According to the Wall Street Journal (click here), General Motors has agreed to expand its liability for car-accident victims who suffered injuries after the auto maker filed for bankruptcy protection June 1. But, victims with pending claims for injuries sustained prior to June 1, or claimants that have not yet filed will still have to seek damages against the old company, which means those claimants are likely to get little if anything.
Archive for June, 2009
GM Expands Liability . . . But Just a Little
Tuesday, June 30th, 2009GM to Maintain Liability for Some Product Liability Claims
Monday, June 29th, 2009
According to the New York Times (click here), General Motors and the Obama administration have reached a deal whereby GM will assume responsibility for product liability claims involving its vehicles after the auto maker emerges from bankruptcy. And as reported by the Times, this deal will cover future claims involving vehicles made by the pre-bankruptcy GM. Consumers with past claims will have to go after the “old” GM. And what that means, as pointed out by the Washington Post (click here), is that those consumers are likely to recover little if anything.
Supreme Court Sides with White Firefighters in Discrimination Case
Monday, June 29th, 2009
As reported by the New York Times (click here), Wall Street Journal (click here), and others, the Supreme Court in a 5-4 opinion has reversed an appeals court decision and held that white firefighters in New Haven, Conn., were unfairly denied promotions because of their race. The lower court’s decision that was reversed was endorsed by Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. (more…)
A Jobless Recovery
Saturday, June 27th, 2009
Bob Herbert writes an excellent Op-Ed piece this morning in the New York Times.
It baffles me how folks can speak of a recovery when more and more people I know are being laid off or experiencing financial difficulties. A jobless recovery is no recovery. The full impact of this recession and its “rampant joblessness” is still unclear, but it will be lasting and endured by an entire generation unless it is “approached with the sense of urgency and commitment” it warrants.
Bob Herbert’s Op-Ed can be read here: No Recovery In Sight
House Passes Major Climate Change Legislation
Friday, June 26th, 2009
According to the Washington Post, the House of Representatives today narrowly passed legislation calling for the nation’s first limits on pollution linked to global warming.
The vote was 219-212, with Republicans voting overwhelmingly against the measure. The Republicans argued that the legislation would destroy jobs and burden consumers with higher energy costs. According to the Post, President Obama worked the phones from the White House to get Democrats in line as the debate unfolded. Al Gore posted a statement on his Web site stating that this legislation is “an essential first step towards solving the climate crisis.”
The Post quotes Rep. Ed Markey of Massachusetts as saying that this bill is “the most important energy and environmental legislation in the history of our country . . . It sets a new course for our country, one that steers us away from foreign oil and towards a path of clean American energy.”
The Washington Post article can be read here: House narrowly passes major energy-climate bill
Lufkin Industries Ordered to Pay Workers Over $3.1 Million For Discrimination
Friday, June 26th, 2009
As reported by the Houston Chronicle, U.S. District Judge Ron Clark ordered Lufkin Industries Inc., an East Texas company, to pay the workers $3.1 million as well as 5 percent interest to compensate them for acts of discrimination dating to 1994.
According to the Chronicle, in 2005 the company was found to have unlawfully made initial assignment and promotion decisions that discriminated against black workers. The decision and and ruling was made by U.S. District Judge Howell Cobb, during a bench trial. Judge Cobb died later that year.
Los Angeles Area Toy Importer Fined $665,000 for Importing and Selling Toys With High Levels of Lead
Friday, June 26th, 2009
According to the Los Angeles Times, the toy importer, OKK Trading, imported and sold toys with high levels of lead and violated other federal child safety standards. The Times reports further that the importer has stated that it did not import or sell the toys while knowingly aware of their high levels of lead. The fine, however, was issued by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and came after the commission had alleged that the toy importer “knowingly imported and sold toys that contained more than 0.06% lead by weight in paints or surface coatings[,]” according to the Times. Lead is an extremely toxic substance for children and can lead to learning disabilities.
The Los Angeles Times’ article can be read here: Commerce toy importer is fined for hazardous items
Court Says Injured Seamen Can Seek Punitive Damages.
Friday, June 26th, 2009
As reported by the Washington Post, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in Atlantic Sounding Co. v. Townsend “that seamen injured on the job may sue for punitive damages when employers refuse to pay for medical care and time off.” The plaintiff in the original action was Edgar L. Townsend, a tugboat crew member. Mr. Townsend was injured when he fell on the boat’s deck. His employer at the time, and boat’s owner, Atlantic Sounding Co., refused to pay for Mr. Townsend’s medical care and time off. This case is a win for Mr. Townsend and for injured workers.
Cookie Dough E. Coli Cases Reported in Thirty States
Thursday, June 25th, 2009
As reported by KWTX in Texas (click here) and according to the CDC, seventy people in 30 states have been infected with a strain of E. coli, and 41 of those cases are associated with eating raw prepackaged cookie dough.
The Dallas Morning News (click here) points out that “the FDA and CDC are warning people to not eat any varieties of prepackaged Nestlé Toll House refrigerated cookie dough because they may be linked to an outbreak of E. coli.” When the outbreak first occurred Nestlé voluntarily recalled all its Nestlé Toll House refrigerated cookie dough products and has advised consumers that they should either throw these products out or return them to the grocery store for a refund.
Al Franken – (D) United States Senator!
Tuesday, June 30th, 2009The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled unanimously and according to the Times stated that “Franken is entitled to the election certificate he needs to assume office.”
If Franken is seated in the US Senate, Democrats will have a filibuster proof majority.
The New York Times has an excellent article on the decision, which can be read here: Court Rules Franken Has Won Senate Seat
Tags: San Francisco Injury Attorney Comments on Al Franken
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