f/k/a archives . . . real opinions & real haiku

  The Seventh Circuit federal appellate court made it pretty clear to Equifax last week: credit reports must be accurate and clear — mere accuracy is not sufficient when disclosing information to consumers under the Fair Credit Report Act (15 U.S.C. § 1681g(a)(1).  Brian Wolfman at the Consumer Law and Policy Blog reported on the case of Gillespie v. Equifax Information Services, L.L.P., No. 06-1952 (May 3, 2007), over the weekend. (via Ambrogi at LegalBlogWatch)  Brian even edited his post the next day, to remove a potential ambiguity.  In fact, overtaken with the desire for clarity, Judge Kanne concluded the 7th Circuit’s opinion with a paragraph that began:

“In conclusion, we must note the scope of our decision and the next steps to be taken in this case…”  

Far too often, and especially where a decision sends the case back for further proceedings, the client and the lawyer, and often the lower court, are a bit confused or uncertain about what happens next.  Let’s be clear, however: The Gillespie opinion, which merely resolved a summary judgment motion and not Equifax’s actual legal liability, is based on a statute that requires the agency to disclose certain information “clearly and accurately.” 

 There is no general mandate in consumer or commercial law for clarity in disclosures — and, there’s absolutely no rule in our adversarial legal system for lawyers to be clear, even when they’re trying to be accurate.  Of course, it almost goes without saying that family law in no way helps assure that the tweener and adolescent “lawyers” at you house will — should they deign to respond to inquiries at all — be both truthful and easy to understand.

rainy day
the left hand
muddy

morning dew–
no hiding the way
we’ve come

seventh-inning stretch — 
dust from dragging the bases
hangs in the air 

ground fog
up to my ankles
in moonlight

walking in
the orchard      suddenly
                          its      plan

…… by Jim Kacian
“rainy day” – Roadrunner Haiku Journal (V: I, Dec. 18, 2005)
“seventh-inning stretch — ” – Baseball Haiku (2007) 
“morning dew” – Six Directions; snow on the water (RMA 1998)
“walking in” – Presents of Mind (1996; 2006); orig. pub Six Directions

p.s. Speaking of speaking clearely, I discovered at Kare Anderson‘s Say It Better weblog yesterday that Jon Winokur’s newest book is The Big Book of Irony.   In it Winokur “defines and classifies irony and contrasts it with coincidence and cynicism, and other oft-confused concepts that many think are ironic.”  Kare lists a few examples from the book.  f/k/a fans know that abuse of the word “ironic” is a pet peeve around here.

sun tea darkens–
bees in the hollyhocks
all afternoon

another scorcher–
the muddy river’s
slow flow
…………….. by Billie Wilson 
“sun tea darkens” –  Acorn #16 (2006)
“muddy river” – Acorn 13 (2004)