Improvements made to Servicemembers Civil Relief Act Published Oct. 25, 2010 GOODFELLOW AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Congress recently passed very significant improvements to the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. One change is an improvement of the ability for servicemembers to terminate cell phone contracts. Currently, the member can only request termination or suspension under some limited circumstances, however, the carrier doesn't have to grant the request. The proposed law broadens the circumstances and also gives servicemembers the right to terminate the contract. Basically, anytime a servicemember receives an assignment to a place where cell phone service is not available for more than 90 days, he would have the right to terminate the contract. If the servicemember is on a family plan and moves or deploys, the service can be terminated by whichever parent is paying for the plan. Congress also clarified the statutory language regarding early termination charges on residential leases. The language in the old version was ambiguous on whether the prohibition for early termination charges only applied to motor vehicle leases or whether it also covered residential leases. The new language leaves no doubt that early termination charges are prohibited for both. Also under the SCRA, a court order is required before a military member or his family members can be evicted during a period of military service, unless the overdue rent exceeds $2,958. Finally, Congress clarified that there is both a government and a private right of action to sue those who violate the SCRA. The SCRA will now also allow the award of attorney fees for private actions. This will improve the ability of a servicemember to seek redress for wrongs without having to go through the process and expenditure of time to get the Department of Justice involved. (Courtesy of 17th Training Wing Judge Advocate Office.)
