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The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld opening prayers at town council meetings, siding with a long tradition of government ceremonial prayer. In Greece v. Galloway, the High Court had to decide whether the city of Greece, New York’s practice of beginning sessions with Christian sectarian prayer was constitutional. In a 5-4 split, the Court sided with the town of Greece, finding that the prayer practice did not violate the First Amendment, USA Today reports....

We’re big advocates of registering your trademarks – it’s a relatively painless process that can protect your intellectual property from infringement. We say “relatively painless” because, unlike the trademark for Havana Club rum, most trademark applications don’t take 21 years to be processed. One way to avoid having your trademark application sit around for two decades is to stay out of the kind of litigation Havana Club got involved in. Here are a few others:...

Should hourly workers be paid for answering work emails and calls when they’re off-the-clock? It is becoming a popular question in the time of Blackberrys, iPhones, smart phones, pda’s, cameras that connect online, and cars that talk. Especially in light of recent lawsuits brought by hourly employees against employers for not compensating for time spent answering and responding to calls, emails, and texts on company-provided cell phones. As a small business employer, here are the top 5 things you should know about federal law provisions for overtime:...

Lesson learned: If the TSA exposes a woman’s breasts, then it may have to face legal consequences. Lynsie Murley, a 24-year old from Amarillo, Texas, filed a lawsuit against the TSA for negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress because of a patdown that caused her breasts to be exposed, MSNBC.com reports. Lynsie Murley claims that she was “singled out for extended search procedures,” according to the Daily Mail. She claims that a TSA agent patted her down and “pulled Plaintiff’s blouse completely down, exposing Plaintiff’s breasts to everyone in the area....

Virginia’s ban on gay marriage was struck down by a federal judge late Thursday night. But the judge placed her own ruling on hold pending an appeal. U.S. District Court Judge Arenda Wright Allen ruled that the commonwealth’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage violated the 14th Amendment’s rights to equal protection and due process, Reuters reports. As another state marriage ban falls to a federal court ruling, how does this new case add to the background of gay marriage law?...

You’ve probably heard of trusts, which are legal instruments used primarily for estate planning. But have you ever heard of a constructive trust? Unlike most other kinds of trusts, constructive trusts aren’t drafted by a lawyer as part of an individual’s estate plan or wealth management strategy. Instead, constructive trusts are imposed by a court in order to prevent unjust enrichment by someone who has wrongfully obtained an interest in another person’s property by obligating them to return the property to its original owner....

Ex-Pennsylvania state court judges Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan who were part of the “Kids for Cash” scandal were granted partial judicial immunity in some of the charges against them in civil lawsuits. We wrote about the “Kids for Cash” scandal in our Common Law Blog here. The judges both resigned after accusations that they accepted over $2.6 million dollars in bribes from private detention centers to send juvenile delinquents to their centers....

The Family Medical Leave Act, more commonly known as the FMLA, was signed into law 20 years ago today. Can the law’s provisions work for you? President Bill Clinton signed the FMLA into law on February 5, 1993. It officially went into effect in August of that year, and many Americans who need time off from work have reaped the benefits ever since. As the FMLA marks its 20th anniversary, here are 10 ways the FMLA can potentially pay off for employees:...

Doctors and medical professionals are experts in their field, and we rely on their knowledge, insight, and judgment to make and keep us well. And if a doctor’s medical expertise seems beyond our general understanding, so too can medical malpractice lawsuits. That means a lot people, even lawmakers, have misconceptions about medical practice and how medical malpractice lawsuits work. For example, legislators thought they could reduce lawsuits by allowing doctors to apologize for mistakes without their apologies being used against them in court....

There are certainly worse birthday gifts than scratch-off lottery tickets, especially when one of those tickets ends up being a $4 million prize-winner. Deisi Ocampo of Chicago received a pair of lottery tickets as a gift from her father on her 19th birthday, reports WMAQ-TV. She didn’t have a chance to scratch them off until the next day, but when she did, she discovered that she was the winner of a $4 million prize....

You created a business website to attract customers, present your products, and increase engagement on the Internet. Your site looks slick and you are pretty happy with it. But do you have your bases covered? Make sure that you don’t end up with a lawsuit on your hands by following these four guidelines. 4 Website Guidelines Do You Disclaim?: Have a disclaimer for your site that covers all pertinent areas of your practice or products....

We’ve written about getting customers to pay their invoice. While getting customers to pay is obviously important, sometimes small businesses may find that getting paid faster is just as important. Most small businesses have to pay their business expenses on a monthly basis and as a result need to have a steady supply of capital on hand regularly. When customers are late making their payments, businesses can struggle just to stay afloat....

It doesn’t matter how much it snowed last year, winter driving is always madness as soon as the first flakes fall. The problem, however, may not be your driving. It’s that everyone else on the road is slipping and sliding, which means you have to be ready to react to their poor choices. Even if you’re obeying traffic rules, you could still be the one stuck with the bill after the guy in front of you slams on the brakes....

Blood sucking parasites. Please, no attorney jokes allowed here. This is an examination of a growing problem garnering press coverage and scaring everyone from business travelers to teenagers shopping for cool clothes. We are speaking of course of Cinex lectularius, the bed bug. Bed bug infestations are nothing new, but the recent spike in news stories about infestations and the bed bug lawsuit that can result seems to be something fairly recent....

It may sound like a good idea to take advantage of the allowable tax deductions for meals. But beware! The Federal income tax laws can be extremely stringent with regards to the deduction of meals and entertainment expenses. Meal expenses are generally for food, beverage and even tips. Entertainment expenses are generally for amusement, recreation or entertainment. Now that you have the definition, you’re probably wondering whether or not your expenses are allowable tax deductions....

Recently, the Department of Justice moved to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the Defense of Marriage Act. The move itself, and the particular arguments made in support of the law have drawn criticism from groups waiting for Obama to make good on campaign promises to get the Defense of Marriage Act repealed. For a nice description the of why the Obama administration likely saw a need to defend the Act, why they will likely win and where they may have gone too far, see this article by Cornell Law Professor Mike Dorf....

About 30 percent of American adults do not believe that Social Security will still be around when they retire, according to a new survey from FindLaw.com. The largest percentage of respondents – about 39 percent – say they’re not sure, leaving a mere 31 percent expressing confidence in the future of Social Security. Regardless of what the future holds, the survey reminds us all about the necessity of planning ahead for your golden years....

You cannot be fired for getting injured on the job and filing a workers’ compensation claim. But you can be fired for other reasons. All the boss has to do is present that termination in legal terms. Your employer may say your dismissal is based on poor performance or financial difficulties, and that is technically permissible. Your employer simply cannot blame the firing on the injury. At-will employees can be terminated at any time as long as it is not a discriminatory or retaliatory act....

Most of us look at a fender bender and think we don’t need a lawyer. Even victims in more serious car accidents will wonder if hiring an attorney is too expensive or worth the cost. And while it’s true that lawyers don’t often provide legal services for free, not hiring one could end up costing you even more in the long run. The total cost of hiring a car accident attorney will depend on both the particular attorney and the particulars of your case, but there are some general principles regarding legal fees, so here’s a look....

“I Know What You Did Last Summer” was a book that became a cheeseball ’90s horror flick starring Jennifer Love Hewitt (who has moved on to star in a blockbuster lawsuit over her right to publicity). No less horrifying, however, is the modern version of “I Know What You Did Last Summer” that plays out every day on social media, starring you, your prospective and current bosses, police, and anyone else looking to find out more about what you do and how you do it....