Third party debt collectors may be violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). This is a federal law restricting the use of automated equipment to dial cellular telephones. The statute prohibits using any automatic telephone dialing systems or pre-recorded voices to make any calls to a paging service, a cell phone, a specialized mobile radio service or calls that the party may be charged for the call.


Many debt collection companies use pre-dictive dialers. Predictive dialers place calls without human intervention until a connection is made, in which case the dialers then attempt to connect the recipient with a debt collector. In most cases, the debtor has not authorized automated placement of calls to his or her cell phone and often did not even provide their cell number to the defendant or original creditor.

Victims can receive statutory damages even if the defendant (bill collectors) are only negligent but have violated the TCPA.

To make sure you have the safest and best holiday season, check out these Holiday Safety Tips from the Ohio Committee for Severe Weather Awareness:



http://www.weathersafety.ohio.gov/WinterFireSafetyTips.aspx

American Association for Justice

 WE are proud to announce:
Kitrick, Lewis & Harris Co., L.P.A. president Mark Kitrick  is featured in this year's
 American Association for Justice 2012 Video

Corporate misconduct and corporate lawsuits abound. People often think about individuals injury claims as clogging the court docket and that the claims are for millions. These beliefs are not even close to reality. We must not forget that corporate greed and businesses suing business are major business issues that consume significant court and government time and involve massive amounts of money. For instance:




- Andarko Petroleum Corp. will pay $4 Billion to BP PLS to settle claims related to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Andarko owned 25% interest in the well.

- Johnson and Johnson Scios unit has agreed to pay an $85 Million fine and plead guilty to misbranding its heart drug Natrecor.

- Kentucky settled with pharmaceutical giant PFIZER regarding its illegal off label marketing of its urology drug Detrol.

- Oracle will pay more than $199.5 Million to the GSA regarding is overbilling the federal government over 9 years. This was done through the False Claims Act.

- And Citigroup is paying $285 Million to settle SEC Fraud charges. Goldman Sachs settled similar charges last year for $550 Million and JP Morgan chase paid $153 Million this year as well.

The Truth About Litigation:

Corporate misconduct and corporate lawsuits abound. People often think about individuals injury claims as clogging the court docket and that the claims are for millions. These beliefs are not even  close to reality. We must not forget that  corporate greed and businesses suing business are major business issues that consume significant court and government time and involve massive amounts of money. For instance:

-          Andarko Petroleum Corp. will pay $4 Billion to BP PLS to settle claims related to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Andarko owned 25% interest in the well.

-          Johnson and Johnson Scios unit has agreed to pay an $85 Million fine and plead guilty to misbranding its heart drug Natrecor.

-          Kentucky settled with pharmaceutical giant PFIZER regarding its illegal off label marketing of its urology drug Detrol.

-          Oracle will pay more than $199.5 Million to the GSA regarding is overbilling the federal government over 9 years. This was done through the False Claims Act.

-          And Citigroup is paying $285 Million to settle SEC Fraud  charges. Goldman Sachs settled similar charges last year for $550 Million and JP Morgan chase paid $153 Million this year as well.

Safety First

http://www.recalls.gov/

Safety should be first when it comes to products and your daily knowledge of recalls of various products, whether it be food or drugs or any bad or dangerous products on the market. The Government has a mobile application that you can download which provides better service to you, what is called a “one stop shop.”  If you go to www.recalls.gov, you will be able to use the app so you can be informed, as we believe that an informed client is the best client.

Also, there are many scams during the holiday seasons. The FDA Health Care Scams website compiles various videos and articles to allow you to better protect you and your family.  Check out these two websites:

http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm278980.htm

http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ProtectYourself/HealthFraud/default.htm

Mark Kitrick wrote an article for the book Bouncebacks! that was recently published this last month.  Bouncebacks! is currently being sold nationwide to emergency room physicians and other doctors, along with others in the healthcare field.  To learn more about the book and to view Mark's article click on the website below:

http://embouncebacks.com/books/