| Volume 114 Number 11 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
Have you been contacted on the phone or internet by someone offering you a way to make money, but requiring you to wire them some funds in order to do it? Beware, because once you use wire transfer to send money it is probably gone forever, and because of that wire transfer is a favorite tool for fraudsters. Click here for more.
Blue Bell Ice Cream Returning to Stores
Blue Bell Trucks have been spotted in Houston, Texas and the company has confirmed that they are full of ice cream and headed to distribution centers. No word on when the ice cream will be on the shelves, but this marks the return of Blue Bell ice cream after a halt in production to address a Listeria outbreak. Click here for more.
Your Money
Are you too heavily invested in stocks? With interest rates so low on bonds and cash investments, it is not surprising that a new study shows that Baby Boomers may have too many equities in their portfolios. If you are nearing retirement, it might be time to rebalance your investments to avoid the risk of a downturn in the stock market. Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
Rue 68 offer to individual plaintiff does not moot class action. Plaintiff filed suit against seeking statutory damages for alleged violations of the Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA), 15 U.S.C.1693, et seq., after he was charged $2.95 for an ATM withdrawal but was not given notice or informed of the fee. At issue was whether a Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 68 offer mooted plaintiff’s individual claim and the class action claims. Finding the reasoning of the Ninth and Eleventh Circuits persuasive, the Fifth Circuit held that an unaccepted offer of judgment to a named plaintiff in a class action “is a legal nullity, with no operative effect.” Nothing in Rule 68 alters that basic principle. Accordingly, given that plaintiff's individual claim was not mooted by the unaccepted offer in this case, neither were the class claims. Hooks v. Landmark Indus. (5th Circuit) Click here for more.