ON LEGAL

August 2022

Suit seeks to strike former Huntington Beach deputy attorney’s job title from ballot in city attorney’s race

A former Huntington Beach official who resigned after calling Islam a “threat” accused a retired deputy attorney who is running for city attorney of misleading voters by listing his former job title on the ballot, and he’s suing to have it changed, according to documents filed roughly two months ahead of the Nov. 8 elections.

Those running in the 2022 election had until Aug. 2 to select a job title for their official ballot designs and are only allowed to name positions they have held in the past year. Field listed himself as a city of Huntington Beach deputy attorney, according to the lawsuit. He left that job in October 2021, after he settled an age discrimination lawsuit against the city.

However, former Huntington Beach planning commissioner Michael Hoskinson claimed Field effectively stopped working for the city after he agreed to that settlement and was placed on administrative leave beginning May 22, 2021, according to court documents filed Aug. 19. That would have been about three months and two weeks shy of the period in which job titles were eligible for use as ballot designs.

“Why in the world would you list a job title that you haven’t held for a considerable amount of time … especially with the knowledge that your retirement was the result of a settlement with the city?” Hoskinson’s attorney, Matt Price, said during a brief interview on Friday. “What is that if not deceptive?”

Field and one other lawyer working for Huntington Beach at the time filed an age discrimination complaint in 2019 against their employer and incumbent city attorney, Michael Gates. The case was settled for $2.5 million. After that agreement was signed, Field cleaned out his office and never returned, according to court documents.

Hoskinson filed a lawsuit on Aug. 19 requesting

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August 31, 2022 by ATTORNEY

Illinois car insurance rates rising with inflation; how to find deals, discounts, and quotes for cheap insurance

CHICAGO (WLS) — Your car insurance bill may be significantly higher lately, with some consumers paying up to 30% more.

“Every additional expense especially while I’m not currently working is just really, really challenging,” said Chicagoan Christina Byrnes.

Drivers like her are trying to put the brakes on rising auto insurance rates.

“There’s still supply chain issues from the pandemic. So, like, the cost to repair vehicles is more expensive, which drives up the cost of car insurance,” said consumer advocate Ben Moore at Nerd Wallet.

They and the Illinois Public Interest Research Group have been monitoring the car insurance price hikes.

“It ranges from anywhere from eight to 10% on the lowest and to almost 30% on the highest,” said PIRG’s Abe Scarr.

There are some steps you can take to save. First, ask your insurer if you qualify for discounts.

“For example, maybe you’ve gone years without getting into a car accident or getting a traffic violation, you might qualify for a good driver discount that could be missing,” adds Moore.

You can also ask about programs that lower the cost for people who don’t drive as often, known as “pay per mile” insurance.

“You get either a plug in device that plugs into the diagnostic port of your car that tracks your car mileage, or you download an app to your smartphone that automatically tracks the mileage that you’re driving,” Moore said.

You can also try to save by bundling auto insurance with a home insurance policy, and considering increasing your deductible, meaning you’d pay more to repair your car after a wreck.

“I will say that only do it if you know that you have enough cash on hand to cover a deductible in case you do get into a car crash and need to

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August 31, 2022 by INSURANCE

Jail Brakers and Prairie State Legal Services offer cannabis expungement event Sept. 3

On Saturday, Sept. 3, Jail Brakers and the experts at Prairie State Legal Services are offering a special presentation on the sealing and expungement of cannabis records and convictions. Find out if you qualify to get your records sealed or expunged.

Jail Brakers, which offers support and services to the families of incarcerated individuals, is hosting this event from 2 to 5 pm at the McHenry County Board of Health office, 620 Dakota St. in Crystal Lake. Use the main entrance at the rear of the building.

After the state of Illinois legalized recreational use of cannabis — marijuana — the Legislature passed an automatic expungement of the records of those convicted of simple possession of small amounts of the drug. Many others, however, convicted of possession of larger quantities and/or sale and distribution are required to actively petition to have their records removed. The standing convictions can have drastic consequences for seeking employment and housing, passing background checks, obtaining certain licenses and business permits, obtaining insurance, and even child custody.

Prairie State Legal Services, 400 Russel Court in Woodstock, has developed a special program to guide and instruct individuals on how to make their appeals. The program is free to the public. To register for the event by Friday, Sept. 2, find the event on EventBrite.com.

James Carpenter, a certified recovery support specialist, expedited the program for Jail Brakers and in his broader role coordinating criminal justice system initiatives for Tree of Life.

The program is produced in cooperation with New Leaf Illinois, a statewide, state-funded initiative made up of 20 nonprofit organizations throughout Illinois who provide free legal representation or legal information to people who want their cannabis convictions off their record.

Jail Breakers is an independent ministry of Tree of Life serving the entire McHenry County

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August 31, 2022 by LEGAL

Alex Jones lawyer takes the Fifth during Sandy Hook hearing

WATERBURY, Conn. (AP) — A lawyer for conspiracy theorist Alex Jones invoked his right against self-incrimination Thursday during a civil court hearing in Connecticut over the possible improper disclosure of confidential medical records of relatives of some of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims.

New Haven-based attorney Norman Pattis refused to answer questions citing his Fifth Amendment rights during a hearing on whether he should be disciplined for giving the confidential records to unauthorized persons — other lawyers for Jones in Texas. He has denied any wrongdoing. A judge did not decide Thursday if any discipline is warranted.

The hearing was connected to a Connecticut lawsuit filed by Sandy Hook families against Jones for calling the 2012 shooting that killed 20 children and six educators in Newtown a hoax. State Judge Barabara Bellis in Waterbury found Jones liable for damages in November 2021 and a jury trial over how much he should pay is scheduled to begin next month.

Bellis, who oversaw Thursday’s hearing, said it was “unusual” for a lawyer to invoke the Fifth Amendment during a disciplinary hearing.

One of Jones’s Texas-based lawyers, Andino Reynal, also tested before Bellis on Thursday as he also faces possible discipline over the records disclosure. Reynal said he was surprised and embarrassed when he found out about the disclosure.

“It was the worst day of my legal career,” he said.

Reynal represented Jones during a trial in Austin, Texas — where Jones and his Infowars web show are based — in a similar lawsuit over his claims the school shooting was a hoax. That trial ended earlier this month when a jury awarded the parents of one of the children killed in the massacre nearly $50 million in damages. Reynal has said Jones will appeal the verdicts.

According to court documents

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August 30, 2022 by LAW

‘There are going to be some surprises’

It’s approximately one month until Cain Velasquez has his pre-trial hearing in Santa Clara county court and his attorney Mark Geragos is keeping their cards close to their chests.

One hundred eighty days ago, Velasquez was arrested Feb. 28 and subsequently charged with a handful of felonies including attempted murder. He will be due back in court Monday for an in-camera hearing, before his preliminary hearing Sept. 26.

“As we argued, not one or twice but three times on the bail hearings, he does not belong where he is, No. 1. And No. 2, the only victims here, which are his family, are the ones who really need him,” Geragos said in a recent interview with COURT TV. “It’s frankly perplexing to me what is going through the mind of the people who are seeking or who have sought to keep him in custody.”

While Velasquez was denied bail three times, his alleged target, an accused molester named Harry Goularte is out, pending a pre-trial hearing on his own scheduled for Sept. 20.

Velasquez is accused of shooting at Goularte, who allegedly molested Velasquez’s four-year-old son. Velasquez allegedly struck Goularte’s father, Paul Bender, in the shoulder instead, which Delivered in serious injuries.

Harry Goularte mugshot

Despite Goularte being listed as the complaining witness on the criminal lawsuit against Velasquez, the district attorney’s office has indicated he will not take the stand, indicated Geragos, who thinks the move is hypocritical and problematic.

“You have to wonder,” Geragos said. “We’re already in an upside-down world. Now, we’ve gone through the looking glass.”

With the two pre-trial hearings scheduled six days apart, there were questions if any continuances would be requested and which would actually transpire first. Geragos doesn’t plan on delaying his client’s hearing.

“I look forward

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August 29, 2022 by ATTORNEY

Genworth Financial: L&H Insurance Business Is Negatively Valued

Life insurance text from wooden blocks

Piotrekswat

Genworth Financial (NYSE:GNW) is a company that again provides an incredible margin of safety. It is an insurer of both mortgages and provides long-term care and life insurance policies. The company trades at a highly compressed valuation, and it is because its long-term care insurance business issued policies at very uneconomical rates for many years, which has created a substantial policy liability for the company. While it is true that this business isn’t great, with clear anchors of value for the other parts of the business including the mortgage insurance business which has gone through a minority IPO (trading also as Enact Holdings (ACT) on the NASDAQ) and the substantial non-operating loss tax assets on the books, we see that on a sum-of-the-parts basis the health and life insurance part of Genworth’s business has been given a negative value. Since investments still cover liabilities for the life and health insurance business, and we know this from being able to deconsolidate the separately trading Enact Holdings from the books, that negative value makes no sense. This is essentially a no-brainer buy.

Sum of the Parts

The Genworth Financial thesis is ultimately a sum-of-the-parts logic that can be easily followed. There are three elements to the business. The mortgage insurance business, which went through a minority IPO meaning Genworth still owns 81% of the shares (and therefore their results are still consolidated into Genworth’s), the tax assets that arise from a tax sharing agreement among the constituent subsidiaries of Genworth’s business and can now be realized thanks to their profitability, and finally the wart on the company’s face which is the life and health insurance business.

Life Insurance Segment

The life insurance segment as a whole isn’t such a problem, the issue is the long-term

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August 29, 2022 by INSURANCE

Alex Jones’ lawyer on Sandy Hook leak: ‘Worst day’ of career

WATERBURY — The attorney who ran Alex Jones’ defense in the Sandy Hook defamation trial in Texas testified in a disciplinary hearing Thursday that he was shocked to learn his office had leaked confidential medical records of grieving families that were protected by a court order.

“It was the worst day of my legal career,” said Andino Reynal, Jones’ lead attorney in Texas, testifying on Thursday in state Superior Court in Waterbury how he reacted when he found out during the Texas trial that medical records from a Sandy Hook defamation case in Connecticut had been sent by his office to the lawyers for two parents who won a defamation case against Jones in Texas. “I was surprised by it in court…and I immediately looked for a way to claw the information back.”

Reynal’s admission on Thursday that he was “very, very worried about what happened” was in contrast to the stoic testimony of New Haven defense attorney Norm Pattis, who is running Jones’ defense in a Connecticut defamation awards trial set to begin on Sept. 13. Pattis refused to answer questions on the witness stand about his role in the leak, citing his rights under the Fifth Amendment 25 times.

State Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis, who suspended jury selection Thursday and Friday in the upcoming Connecticut trial specifically to decide whether to discipline Reynal and Pattisgave both sides 10 days to make arguments about the implications of Pattis refusing to answer questions in his own disciplinary hearing.

What that means for a speedy ruling from Bellis on the discipline question remains to be seen, except to say the judge ordered closing arguments for Sept. 2.

During a hearing on the same discipline question last weekChris Mattei, the lead attorney for an FBI agent and eight

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August 29, 2022 by LAW

Michigan drops to 4th most expensive state for auto insurance, new report finds

LANSING, Mich. — Michigan is no longer the most expensive state for auto insurance, according to a new report.

Insure.com released its annual report on car insurance rates by state, ranking Michigan fourth most expensive in the nation.

Michigan, which was ranked second most expensive in 2021, now follows Florida, Louisiana and Delaware.

Researchers attribute Michigan’s auto insurance cost decrease to the 2019 bipartisan no-fault auto reform, which took effect on July 2, 2021.

According to member company data from Insurance Alliance of Michigan (IAM), more than 200,000 Michigan drivers without prior coverage bought auto insurance since the reforms took place.

IAM says out of those drivers, more than 83,000 of them were without auto insurance for at least three years.

“Michigan once had a broken, outdated and expensive auto no-fault system. Bipartisan auto no-fault reforms have cracked down on fraud, reined in overcharging by medical providers and have provided consumers a choice – all while continuing medically necessary care and offering the highest personal injury protection coverage in the nation,” said Erin McDonough, executive director of the Insurance Alliance of Michigan.

However, the Michigan Public Health Institute conducted a report between September and October of 2021, commissioned by the Brain Injury Association of Michigan, which found that more than 1,500 crash survivors lost access to care since the no-fault reform went into effect.

READ MORE: 1 Year of Auto No Fault Reform: Crash survivors still struggling to get some care

That report also found that more than 3,000 medical-care employees lost their jobs and 96 care companies said they were no longer able to accept patients with auto no-fault insurance benefits.

Click here for FOX 17’s full coverage on Michigan’s Auto No-Fault Policies

Follow FOX 17: Facebook – Twitter – Instagram – YouTube

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August 28, 2022 by INSURANCE

Half-naked lawyer beat ex-wife to death in front of children: officials

A North Dakota lawyer allegedly beat his ex-wife to death in Minnesota on Tuesday as she clung to the youngest of their five children and two others screamed for help, according to the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office.

The younger boy, 2, was so traumatized that he didn’t respond to questions from deputies after they had his father in custody and rushed his mother to the hospital.

Anders Odegaard, 31, and Carissa Odegaard, also 31, divorced last year, court records show.

In a custody dispute this week, he apparently refused to let her take their kids to church and a fight broke out, deputies wrote in the criminal complaint after interviewing the children.

Two of their boys ran outside, flagged down a stranger and begged him to call 911 “because their mom was bleeding really bad and needed help,” according to the complaint.

The first responding deputy found Anders Odegaard in the kitchen wearing just his underwear, with blood on his face and in his hair. Carissa Odegaard was unresponsive and lying in a doorway — with a pool of blood around her head.

The deputy asked him to explain the situation.

“I don’t feel right,” Odegaard replied, according to the complaint.

The deputy found that Carissa Odegaard was not breathing. He cuffed the ex-husband and attempted CPR on the victim. He noticed “severe head trauma” and called for an ambulance.

The 9-year-old boy told investigators he saw his father strike his mother with a knife or spatula in the head moments before he ran outside and found someone to call 911, according to authorities. He also told deputies he’d seen his father hit his mother before.

Odegaard family
A fight allegedly broke out after he refused to let his ex-wife take their five children to church.
GoFundMe

Three brothers, ages 9, 8

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August 28, 2022 by LAW

BC single mothers group challenges province’s stance on legal aid system

Media wait outside BC Supreme Court in Vancouver, in 2015. A three-day hearing has begun in BC Supreme Court by a group defending itself against the provincial government‘s stance that it doesn’t have the capacity to take a case regarding legal aid to trial .DARYL DYCK/The Canadian Press

A three-day hearing has begun in British Columbia Supreme Court, with a group challenging the provincial government’s stance that it doesn’t have the capacity to take a case regarding legal aid to trial.

The Single Mothers’ Alliance launched the constitutional case five years ago saying eligibility for legal aid does not meet the needs of low-income women, especially those escaping domestic violence.

The alliance is being represented by West Coast Leaf, whose executive director says eligibility requirements are problematic because single mothers must earn about $29,000 for a two-person household to qualify for legal aid.

Raji Mangat says that means many working mothers must represent themselves in what is essentially a “broken” system, leaving some retraumatized because they could be cross-examined by a former partner’s lawyer.

The Attorney General’s Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Mangat says women who are working full time and earning minimum wage can end up being treated like they have disposable income to spend on legal fees while having to take time off to be in court.

“When you factor in the fact that we’re talking about cases involving family violence, the stakes are high,” she said.

“The abusive ex is typically somebody who’s not going to be reasonable, so these are not cases that have a prospect of settling out of court,” Mangat said of an “intimidating” process.

“Our Family Law Act has a very robust definition of family violence, and there’s all sorts of things you

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August 28, 2022 by LEGAL
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