Miscellaneous

• AMO Says the Fault Lies With the Consumers--Not With Complete

  John Hopkins | June 12, 2007 10:17 AM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  Well, American Medical Optics' president and CEO, James Mazzo has finally taken the same path that Bausch & Lomb has in defending ReNu with MoistureLoc. Associated Press reported Mr. Mazzo as stating that the problem with Complete® MoisturePlus is not his company's problem. Instead, he has chosen to blame the consumer and, if some Chicago researchers are to be believed, it is even in the water....

• AOL; the lady doth protest too much, methinks

  John Hopkins | March 05, 2007 2:17 PM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  AOL, the once power house of on-line communities, has just put up a new feature on the "Money & Finance" portion of their web site. The section is called "Most Outrageous Lawsuits" and they say that "Americans are lawsuit crazy". They also make the claim that lawsuits have "caused some companies to be extra cautious..." Wow, imagine how horrible--lawsuits cause companies to become more...

• Trading Gas Mileage for Safety?

  John Hopkins | December 19, 2006 4:47 PM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  Americans who are trading in their gas hogs for smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles may well be trading in the safety provided by many of those larger vehicles as well. According to a recently-released study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, "[o]nly the Versa earned the top rating of "Good" for front- and side-impact protection as well as for whiplash protection in rear impacts."...

• The Law of Large Numbers

  John Hopkins | December 11, 2006 10:49 AM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  The "law of large numbers" is the theory upon which all insurance exists. Essentially, it says that if you can put enough "risks" together, then the majority can pay the claims of the minority. It relies on the idea that, in any large group, it will be the minority who suffer some sort of loss and submit an insurance claim. The larger the group, the more likely that premiums paid by the...

• First, Physician Do No Harm

  John Hopkins | December 08, 2006 2:18 PM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  Three years ago, insurance companies and rabid tort reformer physicians convinced the unsuspecting public that tort reform was needed to reduce malpractice insurance rates being paid by physicians. They told the public that victims of medical negligence were simply litigious and that trial lawyers were greedy. They told the public that if tort reform was not passed, they were all leaving Florida...

• Drug Companies Scamper to Garner Members of Congress

  John Hopkins | November 26, 2006 11:31 AM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  If you are in the US senate or house, Big Drug Companies want you! So, if you want a luxury vacation, a free executive jet ride, or a contribution, just speak up as the pharmaceutical lobbyist comes to call. The New York Times reported that: "Drug Industry Is on Defensive as Power Shifts". Apparently, Big Drug Companies do not think that Democrats will be quite as generous with them as...

• Bradenton Lady Treading on Tire Manufacturer

  John Hopkins | November 07, 2006 9:35 AM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  Kudos to Ms. Cindy Ritchie for having the tenacity to stand up to one of the big tire companies. Ms. Ritchie had a tire on her truck that delaminated, causing her truck to roll over. She made a property damage claim to the manufacturer, Yokohama Tire Corporation. Not only did she not receive compensation; received no apology; but the big tire company lost her tire! Many people might give up and...

• Big Tobacco: Instead of Repentence, More Dirty Tricks to Hook the Next VIctims

  Kevin Walsh | September 01, 2006 5:39 PM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  Seeming to have forgotten the public relations nightmares of high profile and high-dollar litigation of the past decade, Big Tobacco has gone back to its roots. And its roots are not a pretty sight. Since the first famous whistleblower described an industry culture of creating and fostering addictions to nicotine at all costs, the industry has paid billions of dollars in settlements, public...

• Victimized Policyholders May Triumph Due to Law Firm Malpractice

  John Hopkins | August 30, 2006 11:35 AM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  The IndyStar reports that over 8000 people who thought they had health insurance through the Indiana Construction Industry Trust Helath Plan were victimized and suffered denials of their medical claims. Executives of the company have reportedly been sent to jail for their embezzlement of millions. Sending the executives to jail, however, still left thousands of victimized policyholders holding...

• Iraq Corporate Fraud Lawsuits Take Hit

  Staff Writer | August 24, 2006 10:57 AM | 0 CommentsWest Palm Beach, FL

  When a U.S. judge set aside a $10 million verdict against Custer Battles last week, it brought into question the ability of the government and whistleblowers to penalize companies that profited illegally from the war in Iraq. Custer Battles was found to have grossly inflated invoices to the Coalition Provisional Authority, but Judge T.S. Ellis, III ruled that invoices to the CPA were not proven...