Theo Abernathy
Associate | Washington, D.C. | Consumer Protection
Profile
Theo Abernathy is an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Corvane Ryle LLP and a member of the firm's Consumer Protection Practice. He advises retailers, marketplaces and subscription businesses on federal and state consumer protection law.
Theo's work covers advertising substantiation, subscription and auto-renewal practices, promotions and sweepstakes, and the response to Federal Trade Commission and state attorney general inquiries. He also follows the emerging rules on automated hiring tools and AI.
He works with Grace Whitcombe and Daria Kowalczyk and contributes regularly to the firm's insights on consumer regulation.
Theo's work falls within the firm's Consumer Protection Practice and is particularly relevant to clients in Retail & Consumer Products, Hospitality, Gaming & Leisure and Technology. Theo is based in the firm's Washington, D.C. office.
Experience
Theo's representative matters include the following, many of which are confidential and described in general terms.
- Assisted in advising Halvern Retail Group on the redesign of its subscription enrollment and cancellation flows.
- Supported the defense of Larkspur Apparel in a state attorney general inquiry into reference pricing practices.
- Advised Fennwick Home on the review of customer reviews and endorsements on its e-commerce platform.
- Assisted in advising Castellan Hotels on the disclosure of mandatory fees in online booking pathways.
- Prepared a multi-state survey of gift card and sweepstakes rules for a national retailer's holiday promotions.
- Advised Quillon Payments on consumer disclosures and complaint-handling in its marketing of payment products.
- Assisted in the response to a Federal Trade Commission civil investigative demand concerning negative option marketing.
- Supported an advertising substantiation review of health and wellness claims for a consumer products company.
- Advised Oriole Pharmacy Group on loyalty program terms and promotional offers.
- Researched and summarized state and local rules on automated employment decision tools for an employer client.
- Assisted in advising a marketplace on its compliance program for fake review rules.
- Contributed to a compliance program for a multi-brand retailer on junk fees and price transparency.
Insights
Theo's recent insights include the following.
Qualifications
Bar admissions
- District of Columbia Bar
- State Bar of Maryland
Education
- JD, Georgetown University Law Center
- BA, Political Science, University of Virginia