In a message dated 12/1/2009 5:52:35 A.M. Pacific Standard Time, frischm@law.georgetown.edu writes:
Thanks for your interest—there is always a lot more to these bar cases than can be gleaned from a review of the reports—do you want to post a comment?
In a message dated 12/1/2009 7:39:20 A.M. Pacific Standard Time, SNK 1955 writes:
Dear Mr. Frisch,
You asked me if I would like for you to post a comment regarding the debacle of a mold litigation in Arizona. Yes, I would. But I doubt if you will post what needs to be said.
The following tale of corruption and politics spearheaded by the US Chamber of Commerce and adverse to the health and safety of the American public over the mold issue needs to come to public light. The National Apartment Assoc. PAC just focused the spotlight of the deceit on this litigation by the filing of a amicus curie brief in the litigation while citing to a fraudulent paper by the United States Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform that is titled “A Scientific View of the Health Effects of Mold”.
My name is Sharon Kramer. I advocate for those made ill from mold. I found your blog regarding the treatment of Harold Hyams by the Arizona state bar/courts to be quite interesting.
There is much more to this story than meets the eye. The litigation involves a large property mgmt co, Wasatch, two new born infant deaths, a documented atypical amount of mold in the apartment complex, and a $25,000,000 insurance policy issued by Travelers.
This litigation has the potential to change the face of mold litigation. The reason being is that the National Apartment Assoc PAC submitted an Amicus Brief in the case in August that cites to a fraudulent policy paper over this issue by the US Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform. The fraudulent paper cites false authorship of being written by a physician, was paid for by the Manhattan Institute think-tank, and was specifically written for judges.
The NAA amicus claims that the US Chamber of Commerce fraud on the courst was authored by a “panel of scientists” on page 9 of the brief.
No! It was authored by one of the experts for the defense in the Abad case, Bruce Kelman, and his business partner in the corporation of VeriTox, ONLY.
A 23 minute video of Kelman discussing the false authorship, payment for the Chamber paper from the Manhattan Institute think-tank, that it was specifically paid for and written for judges and other interesting facts.
NAA just made a huge blunder that could help to rid the ‘doubt is their product” crowd from the mold issue once and for all.
And they KNOW it:
To: paul@naahq.org, jeffreylee@naahq.org
Sent: 11/19/2009 6:09:43 A.M. Pacific Standard Time
Subj: Regarding – Look Who’s Talking: Managing Your Online Reputation
Dear Mr. Bergeron and Mr. Lee,
I read your writing/blog regarding how property owners and managers could promote a positive image on line. You offer some good advice to managers that if followed, could help to create community good will which translates into more satisfied tenants, which translates into higher occupancy, which translates into higher profits.
I found these words of advice particularly worthy:
“A lot of people complain because of a lack of response they see through official channels. Be approachable and reachable, and that can reduce a lot of complaints,”
“When management takes a proactive view, or a set of actions that helps to establish their reputation outside of a confrontational stance, they tend to build a reputation that is respected,” Egan says. “So when people complain, the companies’ responses become much more meaningful rather than reactionary.”
It is my hope that NAA will follow their own advice to property managers. NAA has a huge problem. You submitted a fraudulent amicus curie brief in a litigation in Arizona that involves two infants deaths and a $25 million dollar insurance policy issued by Travelers. Then NAAHQ put it online that you submitted the brief.
NAA Files Amicus Brief in Mold Case
There are several science papers cited within the brief that I could reference and give the history of how they have stood up in court and in the media, but I am just going to reference to one: The US Chamber of Commerce “A Scientific View Of The Health Effects of Mold” 2003.
On page 9, NAA describes this paper as
In a report entitled, A Scientific View of the Health Effects of Mold, a panel of scientists, including toxicologists and industrial hygienists stated that years of intense study have failed to produce any causal between exposure to indoor mold and adverse health effects. U.S. Chamber of commerce, A Scientific View of the Health Effects of Mold (2003) at p. 64 and p. 65
There was no “panel of scientists” that authored this paper for the ILR. It cites false authorship of being authored by a physician. Yet, the physician has stated under oath that he had nothing to do with this paper and did not even know his name was on it. It has no scientific foundation to form the conclusion that all claims of illness from the toxins of mold are a result of “trial lawyers, media and junk science”.
The paper was actually authored by two owners of a litigation defense support corportation, VeriTox. One of the authors, Bruce Kelman, is an expert for the defense in the Arizona litigation. He comes to the mold issue circa 2000 from Big Tobacco.
He has stated under oath that the ILR paper was specifically written for judges. It was paid for by the Manhattan Institute think tank who wanted something written for judges.
If you have not been tracking the online reputation of the US Chamber, the organization that NAA is holding out as the guru of science over mold, you owe it to your members to do so. They are rightfully getting nailed left and right for deceits of claiming more members than they really have and their aggressive lobbying impacting everything from global warming to tort reform to the rape of females in the military. Not a great group to have your online reputation tied to at the moment.
NAA needs to take its own advice that it provides to its members. When faced with online complaints that are legitimate and extremely serious in origin, take action to correct the wrong.
NAA should retract their amicus submitted in the Arizona litigation. Not only is it presenting a fraudulent science paper by the US Chamber written expressly to influence judges, it is serving to damage the reputation of all members of NAA on a national level.
As I understand it, the plaintiff attorney in the litigation has submitted something to the court detailing and documenting the fraud within your amicus. If the courts do not take action, then the online bloggers that help those injured by mold will.
If the NAA is truly interested in doing what is right for its members and thus their tenants; and understands the impact of justified negative information on the net, then NAA should retract a now known fraudulent document they have submitted in a legal proceeding, immediately.
The true harm of the fraudulent NAA amicus brief is that it is misleading the members of NAA that mold does not harm. This leaves your members more vulnerable to lawsuits similar to the litigation in Arizona because it leaves their tenants in potential harms way from the NAA misleading their members as to the potential serious illnesses from the matter.
Thank you in advance for your proactive response to this message, It is my hope that NAA will heed its own advice and correct errors adverse to the interest of NAA members and adverse to the health and safety of NAA members’ tenants.
Sincerely,
Sharon Kramer
Disclosure: I have a degree in marketing. I have been tracking the deceit in science over the mold issue for about four years. I am currently in litigation with Bruce Kelman over this exact Chamber paper in Ca. I was the first to publicly write of the deceit of the paper online in 2005. The second time the matter was written of, was on the front page of the Wall Street Journal.
WSJ – Court of Opinion – Authors of Science Paper Often Cited by Defense Also Help in Litigation – Corruption & Deceit in Mold Litigation – ACOEM / US Chamber
Dr. Kelman sued me for libel for the word “altered” claiming it was a false accusation of perjury. The libel case has been interesting to say the least.” It has cost me over $500K in legal fees alone not to shut up about the US Chamber et al,’s deceit over the mold issue and not to be coerced into silence by its authors through this now over four year old libel litigation purportedly for the word “altered”.
LA Weekly put out a false light media hit piece on me three weeks before trial on behalf of the US Chamber. They not only attacked me with their false light political hit piece, but my family, including my daughter who has Cystic Fibrosis referring to her as my “starring victim” while I expose the deceit of the US Chamber of Commerce over the mold issue.
The writer of the LAWeekly expose’, and US Chamber shill, Daniel Heimpel, was named Political Investigative Reporter of the Year for 2008, by the LA Press Club and is now a blogger for the Huffington Post. But in the political hit piece on me in 2008 (which was not submitted by LA Press Club board member, Stewart, for Heimpel’s 2008 body of work) could not even quote the Manhattan Institute correctly in his known fraudulent hit piece on me on behalf of the US Chamber of Commerce.
More relevant documents of what the NAA just did to help change this issue made be read at Katy’s Exposure Blog.
Political Action Committee – NAA – files Amicus Brief in mold case (two infant deaths in mold filled apt – Wasatch Prop Mgmt) citing US Chamber/ACOEM ‘litigation defense report’ to disclaim health effects of indoor mold & limit financial risk for industry
“Changes in construction methods have caused US buildings to become perfect petri dishes for mold and bacteria to flourish when water is added. Instead of warning the public and teaching physicians that the buildings were causing illness; in 2003 the US Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform, a think-tank, and a workers comp physician trade organization mass marketed an unscientific nonsequitor to the courts to disclaim the adverse health effects to stave off liability for financial stakeholders of moldy buildings. Although publicly exposed many times over the years, the deceit lingers in US courts to this very day.” Sharon Noonan Kramer
Information on Riverstone Residential knowingly exposing tenants to extreme amounts of mold toxins at Toxic Mold Infested Jefferson Lakes Apartments in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Toxic Mold Infested Jefferson Lakes Apartments managed by Riverstone Residential
Riverstone Residential Litigation
Mold Inspection Reports
Photos of Mold in Apartment
Attorney Malpractice
Katy's Exposure 