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.
Arlington Heights is a village in Cook and Lake counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. An affluent suburb of Chicago, it lies about 25 miles northwest of the city's downtown. The population was 76,031 at the 2000 census. Arlington Heights is known for Arlington Park Race Track, home of the Arlington Million, a Breeders' Cup qualifying event; also hosted the Breeders' Cup Classic in 2002. It is also home to the Arlington Heights Memorial Library, which has one of the largest collections in the state, as well as the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, Saint Viator High School, John Hersey High School, South Middle School and Thomas Middle School.