| Volume 129 Number 7 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
Believe it or not, now is the time to worry about holiday returns. Whether a gift may be returned or exchanged, and on what terms, depends on the agreement between the store and the purchaser. Whenever you buy a gift be sure to ask about the store’s return policy, and ask for it in writing. Click here for more.
Facebook and Google Under Pressure to Ban Fake News
Facebook and Google are under increased scrutiny to monitor their sites for fake and misleading news content. However, Facebook is reluctant to be the judge of what content their users see. Such monitoring could alienate users, hurt advertising revenue, and cause a bigger debate on how much influence they should have over news content on their sites. Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a post on Saturday, “We must be extremely cautious about becoming arbiters of truth ourselves.” On Monday, both companies said they would bar sites they consider to be distributing fake news from using their ad-selling services, which can be an important source of revenue for web publishers. Click here for more.
Your Money
If you want to take advantage of Black Friday deals and also avoid the crowds, some credit cards offer price protection that reimburses customers the difference of an item that goes on sale within a couple months of purchase. In other words, you can buy an item at full price now, but still get the Black Friday sale price. Check with your credit company and read the fine print to make sure. The below link has a list of credit cards that offer price difference protection. Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
Initiating a lawsuit five years before requesting arbitration does not constitute a waiver. In 2010, Citibank filed a debt collection action against Perry. In 2015, Perry filed an answer to Citibank’s complaint and a class counterclaim alleging that Citibank had violated the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act. Citibank then filed a motion asking the court to compel arbitration of the parties’ claims. The circuit court concluded that Citibank had implicitly waived its right to arbitration by filing suit in circuit court and waiting nearly five years before seeking to invoke its contractual right to arbitrate. Citibank appealed. The West Virginia Supreme Court reversed, holding that Citibank did not waive its right to compel arbitration in this matter. Citibank, N.A. v. Perry (W. Va. 2016). Click here for more.