| Volume 122 Number 6 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
Texas generally does not allow your wages to be garnished, even if you are sued. The exceptions are debts for child support, student loans and certain taxes. Click here for more.
Fees at AT&T and Verizon are No Upgrade
The "device upgrade fee" is not an upgrade. This surcharge on new phones — as distinct from an activation fee charged to open a new line of service — is not new. Verizon, the nation’s largest carrier, charges $20 when you buy a phone from the carrier, either at full price or on its installment-plan program. A statement from the carrier explained that it “helps cover our increased support costs associated with customers switching their devices.” But if you bring your own device to the carrier, either purchased directly from a manufacturer or bought second-hand, the fee doesn’t apply. Click here for more.
Your Money
Paying taxes is optional to some degree when it comes to investment strategies and tactics. Included in this article are four instances of when investors are able to exercise considerable control as to when — and even whether — to pay taxes. Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
Manifest disregard of the evidence is not a basis for overturning arbitration award. The appellant argued that the arbitrator failed to weigh evidence properly when it made a finding of fact with respect to the passing of title. The Second Circuit rejected this as a basis of overturning an award based “manifest disregard of the law,” holding that the Second Circuit “does not recognize manifest disregard of the evidence as proper ground for vacating an arbitrator’s award.” ISMT, Ltd. v. Fremak Indus., Inc., Case No. 15-2086 (2d Cir. Feb. 24, 2016). Click here for more.