Law & Regulation

The Paris Criminal Court has found pharmaceutical giant Laboratoires Servier guilty of manslaughter for marketing benfluorex, an appetite suppressant, for years after the company discovered that the drug could cause major damage to the heart and lungs, and even kill users. Read More

Over 100 consumer groups are calling on the U.S. Congress to ignore demands from business lobby groups - like the National Association of Manufacturers, the National Federation of Independent Business, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce - to enact laws guaranteeing corporations blanket immunity from coronavirus pandemic lawsuits. Proposals for such a law have been making the rounds for over a month. Read More

Amazon’s relentless expansion around the world has met with serious headwinds in India and in Europe where the company’s aggressive online sales practices are being met with court challenges and government investigations. Read More

The companies that designed, manufactured, and installed cladding - a material used to wrap a building under construction - that caught fire at Grenfell Tower in London in June 2017, killing 72 people, have asked a UK public inquiry to award them immunity from prosecution, before they provide evidence. Read More

Wells Fargo bank, based in San Francisco, California, has agreed to pay the Navajo Nation $6.5 million for its alleged predatory business tactics. The bank was accused of targeting vulnerable members of the Navajo community, including elderly people who did not speak fluent English, with predatory banking practices. The Navajo Nation is the largest government recognized Native American indigenous community with over 350,000 members and a territory that encompasses lands in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. It has an elected government and its own judicial system. Read More

Hundreds of climate activists broke through a police line at RWE’s Garzweiler lignite coal mine in North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany, demanding government take action against climate change. The protesters successfully halted operations for 45 hours by occupying the mine and chaining themselves to train tracks. Read More

The algorithms that make social media addictive have become powerful mechanisms for drug dealers to peddle prescription-only medicines and banned substances. One of the more popular tools for pushers is Instagram where dealers market drugs like Adderall, Oxycontin and Xanax, used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, pain and anxiety respectively. Read More

New York city is the latest U.S. city to bring a lawsuit against Purdue Pharmaceutical and other companies involved in manufacturing and distributing prescription painkillers, known as opioids. Some 250 such lawsuits have been filed alleging that deceptive industry marketing practices have caused opioid overdose deaths to skyrocket. Read More

Uber, the global taxi technology company, has been using a clandestine tool named "Ripley" to thwart government oversight of the ride-sharing company by restricting access to company computers. The tool is named after Ellen Ripley, the heroine of Alien, the science fiction movie series. Read More

Takata, the Japanese auto parts maker, will pay a $1 billion fine to the U.S. government after pleading guilty to hiding information about the likelihood that the company’s car air bags could accidentally explode. Takata air bags have been linked to at least 17 deaths around the world. Read More