Category Archives: Consumer Rights

What Does It Say That Courts Records Are No Longer To Be Used For Credit Score Calculating and Reporting

Posted on March 12, 2017 by richardzorza

What a judgment on the courts.  As reported by the Washington Post — (Kenneth R. Harney): In a little-known policy shift, the three national credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — plan to stop collecting and reporting substantial amounts … Continue reading →

Posted in Bankruptcy, Consumer Rights, Court Fees and Costs, Court Management, Debt Collction, Evictions, Foreclosure, Housing | 3 Comments

Now is the Time to Preserve the History of Government (and More) on the Internet –The WayBack Machine

Posted on January 18, 2017 by richardzorza

Very few people know about the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine.  It is an amazing tool, which lets you look at the history of websites, that is to say how they have looked over time. Here, picking an example totally at … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Rights, Dept. of Justice, Evidence, Freedom of Expression, Technology, Tools | Comments Off on Now is the Time to Preserve the History of Government (and More) on the Internet –The WayBack Machine

NYT Article on “Why Isn’t There a Landlord Blacklist?” Raises a More General Question

Posted on November 5, 2016 by richardzorza

That question is asked in a September piece by Ronda Kaysen in the Times Real Estate Section. The author points out the data about tenant available to landlords, including from databases of eviction cases culled from court records. Renting an … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Justice Generally, Consumer Rights, Evictions, Federal Agencies, Federal Courts, Housing, Media | 1 Comment

DOJ/NSF White House Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable Report on Access to Justice Research

Posted on September 7, 2016 by richardzorza

I have been much remiss in not blogging earlier about this important and very timely Report from the Department of Justice (NIJ and ATJ) and the National Science Foundation on Research in Access to Justice.  Formally titled White House Legal … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Justice Generally, Consumer Rights, Dept. of Justice, expungement, Family Law, Foreclosure, LAIR, Legal Aid, Medical System Comparision, Non-Lawyer Practice, Outcome Measures, Reentry, Referral Systems, Research and Evalation, Self-Help Services | Comments Off on DOJ/NSF White House Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable Report on Access to Justice Research

Great NYT Online Piece on “Legal Aid With A Digital Twist” Features Claudia Johnson, Law Help Interactive, and Others

Posted on June 1, 2016 by richardzorza

At last, the media is staring to “get” that legal aid is not just traditional advocacy. The Time’s Fixes has a piece on digital expungment, ATJ hackathons, our guest blogger Claudia Johnson, Law Help Interactive and more. The rise of … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Justice Generally, Consumer Rights, expungement, Foreclosure, Forms, Self-Help Services, Technology | Comments Off on Great NYT Online Piece on “Legal Aid With A Digital Twist” Features Claudia Johnson, Law Help Interactive, and Others

Add Access to Justice As A Criteria for “Just Companies” An Idea Urged By Paul Tudor Jones II, hedge-fund billionaire

Posted on December 21, 2015 by richardzorza

Under the wonderful headline, A Plan to Rank ‘Just’ Companies Aims to Close the Wealth Gap, Alexandra Stanley has a great article in today’s New York Times. Like all the best ideas, this one is simple: Paul Tudor Jones II, … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Justice Generally, Consumer Rights, Federal Courts, Rules Reform, Supreme Court, Systematic Change | 1 Comment

What Might “Access to Justice Sullivan Principles” Look Like?

Posted on November 9, 2015 by richardzorza

I recently blogged about the idea of access to justice “Sullivan Principles”.  As man will remember, the Sullivan Principles were a set of principles for corporations about dealing with the old apartheid regime in South Africa.  While some criticized these … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Rights, Funding, Rules Reform, Simplification | Comments Off on What Might “Access to Justice Sullivan Principles” Look Like?

Reflections on Two Comments on 100% Access to Justice Definition

Posted on September 6, 2015 by richardzorza

The proposed definition of 100% access to justice has received near record comments — and hopefully there will be more.  I want to comment on two here, although all are worth consideration and debate. Jim Greiner points out that the … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Justice Boards, Access to Justice Generally, Administative Proecdure, Bar Associations, Budget Issues, Commentators, Consumer Rights, Court Management, Guest Bloggers, Research and Evalation, Simplification, Systematic Change, Triage | Comments Off on Reflections on Two Comments on 100% Access to Justice Definition

Prosecutors Undercut their Legitimacy and Thus the Rule of Law

Posted on September 18, 2012 by richardzorza

In a wonderfully understated story, last Sunday’s New York Times reports on the hard-to-believe practice of DAs allowing collection agencies to use their letterhead in collection efforts without the DAs making any effort to verify the asserted debt. The [letters] … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Rights | Tagged | 1 Comment

Discharging Student Loans — Self-Represented Effectiveness

Posted on August 31, 2012 by richardzorza

The NY Times has an interesting article on how few student loans are discharged in bankruptcy — actually an additional procedure with different standards is needed.  There’s a debate about whether the problem is lack of attempts, or the admittedly … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Rights, Research and Evalation | Comments Off on Discharging Student Loans — Self-Represented Effectiveness

Implications of News Report on Problems with Credit Card Debt Collections

Posted on August 13, 2012 by richardzorza

The New York Times reports today that credit card debt collection practices have just the same problems that emerged in the foreclosure crisis: The same problems that plagued the foreclosure process — and prompted a multibillion-dollar settlement with big banks … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Rights | Comments Off on Implications of News Report on Problems with Credit Card Debt Collections

Consumer Reports Misses the Boat on Online Legal Tools

Posted on August 6, 2012 by richardzorza

I have always had the greatest respect for Consumer Report Magazine, and its commitment to standing up for the little guy in their dealings with the providers of products and services. I was disappointed to see that the current September … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Rights, Self-Help Services, Technology | 2 Comments

Making Technology Transform Government — the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau Fellowship Program

Posted on July 9, 2012 by richardzorza

I love this from the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau: If you’re a talented developer or designer, you’re getting a lot of offers. But you need a serious challenge. And we’re pretty sure you won’t find anything as serious as this. … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Rights, Foreclosure, Software Developers, Technology | Comments Off on Making Technology Transform Government — the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau Fellowship Program