Opinion ID: 2625746
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Unfair Competition Law

Text: (1) The unfair competition law prohibits any unlawful, unfair or fraudulent business act or practice . . . . (Bus. & Prof. Code, § 17200.) Before 2004, the unfair competition law allowed any person acting for the interests of itself, its members or the general public to seek restitution or injunctive relief against unfair acts or practices. (Bus. & Prof. Code, former § 17204, added by Stats. 1977, ch. 299, § 1, p. 1202.) Thus, under the former law a plaintiff did not have to show any actual injury, and a representative action brought under the unfair competition law did not have to be brought as a class action. (Former §§ 17203, 17204; Kraus v. Trinity Management Services, Inc. (2000) 23 Cal.4th 116, 126, fn. 10 [96 Cal.Rptr.2d 485, 999 P.2d 718]; Stop Youth Addiction, Inc. v. Lucky Stores, Inc. (1998) 17 Cal.4th 553, 561 [71 Cal.Rptr.2d 731, 950 P.2d 1086]; see Corbett v. Superior Court (2002) 101 Cal.App.4th 649, 680-681 [125 Cal.Rptr.2d 46].) But that changed in 2004, when voters, exercising their constitutionally granted power of initiative, enacted Proposition 64. In the preamble to that measure the voters declared that the broad standing permitted by the unfair competition law had been abused. (See Californians for Disability Rights v. Mervyn's, LLC (2006) 39 Cal.4th 223, 228 [46 Cal.Rptr.3d 57, 138 P.3d 207].) Proposition 64 amended the unfair competition law to allow private representative claims for relief to be brought only by those persons who satisfied the law's new standing requirements and who complied with Code of Civil Procedure section 382. [1] (Bus. & Prof. Code, § 17203.) The law now requires that a representative claim, that is, a claim seeking relief on behalf of others ( id., § 17203), may be brought only by a person who has suffered injury in fact and has lost money or property as a result of the unfair competition ( id., § 17204). [2] This replaced the former standing provision which had allowed an unfair competition law action to be brought by any person acting for the interests of itself, its members or the general public. (Bus. & Prof. Code, former § 17204.)