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March 24, 2020 In Blog Consumers' Rights

Being Arrested Doesn’t Take Away Your Consumer Rights

Appeals Court Deals a Blow to the Prison-Industrial Complex By Karla Gilbride Cartwright-Baron Staff Attorney On any given day in the United States, some 2.3 million people are locked up between state and federal prisons, local and county jails, and immigration detention centers. That’s more…

March 19, 2020 In Blog Access to Justice, Federal Preemption

Fighting to Protect Injury Victims from Roundup, the Cancer-Causing Weedkiller that Monsanto Just Can’t Quit

By Leslie Brueckner Senior Attorney “[We] cannot say that Roundup does not cause cancer [because] we have not done carcinogenicity studies with Roundup.” That’s what Monsanto toxicologist and chief glyphosate spokesperson Donna Farmer said in 2009 about the risks of Roundup, Monsanto’s best-selling weedkiller. Six…

December 19, 2019 In Blog Access to Justice

The Double Taxation of Attorney Fee Awards Leaves Wronged Consumers In the Cold. Help Us End It.

Ask Your Senators to Support S. 2627 Russell and Jennie Kinney thought they had achieved the American Dream. Although they are of modest means and rely on what Russell is able to make as a mechanic in their small town in rural Maine to get…

December 10, 2019 In Blog Forced Arbitration, Workers' Rights

Migrant Worker Defeats Corporate Arbitration Clause by Using Employer’s Practices Against It

By Rodolfo Padilla Legal Fellow Current federal law strongly favors enforcing arbitration clauses against workers. But there are limits, and Judge Edward M. Chen of the Northern District of California found they were reached in this case. The court held that an arbitration contract between…

September 9, 2019 In Blog Access to Justice, Class Action Preservation, Forced Arbitration

Put An End to Fine Print Bullying: Urge Congress to Pass the FAIR Act

Karla Gilbride Cartwright-Baron Senior Attorney What Leo Tolstoy said in Anna Karenina about unhappy families could also be said about consumer transactions or employment relationships that turn sour: each one “is unhappy in its own way.” For some types of disputes, a worker or consumer…

September 3, 2019 In Blog Food Project

Public Justice Fights Unconstitutional NC “Anti-Sunshine Law”

Imagine your elderly family member, placed in the care of a nursing home, being abused by their caretaker. Imagine your six-month-old child spending the day at a trusted daycare, and being punished by their daycare worker – who breaks the child’s leg. Imagine a major…

July 29, 2019 In Blog Class Action Preservation, Consumers' Rights

California Supreme Court Strikes Blow for Consumers and Employees By Rejecting Class-Action-Killing Ascertainability Rule

In a unanimous 45-page ruling issued today, the California Supreme Court struck a major blow in favor of class actions and against big corporations who lie, cheat, and steal money from their customers and mistreat their employees. In Noel v. Thrifty, a consumer class action,…

July 18, 2019 In Blog Access to Justice, Forced Arbitration

Trump Administration Moves to Block Nursing Home Residents’ Access to the Courts

The Trump administration, which has also reduced the use of penalties against nursing homes that mistreat residents, characterizes arbitration agreements as advantageous to both facilities and patients because it allows for quicker resolution of disputes without the expensive costs of litigation. In actuality, though, the administration is placing the interests of giant corporations above some of the country’s most vulnerable citizens.

July 16, 2019 In Blog Class Action Preservation

Major Victory in Oregon Vindicates Class Actions

By Paul Bland Executive Director After years of battling, an enormous victory for cheated Oregon consumers was finally brought to a conclusion last week. The case demonstrates the vital importance of class actions in achieving justice when consumers are ripped off. A team led by…

July 8, 2019 In Blog Debtors' Prison Project

This Again? 21st Century Poll Taxes and Debtors’ Prisons… and the Fight to Stop Them

By Leslie Bailey & Brian Hardingham Debtors’ Prison Project Attorneys On June 28, Florida governor Ron DeSantis signed into law a bill limiting ex-felons’ right to vote. This law undercuts much of the promise of the state’s historic Amendment 4, which voters passed overwhelming in…