Category Archives: Consumer Law
Przemysław Pałka, ‘Consumers, online environments, and privacy’
ABSTRACT Consumer privacy law is grounded in the paradigm of individuals’ control over their personal data. Controllers are expected to publish privacy policies, and individuals are expected to ‘self-manage’ their privacy. However, empirical studies demonstrate that consumers do not read privacy policies and that these documents often do not contain the information necessary to engage […]
Itay Perah Fainmesser, ‘Marketplace Trust’
ABSTRACT Platforms introduce immense opportunities for trade through reduced search costs and improved matching. However, for these possibilities to materialize, users must take the chance and participate in the platforms’ activities-they need to trust that they will be paid, receive high quality goods or services in return for their money, or that their information will […]
Vandenbussche and Taelman, ‘Consumer Protection Proceedings’
ABSTRACT This chapter describes and analyses, from a comparative perspective, the status of consumer protection proceedings as a specific subject within procedural law, driven by the need to address the power imbalance between consumers and businesses and the objective of ensuring effective enforcement of consumer rights. It covers both individual and collective litigation, the role […]
Sirko Harder, ‘The Territorial Scope of Australia’s Unfair Contract Terms Provisions’
ABSTRACT Section 23 of the Australian Consumer Law, which is sch 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth), invalidates unfair terms in particular types of contract. Section 5(1) of the Act extends the application of the Australian Consumer Law to conduct outside Australia by (among others) corporations carrying on business within Australia. In […]
Contreras Kong and Rogge, ‘Sustainability-Linked Products: International Private Law Standards’
ABSTRACT The last few years there has been a steady increase in sustainability-linked financial products. This paper examines in particular sustainability-linked bonds, loans, and derivatives. The focus is on the development of international private law standards which have arisen in this market, similar to those present in a wide range of ‘usual’ financial products. Some […]
Malone and Skiba, ‘Installment Loans’
ABSTRACT Installment loans have increasingly replaced traditional payday loans in the short-term, small-dollar credit market. Installment loans, often offered by the same lenders who provide payday loans, have larger principal amounts, longer repayment periods, and lower interest rates relative to payday loans. Installment loan advocates and some regulators contend that these differences make the loans […]
Jasper Verstappen, ‘Regulating Unfair Commercial Practices in a Smart Contract Context’
ABSTRACT Emerging technologies can have an impact on legal frameworks that protect consumers. This article investigates the impact of smart contract technology on the European rules regarding unfair commercial practices. It analyses the manner in which legislatures can respond to such new technologies and the impact these technologies can have on the principles of functional […]
Lupica and Neumann, ‘Thwarting the Inevitability of Over-Indebtedness’
ABSTRACT Structural inequalities in the United States have led to millions of Americans struggling to pay their bills each month. A single emergency – a sick child, an unexpected car tow, or a reduction in hours at work – can force a low-income household to the brink of financial disaster, risking eviction and overindebtedness. Such […]
Enriques, Romano and Tuch, ‘Green Gatekeepers’
ABSTRACT Products are routinely labeled ‘carbon neutral’, ‘recycled’, ‘biodegradable’, ‘ocean-friendly’, and ‘sustainable’. Bonds are marketed as ‘green’ and mutual funds as ‘ESG’, while firms may pledge to become ‘net zero’. But are statements concerning environmental qualities reliable? It is often hard for consumers and investors to tell. Environmental qualities tend to have credence attributes; they […]
Tanya Monestier, ‘Amazon’s Dirty Little Secret’
ABSTRACT You need new earbuds because one of yours just went missing. You log onto Amazon and scroll through the endless array of options. You finally select a pair ‘Sold by’ Amazon and click ‘Buy Now’. Amazon promises to have the earbuds to you tomorrow. Have you ever wondered how it’s possible for Amazon to […]