Skip to Content

Attorney: Thomas H. Segars

June 25, 2019 Thomas H. Segars
Posted in  Substantial Aggravating Circumstances

Udderly Insufficient: A “Clerical Error” that Meant Catastrophe for a Cattle Breeder Was Not a “Substantial Aggravating Factor”

Sometimes small errors can have big consequences. According to a recent Fourth Circuit decision, big consequences do not turn small errors into unfair or deceptive trade practices. Edwards v. Genex Cooperative, Inc. considered a section 75-1.1 claim based on a breach of contract accompanied by “substantial aggravating factors.” Parties to […]

Read More
May 21, 2019 Thomas H. Segars
Posted in  75-1.1 Exemptions

Litigating [In]Securities: How Conduct Standards Intersect with the Securities Exemption’s Rationale

Today’s post examines an intersection of two familiar topics: (1) the “conduct standards” by which conduct is judged to be “unfair,” and (2) the “pervasively regulated conduct” rationale for section 75-1.1’s securities exemption. Robichaud v. Engage2Excel, Inc., a new decision from the U.S. District Court for the Western District of […]

Read More
April 16, 2019 Thomas H. Segars
Posted in  Other 75-1.1 Issues

West Virginia Accused a Catholic Diocese of Deceiving Consumers. Did the West Virginia Legislature Intend this Result?

We recently wrote about one state’s novel and high-profile use of its consumer-protection laws. In West Virginia, the state attorney general sued a Roman Catholic Diocese, alleging that it had deceived consumers—more specifically, parents who send their children to diocesan schools and camps. The lawsuit concerns allegations of sexual abuse […]

Read More
March 28, 2019 Thomas H. Segars
Posted in  Other 75-1.1 Issues

An Unlikely New Target for Consumer Protection Laws: Allegations of Sexual Abuse in Religious Education

West Virginia made history last week when it filed a new lawsuit about the sexual-abuse scandal embroiling the Roman Catholic Church. The state attorney general is suing the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston and its former Bishop for failing to protect children from priests and laity who had been credibly accused of […]

Read More