California has strict consumer protection laws due to its ballot proposition system, allowing citizens to propose laws without legislative support. The Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, passed in 1970, is one of the strongest consumer protection laws in the country, protecting buyers from faulty products. Lemon laws ensure manufacturers buy back or replace defective vehicles. Ford recently filed a RICO lawsuit against lemon-law firms and lawyers in California, claiming overbilling. The judge dismissed the case, citing Noerr-Pennington immunity. Ford alleges lawyers inflated legal fees, but the defendants claim Ford is using the lawsuit to silence consumer protection advocates. Ford says the law firms fraudulently enriched themselves, while the firms deny wrongdoing.

Read more at Yahoo Finance: Ford loses $300 million fraud case in California