| Volume 123 Number 6 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
For purposes of inheritance, without a will adopted children and those naturally born are treated the same, but a stepchild is not. If you want a stepchild to inherit property you must have a will. Click here for more.
Gluten-Free Diet can be Harmful
Medical experts warn that placing children on a gluten-free diet without consulting a physician could be damaging to their health. Gluten-free diets are critical for people living with celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder in which ingesting gluten -- a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye -- leads to damage in the small intestine. Only an estimated 1 percent of Americans live with celiac disease, while there has been an explosive growth of the gluten-free food industry. Millions of people now shun gluten and even place their children on gluten free diets without consulting their physician, even though there's no medical reason for them to do so Click here for more.
Your Money
Most Americans are woefully underprepared for retirement, with the typical American reporting retirement account savings balances of under $60,000. If you have access to a workplace retirement plan (usually a defined contribution, or DC, plan like a 401(k) or 403(b)), you're better off than 45% of American workers ages 25-64 but still on a shaky road. According to a new survey by SEI, 84% of DC plan sponsors (aka employers) are "not very confident their plan's participants will have the needed amount of income to retire at retirement age." Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
Assent a motion to compel arbitration, the user agreement does not contain an independent class action waiver outside the arbitration context. In this case, Plaintiff Meyer alleged that Defendant Kalanick, as CEO of Uber and an occasional Uber driver, had conspired with Uber drivers to fix prices through the Uber mobile application (the "Uber app") in violation of federal and state antitrust laws. Defendant asserts that Plaintiff has waived his right to a class action in signing-up to use Uber, which included a dispute resolution clause in the terms and conditions. The issue is whether the user agreement contains a class action waiver that is effective in the absence of a motion to compel arbitration. The Southern District of New York said no and held that Plaintiff had not waived the right to proceed via class action, nor was plaintiff equitably estopped from pursuing a class action suit against Defendant in signing a user agreement. Meyer v. Kalanick Click here for more.