Updated: January 2019

Expression Hair Design et al. v NY AG Schneiderman

An amicus filing Consumer Action participated in (Expression Hair Design et al. v NY AG Schneiderman) went before the U.S. Supreme Court at the end of 2016. Consumer Action and other advocates supported the merchants’ first amendment free speech rights to inform consumers of the actual costs of credit transactions, arguing that the extra cost of credit card purchases is unknowingly born by those who do not use credit. New York retailers are allowed to charge separate prices for cash and credit card customers but can’t refer to the price difference as a “credit card surcharge.” The Supreme Court returned the case for reconsideration to the U.S. Court of Appeals (Second circuit). We continued our amicus support in 2017 when the case was returned to the Appellate court to be decided based on free speech, rather than pricing.