John A. E. Pottow of Michigan, and two recent graduates, Jacob Brege and Tara J Hawley, have written A Presumptively Better Approach to Arbitrability, 53 Canadian Business Law Journal (2013). Here's the abstract: One of the most complex problems in the arbitration field is the question of who decides disputes over the scope of an arbitrator’s […]
by Paul Alan Levy Over the course of more than twenty years of representing union members in litigation over issues of union democracy, before my main focus switched to Internet law and IP issues, I found that in some unions, the leaders think nothing of spending other peoples’ money – the union treasury that is […]
Nathan Cortez of SMU has written Do Graphic Tobacco Warnings Violate the First Amendment? 64 Hastings L. J. (2013). Here's the abstract: When Congress passed the nation’s first comprehensive tobacco bill in 2009, it replaced the familiar Surgeon General’s warnings, last updated in 1984, with nine blunter warnings. The law also directed the U.S. Food […]
by Paul Bland, Senior Attorney, Public Justice, Of Counsel, Chavez & Gertler On Twitter @PblandBland In Kennedy v. Wells Fargo, Judge King of the Southern District of Florida enforced another arbitration clause that tosses out consumer claims in the multi district litigation involving checking overdraft claims. The plaintiffs had several arguments that the particular arbitration clause at […]
Elizabeth Renuart of Albany has written Uneasy Intersections: The Right to Foreclose and the UCC, forthcoming in 48 Wake Forest law Review. Here's the abstract: Historically, the practice of real property and foreclosure law was routine and noncontroversial. This legal landscape significantly altered during the spectacular growth of securitization deals involving trillions of dollars of […]
by Paul Alan Levy The Manhattan Lasik Center secures customers, in part, by offering discounts through Groupon and similar online marketing programs. For a $1795 Groupon, for example, a customer can get lasik treatment for both eyes. Several reviews posted on Yelp, however, suggest that it is not at all unusual for patients to appear […]
Wyoming's 13th Consumer Issues Conference has the theme of “Navigating the New Health Care Market. " It will feature speakers on major consumer healthcare issues across three tracks: Innovative Directions in Healthcare; Legal Horizons in Healthcare; and Consumer Compass to Healthcare. Early registration ends September 23. Keynote Speakers: – Steven Brill, author of Time Magazine Article “Bitter […]
by Paul Alan Levy Last October, blogger Christina Garner posted an introspective article reflecting on media coverage of a lawsuit in which Tonya Cooley, a reality-show participant, alleged that two fellow participants had assaulted her sexually in a sequence that did not appear in the broadcast, including inserting a toothbrush into her while she was […]
Yesterday, we told you about declaratory judgment suits by Native American tribes against New York regulators seeking the right to make otherwise usurious payday loans on the ground that the tribes' sovereign immunity allows them to operate free from state usury laws. Now comes word that another payday lender, Western Sky, owned by a Cheyenne […]
On August 6, New York's financial regulatory agency took aim at online payday lenders, who "offer short-term loans at interest rates that often exceed 500 percent annually." As the New York Times reported, the state's financial regulator sent letters to 35 of the online lenders, instructing them to “cease and desist” from offering loans that […]