Posted by Trevor Russomanno.

An Uproar Over Movies

Over the past few years, streaming service have become a prime source of entertainment for people around the world. There is so much competition in this market as each service is trying to gain more subscribers than their opponents are able to. Because of this, many people have opted to avoid going in person to movie theaters to watch new films. In an effort to regain this public outing that was liked by so many at one point in time, the company MoviePass was developed. Simply said, their service allowed users to pay a base fee of $10 per month and would be able to enjoy one movie in theaters per day for an entire month. When created in 2017, this idea seemed to be brilliant, however, things would change very quickly.

In an article posted by Denny Jacob on The Wall Street Journal, the downfall of this company is explained. When the company was created, the CEO’s J. Mitchell Lowe and Theodore Farnsworth expected it to succeed exponentially. Because of this, they devised a plan to increase the company’s stock in an effort to gain more shareholders. This, however, did not occur as the price they were charging users, became unable to sustain. This story did not stop here, though, as the two former CEOs were brought to court as charged in a securities fraud case.

In 2019, the company officially closed after multiple efforts to keep its name afloat. At this point, both men were indicted with charges regarding the idea that “…[they] knew the monthly offer wasn’t sustainable and promoted it to drive up the Helios stock price” (Jacob). Additionally, they had been charged with making false claims regarding the data analytics they would receive. This would have been another source of income for the company to cover the unsustainable overhaul they attempted to achieve. To conclude, this case can be viewed as something quite significant as many companies may do something similar to drive up their stock prices. Ultimately, though, it ends it poor outcomes for those in charge as they are faced with multiple charges and lose the short-term success of their company.

Trevor is majoring in marketing and IT management at the Stillman School of Business, Seton Hall University, Class of 2024.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/ex-moviepass-executives-are-charged-in-securities-fraud-case-11667602204

Posted by Janki Desai.

Amazon is one of the biggest suppliers in the world for many people, including internationally. With the help of Amazon, consumers can easily buy better-priced products, or so we think. Amazon was recently faced with a one-million-dollar lawsuit in the United Kingdom against their “feature offer” button, leading to customers paying more for products instead of less. This meant that their better value deals were being hidden, so the pricier options were shown instead and are being filed with the Competition Appeal Tribunal in October.

The case explains that sellers on Amazon are constantly being ripped off through the Buy Box section. The article states that Amazon uses a “secretive and self-favouring algorithm to ensure that the Buy Box nearly always features goods sold directly by Amazon itself or third-party retailers who pay hefty storage and delivery fees to Amazon.” Buy Box is a section on Amazon that leads customers to choose “Buy Now” or “Add to Basket.” According to the specialist law firm conducting the litigation, Hausfeld, the damages from this will be around one billion dollars if it succeeds.

There have been too many instances where more prominent companies have taken advantage of smaller companies and their consumers. One of the partners of Hausfeld, Lesley Hannah, explains that the design of the Buy Box does the opposite of what Amazon advertises and instead makes it harder for customers to purchase cheaper products. On the other hand, an Amazon spokesperson stated that “without merit and we’re confident that will become clear through the legal process,” expressing that Amazon is very big on supporting the 85,000 businesses in the UK. Amazon stands up and explains that their company has always been about selling with low prices and fast delivery.

The Competition and Markets Authority inserted a probe into the United Kingdom Amazon company, fearing that it “may be anti-competitive and could result in a worse deal for customers.” These types of lawsuits are scarce in the United Kingdom as they “opt-out,” meaning it falls on every individual unless opted out. The change in the new law in the UK was one of the main reasons the “opt-out” method was used in different lawsuits against Meta and Google. Amazon will continue to fight this case as many people convert to the “opt-out” process.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/10/20/amazon-faces-class-action-lawsuit-in-the-uk-over-antitrust-claims.html?&qsearchterm=business%20lawsuit

Janki is majoring in finance and marketing at the Stillman School of Business, Seton Hall University, Class of 2025.

Posted by Jessica Wasik.

Two of the three articles linked explore the case of Jenny Mitchell, who after years of using L’Oreal hair relaxers and hair straighteners, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer which was “directly and proximately caused by her regular and prolonged exposure to phthalates and other endocrine-disrupting chemicals found in defendants’ hair care products” (Krawitz).

Personal injury lawyers from Stark & Stark took on her case and stated the young 30-year-old’s feelings of having the chance to be a mother stripped away from her due to false advertisement of the products. Unfortunately, this is not the only lawsuit that L’Oreal is facing for “litigation focused on false advertising, consumer protection violations, and deceptive statements made in marketing and ESG reports,” as reports from March 2022 state many of the company’s mascaras were found with PFAS in them (Gardella).

L’Oreal being amongst the biggest cosmetics companies, owning not only their L’Oreal products, but also many companies such as Khiels, Lancome, Yves Saint Laurent, Ralph Lauren, Maison Margiela, Garnier, and many others, has presented itself an issue a multitude of times. From using harmful chemicals to testing on animals and refusing to make statements on these issues, L’Oreal is successfully able to slide these issues under the rug. Although it should be, in lack of better words, common sense, that a company out of decency and care for their customers warns them about their use of harmful chemicals and their side effects, it is often not practiced by big companies such as L’Oreal. Due to this misinformation, or lack of information, many consumers have found ways to explore these side effects themselves – by either researching the formulas of their favorite products, or by trusting phone applications such as Yuka which allow a person to scan the barcodes of products for a description of the chemicals and a rating of how “clean” these products are based on their formulas. Although both techniques have flaws – both from people researching and not understanding the different chemical names and chemical compositions certain chemicals may have, and Yuka not accurately defining the concentrations of the ingredients – they are steps in the right direction.

Although L’Oreal should be held accountable and pay for the damages of Mitchell’s treatments, are there legal advancements that will be made (or can be made) to prevent big companies from mass producing harmful products, or is it not regulated enough? The PFAS discussed earlier were not researched earlier due to not being on the ingredient list. This disqualifies the argument that the consumer is held responsible for researching the ingredients of their cosmetics, considering even a trained researcher would have trouble inferring the presence of PFAS unless otherwise looking for them.

Jessica is a chemistry major at Seton Hall University, Class of 2024.

L’Oreal Hair Straightening Products Linked with Uterine Cancer (natlawreview.com)

Woman Sues L’Oreal Over Claim Hair Straightener Spurred Uterine Cancer (usnews.com)

L’Oreal PFAS Lawsuit ESG Marketing (natlawreview.com)

Posted by Paola Castro.

Inflation has drastically hit the American economy, even many of its customs are being changed, such as the celebration of Thanksgiving. Before, the celebration of Thanksgiving was a sacred day, a day to share with the family and have time with loved ones, even, as I understand it, it was a day that nobody worked or studied, but due to inflation, the high costs It is no longer a priority.
The situation has changed so much that instead of a dinner with turkey, pumpkin, expensive wines, puree and others, the idea of ordering pizza has come to be contemplated and all this due at the high cost of food, for example in this article it shows Since eggs have risen in price by 30.5%, coffee by 15.7%, and cereal by 16.2%, these are basic foods, not to mention how the prices of really expensive foods have risen.
In my opinion this was my favorite topic, because it is something that really affects us all today, not only the price of food has increased but also gas, clothes, everything is at high prices, etc., this aside no It only causes families to cancel their traditions, but due to the high prices, people are choosing to work those holidays to earn a little more or even have several jobs.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/pizza-thanksgiving-might-be-dinner-option-inflation

Paola is a business student at the Stillman School of Business, Seton Hall University.

Posted by Anastasia Kinsella.

This article illustrates a lawsuit between the U.S Chamber of Commerce and a Connecticut state law. The law that Connecticut had in place “bans business owners from discussing relevant workplace issues with their employees”. The U.S Chamber of Commerce argues that the law “limits employer free speech, is preempted by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and violates the First Amendment”. Glenn Spencer, senior vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Employment Policy Division, stated that there was a similar issue in California years ago, where employers were having their free speech limited and that case was won in favor of the employers because the U.S Chamber will “continue to defend an employer’s right to share opinions with employees so that employees can make informed decisions. And we’ll continue to stand up for small businesses”.

This law was put into place July 1, 2022, and it restricted talk of political matters between employers and employees. Connecticut defined political matters being “legislative or regulatory proposals and the decision to join a labor organization” which means topics like laws, regulations, taxes, or public transportation, and how they affect a company could not be discussed. The U.S Chamber argued that “Connecticut’s law suppresses important communications and hinders the ability of workers to make informed decisions about critical issues impacting the workplace”.  In particular, this restrictive law would harm small businesses more than large businesses and would make owning a business more difficult.

Freedom of Speech is one of the most important amendments in the constitution and protecting it is crucial to the betterment of society. The reality is that political matters affect all aspects of people’s lives, especially businesses. Employers should be able to freely talk about matters that affects the company because having open communications in a workplace is vital to a company’s success. No law should be placed if it limits people’s speech and that’s why the U.S Chamber sued Connecticut.

Anastasia is a marketing major at the Stillman School of Business, Seton Hall University, Class of 2025.

https://www.uschamber.com/employment-law/u-s-chamber-sues-connecticut-over-law-limiting-employer-free-speech

Posted by Austin Chinsky.

The article discusses how “CVS Health Corp, Walgreens Boots Alliance and Walmart agreed to pay $13.8 billion to resolve suits filed” according to two people familiar with the negotiations. It is broken down in that CVS pays $5 billion over 10 years, Walgreens $5.7 over 15, and Walmart paying $3.1 billion up front. In a historic sense, this is the first nationwide deal with retail pharmacy companies and more smaller lawsuits are expected to come.

Their reasoning is that the makers of these drugs downplayed the risks of their pain medicines, they also covered up the side effects as well as ignoring red flags which indicated prescriptions were being diverted into illegal trafficking. Their argument is citing the death toll, as well as cost on the health services and law enforcement was something the companies are responsible for.

During Covid-19, overdoses surged tremendously. The economic toll of the crisis in 2020 was $1.5 trillion. Also on the distributor level settlements were reported for $21 billion from the three largest, $5 billion from Johnson & Johnson, $4.35 billion from Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, $2.37 billion from AbbVie and $450 million from Endo International. I believe this lawsuit is justified as the drugmakers purposely hid dangerous information for the public so they are responsible for the fallout damage.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/cvs-walmart-walgreens-agree-pay-13-8-b-settlement-report

Austin is a business major at the Stillman School of Business, Seton Hall University, Class of 2025.

Posted by Arabella Moen.

This article from the American Bar Association writes about the considerations that emerging companies need to make when raising capital in a slowing economy. After the record levels of investment in 2021, emerging companies, particularly in the technology sector, have “enjoyed increased valuations driven by greater competition among investors”. With this responsibility, they have been able to gain more access to capital. Yet with market conditions changing in 2022 due to higher interest rates and a tightening of the credit markets, investors are altering their investment strategies. In light of these changes, emerging companies will find that raising capital and securing financing is difficult, so must consider scaling back spending to reduce their “burn rate”, and perhaps their eventual downfall.

As with all startups and emerging companies, there will always be an endless array of issues to be aware of. In terms of financing, one important factor to consider is liquidation preferences, in which holders of preferred shares may receive payments before any amounts are actually paid to the common shareholders, who are typically the founders. In the event that the investor has negotiated a liquidation preference where they receive a multiple of the original purchase price, the investor may walk away with more than they have invested. What the emerging company needs to consider is that the founders themselves, and other common shareholders, may end up with little or no payments. They should look to limit an investor’s liquidation preference where possible. For example, include “a cap on the total amount the investor can receive in the event of a Deemed Liquidation Event.” Through making a compromise that meets both parties’ interests, everybody will be able to benefit.

Another consideration for emerging companies is cumulative dividends. This is something that most people presumably know about, especially those starting up their own business or looking to invest in a company. However, it is not that simple. Dividends tend to be non-cumulative, (paid only as declared by the company’s board of directors) but there are some instances where the investor may deem the investment to be risky, so can insist on cumulative dividends. This is when the dividends increase at a specified rate, “regardless of whether or not the company actually declares dividends on those shares”. They also carry a right to receive those dividends in priority over any other shares. For the emerging company it is vital to carefully consider the impact any cumulative dividends have on future cash flows, along with their effect on distributions in the event of liquidation. Cash burn is a common mistake of emerging companies, so making considerations for cumulative dividends early on will enable them to survive with prosperity in the long run.

These two huge factors are regularly overlooked by startups. With interest rates rising and the possibility that a recession is approaching, emerging companies may have to make tough decisions when raising capital. In addition, they must ensure they understand the terms of any financing documents they agree that will help protect the interests of all stakeholders in the future. After all, emerging companies do not want to be known as ’emerging’ in the long run, they want to be known as a stable, growing, and profitable business that everybody wants to invest in.

https://www.americanbar.org/groups/business_law/publications/blt/2022/10/down-rounds/

Arabella is majoring in finance and technology at the Stillman School of Business, Seton Hall University, Class of 2025.

Posted by Oliwia Kempinski.

“Cryptocurrency is far more than just a financial innovation – it’s a social, cultural and technological form of progress.” (Cointelegraph) Now, that is just crazy to me. I am part of a shifting generation, one could say at the brink of a fourth industrial revolution. And one of its wonders is cryptocurrency.

Can we talk about this concept for a second? Currency that came out of nowhere, making people rich (or poor). Cryptographic algorithms creating these so-called digital assets. Blockchain technologies regulating these fascinating cash flows. Its effect on the economy surpasses national boundaries and enables transactions completely free from intervention of third parties, say banks. It is far more accessible to the average person. Especially, in our current time, with inflation at 8.5%, it is interesting how crypto plays into the economy. There are two types of investors. The first considers crypto an “investment vehicle as a haven against inflation.” They re-invest and re-invest. The other type prefers to secure themselves with “stablecoins,” if one considers it an alternative to failing monetary policy. On the other hand, during a recession, cryptocurrency, too, is having a hard time. Some call it “crypto winter.” Risk-aversion strategies and raised interest rates are generally lowering crypto investment demand.

Cybercurrency encourages, surprise, cyber criminals. However, not as much as the overall assumption. Ever since legitimate crypto usage increased, cyber criminalism started to decrease. 2021, mere 0.15% of crypto transactions were illicit. But crypto currency’s biggest disadvantage is probably volatility. Many currencies can lose their value in the blink of an eye. One must be aware, that “the value of cryptocurrencies is not guaranteed because of the lack of commerical or central bank involvement,” among other things. Apart from the central bank digital currency (CBDC), of course. Invest at your own risk!

Of course, there are ways of “reading” the currencies. My father is very good at it. He has set rules when investing. He is always informed. The currencies he owns and trades with, he knows absolutely everything about. He knows what happens in the economy. He follows the value of the currency daily. He never sells at the peak and never buys at the low. He leaves himself margin for error. He puts calculated risk over greed. And he is always aware he may incur loss. Despite the best of calculations, there is no assurance of profit.

Oliwia is a Mathematical Finance major at the Stillman School of Business, Seton Hall University, Class of 2024.

“What is the economic impact of cryptocurrencies?” by Alexandra Overgaag: https://cointelegraph.com/explained/what-is-the-economic-impact-of-cryptocurrencies

Posted by Zaina Murad.

Elon Musk is the CEO of the company Tesla Motors and had previously made a bid statement on purchasing Twitter. However, soon after he rescinded his statement and stated that he was not given crucial information regarding the nature of the company. Musk stated that he wanted to terminate the deal due to being misreported the amount of spam and fake accounts on the social media platform. The CEO of Tesla had collected testimony from Twitter chief executive Parag Agrawal and the former head of security at Twitter, Peiter Zatko. Twitter, as a result, filed a suit against Musk by stating that Musk did not have proper evidence to terminate his bid.

An article published by Washington Post states that weeks before the trial, Musk suddenly became very willing to close the deal at its original price of $54.20 a share. According to legal experts, this is likely due to Musk realizing he was not in a great position to go into the trial and realized he would likely lose due to the depositions that were collected. In the article, Dave Ives who is an analyst at Wedbush Securities wrote, “This $44 billion deal was going to be completed one way or another.” This implies that Musk would have had to go through with the deal through legal proceedings or through going back to his original bid with the company. Twitter has not only dealt with problems regarding this deal in the past year but had also struggled with a stock decline and the loss of many senior executives and rank-and-file workers. Musk’s sudden decision to reinstitute this offer can prove to be a turning point for Twitter’s success.

Due to Musk’s offer, Tesla’s stocks have dropped which is detrimental to Musk’s personal wealth. Washington Post stated, “He had planned to finance the deal through a combination of loans and a $33 billion equity commitment tied to his own wealth, which would draw on investors.” Hence, the deal would be a large deal that Musk would be taking. Interestingly enough, Musk had also sold close to $7 billion of Tesla stock after the deal was going to court and before he had reinstituted his bid. His motives for doing so are unclear.

Overall, Musk’s ownership of the company would come with large changes to the social media platform. The platform would likely have no restrictions on the freedom of speech and unblock the former President of the United States from using the social media platform.

Zaina is a finance major at the Stillman School of Business, Seton Hall University, Class of 2024.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/10/04/elon-musk-twitter-deal/

Posted by Samantha Goldfarb.

The article The 2022 Midterm Congressional Elections and Their Impact on Business Lawyers, discusses the increasing polarization of Congress and how this idea effects the jobs of  business lawyers. One event in particular that has fueled this partisan nature in recent times is the capital breach of Jan. 6th (Anderson). Most people immediately think about how events like this will alter the nature of our country, yet do not think about how events like this will specifically influence the way business’s function. With the Midterm Elections, attention is being brought to the fact that there is a strong possibility that the chambers of Congress will shift. This forces business lawyers to think about how their employment opportunities will adapt to this. “Business lawyers will have to adjust their expectations and ‘asks’ accordingly depending upon their clients’ and/or company’s interests, which may or may not be in vogue under a new regime” (Anderson). The important thing for them to keep in mind is how they will position themselves with people in control.
Since the Democratic party only holds a slight majority, Anderson argues that the midterms will be sure to stir up alterations in Congress. The vice president is currently able to break the deadlocked tie in Congress. One third of the Senate will be up for election this term and all of the House will be up for election. The uneasiness of the upcoming election creates concern for businesses because if Congress switches hands, guidelines and practices of businesses could be unaligned with the new party that emerges to power. Companies will have to deal with the politics that are to come. The Dobbs decision is a prime example of current legislation that could cause tension for businesses. “For example, we have seen dozens of companies offer to pay for the travel expenses of employees, their spouses, and their partners to receive reproductive healthcare access if they live in states that have tightly restricted such access in the wake of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization” (Anderson). Depending on which political party you are associated with, this could either be a major advantage for businesses or a major disadvantage. How will businesses change their policies regarding this issue if Congress changes hands?
In terms of abortion, it is hard for give and takes to occur because Congress is in such gridlock over this issue. However, there is still hope that negotiation can occur and the area of business law will be impacted. The article stresses that since this bureaucratic environment is always developing, business lawyers need to keep up with these policy alterations. This is the best way for them to accurately direct their clientele in the right direction. I think that this article has a lot of interesting points that I did not previously think about if Congress changes hands.

Samantha is a political science major at Seton Hall University, Class of 2023.

https://businesslawtoday.org/2022/09/2022-midterm-congressional-elections-impact-on-business-lawyers/
Anderson, Caitlin A. “The 2022 Midterm Congressional Elections and Their Impact on Business Lawyers.” Business Law Today from ABA, Business Law Today, 21 Sept. 2022, https://businesslawtoday.org/2022/09/2022-midterm-congressional-elections-impact-on-business-lawyers/.