| Volume 66 Number 10 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
Have you ever had a family law, wills, or landlord/tenant question? Are you being harassed by a debt collector, stuck with a lemon or interested in starting a business? These are just some of the legal topics taught at the People’s Law School! The People's Law school is a free program focused on sharing information with the public about their legal rights and the role these rights play in their daily lives. More than 50,000 people have attended classes at the People’s Law School, taught by volunteer judges, lawyers and law professors. The People's Law School is this Saturday, October 1. Register now! Click here for more.
Health Insurance Premiums Jump 9%
Employer spending on health insurance premiums jumped dramatically this year, with rates increasing by 9% for a family plan and 8% for a single employee plan. In 2010, health insurance premiums for a family increased by only 3%. The new federal health care law likely only played a very small part in the changes, but politicians will likely use the latest data as ammunition going in to election year. The new health law actually has provisions for review when insurance premiums increase by 10% or more. New technology, expensive designer drugs, and greater hospital costs have all contributed to the rise in health care premiums. Will rates continue to increase, or will they level off? Click here for more.
How to Protect Your Home From Thieves
According to the FBI, a home is robbed every 14.6 seconds. Many robberies don't involve a thief busting down a door or breaking a window. In fact, you may be be doing things that make your home attractive to a prospective thief. By leaving your garage door unlocked, placing an extra key outside your home, keeping your house dark, and allowing your grass to grow are just a few things that criminals look for when deciding whether your home is the right one to strike. What are ten things you can do to protect your home from a break-in? Click here for more.
Google+ Opens to the Public
Despite breaking records since its inception, many thought Google+ ("Google Plus") was already dead. After-all, the company is effectively competing with Facebook and Twitter for market share. Although it hadn't yet opened to the public, many were already receiving invitations to participate in the site during beta testing. Last week, Google's new social networking site opened to the public for the very first time. From September 17 to September 24, Google+ experienced a staggering 1,269 percent growth. Google+ is now the third most visited social networking site, behind only Facebook and Twitter. Click here for more.
Your Money
Are two homes better than one? Take a look at the after-tax cost of owning a second home for personal use. Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
Magnuson-Moss exhaustion rule is not jurisdictional. The Ninth Circuit held that a federal court is not deprived of subject matter jurisdiction in a breach-of-warranty lawsuit by the plaintiff's failure to first engage in dispute resolution under the terms of her new car lease. The court stated, “The only question before us is whether Maronyan’s failure to comply with the MMWA’s requirement that a consumer resort to an informal dispute settlement procedure before filing a civil action deprives the court of subject matter jurisdiction. We hold that it does not.” Click here for more.