Student loan borrowers probably felt the biggest impact from the courts in 2023, as major rulings helped guide how the government restarted its payment program this October.

Real estate professionals saw what might be the first in a string of rulings that could upend how commissions on home sales are charged, while drug manufacturers fought against a government program that negotiates drug prices for Medicare customers.

Cryptocurrency exchange users also paid close attention as the government brought both criminal and securities cases against the world's largest crypto exchange, while buyers and sellers on Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) could be affected by a federal watchdog's case that charged the online retail giant with punishing sellers who offer lower prices on other platforms.

Biden Responds After Supreme Court Kills Student Loan Forgiveness Plan

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court tossed out the student loan forgiveness plan championed by President Joe Biden, ruling that the administration didn't have the authority to cancel up to $20,000 per federal loan borrower. That ruling impacted 43 million borrowers who could have received forgiveness, including about 20 million who would have had all their student loan debts forgiven.

The result for nearly 22 million Americans was that student loan repayments restarted on Oct. 1. These borrowers owed an average of $275 per month on their federal student loans. But the Biden administration responded with a new income-driven repayment program called the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan. It sets monthly payments at 5% to 10% of a borrower's discretionary income and offers forgiveness for loan balances after 20 or 25 years.

For 2.9 million borrowers, the SAVE plan set payments at zero. Biden was also able to cancel the debt for 800,000 borrowers, providing them a total of $39 billion in relief. Enrollment in the plan has risen 60% since it was introduced this summer, with more than 5.5 million borrowers taking advantage of the program.

Criminal, SEC Cases Against Binance Could Affect Cryptocurrency Offerings

Users of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance Holdings Ltd., watched as the U.S. government brought several cases against the platform this year, including one that ended in a settlement of criminal charges from the Justice Department and charges of violating securities laws from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Although Binance.US still serves American customers while it continues its defense, the SEC case could affect how the exchange offers its services. The SEC case alleges that the Binance.US platform operated unregistered exchanges, misrepresented trading controls and oversight, and offered unregistered sales of securities.

After the SEC brought its case in July, the Justice Department settled criminal money laundering charges with Binance and its founder and CEO, Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, who agreed to step down as part of the $4.3 billion settlement. That settlement raised optimism that the decision would help pave the way for regulators to approve a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).

The SEC case brought a list of charges against the Binance.US platform, which was separated from the global Binance.com platform to meet U.S. regulatory requirements, although the agency alleged that the company let high-value U.S. customers secretly continue to trade on the global platform. The SEC case also alleged that Binance facilitated wash trading, in which market participants manipulate trading volumes to feed misleading signals back to the market.

Binance isn't the only cryptocurrency exchange in the SEC's sights. In November, the agency brought a case against Kraken on charges that it was operating an unlicensed securities exchange.

Billion-Dollar Verdict Against Realtors Could Spark Changes to Agent Fees

An October jury verdict could upend the real estate industry after a group of Missouri home sellers successfully challenged the practice of how fees are set for home sales. A federal jury found that the National Association of Realtors (NAR), along with brokerages Homeservices of America and Keller Williams Realty, were liable for $1.8 billion in damages on allegations that they conspired to keep real estate commissions artificially high.

A report from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods real estate industry analyst Ryan Tomasello predicted that the suit could result in a 30% decrease in the $100 billion in annual real estate commissions, potentially pushing half of approximately 1.6 million agents out of the business.

The lawsuit challenged the longstanding process that set a fixed commission fee for both the agent representing the homebuyer and the seller's agent. The suit argued that homebuyers should be free to negotiate their own fee with the agent, allowing them to spell out with more certainty the services provided.

However, the issue isn't finished being litigated in court. A similar class action lawsuit is slated to begin next year in an Illinois federal court that will look at 20 markets, from Philadelphia to Miami. The NAR has said it will appeal the ruling.

Merck Leads Parade of Lawsuits against Government Drug Negotiation Program 

In June, Merck & Co. (MRK) filed suit to block the drug negotiation program created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. Merck's legal action was the first of many as pharmaceutical companies argued that the process was unfair, while the government contended that it leveraged its buying power to get the best prices for consumers.

In its suit, Merck argued that the price negotiations were an unfair process in which Medicare determined the "maximum fair price" for products, which Merck described as a "gun to the head" that lets the government dictate terms. Merck said it expects diabetes drug Januvia, one of the costliest drugs covered by Medicare Part D, to be one of the initial 10 drugs to be negotiated.

Merck's lawsuit was the first of many similar ones to follow, with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Infusion Center Association, Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (BMY), AstraZeneca PLC (AZN), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals, and Boehringer Ingelheim all taking legal action against Medicare.

But in September, a U.S. district judge refused the Chamber of Commerce motion to block Medicare from starting the program. And despite the lawsuits, Merck and other companies with products on the drug price-negotiation list agreed in October to participate in the program.

FTC Charges Amazon With Unfair Seller Retaliation Practices

Amazon is a place many shoppers go to find low prices, but an action from a federal watchdog alleged that customers could find even lower prices at the online retailer if Amazon didn't engage in anti-competitive practices.

In September, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), along with 17 states, sued Amazon, alleging it used illegal monopolistic power to prevent competition and keep prices high. Both customers and sellers on Amazon are hurt by the practice, the government's case alleges.

According to the FTC, Amazon's anti-discounting measures are one restriction on competition, in which the online retailer will punish sellers that offer items at lower prices on other sites by burying them in the list of search results, making them effectively invisible. The case also raised issues with Amazon's policy to tie sellers' eligibility for Prime services into their use of Amazon's costly fulfillment service.

It wasn't the only case the FTC brought against Amazon this year, one of several efforts by the regulatory agency to address antitrust issues with Big Tech. In June, the agency filed a complaint against the retailer on charges that Amazon engaged in a years-long campaign to enroll customers in Prime memberships without their consent, while also making it hard to quit the service.

Amazon began adjusting its tactics related to potential FTC action even before the agency filed suit. The online retailer reduced its number of private-label brands in August as the agency was heightening its scrutiny into the company on anti-competitive concerns. The FTC also opposed Microsoft Corp.’s (MSFT) acquisition of video game maker Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) and has targeted Apple Inc. (AAPL), Google (GOOGL), and Meta Platforms Inc. (META) in other actions. 

The FTC is joined by the states of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin in the Amazon case.