| Volume 142 Number 57 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide credit reporting companies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. Want more details about your rights under the FCRA? Click here for more.
Google settles lawsuit tied to its Pixel devices
Google has agreed to pay Pixel owners who experienced problems with their phone’s microphone up to $500 each. The lawsuit, which originated in 2017, alleged that Google intentionally sold Pixel phones with “severe microphone issues.” Google acknowledged the microphone issue in March of 2017 and said it affected “less than 1 percent of Pixel phones.” The company added that the defective phones had a “hairline crack in the solder connection on the audio codec.” A few months ago, Google said it would pay out $7.25 million to Pixel and Pixel XL owners who experienced microphone issues on their device, as long as it was manufactured before January 4, 2017. Click here for more.
Your Money
When we add technological bells and whistles to a residence, these additions and upgrades are typically aimed at ourselves and our own day-to-day comfort and ease of living. The question is whether some of these upgrades translate to a higher contract price when we sell. If the market is healthy, smart renovations will improve the value of the property – and of course make it more enjoyable for the owner to live in. Here are some smart home upgrades that can attract buyers to your home: Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
Court rules that the New York statute prohibiting agreements to arbitrate sexual harassment claims is inconsistent with and violated the FAA. In 2018, New York passed a statute meant to address claims of sexual harassment in the workplace. (N.Y. C.P.L.R. § 7525.) Specifically, the statute prohibited contracts that required parties to submit to mandatory arbitration to resolve allegations or claims of unlawful sexual harassment. As the first New York court to address the obvious conflict between federal and state law, the court in Latif ruled that the New York statute prohibiting agreements to arbitrate sexual harassment claims was inconsistent with and violated the FAA. The court found that the employee’s sexual harassment claims were subject to mandatory arbitration and granted the employers’ motion to compel arbitration. Latif v. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, et al. Click here for more.