Consumer Law

Consumer Law

Consumer law encompasses several areas of law. Consumer law has to do with protecting buyers from unfair selling tactics. Most consumer protection laws have been passed somewhat recently, and as the government takes more of an active role in protecting consumers, the number of regulations will likely increase.

Consumer protection laws protect customers from fraud and other deceptive practices. Consumers are individuals, not businesses, who buy or lease goods for personal use. Each state has consumer protection laws, and there are several federal laws as well.

There are state attorneys who enforce state consumer laws, although an individual may use “private attorneys general statutes” to enforce the law on behalf of the state (the state can decide to take it over). A consumer can also bear the costs of a lawsuit personally. The FTC, DOJ, and CPSC enforce federal consumer law. Consumers should report violations of consumer protection statutes to the relevant state or federal agency.

According to the National Association of Consumer Advocates, the main areas that consumer lawyers handle are automobiles, bankruptcy, class actions, credit reporting, debt collection, mortgage, real estate, and housing, small-dollar loans, student loans, telemarketing and recorded calls, and other similar issues (NACA).

For information about careers with the FTC, visit this page. To see current openings, visit this page.

If you think you may be interested in consumer law, consider the FTC’s summer law clerk program.

The FTC has eight divisions:

• Division of Privacy and Identity Protection
• Division of Advertising Practices
• Division of Consumer & Business Education
• Division of Enforcement
• Division of Marketing Practices
• Division of Consumer Response & Operations
• Division of Financial Practices
• Division of Litigation Technology & Analysis

If you prefer to work for the other side and defend businesses from FTC actions, there are law firms that specialize in FTC defense.

Here are some statistics about the pay at the FTC in 2017 (FederalPay.org):

• The FTC had 1,135 employees
• The average salary was $131,717.28
• The most common occupation was general attorney (633)
• The top ten percent of employees at the FTC earn 13% of the total income