Well, I am coming back to my blawg and will start posting again. I hope this first one will be helpful.
I will be allowing comments — at least to start. The notable Ernie the Attorney has stopped permitting comments because of the spam, and I probably will have to stop also. In the meantime, please excuse the spam on my site for the — oh well, you know what.
Now, finally, here's the post:
There is a non-profit organization called the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) that provides a wealth of services to attorneys. If you have a consumer law case, their information could save you lots of time in handling the case. Among other services, the Center provides a variety of manuals that are designed for use in all 50 states. They include practice pointers and sample pleadings, checklists and forms so you don't have to reinvent the wheel. And, like the Ginzu knife, they have even more. The manuals include material on CD-Roms so you don't have to retype everything. And there's even more. They give pertinent background regarding the issues. If you want to see a sample of background material from a manual, they have a link to a PDF file that has a seven-page sub-sub-section on " ‘Back End' Sales: Rust-Proofing, Financing, Insurance, Service Contracts, Documentary Charges and Other Add-Ons." The sample text notes that "[a]s much as ninety percent of dealer profits come from the back-end," and then it goes into great detail about how consumers can get ripped off by the dealerships. Further, it cites case law reflecting how courts have held in favor of vehicle buyers in a variety of situations.
The site lists over 15 separate manuals that are shipped with CD-Roms. The manuals are listed in major categories or "Libraries" such as Debtor's Rights Library, Credit and Banking Library, Deception and Warranties Library and Consumer Litigation Library. Each of these "libraries" includes from three to five separate manuals with the CD-Roms. For instance, the Debtor's Rights Library includes manuals with CD-Roms on Consumer Bankruptcy Law and Practice, Fair Debt Collection and Student Loan Law. The Credit and Banking Library includes manuals with CDs on Truth in Lending, Fair Credit Reporting, and Credit Discrimination.
Their site also includes sample interview questions and pleadings and even a sample voir dire, a sample closing argument, and sample jury instructions.
And that's not all. They even have a "Consumer Case Consulting Service for Attorneys." For a fee, they can do research and writing, and "help you identify the best consumer law claims to pursue and help you develop the most up-to-date strategies for responding to issues in your cases." If you have any questions about their services, you can call 617-542-8010.
No, I'm not on a commission, but, over the years, I have seen their manuals in our State Supreme Court Library and have been mightily impressed with their quality. Check with your local library or Legal Aid type office. They may have the volumes. These would be great if you're a small practitioner or if you're part of a large firm that does pro bono work.