| Volume 142 Number 80 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
Have you gotten a call from an imposter, maybe someone pretending to be with the Social Security Administration, IRS, or a tech support company, this year? If so, you’re not alone. Calls from imposters were the most-reported topic of unwanted calls to the FTC over the past year (FY2019). Click here for more.
Venmo plans to offer a credit card next year
Venmo is a mobile app that allows people to send each other money. Highly popular with millennials, it makes it easy to split the bill at a restaurant. But the high-tech payment platform owned by PayPal is also going old school with preparations to roll out a co-branded credit card in partnership with Synchrony. The card is expected to launch in the second half of 2020. The card will be aimed at Venmo’s mostly millennial customer base. The company says it will have more digital capabilities than a traditional credit card, provide granular controls and alerts, and offer rewards. Click here for more.
Your Money
Passing away without an estate plan is a huge mistake that can tie up your estate for years in probate. Yet, many people fail to create a will, living trust and other key financial instructions. Estate planning involves officially writing down what you want to happen after you die. This is commonly accomplished using wills, trusts, advance directives and beneficiary designations on accounts. Communicating your final wishes can be emotionally draining, and many people are reluctant to get started. It's common to feel intimidated by the complexities of estate planning and forced to make difficult decisions before you are ready. Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal from a California law firm that argues the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is unconstitutionally structured, positioning the justices to settle long-standing questions surrounding the legitimacy of the independent agency’s single-director design. The high court said it will take up Seila Law LLC’s constitutional challenge to the CFPB in an order list released Friday. As is customary, the justices did not explain their reasoning for granting certiorari in the case, Seila Law LLC v. CFPB, which asks them to review a Ninth Circuit decision affirming the constitutionality of the agency’s existing structure under the Dodd-Frank Act. The Ninth Circuit ruled in May that it is “constitutionally permissible” for the CFPB’s director to have for-cause removal protection, which prevents the president from firing the head of the agency except in certain limited extreme circumstances. But Seila Law has argued that it unduly restricts presidential authority and violates the Constitution’s separation of powers. Click here for more.