Foreign Purchases of U.S. Homes up 24 Percent
Between March 2011 and March 2012, U.S. homes sold to foreign buyers rose 24 percent, with 51 percent of the purchases by foreigners occurring in Arizona, California, Florida and Texas. Read more…
New Health Care Ruling May Not Change Tide
azcentral.com: The Supreme Court is expected to rule on the constitutionality of some provisions of the “Affordable Care Act” (Obamacare). At this point, however, an article in azcentral.com explains why analysts expect that the ruling will not change the tide that will cause more employees in Arizona to pay more fees for health care. Employers are choosing plans that force employees to front the first $1000 to $10,000 of their health care before their coverage begins. As a result, an increasingly well-researched population of patients will use the internet to pick and choose which procedures they can afford just as they might pick from a cafeteria line. This seems to set up patients and doctors alike for failure. Lawyers, however, should become busier drafting waivers and releases to ensure doctors are able to perform the services patients request in these isolated circumstances.
Pain And Suffering – How Much Is Enough?
findlaw.com: Have you been hurt in an accident that wasn’t your fault? No, we’re not hawking legal services on television. We just want to let you know that you may need to bring a serious claim if you’re hoping to collect on the pain and suffering. This article details the factors that jurors may consider:
- The age of the injured victim. Younger victims may get larger pain-and-suffering damages, if they will have to deal with pain for the rest of their lives.
- The type of injury. Brain injuries, and injuries that cause continuing physical pain, will generally result in larger awards.
- How the injury affects the victim. This includes consideration of past, present, and future pain and suffering — including the certainty of future pain.
Record Low Number of Law Grads Have Job Requiring Bar Passage
ABA Journal: “New statistics from NALP paint a bleak picture of the job market for 2011 law grads.
The overall employment rate nine months after graduation was 85.6 percent, the lowest it has been since 1994, according to a NALP – The Association for Legal Career Professionals press release. But the employment rate doesn’t tell the whole, dismal story.
Among law grads whose employment status was known, only 65.4 percent were in jobs requiring bar passage, the lowest percentage ever measured by NALP. The number has fallen nine percentage points since 2008. Only 60 percent were working full-time as lawyers in jobs that required bar passage.”
Poll Shows Decreased Approval Of Supreme Court And Dislike Of Lifetime Tenure
ABA Journal: “The U.S. Supreme Court is suffering from public perception problems, as a new poll shows declining public approval and opposition to lifetime tenure.
Sixty percent of those surveyed by the New York Times and CBS News said they believe that appointing Supreme Court justices for life is a bad thing because it gives them too much power. Thirty-three percent, on the other hand, said lifetime appointments were a good thing because it keeps the justices independent.”