New Jersey is the only state that imposes statutory damages for supposedly deceptive consumer notices. So the good news for class action defendants is that if they can stamp out claims based on online terms of service in New Jersey, they’re off the hook nationwide. The terms of service litigation against online retailers will soon face its first big test, in a class action against TTI Floor, which does business as Hoover.com. Hoover’s lawyers at McCarter & English have moved to dismiss the class action, arguing that the name plaintiff (who is also name plaintiff in the just-filed case against Staples) does not qualify as an “aggrieved consumer” and, more fundamentally, that the website’s terms of services do not constitute a consumer contract because they relate only to use of the website, not to product purchases, which are governed by separate warranties.”
7.5.2016