On October 11, 2023, President Biden, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan, and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Rohit Chopra announced the latest developments in the government’s efforts to tackle junk fees. Junk fees are hidden, surprise fees imposed on customers without clear disclosure.[1] The CFPB and FTC have taken several measures to crack down on junk fees since early 2022, including:

  • On January 26, 2022, the CFPB issued a request for information regarding fees that consumers believed to be covered by a baseline price, unexpected fees, and fees that seemed too high or unclear.[2]
  • On March 23, 2023, the FTC proposed a “click to cancel” provision requiring sellers to make it easier for consumers to cancel their recurring subscriptions and memberships.[3]
  • On June 22, 2022, the CFPB issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking to address excessive credit-card late fees. [4] On February 1, 2023, the CPFB issued a proposed rule limiting and capping late fees.[5]
  • On June 29, 2022, the CFPB issued an advisory opinion affirming that “pay-to-pay” fees that are not authorized by the original loan violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). “Pay-to-pay” fees are those that are imposed on consumers who want to make a payment in a particular way.[6]
  • On July 23, 2022, the FTC proposed a rule to ban junk fees and bait-and-switch tactics for car buyers.[7]
  • On October 20, 2022, the FTC published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking to crack down on junk fees, seeking comments on unnecessary charges, unavoidable charges, and surprise charges.[8]
  • On October 26, 2022, the CFPB issued guidance stating that imposing surprise bounced-check or overdraft fees are likely to be unfair and unlawful.[9]
  • On October 11, 2023, the CFPB published a Supervisory Highlights special edition covering junk fees in the areas of bank accounts, auto-loan servicing, and remittances that were identified during CFPB examinations between February and August 2023. The CFPB claims to have recovered and is refunding $140 million back to impacted customers.[10]

Earlier this week, the CFPB released an advisory opinion on fees related to consumers requesting information on products and services, and the FTC proposed a new rule banning hidden fees and bogus fees.

In response to a growing number of cyberattacks in the healthcare and life sciences industries, on Sept. 27, 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released updated guidance regarding cybersecurity safety requirements for medical devices. This guidance outlines the FDA’s recommendations on improving the cybersecurity safety and effectiveness of medical devices in the premarket…

The interview below is part of a McGuireWoods series featuring interviews with C-suite leadership of private equity-backed portfolio companies. To recommend a leader for a future interview, email Holly Buckley at hbuckley@mcguirewoods.com or Tim Fry at tfry@mcguirewoods.com.

Q: Can you tell us about Ambulatory Management Solutions (AMS)?

Scott Mayer (SM): AMS is an outpatient…

In the U.S. Department of Justice’s continuing efforts to incentivize voluntary disclosure of corporate misconduct, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced the Criminal Division’s latest corporate self-disclosure policy this week, aimed at mergers and acquisitions specifically (remarks Here).  Pursuant to DOJ’s new Mergers and Acquisitions Safe Harbor Policy (the “Policy”), acquiring companies that promptly and voluntarily disclose criminal conduct of the company to be acquired, and that cooperate and engage in remediation, will receive the presumption of a declination.  The policy could represent a sea change in how companies evaluate the risk of self-reporting wrongdoing by acquisition targets that comes to light during and after the M&A due diligence process. 

Gurnet Point Capital and Novo Holdings have completed their acquisition of Paratek Pharmaceuticals in a deal valued at $462 million, according to a news release.

Paratek, founded in 1996 and based in Boston, is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of therapies for life-threatening diseases and other public health…

During the week of September 11, 2023, the California Legislature passed a series of bills known collectively as the “California Climate Accountability Package” (“CCAP”).  The CCAP is comprised of three bills: S.B. 252 (applicable only to two California state pension funds, and not discussed further herein), S.B. 253 (the “Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act” of “CCDA”) and S.B. 261 (the “Climate-Related Financial Risk Act” or “CFRA”).  If Governor Newsom follows through on his stated intention to sign the entire CCAP into law, and if the package survives the inevitable legal challenges that are sure to come, these new disclosure laws could prove to be highly disruptive to companies across the United States—many of which are likely unaware it impacts them.

On September 14, 2023, Daniel W. Glad — Director of the Procurement Collusion Strike Force (“Strike Force”) for the Department of Justice’s (“DOJ”) Antitrust Division — gave remarks as the keynote speaker for the Virginia Bar Association’s Annual White-Collar Fall Forum, emphasizing a renewed commitment to pursuing criminal investigations in the federal procurement arena.  DOJ announced the creation of the Strike Force in November 2019 as an interagency partnership aimed at deterring and eliminating anticompetitive collusion, waste, and abuse of the government procurement process.  Mr. Glad highlighted in detail the volume of government spending in Virginia last year, including amounts in excess of $4 billion for federally funded government contracts in the next several years.   The Strike Force is tracking those investments across the country and soliciting leads for investigations as part of its mission “to root out [an] increased risk of anticompetitive collusion.”