Posted on 10/05/2004 4:52:23 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
SACRAMENTO (AP) - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is backing a campaign to limit lawsuits filed under the state's unfair competition law, has used that law to file suits to stop the use of his image in ads and bobblehead dolls. That makes the governor a hypocrite, said opponents of Proposition 64, the Nov. 2 ballot measure that would limit unfair competition suits.
"If the governor feels it's OK to file lawsuits under this law to protect his image, why isn't it OK to file a case under the statute ... when water and air are threatened with contamination but no money has been lost?" asked Jamie Court, president of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, a Santa Monica-based consumer group. "The governor is being very two-faced."
Aides to the governor did not immediately return phone calls from The Associated Press seeking comment.
That 71-year-old unfair competition law allows individuals, interest groups, other companies and prosecutors to sue to stop practices that allegedly give a business an unfair advantage over competitors or defraud consumers.
Supporters say it's been used to stop consumer rip-offs and environmental damage, among other things.
But critics say the law has also been used by unscrupulous attorneys to shake down usually small businesses to settle lawsuits filed because of minor violations, such as failing to post a business license or using the wrong print size in ads.
Proposition 64 would bar anyone other than the attorney general or a local prosecutor from filing an unfair competition lawsuit unless they could show they had been injured or lost money or property because of the business' conduct.
The ballot measure also would require that unfair competition suits filed for a group of people by someone other than the attorney general or another prosecutor qualify as class-action cases.
Supporters say the measure would stop the frivolous suits, but opponents say it would make it difficult, if not impossible, for consumer and environmental groups to use the statute.
Last year, Schwarzenegger, Denzel Washington and Bruce Willis used the unfair competition law as a basis for a suit against Fry's Electronics, alleging that the retailer's unauthorized use of the actors' pictures in ads gave the public the mistaken impression that they endorsed Fry's products.
Then earlier this year, the governor sued to stop an Ohio company from selling bobblehead dolls depicting him holding an assault rifle. Again the unfair competition law was one of the statutes cited as a basis for the suit.
The bobblehead suit was settled by an agreement that allows Ohio Discount Merchandise Inc. to produce Schwarzenegger bobbleheads without the gun. The Ohio company also agreed to donate a portion of the sales to Schwarzenegger's after-school program.
But John Edgell, the Washington lobbyist and former Democratic congressional aide who came up with the idea for the gun-totting bobblehead, wasn't happy with the settlement.
He says it cost him $20,000 to defend himself against the suit and thwarted his plan to earmark 25 percent of the income from the dolls for cancer research. He's planning to sell a "girlie man" bobblehead depicting Schwarzenegger in a pink dress.
"In America we can praise politicians, we can criticize them and we can poke fun at them. If he has a problem with that he can sue me," Edgell said.
A second bobblehead lawsuit could be tougher to sustain if Proposition 64 is approved, Court says. That's because judges could rule that all unfair competition suits would have to meet the higher requirements of class-action cases.
---
On the Net: www.ss.ca.gov, www.yeson64.com, www.noprop64.com
The Governator was an "injured" party and would have standing under the revised law. Not a shill for lawyers as currently allowed. Next question, please....
the 2nd amendment girlie man is a hypocrite - makes his fortune of violent movies with guns blazing, then signs a bill banning a rifle that's never been used in a crime in the US.
Thanks for pointing that out. I would also like to add that the purpose of this law is to hinder frivolous lawsuits that are presented by extortionist law firms like the Trevor law group. They claim to always represent the people of California and yet they siphon off their winnings to their friends and themselves. For too long these crooks have run rough shod over CA's businesses and I for one am in favor of anything that puts a kink in their rumps.
Yep. The Rat legislature wouldn't make it reasonable so the Governator is "taking it to the people" as he promised....
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.