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.
Essex Fells is a borough in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 2,162. Essex Fells was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 31, 1902, from portions of Caldwell Township. In 1981, Essex Fells became a township to take advantage of federal revenue sharing policies. Effective January 1, 1992, it again became a borough. New Jersey Monthly magazine ranked Essex Fells as its 10th best place to live in its 2008 rankings of the "Best Places To Live" in New Jersey.