Consumer protection refers to the laws designed to aid retail consumers of goods and services that have been improperly manufactured, delivered, performed, handled, or described. Such laws provide the retail consumer with additional protections and remedies not generally provided to merchants and others who engage in business transactions, on the premise that the consumers do not enjoy a sufficient bargaining position with respect to the businessmen with whom they deal and therefore should not be strictly limited by the legal rules that govern recovery for damages among businessmen. The overarching goal is to protect individuals and the interest of the public in general from unfair and misleading activity in business and commerce (such as false advertising and deceptive trade practices) and scams perpetrated by criminals (such as identity theft and pyramid schemes) that harm a substantial number of consumers.
Westport (formerly, Beal's Landing) is an unincorporated community in Mendocino County, California. It is located on the Pacific Ocean 13 miles (21 km) north of Fort Bragg, at an elevation of 125 feet (38 m). The first post office at Westport opened in 1879. Originally called Beal's Landing in honor of Samuel Beal, first white settler, the place was renamed in 1877 by James T. Rodgers who built a timber loading facility for the name to contrast with his home town of Eastport, Maine.