Sabatini and Associates, LLC Attorneys at Law :: Newington :: Hartford :: Connecticut

The Memphis based broker Morgan Keegan is under fire for allegedly selling toxic debt to seniors.  Multiple lawsuits have been filed charging the firm with failing to disclose to investors the risks of seven mutual funds that were stuffed with risky subprime debt.  Many of the people that invested in these funds were seniors who were advised that the funds were conservative investments.  Instead of being conversative, the funds were extremely risky.  In fact, the funds have lost 50 to 86% over the last year.  These dramatic losses have decimated the retirement accounts of many seniors.  It appears that these investors should have never been sold these funds and it further appears that these funds failed to disclose the risks.  While all investments carry risks, they must be properly disclosed. Hopefully through litigation, the investors will be reimbursed their losses.  If you have invested in a mutual fund that was labled conservative and have suffered considerable losses due to the funds improper exposure to subprime debt, feel free to contact our lawyers today.

Two new categories of FMLA leave were created by a 2008 amendment:

1. Injured Service Member Leave. Employees who are the spouse, parent, child or “next of kin” of a service member who suffers a serious injury or illness while on active duty may take up to 26 weeks of FMLA leave during the 12 month period immediately after the injury.
2. Leave for “Qualifying Exigency.” Employees with a spouse, parent or child who is on active duty or has been called to active duty may take up to 12 weeks of FMLA leave when a “qualifying exigency” is experienced. 

What is qualifying exigency?  It is a good question because Congress chose not to define it. The department of labor has indicated that “qualifying exigency” may include things such as making arrangements for childcare, making financial and legal arrangements, attending counseling relating to the active duty of the service member, or attending to farewell or arrival arrangements for the service member.

There are some so-called experts out there that have announced that the real estate market will bottom later this year or in early 2009.  This theory is premised largely on the belief that once the worst of the subprime crisis ends, the market will bottom and slowly tick upwards.  This theory may be failing to consider the following.  In August 6, 2008 edition of the Wall Street Journal, the paper reported a story of FirstFed Financial a LA based bank that just posted a 70 million first quarter loss.  The loss was not due to subprime mortgages which the bank largely and smartly steered away from.  Instead, these loses are tied to payment option mortgages made to people with good credit.  Certain bank analysts are prediciting that up to 48% of these option ARMS could wind up in default.  Firstfed has taken the extraordinary effort of contacting borrowers with these loans that are current in payments and offering modifications so that the loans remain in good standing.  I am afraid that the mortgage crisis will continue, simply moving to another group of mortgages turned toxic.