to a recording of this program hosted live on October 4, 2012.

As always, please feel free to contact us if you have any questions regarding the content of the conversation. We invite you to join us for Dickstein Shapiro’s next webcast program featuring Catherine Cortez Masto, Attorney General of Nevada, and Karen White, Executive Director of CWAG, interviewed by State AG Practice Leader Bernard Nash. Details to follow.

Antitrust

Thirty-three States and Putative Class Sue Toshiba, Hitachi, and Mitsubishi for Alleged Antitrust Violations

  • Attorneys General from 33 states, led by California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris, as well as a putative class of indirect purchasers, brought suit against Toshiba Corp., Hitachi Ltd., and Mitsubishi Electric Corp., alleging the companies fixed dynamic random access memory prices.
  • The indirect consumers have indicated that they have reached a settlement with the companies that will later be presented to the court for approval.
  • The Attorneys General also filed separate antitrust complaints alleging participation in a DRAM cartel. The AGs also named Hynix Semiconductor, Infineon Technology, Micron Technology, and Samsung Electronics as alleged co-conspirators.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

American Bankers Association Urges the CFPB to Dial Back its Proposals, Consumer Groups say Proposals are not Enough

  • The lobbying group the American Bankers Association urged the CFPB to dial back its proposals for reforming the mortgage servicing industry, arguing the proposals incorporate too many aspects of the $25 billion national mortgage servicing settlement.
  • The group also argued that the 400 pages of proposed rules go farther than what the Dodd-Frank Act requires.
  • Americans for Financial Reform argued that the loss mitigation procedures in the CFPB’s August proposal, such as loan modifications, are inadequate.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to Hold Field Hearing in Seattle October 24, 2012

  • The CFPB will hold a field hearing on the topic of debt collection on Wednesday, October 24, 2012 at 10 AM in Seattle, Washington.
  • Agency Director Richard Cordray (the former Ohio Attorney General) will speak at the event. The meeting will also feature testimony from consumer groups, industry representatives, and members of the public.
  • To attend the event, email cfpb.events@cfpb.gov with your full name and organizational affiliation.

Consumer Protection

New Mexico Attorney General Settles with J. Edwards Diamonds Jewelry Store

  • New Mexico Attorney General Gary King’s office recently announced that they have entered into a settlement agreement with J. Edwards Diamonds to resolve allegations that the company’s jewelry leasing program violated the state’s Unfair Practices Act.
  • As part of the settlement, J. Edwards Diamonds will pay $135,000 and is prohibited from advertising their prices as “wholesale” or “the lowest.” The company may also not have undisclosed penalties or balloon payments in its leasing contracts.
  • The settlement leaves one legal issue relating to credit card payments unresolved, which will be presented to the court for final determination.

Data Privacy

Massachusetts Attorney General Announces TD Bank Data Breach Put 267,000 Customers’ Information at Risk

  • Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley has announced that TD Bank lost unencrypted backup tapes in March that contained personal information, including account information and social security numbers.
  • The breach could affect as many as 267,000 customers nationwide. After investigating, TD Bank stated that it does not believe any of the information is being used inappropriately. The bank also stated than any unauthorized uses of an account would be credited within five business days and urged customers to carefully monitor their accounts for the next two years.

 Insurance

Nationwide to Pay $7.2 Million to Settle Multistate Probe Regarding Death Benefits

  • Nationwide has recently agreed to pay $7.2 million to settle a multistate investigation into its payment of death benefits based on concerns that the insurance company did not have an adequate process for identifying deceased policyholders, which resulted in late or unclaimed benefits.
  • California, Illinois, North Dakota, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Florida are the lead states investigating the largest insurance companies over this issue of the payment of death benefits. The $7.2 million penalty will be split among seven states (California, Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio, New Hampshire, Illinois and North Dakota). Other states have until December 7 to sign onto the agreement.
  • Nationwide also agreed to implement a process to cross-check a list of policyholders against the U.S. Social Security Administration’s Death Master File.

Pharmaceuticals

Massachusetts Attorney General Announces $1 Million Settlement with StoneRiver

  • Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley announced that her office settled with StoneRiver Pharmacy Solutions, Inc., a worker’s compensation billing firm, to resolve allegations that the company overcharged the state and several cities and counties for prescription drugs in violation of the False Claims Act.
  • The settlement requires a payment of $500,000 to the state and $500,000 to affected subdivisions of the state.  StoneRiver also agreed to implement procedures to protect against future overcharges.