Message from IALLA's President, Philip Nowicki (GA)

August 2008

Greetings:

Our annual conference is oriented as a forum for lemon law officials and stakeholder representatives to discuss, debate and share information of mutual concern.

This year’s conference has an exciting slate of topics and speakers. On day one, Carrie Lopez will comment on consumer issues from her vantage point as Director of the California Department of Consumer Affairs. Ed Lapham from Automotive News will share his insight on the current state of affairs of the domestic automobile industry. Eugene Ebersole from the Oregon AG’s Office will talk about negative equity, a component of many of today’s motor vehicle transactions. To cap the day, lemon law officials will provide updates on new legislation, litigation or actions taken during the past year in their respective states.

Day two will commence with a panel discussion on lemon law repair attempts. A diversified panel will hash out such issues as defects and conditions, intermittent problems, dealer actions and warranty work orders. Having a conference in California with new technologies at today’s forefront would be incomplete without some discussion of green cars. Fortunately, Craig Childers from the California Air Resource Board will talk about zero emission vehicles. Finally, the conference concludes with a discussion of the impact of attorneys on arbitration programs. Panel members will share their perspectives as program administrators and as participants in the process. The dialogue on this topic should be informative, constructive, lively and something not to miss.

See you in Sacramento.

Sincerely,

Philip Nowicki, Ph.D.

IALLA President

President Nowicki has advanced an ambitious agenda of projects and goals for IALLA for the coming year and all members and subscribers are urged to participate by joining the standing and special committees.