As first appeared in Law.com By Aron Solomon On September 26, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 17 states filed a lawsuit against Amazon, accusing the e-commerce behemoth of anti-competitive practices that inflate online prices and stifle competition. While Amazon has denied these allegations, there is a strong argument that the lawsuit is a good thing for consumers, small businesses, and American society as a whole. Here’s why: The Lawsuit Can Help Consumers Amazon’s alleged anticompetitive practices harm consumers in several ways. First, they lead to higher prices. By using its monopoly power to prevent sellers from offering lower prices…

As first appeared in NewsBreak By Aron Solomon The New Jersey appeals court decision to toss a $223.8 million jury verdict against Johnson & Johnson (J&J) in a talc cancer case was based on the finding that the expert testimony presented by the plaintiffs was not scientifically sound. The appellate court determined that a lower court judge should not have allowed some of the scientific expert testimony, which ultimately influenced the jury’s decision. This ruling highlights the importance of scientifically valid evidence in such cases and the need for a rigorous evaluation of expert testimony. The case involved four plaintiffs who claimed to…

As first appeared in Newsweek By Aron Solomon The trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the disgraced crypto exchange FTX, began on Tuesday in Manhattan. Bankman-Fried, known colloquially as SBF, is accused of orchestrating an elaborate fraud that lasted years and took billions of dollars from customers to finance political contributions, venture capital investments, and luxury real estate purchases. SBF faces seven criminal counts and could receive a life sentence if convicted. The trial is expected to offer a window into the often bizarre financial engineering that fueled cryptocurrency’s growth and lured millions of inexperienced investors. SBF’s methods included bizarre celebrity endorsements,…

As first appeared in NewsBreak By Aron Solomon On September 29, 2023, the Borough of Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania, reached a landmark $11 million federal settlement with the family (estate) of Fanta Bility, an 8-year-old girl whose life was tragically cut short by police gunfire in 2021. This heart-wrenching incident unfolded on August 27, 2021, as Fanta and her family departed a high school football game at Academy Park High School. In a grievous error, three Sharon Hill police officers – Brian Devaney, Devon Smith, and Sean Dolan – unleashed 25 shots at a passing vehicle, mistakenly linking it to nearby gunfire. Tragically, these…

As first appeared in Healthcare Business Today By Aron Solomon The temptation to use drugs to help us lose weight isn’t new. The use of medications to help with weight loss has a long history dating back to the late 1800s.  We first used thyroid extract as a remedy for obesity but it resulted in hyperthyroidism and other serious side effects. So we moved on to amphetamines, Benzedrine, to be exact, which became popular for weight loss during the late 1930s. They worked primarily by suppressing appetite and had other beneficial effects, such as increased alertness. But, of course, people got hooked…

As first appeared in NewsBreak By Aron Solomon Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, has been in the news this week because he just filed a lawsuit against Rudy Giuliani and Robert Costello, among others.  Here is what we know about the breaking news lawsuit and the events leading up to it: Hunter Biden’s legal team sent letters to Giuliani, Costello, Steve Bannon, and 11 others, asking them to preserve potential evidence for future lawsuits related to the alleged dissemination of material from Hunter’s laptop. Attorneys for Hunter Biden called for Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings and U.S. Assistant Attorney…

As first appeared in Boxscore By Aron Solomon The tennis world was confused and agitated over the past few days about the Tokyo WTA’s event this week, giving players something that hasn’t been seen before: something called a “performance bye.”If you’re wondering what a performance bye is, join the crowd. The Tokyo event, which is a WTA 500 event, decided to offer a first round bye to Caroline Garcia and Maria Sakkari, who both went deep into last week’s WTA 1000 draw in Guadalajara. Sakkari, of course, ended up winning her first WTA 1000 tournament on Saturday night in Guadalajara, before…

As first appeared in Healthcare Business Today By Aron Solomon The University of Texas’ decision last week to shut off the AI detection feature in Turnitin raises several legal issues related to the use of generative AI tools in academic and professional settings.  Some of the key legal concerns include: Copyright And Ownership Determining the ownership of AI-generated content can be challenging, as current US law requires human involvement for a work to be entitled to copyright protection. If AI-generated code is not subject to copyright, it raises questions about the legal protections available for developers and users of AI-generated content. Plagiarism And Intellectual Property Generative…

As first appeared in NewsBreak By Aron Solomon Wawayanda, Orange County, New York A tragic accident occurred on Thursday afternoon when a bus carrying students from Farmingdale High School in Nassau County, Long Island, to a band camp in Greeley, Pennsylvania, overturned on Interstate 84 in Wawayanda, Orange County, New York. The bus was one of six transporting students from the Farmingdale School District. At least one person has been confirmed dead, and 43 others were taken to hospitals. As of the time of publication, five of the injured passengers are in critical condition. The accident happened at 1:12 p.m., just outside of…

As first appeared in NewsBreak By Aron Solomon New Jersey has specific laws in place to protect pedestrians and ensure their safety. Some of these laws include the Stop and Stay Stopped Law, which requires drivers to stop and stay stopped for pedestrians in marked crosswalks, and the New Jersey Safe Passing Law, which mandates drivers to approach vulnerable road users with caution, change lanes or pass with at least 4 feet of space, or slow down to 25 mph and be prepared to stop. The Stop and Stay Stopped Law, enacted in April 2010, requires motorists to stop and remain stopped…