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Public Justice Files Suit to Clean Up Coal Ash Contamination at Utah Plant
Public Justice has filed suit, on behalf of HEAL Utah and the Sierra Club, to ensure the cleanup of millions of tons of toxic coal ash waste at a central Utah power plant following decades of mismanagement. The suit comes after an October letter asking PacifiCorp to address a litany of problems that have contaminated land and water at the Huntington coal-burning power plant.
According to the complaint, PacifiCorp’s mismanagement in handling, transport and disposal of the coal-ash waste “have caused extensive contamination of local ground and/or surface waters, which may present an imminent and substantial endangerment to health and the environment.”
Perhaps most egregious, the suit alleges that one of the plant’s tactics for skirting its responsibilities under the Clean Water Act was the creation of a “fake farm” adjacent to the plant where alfalfa and other crops were irrigated as a means to disposing of the plant’s wastewater.
Public Justice
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Don’t Trust the Chamber of Commerce When it Tells You That Arbitration is Good for Consumers
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, one of the country’s largest corporate lobbying organizations, wants American consumers to believe that it has their best interests at heart. This is a myth.
In a recent blog post, the Chamber argues against a proposed rule being considered by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The rule would prohibit contracts for consumer financial products from combining arbitration clauses that prevent consumers from going to court with terms that ban consumers from bringing or being a part of a class action. The Chamber argues that when consumers have been cheated by banks or debt collectors, it’s in the consumers’ best interest to bring those companies to individual arbitration, rather than banding together in a class action. This position, however, is completely disingenuous.
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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.
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…
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Public Justice Files Suit to Curb Fracking-Related Seismic Activity in Oklahoma
Public Justice, working on behalf of Sierra Club, filed a federal lawsuit today against three energy companies engaged in hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) in Oklahoma, alleging that production waste from fracking and oil production have contributed to an alarming increase in earthquake activity in the state.
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Justice for Rafael: Fighting Inmate Abuse in Texas Jails
Rafael Solis’s death ruled a homicide by county coroner Public Justice is proud to be leading the appellate team representing Maria Escamilla and her grandsons, Esteban and Rafael Solis, Jr., as they demand accountability in the death of her son and their father. Rafael Solis…
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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Public Justice Representing Plaintiffs in Challenge to North Carolina ‘Anti-Sunshine’ Law
A coalition of animal protection, consumer rights, food safety, and whistleblower protection groups is challenging a North Carolina law designed to deter whistleblowers and undercover investigators from publicizing information about corporate misconduct. Public Justice is representing all of the groups in the coalition.
Under the law, organizations and journalists who conduct undercover investigations, and individuals who expose improper or criminal conduct by North Carolina employers, are susceptible to suit and substantial damages if they make such evidence available to the public or the press.