Ignorance of the Law is No Excuse

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AsiaPundit: No car bombs or trishaws are permitted near the Great Hall of the People while the NPC is in session.

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[Jordan Fogal]

Ignorance of the law is no excuse but Arbitration makea the process as complicated as possible, this is inexcuseable. Especially since it is done on purpose and out of greed.
Forecloures...the rest of the story
Are you sure your new home is protected? Are you sure your family, will not join the growing ranks of the homeless? Are you sure you understand arbitration and tort reform? Are you sure that the American Arbitration Association, hasn't stealthily already entered every phase of your life? Do you think you still have the right to a trial by a jury? Do you still think you can sue anyone who wrongs you? Do you still think frivolous lawsuits are those that happen to other people? Do you tire hearing any more about big business flagrantly squashing your rights? Do your eyes glaze over and your mind shut down when you hear all these things? Are you bored by this rhetoric? Is it all just to complicated for you to understand? I understand.

But, please read on. Because you have been majority deluded, confused and overwhelmed ... just so these things will slip right by unnoticed.

If you have a new home, new car, a car lease, a Visa, Master Card, American Express, Discover card, bank account, a cell phone, a storage room, electricity or even an exterminator. YOU have given up your seventh Amendment rights. You have given up your seventh amendment rights, you cannot sue any of these people. Sounds crazy doesn't it? Well, call any of them and ask if you have an arbitration clause in your contract with them ... because you do.

We are bombard daily, with harassing telemarketers, a mailbox full of trash offers and clutter ... our bills are stuffed with slick adds and offers. We don't have time to read all this junk..... And there in lies the problem. Big Business knows you don't. We are the new hurried, fast food, drive by cleaners generation, the multi taskers.... with more on our plates than we can handle. So big business has used your over burdened life style to their distinct advantage. You are screwed. Those little offers or things you think are privacy propaganda, in your bills, they aren't, they say "if you continue to use our services and do not pay off your account immediately you are now accepted the following terms.....You have now accepted arbitration ... and you didn't even read it.

Not one person in this country, is not bound by an arbitration clause and the shocking part of it ... most don't even know it. But you will, when you become one of the enlightened and destroyed. And believe me you do not want to be.

Ignorance is bliss ... and you can remain blissfully unaware of the dangers lurking, that threaten you, your family, your home and your livelihood. But when it hits you, it will be, a rude awakening ... like a two by four right between the eyes. AM I am trying to scare you? You bet I am. Because many of us do not have the time to watch fear factor, we live it daily. And, you may have just signed on for a guest appearance.

Take your home for instance. You made your down payment. You make your payments on time, you paid your property tax, you have homeowners insurance. Your investment is safe. You are living the American dream. Not so Kimosabie. You have rolled the dice with your future, put all your money on the pass line, and you weren't even aware you were gambling.

Example: You have a lovely new home, all decorated, a manicured lawn, a place for your stuff, and somewhere to come home to. But what happens if you start having problems with that new house? You just call your builder for repairs right? What if he doesn't answer your phone calls, faxes, or emails. What if the problem continues to worsen ... as you try to get him to live up to his moral, and ethical responsibilities. You say well I have a contract. And you do.

Now..... you will take the time to read, all that raft of papers that were shoved at you at closing. Uh oh...earnest money contract, arbitration clause. Closing papers arbitration clause...warranty papers arbitration clause.

Your foundation is cracking, your walls have lines that weren't there before, the carpet is damp and your house is taking on a musty smell. Your children begin to be ill and Fido's' hair falls out. What are you going to do? Your wife is frantic. She is calling neighbors, many experiencing the same sort of problems. Many do not want to admit it and "patch up and dump." Some will get by with it, until the new owner sues them. Yes, the new owner can sue you, just can't sue your big builder. Big business, little business that is how tort reform works.

And yes, you all paid to have your house inspected and had a relator and you called them all. You can start at the governor's office and they will refer you into a vortex of time-consuming, catch 22's that will make you crazy. You will end up lastly at the Heath department. They can try to help you find temporary housing ... soon, or maybe later....if you qualify and of course fill out the paper work.

You have now filled out paper work for every agency in the state. You stay up all night filling out this waste of time. Then bleary eyed drag yourself to your day job. No one understands. They think you are a real putz and offer you their lawyer's phone number...thinking you just are not smart enough to handle your own affairs. Little do they know...yet.

They think they are not in any danger...and that you just do not understand how to hand these things.

You call you insurance company...you know that agency that has you safe in their out stretched hands. That agency you pay those hefty premiums to each month. Guess what, substandard construction and builder defects are not covered items.

You are on the phone with your lawyer, he has looked over your papers, and informs you, YOU cannot sue your builder, you have signed an arbitration clause.

You say, well lets arbitrate ... it is faster and cheaper and my house is deteriorating as we speak, my investment is being destroyed. He really doesn't want the case, but will take it for a substantial upfront fee. He knows neither of you are going to be happy with the outcome, so he gets his upfront. Many of these legal eagles also have arbitration clauses in their own contracts. The contract you must sign to have legal representation. And you have to have a lawyer no matter what AAA arbitration tells you.

Your shower falls out. Black puffy balls are growing out of your carpet. Your windows are leaking, your hardwoods have begun to buckle, the children are sick, their eyes are all red, they have constant sore throats, you are having migraines you think from all the stress, your wife is crying, and her nose is bleeding ...and your cat just died. ( Am I Exaggerating ... No unfortunately, I am not.) I am just reliving part of what happened in our neighborhood, compliments of our greedy, unethical, unscrupulous builder. He sold us our homes after filing a lawsuit against the roofer and subcontractors with no disclosure. Yes, I said, he sued ... the big boys still have the right to sue, this only applies to you and me, the little guys.

Arbitration is great protection for the mass builder. First, most of you can't afford it and second if you can roll out 30 to 100,000 dollars it is still an unfair playing field. The builders team of high priced, sleazy prostitutes can make chopped liver of you in short order. They do this for a living. In our case, one of the builders' law partners, was/is also a AAA arbitrator. You want him to rule on your case?

Why didn't you repair your own house?

First you didn't think that was your responsibility, it was the builders. Second you had no idea the amount of damage and third, when you found out how many thousands of dollars it would cost ... you couldn't afford it.

You hadn't planned on the down payment, the new drapes, the new lawn mower and then repairs? TO A BRAND NEW HOUSE! Did you figure an extra 20 to 150 thousand for that in your budget? Like us, you probably bought a new home so repairs would not be an issue.

Well, guess what else you can't afford? You can't afford arbitration. Nobody tells you what it costs. The American Arbitration Association will not even give you a total cost, but if you can't afford it ... they will be more than happy to send you a form that authorizes them to just charge all their monstrous fees as they occur, on to your credit cards. How ever many it takes. Do I have you attention now? Do you think you have entered the twilight zone. Well, welcome to our world.

Homeless in Houston

Jordan Fogal Please google my name for more information or check out HADD.org or HOBB.org, tort deform

3003 Memorial Court #2407 Houston Texas 77007

7138029727

[Jordan Fogal]

jfogal281 forwards from Dallas morning news:

Couple's dream home a 10-year legal nightmare
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/nation/stories/DN-perry_21tex.ART.North.Edition1.2997a4d.html

vvvvvvCouple's dream home a 10-year legal nightmare

Builder fights claim of faulty house in court to which he's donated

12:00 AM CST on Sunday, January 21, 2007
By WAYNE SLATER / The Dallas Morning News

AUSTIN – In the beginning, Bob and Jane Cull thought if they just wrote homebuilder Bob Perry a letter about all the defects in their new Mansfield house, everything could be resolved.

ERICH SCHLEGEL/DMN

A key issue in the case is whether Bob and Jane Cull of Mansfield waived their right to arbitration when they sued Perry Homes in 2000, claiming the home has fundamental flaws.

That was 10 years ago.

A tortuous legal battle has carried the retirement-age couple through the courts, to arbitration and now through the courts again – all the way to the Texas Supreme Court. The Culls have won every round, but their home has not been fixed, legal costs have soared and the couple has postponed retirement plans.

"You think you can wake up from a nightmare and it'll be over," said Ms. Cull, a physicians' liaison. Instead, the couple watches as the home's defective foundation continues to move, some windows won't open and more cracks form in walls, according to engineering reports.

A spokesman for Mr. Perry said the case is built around an important principle: whether arbitration or the courts will settle disputes. But the Culls say their case against Perry Homes illustrates how construction disputes can last for years without resolution and how the system is stacked against average homeowners who challenge homebuilders with wealth and political influence.

Particularly this builder: Mr. Perry is the nation's most generous individual political donor. He has been a leading advocate of laws to limit court awards against businesses and a financial benefactor to politicians and judges. And he has funded Republican candidates up and down the ballot in Texas, including more than $340,000 to the nine justices that will hear the Culls' case.

Perry Homes spokesman Anthony Holm said the donations are irrelevant.

"All we're trying to do is get our day in court," Mr. Holm said.

The Culls filed suit in 2000 to force repair of their house. But they grew concerned a legal battle could take years and went to arbitration instead, thinking it would resolve the issues quicker and with less expense.

Mr. Holm said the switch was unfair to Perry Homes, which had spent time and money preparing for a trial. He says the couple waived its right to arbitration.

It is that legal question – "at what point in time does a consumer waive their right to arbitration?" – the high court has been asked to decide, he said. Arguments will be heard in March.

Consumer advocates say Mr. Perry has spent millions of dollars creating a political and legal system tilted in his favor.

"It's not surprising that he showered tens of thousands of campaign dollars on the Texas Supreme Court," said Andrew Wheat of Texans for Public Justice, a nonprofit group that tracks campaign contributions.

"What is shocking is that the judges who took all this money have agreed to hear Perry's appeal of a lemon-home case – one that he already lost in front of an arbitrator and two Texas courts," he said. "It's three strikes and you're out in the Texas justice system – unless you own the league."

Mr. Wheat's group receives financial contributions from trial lawyers that represent people suing businesses.

Cracks in dream home

Bob Cull is 69, a stout man with round spectacles and suspenders who works as a manager in the health-care industry. His wife is 64, petite with white hair, and she carries a briefcase stuffed with documents about the couple's legal odyssey.

When they signed on with Perry Homes in 1996, the Culls thought they were building their dream retirement home, with 2,800 square feet and upgrades such as cedar closets and raised arches, in a new subdivision south of Fort Worth. There was a golf course and a view of the pond.

"I can remember sitting on the property before there was a house on it, watching the sunrise, and thinking, 'Oh my, this is the place,' " Ms. Cull said.

"This was going to be our forever, On Golden Pond nest," she added.

But the house was never whole.

"First we thought they'd bought the wrong-sized door," Ms. Cull said. "Leaves and critters could come in. Roof supporters were not staying attached in the attic; they were just hanging free. And there were cracks in the walls and the tile was cracking."

The couple complained, but work crews simply patched the problems, they said. Soon, they were sure their new $250,000 home had fundamental defects, and they expected Mr. Perry to make it right.

Mr. Cull described himself as "a firm believer that people settle their differences face-to-face and resolve things on a kind of man-to-man basis. We thought this was something we could talk to Bob Perry about over a cup of coffee and settle with a handshake."

He wrote to Mr. Perry, the first of many letters to come, outlining the problems. Engineering reports, both by the Culls and by the warranty company contracted by Perry Homes, concluded the foundation was defective, he said.

Their house was now valued at perhaps only a third of the original purchase price.

Eventually, the couple got a letter from the attorney for Perry Homes, John Krugh, saying the firm had done all it was going to do. Perry Homes had provided surface drains, patched the walls and sealed gaps in the concrete, but made it clear it bore no more responsibility for the Culls' problems.

In October 2000, the Culls filed suit against Perry Homes. But before the case went to trial, the couple had second thoughts and moved to have the matter decided by an independent arbiter because, now in their 60s, they feared spending their retirement years in a long legal battle.

The homebuilder resisted and both sides went to court. A district judge, the appeals court and the Texas Supreme Court all ruled for the Culls and directed that both sides go to arbitration.

After several days of hearings in 2002, an arbitrator directed Perry Homes to pay the Culls more than $800,000. That includes the cost of the house, punitive damages and legal costs. With interest, the award would now top $1.3 million.

In a lawsuit, discovery rules govern how the two sides must share information. The Culls' attorney says the couple got nothing in discovery it couldn't have gotten in arbitration, but Mr. Holm says the Culls got information the company didn't, and that the arbitrator was biased against the homebuilder.

"There appears from our perspective to have been very real bias on behalf of the arbitrator," said Mr. Holm. "And there is a real question about when the plaintiff waived their right to arbitration."

A district court rejected those arguments. Perry Homes took the case to the appeals court, which also ruled for the Culls. The homebuilder again appealed to the Texas Supreme Court, which has scheduled a hearing for March.

The attorney for the Culls said he was surprised the high court, which accepts a fraction of the appeals it gets, agreed to take the case.

"I'm certainly concerned there's politics at play," said Dallas attorney Van Shaw. "The law's clear. We're entitled to win and lots of courts have seen it that way. So I can't reach any other conclusion than it's politics."

Mr. Holm denied that. He said public disclosure of Mr. Perry's contributions to all nine judges makes his legal burden more difficult "because every justice there knows there's some kind of donor relationship."

"I have faith in all the justices and ... the justice system in Texas that things are being decided on the merits," he said.

The court does not explain its reasoning for accepting a case.

Major donor

For Mr. Perry, questions about whether his contributions affect public policy are common.

The Houston homebuilder gave more than $19 million to Republican politicians in state and federal races in 2006, including $6.7 million to Texas candidates.

He is the largest political contributor to Gov. Rick Perry (no relation). And in 2003, Perry Homes and other builders sought help from the Republican governor to create a new state agency, the Texas Residential Construction Commission, to settle homeowner disputes.

Builders touted the agency as a better way to resolve disagreements. Critics called it another obstacle for consumers.

Under state law, the agency can't force homebuilders to fix faulty houses. But homeowners must first go through the complaint process before being allowed to seek arbitration or litigation.

After signing the bill into law, Gov. Perry appointed Perry Homes' general counsel, Mr. Krugh – the lawyer who initially wrote the Culls to say their home wouldn't be repaired – to lead the commission that decides disputes.

The Culls say they have no issue with Mr. Perry's politics.

"I'm an economic conservative. I probably vote the same way Bob Perry does economically," said Mr. Cull.

But the toll on them is mounting, and they hope the dispute is nearly over. A favorable ruling would end the matter. But if the high court vacates the arbitration award, it would send the case back to district court for litigation that could take several more years.

In the meantime, Ms. Cull said recently, "We can't fix our house. We can't sell our house. The warranty company can't fix or sell the house."

They've kept up the appearance of the home, patching and painting. Some windows won't open. Some doors have to be jerry-rigged to close. Ms. Cull worries about how any future shifting might affect gas pipes and electric lines.

"These are the rooms where your grandbabies are taking a nap," she said.

Financially, the couple can't move. Mr. Cull, who had planned to be retired by now and faces some health issues, has gone back to work managing a small pharmaceutical business in Arlington. Ms. Cull continues to work as a liaison for a physicians' group.

"I'm no legal eagle. I'm just a mother and a grandmother and homeowner who would like to have some freedom from stress and fear over where I'm going to live the rest of my life," said Ms. Cull. "When you're in the final phase of your life, that's pretty frightening."

She shrugged. "We're kind of like in homeowner purgatory. And we've been here for 10 years."

E-mail wslater@dallasnews.com

sent to you by Jordan Fogal for more information on other atrocities perpetrated on Americans here in the great state of Texas please google my name or HADD.org or HOBB.com

[Jordan Fogal]

This article in Money Magazine is no different from what happens everday,right here in Houston. All over the US, big bad Builders continue to fleece the public and prosper enormously. The small bad builders takes advatage of a few, the big Bad builders take advantage of entire subdivisions and noone does anything.
As George Washington said: "Government is not reason, it is not eloquence, it is a force: like fire, a troublesome servant and a fearful Master, Never for a moment should it be left to irresponsible action." That Master has reduced us to subjects instead of citizens. Our story was in Washington Monthly, People and Mother Jones Magaines, nobody cared and nothing changed.

http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/13/magazines/moneymag/construction.moneymag/index.htm?postversion=2007021411

Dark side of the housing boom: Shoddy work
Steps you can take if you find yourself living in a poorly made home.
By Sarah Max, Money Magazine contributing writer

February 14 2007: 11:07 AM ES

(Money Magazine) -- Less than a year after moving into her new 2,100-square-foot house in Lenexa, Kans., Susan Sabin has strung up lemon lights in her front window.

The lemons, she says, go perfectly with the home's most prominent features: jammed doors, warped windows, bent pipes and cracked walls. "The house is essentially splitting in two," says Sabin.

At the peak of the recent housing boom, home buyers scooped up a million newly built homes every year while homeowners poured more than $200 billion into renovations. But now stories of shifting soil, leaky roofs, damaged stucco and other construction defects abound.

Though many builders have worked to improve the quality of their houses over the past decade, says Alan Mooney, president of Criterium Engineers, a national engineering firm, the building frenzy also opened the door for unskilled labor, unscrupulous contractors and untested products.

"When everyone is out there building as fast as they can, that does result in more defects," he says.

Contractor problems rank among the most common consumer complaints, according to the Better Business Bureau, and a recent Criterium Engineers study found that 17 percent of new residential construction projects inspected by the firm in 2006 had at least two significant problems.

If you've been gnashing your teeth over defects in your new or recently renovated home (and complaining to the builder hasn't solved them), it's probably cold comfort that you're not alone.

What do you do? A lawsuit is bound to be expensive and messy, if you can even get in front of a jury at all; many builder's contracts nowadays include a binding-arbitration clause that essentially waives your right to a jury trial.

Real estate flipper stung by slow market

Of course, your best bet is to catch the problem early, before you've paid for the work. But even after the job is long done, you still have a powerful tool on your side: the builder's need to protect his reputation.

Here's how to evaluate the likelihood that you'll be able to get your home repaired at minimal cost, and your plan of action.

Check your warranty

Your builder or remodeler likely gave you what's called an "express" warranty, which typically covers everything from cosmetic flaws to serious defects for a year (most common) to 10 years (pretty rare).

If the warranty names the defect you're complaining about, gather your documentation and ask your contractor to repair the damage at no additional charge. If your warranty has expired, you aren't necessarily out of luck.

Depending on the state you live in and the nature of the defect, your house may still be covered by a so-called implied warranty of habitability for another seven to 10 years. But it will be up to you to prove that the defects are so severe that they are a health or safety hazard.

Learn how to spot a real defect

Your next step is to figure out whether your problem is a bona fide defect under the terms of the warranty (or in the eyes of an arbitrator) or what home builders define as an acceptable imperfection.

"There is no such thing as a perfect house," says Mooney. "A lot of what people consider defects are really not defects."

According to the National Association of Home Builders' performance guidelines, small cracks in the interior concrete slab are normal; only those exceeding 3/16 of an inch should be repaired. Hammer marks or nail pops visible within six feet are acceptable, but marks you can see farther away are not.

You may not agree with these definitions, but it's tough to fight them. (You can order a copy of the NAHB's "Residential Construction Performance Guidelines" for $39.95 at BuilderBooks.com.)

Gather the evidence

Document problems with photos and detailed notes. Record everything from conversations with your builder or contractor to the exact time - and the weather conditions - on the day, say, your basement flooded.

"Make the assumption that this will end up in a significant dispute," says Mooney.

To bolster your case, you may need to pay for expert advice. An independent inspector or structural engineer will charge about $250 to $500 to give your house a full examination, along with a detailed report of the problems at the heart of your dispute.

Small projects that pay off big

After Ann and David Richardson's contractor put a two-story addition on their Kansas City house last year, it failed city inspections twice. The couple then hired an engineer who found that, among other problems, inadequate roof support was putting pressure on the walls and forcing them to bow.

"He said the walls were life-threateningly out of plumb," says David. Faced with this assessment, the contractor agreed to do the repair (though he later declared bankruptcy before he finished).

Find greater strength in numbers

If your housing development was constructed by a single builder, see if your neighbors are having similar complaints. "You'll often find that their houses are having the same problems as you," says Nancy Seats, president of Homeowners Against Deficient Dwellings, a group that helps homeowners fight back against construction defects.

After Pam and Jeff Cobbs noticed that the windows on their new home in Bend, Ore. leaked during rain storms, they teamed up with other neighbors who were having similar problems.

As it turned out, the windows and siding on more than 20 houses on the block had been installed improperly, causing water damage and, in some cases, mold.

Just a few months after the group complained, the builder sent in crews to remove all of the siding and trim, reinstall the windows, wrap the houses, put on brand new siding and repaint everything.

Know your state rules

If you aren't bound by a binding-arbitration agreement and you think you might have a case for a lawsuit, be aware that in recent years, 30 states have adopted "notice and opportunity to repair" laws, which require homeowners to give builders a chance to assess and remedy the problem before they go to court.

Typically, you have to submit a written complaint to the builder or contractor, who then has a certain amount of time to inspect the property and make repairs - usually up to 90 days.

Unfortunately, these laws, designed to protect builders, says Janet Ahmad, president of Home Owners for Better Building, don't obligate the builder to fix your problem (after an inspection, they may tell you that the fault is unrelated to their construction).

But your builder may patch up your home to avoid a lawsuit. If not, you are probably free to sue. To find out about your local "fix it" laws, start by calling your state attorney general's office.

If all else fails, get creative

When the first cracks began appearing in Susan Sabin's home shortly after she moved in last June, she contacted Pulte Homes, which sent in engineers and contractors to repair minor problems. But Sabin still believes they're ignoring major defects.

"They keep fixing the symptoms," she says. "I want them to fix the source of the problem."

So Sabin has strung up lemons and opened her house to anyone who wants to see the cracks. Soon after, her story made the local news.

Pulte, which says the problems with the home are a result of soil expansion underneath, has so far not agreed to rebuild Sabin's home from scratch. But it certainly is not ignoring her complaints.

"Structurally her home is as sound as any other home we've built in the city," says Todd Lipschutz, Pulte's division president in Kansas City. "We will make the necessary repairs."

Don't build a lemon

Know your builder. Make sure your builder is licensed with your state, and see what complaints have been filed with the attorney general's office. Get references, but remember that a builder isn't likely to refer someone who has complained. A better bet: Ask people in the neighborhood what they think of their house and how the builder handled any problems.

Question whether the builder is in over his head. Many builders don't have the equipment or the technical expertise to deal with very large projects. So if your home is the largest project the builder or contractor has ever done, proceed with caution. The same holds true if it's the company's first big housing development.

Have a lawyer read your contract. If it includes a binding-arbitration clause, you'll waive your right to a trial. Ideally, you want to strike this section or at least ask to name what arbitration firm will be used, says Nancy Seats, president of Homeowners Against Deficient Dwellings. Check that the warranty spells out what problems are covered.

Be a regular at the job site. Show up frequently while your house is in the process of being built or remodeled and ask questions. For a big project, consider hiring an inspector or an engineer to look things over.