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.
Woodstock is a far northwest suburb of Chicago in McHenry County, Illinois. The population was 20,151 at the 2000 census, and is 25,000 as of 2008. It is the county seat of McHenry County. Woodstock is located 51 miles (82 km) northwest of the Chicago Loop and 32 miles (51 km) northwest of O'Hare International Airport. Woodstock is the home of the historic Woodstock Opera House and Old McHenry County Courthouse. The city was named in 2007 as one of the nation's Dozen Distinctive Destinations 2007 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.