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.
Knob Lick is an unincorporated community in southern St. Francois County, Missouri. It is located on U.S. Route 67 about eight miles south of Farmington. Knob Lick has a post office with zip code 63651. The community was named in 1876 for the nearby Knob Lick Mountain. In the Ozarks, knob typically refers to an isolated summit, and lick is a natural "salt lick" or salt spring. The mountain is across U.S. Route 67 from the town at 37°39′52″N 90°23′09″W / 37.6645°N 90.3859°W / 37.6645; -90.3859. Eighty 80 acres (32 ha) of the summit are protected by the Missouri Department of Conservation. A gravel road leads to the conservation area which includes a granite glade, picnic facilities, and a closed fire lookout tower. The St Louis and Iron Mountain Railroad had a stop at Knob Lick that was a shipping point for granite mines in the area. There were also lead mines nearby, including Mine La Motte. Knob Lick has been home to the S-F Scout Ranch since 1965.