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.
Monkton is an unincorporated community in northern Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. It has a population of about 4,856 people. It is 35 square miles (91 km) in area, with approximately 138 inhabitants per square mile (53 /km). As an unincorporated area, Monkton has no legally-defined boundaries, and its postal ZIP code (21111) includes a portion of adjacent Harford County. East of Monkton is an area named "My Lady's Manor", known for its horse farms, sprawling countryside, and old, stately homes set back from the country roads. In 1713, Charles Calvert, 3rd Baron Baltimore, decreed 10,000 acres (40 km²) for himself. He made a gift of this land to his fourth wife, christening the estate "My Lady's Manor. " It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.