International Law

USANA Settlement - From the Court Records

Posted on August 11, 2008
Image via WikipediaSome people have a hard time understanding that the USANA did not prove any of its allegations against Minkow.  A reader emailed me this question:"I've been engaged in a conversation with Len Clements regarding the outcome of the courtcase between USANA and Minkow...

Spam King Dead

Posted on August 11, 2008
Image via WikipediaAs reported by the US Attorney's Office in Denver:"Edward "Eddie" Davidson, age 35, also known as the "Spam King," was found dead this morning after an apparent murder suicide, United States Attorney Troy Eid announced.  Last Sunday, July 20th, Davidson walked away from a federal prison camp in Florence...

Issac Hayes - Moving On

Posted on August 10, 2008
Issac Hayes has passed on, at the tender age of 65. A reminder of the 1970's.

Cuppy's Franchisor Suspended by AAFD

Posted on August 08, 2008
Image via WikipediaAt  BMM, the AAFD announced that it was suspending the AAFD's accreditation of the Cuppy's Coffee Franchisor:"The American Association of Franchisees and Dealers announced today that it has suspended its recognition of Cuppy's Coffee and More, LLC as an AAFD Accredited Contract recipient, pending a determination of the Association's Board of Directors that AAFD's Accreditation of the Cuppy's contract should be withdrawn...

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Bermuda Connection to YTB

Posted on August 08, 2008
Image via WikipediaAlex Wright writes, at the Royal Gazette, about the Bermuda connection with YTB:"Hundreds of Bermudians who signed up to YourTravelBiz.com (YTB) with the dream of making a fast buck could be set to lose out after California Attorney General Edmund Brown filed a lawsuit to shut down the travel website...

AD Surf Daily Scam Exposed - Reprieve of 12 Daily Pro

Posted on August 08, 2008
Image via WikipediaCatherine Holahan, writes at Businessweek, about AD Surf Daily: "Sonny Pham, 50, may have dismissed Ad Surf Daily (ASD) as just another online get-rich-quick scheme--if he hadn't seen the Web videos. YouTube had dozens. Some featured company founder, 74-year-old Thomas "Andy" Bowdoin, describing in a folksy twang how his "business opportunity" had helped thousands generate "excellent" profits...

Fraud Links for Thursday

Posted on August 07, 2008
Image via WikipediaTracy Coenen, writing at Walletpop, about the YTB lawsuit, notes the similarity between YTB and Shop to Earn."Mutli-level marketing companies like this pop up all over the place. Their defenders claim they are legitimate business opportunities because there is a product or service being offered...

Influence Links for Thursday

Posted on August 07, 2008
Image via WikipediaThe New York Times has an interview with Cialdini, Goldstein, and Martin on their new book 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to be Persuasive.As would be expected they have some interesting observations that go against the grain of common expectations...

Team Minkow Winning Streak Continues

Posted on August 06, 2008
Image via WikipediaIt is remarkable how little people understand legal judgments and the obvious signs of a winning settlement.Les Clement writes of Barry Minkow's decision to stop commenting on USANA as "The timing of Minkow's surrender was not that surprising considering his already discredited case against Usana, and to a lesser extend Herbalife, had taken another battering the past few days...

Neulan Midkiff Found Guilty

Posted on August 06, 2008
Image via WikipediaFrom the FBI Press Release about Neulan Midkiff and Travis Correll's investment fraudAfter four hours of deliberation, a federal jury issued a guilty verdict today against a 66-year-old Forest Lake man who was charged with defrauding 519 people nationwide out of approximately $30 million in an investment scheme...

Does Cold Stone Churning Locations?

Posted on August 06, 2008
Image via WikipediaOver at Sean Kelly's Unhappy Franchisee, an ex franchisee of Cold Stone Creamery complains that the franchisor turned down 3 legitimate buyers of his franchise, that he was forced to close, and that the franchisor immediately resold the location - pocketing the fees that they would not have got had there been a transfer...

Are You a Virgin?

Posted on August 05, 2008

Brown Sues To Topple Online Pyramid Scheme; Your Travel Biz

Posted on August 05, 2008
Image via WikipediaFrom a Press Release regarding Your Travel BizCalifornia Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced a lawsuit against YourTravelBiz.com for operating a "gigantic pyramid scheme" that recruited tens of thousands of members with deceptive claims that members could earn huge sums of money through its online travel agencies...

Lord Simcoe Day Franchise News

Posted on August 04, 2008
Image via WikipediaRichard Solomon, Paul Steinberg, and myself met in Detroit over the weekend to plot, strategize and about killer pre-purchase franchise due diligence. At the "Dearborn Inn in a suburb of Detroit, a nine hour non stop meeting took place amongst Paul Steinberg, Mike Webster and Richard Solomon, attending as Seamus Muldoon...

Why is Sam Antar Right about USANA? Part I

Posted on August 04, 2008
Image via WikipediaSam E. Antar recently wrote me and stated: I read your recent blog post entitled, "USANA Health Sciences Pays Off." I respectfully respond to your blog post below: (1) Contrary to your allegation, I have never received a penny from USANA; (2) I was never a party to USANA's lawsuit against Fraud Discovery Institute (FDI) and Barry Minkow; (3) Because I was not a party to that case, I was not consulted regarding the settlement and had no involvement in it; (4) Other than what I've read on the internet and in court documents accessed via PACER, I don't know anything about the settlement, including the terms of the confidential settlement agreement...

More Money needed for Franchise

Posted on August 01, 2008
Image via WikipediaTodd Shields, writing at CaryGrove CountrySide, about franchising has an interesting observation, which should have been expanded.He writes:"With one's life savings on the line to open a franchise restaurant in the Chicago suburbs, detailed market studies are a must read...

Swindled Businessman Fights Back

Posted on July 31, 2008
Image via WikipediaBarry Minkow is championing Joe Palermo as a fraud fighter."Joe Palermo understands the good and bad of business. Beginning his career in the financial offices of organizations as considerable as Viacom, United Cable, and the Hearst Corporation, he has gone on to successfully launch or acquire several other companies...

Killer Pre Investment Due Diligence

Posted on July 31, 2008
Image via WikipediaInteresting testimonial over at BMM, for Killer Pre Investment Due Diligence:"If you are even thinking about investing in a particular franchise! You need the protection (killer due diligence) that only street-smart fighters like Richard can provide...

Success Vending Salesmen Sentenced For Fraud

Posted on July 31, 2008
Image by beckysmurf via FlickrFox News, from Las Vegas, reports on the Success Vending Biz Op scam:"All four defendants, who were charged in 2006, had pled guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in connection with Success.According to documents filed in the case, Success and National defrauded 673 people from throughout the U...

New Franchise Disclosure Rule

Posted on July 31, 2008
Richard Gibson, writing about franchising, for the WSJ has an article on the new FTC franchise rule.He writes:"Franchisers will have to list any lawsuits they've filed against franchisees in the past year. Previously, only franchisee-initiated litigation had to be reported...

Tasti D-Lite Franchise

Posted on July 30, 2008
Image via WikipediaEllen Byron, of the WSJ, has a complete puff piece on Jim Amos and the Tasti D-Lite franchise."Now, the franchising guru behind Mail Boxes Etc. and I Can't Believe It's Yogurt is betting that such Tasti D-Lite devotees can be cultivated in cities around the world, just as competition among frozen treats is heating up...

Judging Reputation

Posted on July 30, 2008
Image via WikipediaHere is a very tall claim by reported by the BPS Research Digest:"It takes just a tenth of a second for people to make judgements about you based on your facial appearance.Janine Willis and Alexander Todorov asked university students to rate the attractiveness, likeability, competence, trustworthiness, and aggressiveness of actors' faces after looking at their photos for just 100ms...

Usana Health Sciences Pays Off

Posted on July 30, 2008
Image via WikipediaBarry Minkow and Sam Antar got paid out by USANA to stop their investigations into the USANA business model.At least, that is how I read the following press release about the settlement between USANA and Minkow. "USANA Health Sciences, Inc...

Direct Selling Association's Position Against Truth in Advertising

Posted on July 29, 2008
Image via WikipediaRecently, I have been posting about whether Mary Kay distributors could be a franchisor, a topic which had a great following over as Sean Kelly's blog, Franchise Pick.In 1997, Joseph N. Mariano, then counsel to the Direct Selling Association, laid out the DSA's opposition to being regulated by the FTC as a business opportunity franchise...

What can You Learn at Franchise Exhibitions?

Posted on July 29, 2008
Image via WikipediaJason Gehrke, writing at his blog at Smart Company, has some interesting but incomplete ideas about getting value from attending a franchise trade show.First, there is an interesting idea."Take your spouse/partner/significant other...

Mortgage Fraud News

Posted on July 29, 2008

How We Drive

Posted on July 29, 2008
Image via WikipediaI have become a recent fan of Tom Vanderbilt's blog, How We Drive.  I thought the story Wired did on Tom was very revealing:"Driving down a New Jersey highway three years ago, Tom Vanderbilt decided to stop being a goody-goody. He fought the urge to merge at the first indication that his lane was ending and rode it right to the pinch point, wedging his way in front of a furious driver at the last second...

Mea Culpa - Thanks to My UK Readers

Posted on July 28, 2008
Last week, I wrote about a blogger Felicity Lowde which claimed that a woman named Rachel North was lying to the public.However, a reader alerted me to the fact that:"Felicity Lowde, a 4 times convicted stalker who has spent 3 years harassing a lady called Rachel North, a survivor of an al-Qaida attack in London who runs a popular blog...

Canadian Class Action Law: A Flawed Model

Posted on July 28, 2008
Image via WikipediaWalter Olson writes, over at the Point of Law blog, that:"Unfortunately, they say, Canada's relatively new class action format is abnormally liberal on the key issue of class certification standards, which is likely to open especially wide dangers for abuse...

USANA Health Sciences Winners?

Posted on July 28, 2008
Image via WikipediaBarry Minkow has apparently given up pursuing USANA over its business model.According to a press release:"Barry Minkow and the Fraud Discovery Institute (FDI) today announced the settlement of their lawsuit pending in the United States District Court for the District of Utah...

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