Consumer Protection

Champions for transparency and
consumer rights.

We protect consumers across the United States from corporate malfeasance, including false and misleading advertising, product defects, warranty violations, personal data theft, fraudulent billing, and other types of unfair or deceptive business practices. 

Overview

We represent consumers and small businesses in state and federal consumer class actions in industries including automotive and trucking, consumer products, data protection software, financial services, insurance, social media, telecommunications, and others.  

Experience and tenacity are what set us apart. We are trial tested and regularly chosen for court-appointed class leadership roles. We have recovered billions of dollars for our clients and established legal precedent along the way.  

We take on formidable opponents and have a long track record of success which includes victories over entities like Equifax, Anthem, Caterpillar, Lumber Liquidators, Vizio, Facebook, Apple, Providian Financial Corporation, Symantec, HCA, and others. 

The scope of our practice includes particular areas of focus:  

DATA BREACH & CYBERSECURITY LITIGATION

We represent those whose personal, sometimes sensitive, information has been compromised as the result of negligent cybersecurity practices. 

We have played a leadership role in nearly every major data breach class action litigated to date. We are highly regarded by co-counsel and the judiciary alike for our collaborative efforts in pre-litigation investigations and work with data privacy and economic experts. And we are deft in handling complex discovery for large-scale data breach class actions, ensuring efficiencies of scale. 

PRODUCT LIABILITY

We represent consumers and small businesses in state and federal product defect, manufacturing defect, and breach of warranty class actions. Our experience extends to numerous industries including: 

  • Automotive, Trucking & Recreational Vehicles 
  • Airbags & Safety Systems 
  • Exhaust & Emissions Systems 
  • Engines 
  • Transmissions 
  • Home Improvement Products 
  • Technology Devices & Software 
  • Medical Devices 
  • Pharmaceuticals 
  • Machinery & Tools 
  • Children’s Products 
FALSE ADVERTISING & UNFAIR BUSINESS PRACTICES

We take on deceptive behavior, representing consumers and small businesses in cases involving false advertising, deceptive marketing, and unfair business practices. This includes: 

  • Bait-and-switch and “negative option marketing” schemes 
  • Failure to disclose 
  • False advertising and mislabeling claims, including claims regulated by the USDA, FDA, and EPA 
  • Hidden, inflated or excessive fees 
  • Algorithmic inflation/ Inflated metrics 
  • Social media bots and deceptive online marketing 

We have the resources to investigate and file, often novel consumer class actions, sometimes in advance of Federal Trade Commission or state attorney general investigations. We deftly handle complex discovery, ensuring streamlined, efficiencies of scale, in large class actions. Given our national footprint, we have access to, and experience with, many of the top industry and economic experts across the United States. 

We have taken on industry giants including Facebook, Apple, Symantec, Lumber Liquidators, and many others in the financial, insurance, telecom, software, food and beverage, and pharmaceutical sectors. 

Our primary objective is to bring a full measure of justice to consumers and small businesses through the courts, while holding corporate wrongdoers responsible. 

HEALTHCARE FRAUD CLASS ACTIONS

We represent healthcare participants in a range of healthcare fraud-related class actions against hospitals, health maintenance organizations (HMOs), and other healthcare providers, as well as insurance companies, pharmacies, and third-party administrators involving: 

  • Billing Schemes, including Excessive, Hidden, or Inflated Fees 
  • Diagnostic Testing Facility Fraud 
  • Co-Pay & Insurance Premium Increases 
  • Delay or Denial of Care (class only) 
  • Deceptive Marketing, including “Off-label” Marketing of Non-FDA Approved Pharmaceuticals & Medical Devices 
  • False Advertising & Non-Disclosure Claims 
  • False Medical Claims & Records Management Fraud 
  • Hospice & Homecare Fraud 
  • Hospital & Health System Fraud 
  • Insurance Fraud 
  • Medicaid & Medicare-related Fraud 
  • Nursing Home & Skilled Nursing Fraud 
  • Pharmacy Schemes 
  • Telehealth Fraud 

Use the CONTACT US BOX BELOW, if you believe you have a legal claim. 

We also welcome co-counsel opportunities with other consumer protection law firms, nationwide. 

Current Cases

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TikTok Child Privacy Litigation

Villanueva, et al. v. Bytedance Inc., et al. (C.D. Cal.): Cohen Milstein is representing parents of children, who are minors, in a putative consumer protection class action who claim that TikTok collects and uses their young children’s personal information without providing direct notice to parents or gaining parents’ verifiable consent in violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (“COPPA”) and the COPPA Rule.

California AT&T Data Breach Arbitration

Cohen Milstein is pursuing arbitration on behalf of victims of the 2024 AT&T data breach in California.

MOVEit Data Breach Litigation

In re: MoveIt Customer Data Security Breach Litigation (D. Mass.) Cohen Milstein is one of five court-appointed co-lead counsel overseeing this multidistrict litigation addressing the massive May 2023 data breach involving Progress Software Corp.’s file-sharing software, MOVEit Transfer, which impacted more than 2,500 organizations, including hospitals, banks, businesses, governments, pension funds, universities, among others, and more than 67 million individuals worldwide.

Past Cases

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Khoday et al v. Symantec Corp. et al.

Khoday et al. v. Symantec Corp. et al. (D. Minn.): Cohen Milstein was lead counsel in a nationwide class action involving the marketing to consumers of a re-download service in conjunction with the sale of Norton software. In April 2016, the case settled in a $60 million all-cash deal a month before it was to go to trial – one of the most significant consumer settlements in years. Douglas McNamara was involved in all aspects of the case, from managing the litigation to overseeing a staff of contract attorneys to settlement discussions.

Prescott, et al. v. Reckitt Benckiser LLC

Prescott, et al. v. Reckitt Benckiser LLC (N.D. Cal.): Cohen Milstein served as sole Lead Counsel in this certified false advertising class action, alleging that Woolite laundry detergent “Color Renew” and “revives colors” representation is false and misleading because Woolite does not renew or revive color in clothing. On March 28, 2024, the court granted final approval of a $3.27 million settlement.

Ariza v. Luxottica Retail North America (LensCrafters)

Ariza v. Luxottica Retail North America (LensCrafters) (E.D.N.Y.): On September 27, 2024, the court granted final approval of a $39 million settlement in this certified class action. Purchasers of LensCrafters’ Accufit Digital Measurement System (Accufit) services alleged that LensCrafters used false, misleading advertising, and deceptive sales practices about Accufit being “five times more accurate” in measuring pupillary distance than traditional methods to induce customers to purchase LensCrafter’s higher-priced prescription lens products. Cohen Milstein was Lead Counsel.