All’s been relatively quiet on the Alfred Rava front. Only a bit of a hub-bub over his threatening ski resort Squaw Valley with a discrimination lawsuit because they were offering discounts to furloughed California state employees. Rava doesn’t like it when good-hearted folks try to do something good for those in perhaps a less fortunate situation. Case in point, the Mother’s Day breast cancer awareness promotion with the Oakland A’s.
At any rate, I was scanning this Sunday’s papers and as I was looking at all the super-processed and newfangled foods that had special deals in the weekly FSI coupon section, my eye caught a Dunkin Donuts ad. I don’t go to Dunkin Donuts. Ever. But none the less, there was this little parenthetical phrase on the DD coupons. This is what the one for “99¢ for any two (2) donuts” said: “($1.19 in Manhattan)”. Cough up another 20¢ for those “two (2)” donuts it you live—or just shop for your doughnuts—in the asphalt jungle.
(I would’ve included a pic of the actual coupon, but there in the small type it also said, “Internet distribution strictly prohibited” and well, this being a legal site and all, I didn’t want to risk anyone mass producing DD coupons. But the pic above is the lead promo folks in the NYC area saw this weekend in the paper.)
But that’s when I thought of him. That beacon of light in an unjust world—Alfred Rava. Here’s something he oughta be sinking his teeth into next. Why should New Yorkers—heck, we’re not even talking all boroughs—only “Manhattan”—not be included in the 99¢ deal? Isn’t that some form of discrimination?
I was just over at mentalfloss.com—land where anyone with both a brain and a healthy sense of humor will feel right at home—and read a recent post by Ethan Trex called “The Ump Who Sued Lou Piniella (And Other Baseball-Related Legal Disputes)”.
Given I had recently posted about the summer’s hottest baseball lawsuits (hello, Alfred “floppy hat” Rava—and yes, he’s a lawyer himself, CA bar…San Diego…), I naturally had to take a look. And if you’re a baseball fan, it’s worth a read.
Lest you think this baseball and litigation connection is fleeting, the Washington Times reports today that “seven former and current major league baseball players and others who made money from R. Allen Stanford’s purported Ponzi scheme” are now worrying that their own money is at risk of being taken—and they’ve hooked up with an “unlikely ally: the Securities and Exchange Commission.” Seems the SEC has asked the judge in the case to stop the lawyer charged with taking control of assets related to the alleged scam from suing investors for their proceeds in the Stanford investment. Needless to say, the SEC request has ruffled some feathers and we’ll have to watch this one play out (no pun intended). For the record, the Washington Post reports players involved are: retired Atlanta Braves pitcher Greg Maddux, retired New York Yankees’ player Bernie Williams, current Yankees outfielder Johnny Damon, Boston Red Sox outfielder J.D. Drew, Texas Rangers outfielder Andruw Jones, Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Carlos Pena and Jay Bell, a shortstop who played for several teams prior to retiring in ’03.
I have this image of a dad who takes his son to his first ballgame. The dad starts going over the finer points of the game. He’s riled up passion—a passion he wants his son to share, of course. Then, he turns to look his son directly in the eye, and taking on a more serious tone he says,
Welcome to baseball American-style 2009. With that, here’s a little scorecard on the season’s lawsuits so far…
Winner: Alfred G. Rava
Loser: Cause Marketing and Good Intent
We’ve blogged about this one earlier, but to recall, Alfred G. Rava—a lawyer—was fairly miffed that, as a man, he was not given a floppy hat giveaway at an Oakland A’s game back in ’04. The floppy hats (comped by Macy’s) were part of a Mother’s Day promotion that also supported Breast Cancer awareness. Kind of a girly-day theme—with an important message. But Rava must’ve been in touch with his feminine side that day, and well, he got mad when that wasn’t obvious to the folks doling out the hats. So he sued. Sexual discrimination. And he won. The settlement was reportedly $510,000. Next up at bat… Read the rest of this entry »
Ok folks. Let’s play a little “One of these things is not like the other; one of these things just doesn’t belong…” Sing along with me if you’d like. Or not. Either way, I’m betting the farm that you’re going to pick (drum roll please) Floppy Hats as your answer.
Raptiva, Reglan, Hydroxycut and Heparin are all drugs (one’s a supplement) that have either been directly linked to adverse (and dangerous) side effects and have been yanked or recalled from shelves by the FDA—or have received a more stringent black box warning in recent months. Each is a current legal issue with lawsuits pending.
Floppy Hats? That would be a suit, too, brought forth by Alfred G. Rava—a California lawyer. Seems he felt pretty injured (my words) when he didn’t receive a floppy hat as a giveaway at an Oakland A’s game in 2004. See, according to a great post by Rick Reilly over at ESPN.com (6/12/09), Read the rest of this entry »