| Volume 135 Number 8 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
Under the law, a landlord cannot withhold money from a security deposit for damage caused by ordinary wear and tear. What’s the best way to prove that you didn’t damage an apartment while you lived there—take pictures or a video before you move in, and when you move out. Click here for more.
Parents beware: air mattresses are dangerous to infants
Writing in the American Journal of Public Health, the nursing and social work researchers say the inflatable beds, popular in low-income and transient households, can be fatal for babies. “Even when fully inflated, air mattresses can mold to the infant’s face and obstruct the airway by forming an occlusive seal,” they write. “The risk increases when air mattresses leak during use. Under-inflation was a factor in some of the infant deaths reviewed.”
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Your Money
Personal finance expert: Try these 5 negotiation tips to score a $5,000 raise. (1) Show how you can solve your business' problems with the briefcase technique, explain how your work translates into more profit or savings for the company; (2) Use comparables to justify a higher salary; (3) Prepare your boss to give you a raise in six months; (4) Know exactly how you'll respond if your boss objects; and (5) Know what salary you want. Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
FCRA class action judgment reversed. Relying on Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, 136 S. Ct. 1540 (2016), the Fourth Circuit vacated and remanded for dismissal a trial court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of the plaintiff in an $11 million, 69,000 member class action under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The suit was based on the defendant credit reporting agency listing the name of a defunct credit card issuer instead of the name of the servicer as the source of information on the plaintiff’s credit report. In its ruling, the Fourth Circuit held that the plaintiff had not suffered an injury-in-fact arising from alleged incomplete or incorrect credit report information, and thus had not satisfied the constitutional standing requirements to pursue a claim. Dreher v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc. (4th Cir. 2017). Click here for more.