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Updated: Congress Passes Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016
Practical Law Legal Update w-004-8675 (Approx. 3 pages)
Updated: Congress Passes Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016
by Practical Law Commercial Transactions
| Law stated as of 16 Dec 2016 • USA (National/Federal) |
Congress recently passed the Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016 to protect against aggressive tactics used by businesses to deter negative online reviews. President Obama signed this legislation on December 14, 2016.
This resource was updated on December 16, 2016 to reflect President Obama's signing this legislation into law.
On November 28, 2016, Congress passed the Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016, which aims to protect authors of negative online reviews against aggressive tactics used by businesses. The Act prohibits businesses from using standardized contract clauses to deter customers from posting negative reviews and voids clauses in form contracts that:
- Prohibit or restrict an individual from providing an online review.
- Impose a penalty or fee against an individual for submitting an online review.
The Act further prohibits and voids contract clauses that claim ownership in the underlying intellectual property used in a review or to give feedback. Instead, the Act extends a limited license to the reviewer so that the content can be displayed in the review.
Once enacted, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will issue best practices for compliance within 60 days.
President Obama signed this act into law on December 14, 2016.
For more information on the FTC, see Practice Note, FTC Consumer Protection Investigations and Enforcement.