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SPONSOR: Sen. Hansen & Rep. Griffith
Sens. Cruce, Pinkney, Sokola, Sturgeon, Walsh; Reps.
Bolden, Cooke, Gorman, Romer
DELAWARE STATE SENATE
153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY
SENATE BILL NO. 297
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 6 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO CONSUMER PROTECTION.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
1 Section 1. Amend § 2513, Title 6 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
2 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
3 § 2513. Unlawful practice.
4 (c) For purposes of this section, “in connection with” includes any unfair or deceptive conduct, as enumerated in
5 § 2513(a) of this title, that occurs before, during, or after the sale, lease, receipt, or advertisement of any merchandise.
SYNOPSIS
This Act adds a clarifying interpretive paragraph to the Delaware Consumer Fraud Act (Subchapter II, Chapter 25,
Title 6 of the Code) to address a recent decision by the Delaware Supreme Court and to make clear that the Consumer
Fraud Act’s use of the phrase “in connection with” in § 2513 should be interpreted to include unfair and deceptive acts and
practices that occur “before, during, and after” the sale, lease, receipt, or advertisement of any merchandise. The Delaware
Supreme Court recently construed the Consumer Fraud Act to be confined to conduct “between businesses and consumers
which happen before a transaction or during the transaction itself.” Blue Beach Bungalows DE, LLC v. State, No. 14, 2025,
2025 WL 3768232, at *11 (Del. Dec. 30, 2025). However, in recognition of the broad purpose of the Consumer Fraud Act
set forth by the 123rd General Assembly in Section 2512, subsequent amendments to the Consumer Fraud Act to include
the “receipt” of merchandise, and the scope of comparable statutes in other states, this bill ensures that the Consumer Fraud
Act is interpreted to apply to unfair or deceptive conduct that occurs after a sale, lease, receipt, or advertisement, including,
but not limited to, conduct occurring in instances in which a sale, lease, receipt, or advertisement creates an ongoing
relationship or a continuing obligation, or where performance has not yet been completed. This aligns the Consumer Fraud
Act with Unfair or Deceptive Acts or Practices (“UDAP”) laws with similar language in other states, as well as many other
UDAP laws, including the FTC Act, that cover post-transaction conduct.
This Act will allow the Delaware Department of Justice to use the Consumer Fraud Act to address the full range of
unfair and deceptive acts or practices that consumers report to the Delaware Department of Justice, including, for example,
false and threatening landlord communications, unscrupulous debt collection tactics, and failures to honor promises to fix
returned merchandise. It will also ensure that businesses throughout the state can compete on a level playing field
throughout the duration of their relationships with consumers, without being undercut by unscrupulous competitors who
engage in post-transaction misconduct. Additionally, it ensures that the Delaware Department of Justice is not
disadvantaged when coordinating with other states to hold entities accountable for unfair or deceptive acts or practices that
are nationwide in scope.
Author: Senator Hansen
SD : AVP : MMS Page 1 of 1 Released: 05/04/2026 01:46 PM
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