Here’s a timely question on National Inventors Day: If someone steals your invention, what can you do about it? Calling the cops may not help, but you may be able to sue the culprits. For example, remember the Apple v. Samsung case in which the two tech giants fought over patent infringement? That’s just one example of how an allegedly stolen invention can lead to a long, costly court battle. Would it be worth your efforts to do the same?...
It’s 2016, so you would think female entrepreneurs would have the same access to small business financing as their male counterparts. But recent studies have shown that women are less likely to get business credit than men, and when they do, they often ask for and get less in loans than men. So how can female entrepreneurs close the small business lending gap? Here’s a look at some small business loan and grant options for women....
For most of us, taxes are pretty straightforward: You get your W-2, fire up some online tax software, and click away. But for entrepreneurs and small business owners, tax life gets a little more complicated. Of course, there’s your salary, but then you might have dividends or other income, a slew of deductions, and then sorting out all those business and personal expenses. And Trump’s new tax bill didn’t just affect personal filers but small businesses as well....
Though it contains the word “will,” the fact is that living wills have nothing to do with the distribution of property after death. A misnomer, the more accurate (and modern) terminology for a living will would either be an advance directive or a durable power of attorney. Alone or combined, these two documents allow you to plan for your medical needs should you no longer be able to make decisions for yourself....
There’s another alleged iPhone fire in the news. Could it lead to a lawsuit? A middle schooler in Maine claims she suffered second-degree burns last week when her iPhone 5C caught on fire in her pants pocket, reports the Portland Press Herald. Although the 14-year-old girl’s parents haven’t yet filed a lawsuit against Apple, a prior lawsuit involving an Apple product catching fire may offer some insight into what could potentially happen in this case....
There are many rules in immigration law that govern who can apply for what benefit and under what conditions. Then there are the exceptions, special situations when the government recognizes a general rule should not apply. The 1-601 waiver – commonly referred to as the 601 waiver – is the name of the form of form used to ask the government to make an exception and grant you an immigration benefit although you are otherwise ineligible....
According to a new survey for the website Mashable by online survey company SurveyMonkey, almost one in 10 workers reports having gone to work high on marijuana. For employers, stoned employees means potentially lower productivity as well as increased potential liability for accidents caused by an employee who is high on the job. But what can you do about employees who show up high? Here are five possibilities to consider:...
The Haiti earthquake was in 2010, but lawmakers are allowing charitable tax deductions for Haiti relief contributions in the 2009 income tax calculation. We’ve already discussed the tax benefits of donating to Haiti relief in an earlier post in this blog. But now, 2009 taxpayers have an added tax incentive to donate to Haiti. In January of this year, the House of Representatives unanimously approved a measure to allow the deductions of cash donations to Haiti earthquake relief on the donor’s 2009 tax returns, instead of having to wait until 2010 to take the charitable tax deductions....
Are you jonesing to strike it big with a dorm room startup that blossoms into a booming business? College entrepreneurs who want to turn a dorm room startup into a sustainable business will need a considerable amount of seed money and mentoring – along with a boatload of legal guidance – before they become the next Mark Zuckerberg. Here are a few legal tips for aspiring entrepreneurs: As many dorm room startup disputes center on oral and written agreements, it may also be wise to consult an experienced contracts lawyer to make sure you’re legally covered....
Buying a summer timeshare seems like an easy way to ensure that you’ll have an inexpensive way to go on vacation every summer. But it can actually be tangled morass of legal and financial issues. If you’re considering buying a timeshare to get away to this summer, consider these five reasons not to buy first: There are really two types of timeshares, deeded and non-deeded. Deeded timeshares are fractional interests in a piece of real property, most often a rental unit in a resort complex for a particular week in the year....
There are lots of reasons to file an injury lawsuit – a car accident, a slip and fall, an intentional assault – but before you file the paperwork, you need to prepare. A lawsuit generally means a hearing, and to win in court you need to have evidence to prove your case. If all you have is your word against the defendant’s, then there’s a good chance the outcome won’t go in your favor....
How old were you when you saw your first R-rated movie? Almost every movie released to market has a rating of G, PG, PG-13, R, or NC-17. They’re meant to provide consumers, especially parents, with advance information about how appropriate a movie may be for certain audiences. But, as many of us know, the ratings aren’t always heeded. Many of us have watched R-rated movie without our parents long before we turned 17....
You might be considering a mandatory flu shot policy for your workplace. However, you may be uncertain in knowing whether these policies are legal. We’re in the midst of a massive flu outbreak. So you may be noticing that your customers and employees are walking around with a cough, runny nose, or fever. And as a small business owner, you may be acutely aware of how damaging one sick employee can be for your business, let alone multiple sick workers....
Prior to an adoption being finalized by the court, the birth mother, or birth father, will retain the legal rights to their child. After the adoption process is finalized by a court, both birth parents lose all legal rights to their child. This means that a biological mother will not have the right to make important life decisions on behalf of her child, nor will she have the right to petition for custody or even visitation....
In a historic vote Thursday, the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) lifted its ban on openly gay scout members. More than 60% of Scout leaders at the BSA’s National Council meeting in Grapevine, Texas, voted for the change, the Associated Press reports. Allowing gay Boy Scouts is a move that may motivate other private groups to change their stance on allowing homosexual members, although current law does not require them to do so....
The bearded co-founder of Burt’s Bees reveals in a recent documentary that he was ousted by the company after he had an affair with an employee. Burt Shavitz, 79, is the subject of a new documentary “Burt’s Buzz” which chronicles Shavitz’s life and his role in the founding of Burt’s Bees, whose products still bear his cartoon likeness, reports The Associated Press. What can we learn from Shavitz’s 1993 ouster and what’s happened since?...
Childbirth is stressful. And it’s really, really hard. Sure, the experience is also other-worldly miraculous, but between the pain and the uncertainty, pretty much every woman wants to get it over with as quickly as possible to meet that tiny baby who’s been breakdancing inside her for months. But as difficult as your standard labor is, imagine giving birth in jail. Over the years, pregnant women have been forced to give birth in jail, either because their labor progressed too rapidly, or because they were not cared for quickly enough....
Former International Monetary Fund director Dominique Strauss-Kahn has lost his latest attempt to rid himself of all pending U.S. litigation. A New York judge has denied DSK diplomatic immunity in a civil suit brought by the hotel maid who accused him of sexual assault in May 2011. The judge refused to dismiss the suit, finding that the organization head was not in New York on official business at the time. The suit was also filed months after he resigned from his post....
Toilet injuries: they exist, and not just in cartoons. A woman was injured by an exploding toilet at a federal building in Washington D.C. on Monday. The explosion occurred at the General Services Administration (GSA) building on 7th and D SW in our nation’s capitol. The woman was taken to the hospital after the accident with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. Employees were warned not to use the restrooms after the incident....
Another friend has come out of the woodwork for Mr. Mark Zuckerberg; a friend claiming he owns 84% of Zuckerberg’s company, Facebook. You may have heard of it. The lawsuit, filed in a New York State court, claims a contract exists that gives plaintiff Paul Ceglia, a majority share of the company. The court has issued a restraining order preventing Facebook from selling off or transferring assets. According to the Wall Street Journal, Ceglia’s suit claims he signed a contract with Zuckerberg in April, 2003, to develop and design a website....
