Need a lawyer? Here are some helpful hints about how to select the right one
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on March 10th, 2010
At some point in your life, you will probably need to hire a lawyer. It may be for help when you are injured in a vehicle accident or fall, or if you are going through a divorce, tax dispute, criminal charges or custody or other legal issues. It's uncommon today if at some point you don't have to at least consult an attorney about something in your life. So if that happens, where in the...
Gun rights on Main Street: more citizens with legal “open carry” guns is not the answer
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on March 6th, 2010
You're sitting in Starbucks having a coffee and relaxing when another customer walks in with a big, shiny handgun in a holster on his hip and heads over to the counter. Do you: A) Hit the deck in the fear that there's about to be a robbery? B) Feel uncomfortable because of the menacing presence of this stranger and his gun in such a non-traditional, non-threatening setting? C) Feel reassured due to the presence of...
Law enforcement officers and DUI: time to get to the root of the problem
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on March 4th, 2010
Twice in the last three months, Philadelphia-area law enforcement officers have been involved in off-duty vehicle accidents that allegedly involve driving under the influence of alcohol. For law enforcement officers, who absolutely, positively must be accountable to a higher standard than the people they are sworn to protect, that is unacceptable. Last month, a 23-year-old off-duty Philadelphia Police officer was driving north on I-95 near Girard Avenue when his vehicle crashed into the rear of...
Beware: lawsuit settlement cash advances can cost you far more than you realize
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on March 3rd, 2010
It’s bad enough when you are injured in an accident and then have to wait for a monetary settlement or verdict to compensate you for your injuries. It’s even worse if you are victimized a second time by one of the many companies out there that are cashing in on the anticipated cash settlements of injured people by “loaning” them money up front and then taking huge windfalls from the settlements when the money is...
A bad idea: Here’s why the laws in Pa. shouldn’t be changed to allow beer sales on every corner
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on February 18th, 2010
There's yet another effort underway in the state Legislature to try to change the decades-old laws that forbid beer sales in convenience stores and grocery stores across the Commonwealth. Right now, you also can't buy a six-pack of beer in a beer distributor in Pennsylvania -- you can only buy a full case by law. You are, however, able to buy individual six-packs of beer from bars and restaurants that have liquor licenses which permit...
Outrageous: A death at the Olympics and a rush to judgment in blaming the victim of a deadly luge practice run
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on February 16th, 2010
At the Olympic Winter Games, no one is supposed to die. Certainly not a 21-year-old luge competitor from the Republic of Georgia, who was in Canada for his first Olympic games. But the athlete, Nodar Kumaritashvili, died last Friday on a practice run on the luge track as he and his sled flew down the luge run at almost 90 mph. At the bottom of the track, his sled climbed an inside track wall and...
Insurance fraud: let the insurers who go after “fraud” first take a closer look at themselves
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on February 9th, 2010
Have you seen those ads on television lately where some downtrodden fellow is so desperate that he arranges for his own car to be "stolen" so he can later file a claim for damages and gain a windfall? The guy ends up getting caught, of course, and is sent to jail. And the intended message from the huge, scary insurance companies: "insurance fraud is against the law, you will get caught and you will go...
Outrage in Chester County: Five African-American voters allege Voting Rights Act violations when they tried to cast ballots in 2008
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on January 29th, 2010
Five African-American voters in Chester County are suing the county and its Board of Elections, alleging that their rights were violated under the federal Voting Rights Act as they stood in seven-hour-long lines to vote in their polling place in November 2008. But the legal claims involve more than just long lines, according to the lawsuit, which was detailed in a story last week in The Legal Intelligencer. "The suit says the precinct, which includes...
Update: FCC rules that Comcast can’t keep SportsNet to itself, but it’s not over yet — an appeal is likely
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on January 28th, 2010
Hold on to your Phillies, Flyers and Sixers hats, Philadelphia sports fans -- the U.S. Federal Communications Commission ruled last week that Comcast Corp. now has to start making its Comcast-only SportsNet programming available to satellite TV providers. The FCC ruling came in a 4-1 decision to close a "terrestrial loophole" that had allowed Comcast to keep SportsNet all to itself and its customers for years, according to a story in The Philadelphia Inquirer. In...