April 2014

April 30, 2014 In Blog

Stolen Wages: Coming to a Workplace Near You

photo credit: WisconsinJobsNow via photopin cc By Vicky Ni Senior Attorney What do fast-food workers and high-tech workers have in common? Neither have any bargaining power in their workplaces or in their industry, as Pandodaily’s Mark Ames has recently observed. Both have wages stolen from…

April 22, 2014 In Blog

Winning the Fight to Protect Citizens from Sewage Sludge

By Jim Hecker Director, Environmental Enforcement Project A Pennsylvania appeals court has revived a nuisance lawsuit by 34 Pennsylvania residents who claim that the spread of 23 million pounds of sewage sludge on a neighboring farm created a repulsive, nauseating stench similar to that of a…

April 20, 2014 In Blog

Democracy Works: General Mills Drops Forced Arbitration After Outcry from Consumers

By Paul Bland, Senior Attorney@PblandBland Last week, General Mills was the latest corporation to adopt a forced arbitration clause – language that says that its customers can’t sue it or take it to court if they believe the corporation has cheated or injured them, but instead…

April 18, 2014 In Updates

Lead-Paint Decision: Providing A Safer Place for Children

Judge Orders Lead Paint Companies to Pay $1.15 Billion into State Fund to Clean Affected Homes When Nathaniel Stone moved into an Oakland, Calif. apartment with his 2-month-old son Antonio, he said he was simply looking for a place where the two could “lay our…

April 15, 2014 In Blog

Predatory Payday Lenders Try to Hide Behind Indian Tribal Immunity; Public Justice Urges High Court Review

By Leslie Bailey, Staff Attorney and Paul Bland, Senior Attorney In their quest to prey on vulnerable low-income consumers, internet payday lenders are now trying to use Indian tribal immunity to avoid being held liable under California’s consumer protection laws. We are urging the California…

April 7, 2014 In Blog

Hot Enough for You? The Scary Link Between Factory Farms and Global Warming

By Leslie Brueckner, Senior Attorney You’ve been hearing a lot from me lately about all the problems caused by the rampant overuse of antibiotics in the industrial animal industry. What I haven’t talked about yet is another equally scary problem that has been linked to factory…

April 4, 2014 In Blog

Fighting for Access to Justice, Part 2

Michelle Nemphos wanted to protect her child. What she found herself in was a little-understood legal fight for her right to a day in court. The Nemphos case highlights why Public Justice takes on cases to fight for the people we represent, protect and advance…

April 4, 2014 In Blog

Coal Ash Cleanup at Little Blue Run Requires Highest Bond Ever

By Richard Webster, Power-Cotchett Attorney, Environmental Enforcement Project The cleanup of the 1,000-acre Little Blue Run wet coal ash impoundment, the largest in the United States, took another step forward yesterday with the announcement that Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has approved the closure permit…

April 3, 2014 In Blog

With Free Coffee from McDonald’s, Will You Forget the Workers?

By Victoria W. Ni, Senior Attorney, and Sarah Belton, Cartwright-Baron Attorney Fast-food giant McDonald’s is making headlines this week as its stores offer free coffee during the first part of April. In what is viewed by some business analysts as a desperate grab for breakfast…

April 3, 2014 In Blog

Join Public Justice Today and Get a Free Month!

GUEST BLOG By Michael Swanson, Public Justice VolunteerPresident and CEO, Advocate Capital, Inc. I have the privilege of being a co-captain of one of the Public Justice Telethon teams this year. Dan Bryson, Tara Sutton and I are leading the “Rustlers” as…