John P. Freeman, a professor at the University of South Carolina law school, said the Alliance settlement could be an opportunity for others to challenge fees in the industry.
In October 2007, some tenants filed a lawsuit under consumer protection laws to challenge fees imposed over late rent, repairs and washing machines.
Meredith R. Harris, a senior attorney for AT&T, suggested that the decision could open the door for other local phone companies to challenge fees imposed in the Northeast.
A lawyer, Kenneth M. Mollins, challenged the fees as illegal, citing an older law that limited fees in court cases, which was not repealed.
Both the recording industry and Internet radio companies have challenged those fees, which hold radio stations responsible for paying about one-fourteenth of a cent for each song heard by each listener over the Internet.
Unfair contract terms It will be easier for consumers to challenge hidden fees and charges.
The law was changed in response to a lawsuit challenging the fees as a violation of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.
Though the State Legislature may challenge the fees, they represent perhaps the most concrete example of how Enron's collapse has jolted the finances of people who never worked for, held shares in, or knew the first thing about the company.
While we do need a Private Higher Education Act of the kind advocated by HEPI in May and a stronger QAA with real teeth, we also need to challenge the fees model itself.
A ruling in favor of the teachers challenging the fees could sap finances at all unions representing teachers, firefighters and other government workers, labor leaders and other experts say.
