* Nov 15…

Attorney General Kwame Raoul today announced he has reached a settlement with Walmart to resolve allegations that the company contributed to the opioid addiction crisis by failing to appropriately oversee the dispensing of opioids at its stores.

The settlement provides more than $3 billion nationally and requires significant improvements to how Walmart’s pharmacies handle opioids. Seventeen state attorneys general on the executive committee, attorneys representing local governments and Walmart have agreed to this settlement, which has been sent to other states for review and approval. The settlement is effective upon approval by 43 states and a population representing 85% of local government units.

* Nov 15…

Attorney General Kwame Raoul led a bipartisan coalition of 23 attorneys general filing an amicus brief in support of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) efforts to combat alleged illegal debt collection practices in the student loan industry.

The CFPB filed a lawsuit alleging that 15 trusts purchased student loan debt and then engaged in illegal debt collection practices in an attempt to collect on that debt. The CFPB’s complaint describes how collections agencies hired by the trusts submitted false and misleading affidavits and testimony in support of nearly 100,000 debt collection actions brought by the trusts. Additionally, the trusts are alleged to have filed hundreds of lawsuits against consumers for debt that was time-barred or missing critical supporting documentation. Raoul and the coalition argue that the trusts should be held liable for these misdeeds under the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010. […]

Raoul’s office has discharged more than $14 million in fraudulent private student loans since 2019. Attorney General Raoul’s office also worked to pass a “Know Before You Owe” law, which aims to alert borrowers of their remaining federal student loan eligibility to help them steer clear of predatory private loans like those provided by Navient.

* Nov 14…

Attorney General Kwame Raoul today announced a more than $391 million bipartisan national settlement with Google after an investigation by Raoul and a coalition of attorneys general revealed Google misled consumers about its location tracking practices. Illinois will receive more than $19.5 million under the settlement. […]

Raoul and a coalition of 38 attorneys general opened an investigation into Google following a 2018 Associated Press article that revealed Google recorded movements “even when you explicitly tell it not to.” The article focused on two Google account settings: Location History and Web & App Activity. According to the article, the Location History default setting is “off” unless a user turns on the setting. However, Web & App Activity, a separate account setting, is automatically turned on when users set up a Google account, which includes all Android phone users. […]

Under the settlement, Google has agreed to a series of provisions designed to give consumers more transparency into Google’s practices, including showing additional information whenever users turn an account setting on or off; making key information about location tracking unavoidable for users (i.e., not hidden); and creating an enhanced “Location Technologies” webpage where users can get detailed information about the type(s) of location data Google collects and how it’s used.

The settlement also puts limits on Google’s use and storage of certain types of location information and requires Google account controls to be more user-friendly.

* Nov 14…

Attorney General Kwame Raoul joined 13 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief challenging an Indiana statute that bans transgender female students from participating in girls’ school sports. The brief is filed in A.M. v. Indianapolis Public Schools, which arose after a 10-year-old student was barred from playing on her school’s girls’ softball team after the law was passed even though the student had been a part of the team with no issue in the past.

The brief argues that the court should affirm the preliminary injunction entered by the lower court, which allowed the Indiana student to continue participating on her team during the ongoing litigation. The court made its ruling on the basis that the Indiana statute, which banned her from the team, likely violates Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as it denies transgender girls access to the same athletic opportunities that other girls and boys have.

* Nov 11…

Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced national settlements with Experian relating to data breaches in 2010 and 2015 that compromised the personal information of millions of consumers nationwide, including hundreds of thousands in Illinois. Raoul and the coalition also obtained a separate settlement with T-Mobile in connection with the 2015 Experian breach, which impacted more than 15 million individuals who submitted credit applications with the telecommunications company.

Illinois was one of the states to lead an investigation into Experian’s 2015 data breach, which impacted more than 735,000 Illinois residents. Under the settlements Raoul announced, Experian and T-Mobile have agreed to improve their data security practices and pay states more than $16 million. Additionally, Illinois will receive a total of more than $1.2 million. […]

Raoul and the coalition obtained two separate settlements from Experian and T-Mobile in connection with the 2015 data breach. Under a $12.67 million national settlement, Experian has agreed to strengthen its due diligence and data security practices going forward, including by implementing a comprehensive information security program. Experian will also enact data minimization and disposal requirements, including specific efforts aimed at reducing the use of Social Security numbers as identifiers; and specific security requirements, including the use of intrusion detection, firewalls and risk assessments. Illinois will receive $1.04 million. The settlement also requires Experian to offer affected consumers five years of free credit monitoring services as well as two free copies of their credit reports annually during the timeframe. Affected consumers who were members of the 2019 class action settlement are also eligible to enroll in extended credit monitoring services. More information on eligibility can be found online.

Raoul and the coalition also obtained a $2.43 million settlement with T-Mobile. Under the settlement, T-Mobile has agreed to detailed vendor management provisions designed to strengthen its vendor oversight going forward. Illinois will receive around $204,000. The settlement does not involve an unrelated, massive data breach T-Mobile announced in August 2021, which is still under investigation by Attorney General Raoul and a multistate coalition of attorneys general.

* Nov 10…

Attorney General Kwame Raoul led a bipartisan coalition of 21 attorneys general filing an amicus brief challenging “no-poach” provisions — which restrict the rights of workers to move from one franchise to another in the same restaurant chain — used by McDonald’s in its franchise agreements.

The workers in this case contend that, until 2017, McDonald’s required all McDonald’s franchisees to sign agreements that contained a provision prohibiting them from hiring workers who worked for any McDonald’s restaurant currently or in the prior six months. Raoul and the collation argue that such agreements violate federal antitrust laws and interfere with workers’ ability to seek better employment opportunities, wages and benefits.

“No-poach agreements allow employers to take advantage of workers by trapping them in low-paying jobs and limiting their ability to seek better employment opportunities,” Raoul said. “I am committed to holding companies accountable when they engage in unlawful employment practices that prevent employees from seeking opportunities that allow them to better support themselves and provide for their families.”