Los Angeles Times - July 6, 2007

L.A. County secrecy policy is assailed;

Open-government supporters decry move to keep memos on settlements confidential.
"If this is private, we have no idea what kind of deals they're making on the taxpayer dime, whether or not they're legitimate or whether or not they're squeezing the weak or giving money to the powerful," said Doug Heller, executive director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. "Just because they may be the only ones who have been doing it right doesn't mean they should start doing it wrong."...read more

Los Angeles Daily Journal - May 29, 2007

Coupon-Based Settlements Get Tougher;

Under New Laws, Trial Judges Get More Discretion
"In this situation, you have to buy more coverage or get a bigger deductible or add someone to your policy, which all costs more than the amount of money you're supposed to get back," said Harvey Rosenfield, an attorney with the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, which objected to the settlements. "That's like a thief saying, 'I'll give the 50 bucks I stole, but I insist that you give me 60 bucks first.'"...read more

City News Service (Los Angeles, CA) - May 17, 2007

Court Rejects Mercury Insurance Overcharge Case Settlement for Second Time

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Victoria Chaney turned down the proposed deal on Tuesday in part because it would have allowed Mercury Insurance to offer $45 coupons requiring policyholders to buy more insurance from the company instead of refunding the alleged $76 million in overcharges, according to the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights....read more

Callaw Reporter - April 19, 2007

With Tobacco Case, a Side of Prop 64

Pamela Pressley, litigation director for the Santa Monica-based FTCR, insists voters were deceived by major corporations that are now trying to pervert the initiative for their own interests. "It was a bait and switch," Pressley says. "Voters were told one thing, and now the companies are turning around and using [Prop 64] as a shield against liability."...read more