Subchapter 1 - CONSUMER PROTECTION LAW

Section 20-700

Section 20-700

  §  20-700 Unfair trade practices prohibited. No person shall engage in
any deceptive or unconscionable  trade  practice  in  the  sale,  lease,
rental  or  loan  or in the offering for sale, lease, rental, or loan of
any consumer goods or services, or in the collection of consumer debts.

Section 20-701

Section 20-701

  §  20-701 Definitions. a. Deceptive trade practice. Any false, falsely
disparaging, or misleading oral or written statement, visual description
or other representation of any kind made in connection  with  the  sale,
lease,  rental  or  loan  or  in  connection with the offering for sale,
lease, rental, or  loan  of  consumer  goods  or  services,  or  in  the
extension  of  consumer  credit  or in the collection of consumer debts,
which has the capacity, tendency or effect of  deceiving  or  misleading
consumers. Deceptive trade practices include but are not limited to: (1)
representations  that  goods  or  services  have  sponsorship, approval,
accessories, characteristics, ingredients, uses, benefits, or quantities
that they do not have; the supplier has a sponsorship, approval, status,
affiliation, or connection that he or  she  does  not  have;  goods  are
original  or  new  if  they  are  deteriorated,  altered, reconditioned,
reclaimed, or secondhand; or, goods or  services  are  of  a  particular
standard,  quality,  grade,  style or model, if they are of another; (2)
the use,  in  any  oral  or  written  representation,  of  exaggeration,
innuendo  or  ambiguity  as  to  a  material  fact or failure to state a
material fact if such use deceives or tends to deceive; (3)  disparaging
the  goods,  services,  or  business  of  another by false or misleading
representations of material facts; (4) offering goods or  services  with
intent  not to sell them as offered; (5) offering goods or services with
intent not to supply reasonable expectable  public  demand,  unless  the
offer  discloses  to  limitation  of  quantity;  and (6) making false or
misleading representations of fact concerning the reasons for, existence
of, or amounts of price reductions, or price in comparison to prices  of
competitors  or  one's  own  price at a past or future time; (7) stating
that a  consumer  transaction  involves  consumer  rights,  remedies  or
obligations  that  it  does  not  involve;  (8)  stating  that services,
replacements or repairs are needed if they  are  not;  and  (9)  falsely
stating the reasons for offering or supplying goods or services at scale
discount prices.
  b.  Unconscionable  trade  practice. Any act or practice in connection
with the sale, lease, rental or loan or in connection with the  offering
for sale, lease, rental or loan of any consumer goods or services, or in
the extension of consumer credit, or in the collection of consumer debts
which  unfairly  takes  advantage  of  the  lack  of knowledge, ability,
experience or capacity of a consumer; or results in  a  gross  disparity
between  the  value  received  by  a consumer and the price paid, to the
consumer's detriment; provided that no act or practice shall  be  deemed
unconscionable  under this subchapter unless declared unconscionable and
described with reasonable particularity in a local law, or in a rule  or
regulation  promulgated  by the commissioner. In promulgating such rules
and regulations the commissioner shall consider among other factors: (1)
knowledge by merchants engaging in the act or practice of the  inability
of  consumers to receive properly anticipated benefits from the goods or
services involved; (2) gross disparity between the  price  of  goods  or
services and their value measured by the price at which similar goods or
services  are readily obtained by other consumers; (3) the fact that the
acts or  practices  may  enable  merchants  to  take  advantage  of  the
inability  of  consumers reasonably to protect their interests by reason
of physical or mental infirmities, illiteracy or inability to understand
the language of the  agreement,  ignorance  or  lack  of  education,  or
similar  factors;  (4)  the  degree  to  which  terms of the transaction
require consumers to waive legal rights; (5) the degree to  which  terms
of  the  transaction  require  consumers to jeopardize money or property
beyond the money or property immediately at issue  in  the  transaction;
and  (6)  definitions  of  unconscionability  in  statutes, regulations,

rulings and decisions of legislative, or judicial bodies in  this  state
or elsewhere.
  c.  Consumer  goods,  services,  credit  and debts. As used in section
20-700 of this subchapter and subdivisions a  and  b  of  this  section,
goods,  services,  credit  and  debts  which are primarily for personal,
household or family purposes.
  d. Consumer. A purchaser or lessee or prospective purchaser or  lessee
of  the  consumer  goods  or  services  or  consumer credit, including a
co-obligor or surety.
  e. Merchant. A seller, lessor, or creditor or  any  other  person  who
makes  available  either  directly  or  indirectly,  goods,  services or
credit,  to   consumers.   "Merchant"   shall   include   manufacturers,
wholesalers  and  others  who  are  responsible  for any act or practice
prohibited by this subchapter.

Section 20-702

Section 20-702

  §  20-702  Regulations.  The  commissioner  may  adopt  such rules and
regulations as may be necessary  to  effectuate  the  purposes  of  this
subchapter,   including   regulations  defining  specific  deceptive  or
unconscionable  trade  practices.  Such  rules   and   regulations   may
supplement but shall not be inconsistent with the rules, regulations and
decisions  of  the  federal  trade  commission and the federal courts in
interpreting the provisions of section five (a) (1), the  federal  trade
commission  act  15  U.S.C.  §45 (a) (1), or the decisions of the courts
interpreting section three hundred fifty of the general business law and
section 2-302 of the uniform commercial code.

Section 20-703

Section 20-703

  §  20-703  Enforcement.  a.  The  violation  of  any provision of this
subchapter or of any rule or regulation promulgated thereunder, shall be
punishable upon proof thereof, by the payment of a civil penalty in  the
sum of fifty dollars to three hundred and fifty dollars, to be recovered
in a civil action.
  b. The knowing violation of any provision of this subchapter or of any
rule  or  regulation  promulgated  thereunder,  shall be punishable upon
conviction thereof, by the payment of a civil penalty in the sum of five
hundred dollars, or as a violation for which a fine in the sum  of  five
hundred dollars shall be imposed, or both.
  c.  Upon  a  finding  by  the  commissioner  of  repeated, multiple or
persistent violation of any provision of this subchapter or of any  rule
or   regulation   promulgated   thereunder,  the  city  may,  except  as
hereinafter provided,  bring  an  action  to  compel  the  defendant  or
defendants  in such action to pay in court all monies, property or other
things, or proceeds thereof, received as a result of such violations; to
direct that the  amount  of  money  or  the  property  or  other  things
recovered  be  paid  into an account established pursuant to section two
thousand six hundred one of the civil practice law and rules from  which
shall  be  paid  over  to any and all persons who purchased the goods or
services during the period of violation such sum as was paid by them  in
a transaction involving the prohibited acts or practices, plus any costs
incurred  by  such  claimants  in  making and pursuing their complaints;
provided that if such claims exceed the sum recovered into the  account,
the awards to consumers shall be prorated according to the value of each
claim proved; to direct the defendant or defendants, upon conviction, to
pay  to  the  city the costs, and disbursements of the action and pay to
the city for the use of  the  commissioner  the  costs  of  his  or  her
investigation  leading  to  the  judgment;  or  if  not  recovered  from
defendants, such costs are to be deducted by the  city  from  the  grand
recovery  before  distribution  to the consumers; and to direct that any
money, property, or other things in the account  and  unclaimed  by  any
persons  with  such claims within one year from creation of the account,
be paid to the city, to be used by the commissioner for further consumer
law enforcement activities. Consumers making claims against  an  account
established pursuant to this subdivision shall prove their claims to the
commissioner  in  a  manner and subject to procedures established by the
commissioner for that purpose. The procedures established in  each  case
for  proving  claims  shall not be employed until approved by the court,
which shall also establish by order  the  minimum  means  by  which  the
commissioner  shall  notify  potential  claimants of the creation of the
account. Restitution pursuant to a judgment  in  an  action  under  this
subdivision  shall  bar,  pro  tanto, the recovery of any damages in any
other action against the same defendant or defendants on account of  the
same acts or practices which were the basis for such judgment, up to the
time  of  the  judgment, by any person to whom such restitution is made.
Restitution under this  subdivision  shall  not  apply  to  transactions
entered  into more than five years prior to commencement of an action by
the commissioner. Before instituting an action under  this  subdivision,
the  commissioner shall give the prospective defendant written notice of
the possible action, and an opportunity to demonstrate in writing within
five days, that no repeated, multiple,  or  persistent  violations  have
occurred.
  d.  Whenever  any  person  has  engaged in any acts or practices which
constitute violations of any provision of this subchapter or of any rule
or regulation promulgated thereunder, the city may make  application  to
the  supreme court for an order enjoining such acts or practices and for

an order granting  a  temporary  or  permanent  injunction,  restraining
order, or other order enjoining such acts or practices.
  e.  To  establish  a cause of action under this section it need not be
shown that consumers are being or were actually injured.

Section 20-704

Section 20-704

  §  20-704  Settlements.  a.  In  lieu  of instituting or continuing an
action pursuant to this subchapter, the commissioner may accept  written
assurance  of discontinuance of any act or practice in violation of this
subchapter from the person or persons who have engaged in such  acts  or
practices.  Such  assurance  may  include  a  stipulation  for voluntary
payment  by  the  violator  of  the  costs  of  investigation   by   the
commissioner  and  may also include a stipulation for the restitution by
the violator to consumers, of money, property or other  things  received
from  them  in connection with a violation of this subchapter, including
money necessarily expended in  the  course  of  making  and  pursuing  a
complaint to the commissioner. All settlements shall be made a matter of
public  record.  If  such stipulation applies to consumers who have been
affected by the violator's practices but have not yet complained to  the
commissioner,  the  assurance must be approved by the court, which shall
direct the minimum means by which potential claimants shall be  notified
of  the  stipulation. A consumer need not accept restitution pursuant to
such a stipulation; his or her acceptance  shall  bar  recovery  of  any
other  damages  in  any  action  by  him or her against the defendant or
defendants on account of the same acts or practices.
  b. Violation of an assurance entered into  pursuant  to  this  section
shall  be treated as a violation of this subchapter and shall be subject
to all the penalties provided therefor.

Section 20-705

Section 20-705

  §  20-705  Persons  excluded  from  this subchapter.   Nothing in this
subchapter shall apply to any television or radio  broadcasting  station
or  to  any publisher or printer of a newspaper, magazine, or other form
of printed  advertising,  who  broadcasts,  publishes,  or  prints  such
advertisement, except insofar as said station or publisher or printer is
guilty  of  deception  on  the  sale  or  offering  for  sale of its own
services. This subchapter  shall  not  apply  to  advertising  agencies,
provided they are acting on information provided by their clients.

Section 20-706

Section 20-706

  §  20-706 Permitted practices. The provisions of this subchapter shall
be construed so as to supplement the rules, regulations,  and  decisions
of  the  federal  trade commission and the courts interpreting 15 U.S.C.
Sec 45 (a) (1), but the  provisions  of  this  subchapter  shall  in  no
instance  be  interpreted  in  a  manner  inconsistent  with  the rules,
regulations and decisions of the federal trade commission and the courts
interpreting 15 U.S.C. § 45 (a) (1).