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States Are Mobilizing to Protect Consumers from Forced Arbitration
As the New York Times recently reported, corporations have been taking away Americans’ ability to sue in court if the company harms them, without most people even being aware that they have given up their Constitutional rights. Corporations do this by slipping provisions into “terms and conditions” on the back of product packaging, or on the bottom of webpages, or buried in dense contracts that patients must sign before entering a hospital or nursing home.
Blog
February 24, 2016
In Blog
New Look. New Home.
Today, we’re unveiling a whole new look for Public Justice. Our new website, and our new logo, are part of an all-new brand designed to highlight the work we do, and the communities we serve. After many months of development, we’re excited to finally share…
February 3, 2016
In Blog
One (Really) Good Class Action
Over 320,000 homes completely re-plumbed, repaired, and inspected at no cost to the homeowner. A 96% homeowner satisfaction rate. Over $1.14 billion spent in settlement, with 92% paid directly to homeowner relief and only 8% consumed by administrative costs and attorneys fees. Fifteen years of court-supervised administration without a single instance of court intervention.
Sound too good to be true? That is the power of a really good consumer class action–in this case the Polybutylene (PB) plumbing class action spearheaded by Public Justice in 1993 and achieving settlement in 1995.
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No, You Can’t Just Write a Contract that Says No Federal Law Applies
When James Hayes took out a loan for $2525 via the Western Sky lending company, he probably expected, like most consumers do, that he would be charged some interest. But by any reasonable standard, the 139.12% rate he was effectively charged—turning his initial $2525 loan into a $14,093 debt—was jaw-dropping.
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First Round Goes to Citizens in Federal Court Fight Against Wyoming Ag Gag Laws
In late December, we won the first round in our federal constitutional challenge to Wyoming laws that make it a crime for citizens to gather data about environmental pollution from public land. U.S. District Judge Scott Skavdahl denied the State’s motion to dismiss the suit challenging the laws, citing “serious concerns” about the statutes’ constitutionality.
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Same Story, New Ending: Court Overturns Order Sealing Chrysler Defect Records
photo credit: dharder9475 via photopin cc Jennifer Bennett Budd-Kazan Attorney It’s the same story, over and over again: Corporation conceals deadly defect. Someone dies, and their family sues. Corporation settles quietly. Court records are sealed. Nobody finds out. More people are hurt; more people sue;…
A Payday Lender’s Race to the Bottom
by Gabriel Hopkins Thornton-Robb Attorney Scott Tucker loves fast cars. That might be why he raced to the bottom as the owner and operator of a payday lending business whose complicated and lopsided repayment plan duped millions of consumers. Now the details of this operation…
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December 3, 2015 In Blog
In Organic Labeling Ruling, Cal. Supreme Court Ensures Corporations Can’t Duck Consumer Fraud Suits
By Leslie Brueckner Senior Attorney The California Supreme Court has just issued a groundbreaking unanimous decision in Quesada v. Herb Thyme Farms, Inc., upholding the rights of consumers to sue a grower – Herb Thyme – for intentionally mislabeling conventionally grown herbs as “organic” and…
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An Energy Company’s Fake Farm, Watered with Heavy Metal Rain
An image from last week’s notice letter. By Richard Webster Staff Attorney, Environmental Enforcement Project Until I saw it, it was hard to believe that in the heart of Utah, PacifiCorp, a local power company, was running a fake farm watered with coal ash waste that…
October 13, 2015
In Blog
AIEG and Public Justice Join in Fighting Court Secrecy – We Need You in the Fight
Lee Brown, President, AIEG Arthur Bryant, Chairman, Public Justice The past year was unprecedented in the world of auto safety. The world learned of ignition switches that could fail, causing loss of control and airbag non-deployment; airbags that shoot shrapnel into the occupant compartment when…