| Volume 143 Number 47 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
Every day we are reading about researchers studying potential ways to prevent, treat or cure COVID-19. However, at this time there certainly are no products you can buy online, or services you can get at a neighborhood clinic, that are proven to work. But that doesn’t stop some sellers from pitching products that claim to protect or heal you. Click here for more.
House Democrats propose $3 trillion coronavirus rescue bill
House Democrats on Tuesday unveiled their latest proposal to mitigate the economic devastation caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The package calls for $3 trillion to be set aside for emergency funding. At one trillion more than the stimulus bill agreed upon in March, the bill would become the new largest emergency aid package in U.S. history.
A vote on the bill, which is called the “Heroes Act,” is expected on Friday. Click here for more.
Your Money
Between lost jobs and shuttered businesses, the COVID-19 pandemic seems to be leaving economic ruin in its wake. However, there may be an upside to months spent at home. You can use the pandemic and subsequent state shutdowns to your advantage by following these steps: Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
Debt collectors are transforming the business of our civil courts. In Texas, debt claims more than doubled from 2014 to 2018, accounting for 30 percent of the state’s civil caseload by the end of that five-year period. This is just one of the findings of a recent Pew study. The study found that the business of state civil courts has changed over the past three decades. In 1990, a typical civil court docket featured cases with two opposing sides, each with an attorney, most frequently regarding commercial matters and disputes over contracts, injuries, and other harms. The lawyers presented their cases, and the judge, acting as the neutral arbiter, rendered a decision based on those legal and factual arguments. Thirty years later, that docket is dominated not by cases involving adversaries seeking redress for an injury or business dispute, but rather by cases in which a company represented by an attorney sues an individual, usually without the benefit of legal counsel, for money owed. While the number of cases has declined more than 18% over the past eight years, debt collection cases are rapidly increasing. Click here for more.