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The City of Baltimore has reached a tentative $6.4 million settlement agreement with the family of Freddie Gray. Gray died in April after suffering a fatal spinal cord injury while in police custody. Baltimore has already paid a total of $5.7 million to settle more than 120 police brutality lawsuits since 2011, and the latest payout would be approved just days before another pre-trial hearing in the criminal case against the six officers charged in Gray’s homicide....

With unemployment near record lows, an increasing number of teens are entering the workforce in the form of summer jobs. Excited to line their pockets with a little change, these new workers are eager to please employers and often don’t know their rights. One of the major labor law violations they fall prey to is clock-in rules. What are these? If you have to ask, you may have already fallen victim to them....

A Mississippi resident faces charges for illegal silicone butt injection deaths in two states. Civil lawsuits are possible as well. Garner, 52, is a man who lives and dresses as a woman, The Clarion-Ledger reports. Garner is currently under house arrest. Garner’s latest alleged victim, Karima Gordon, died in an Atlanta hospital of a blood clot in her lung a few days after receiving a silicone buttocks injection. Part of the reason the procedure is so dangerous is because it’s being administered by non-medical professionals....

California state legislators have approved a pilot program allowing Santa Monica’s Big Blue Buses to be adorned with digital bus ads, complete with scrolling text and images. The plan is intended to help the bus system raise about $8 million–a sum that would allow it to keep transportation fees static. Despite the potential promise of cheaper rides, some community members are less than amused, arguing that the ads are simply another traffic hazard....

Juveniles commit murder. It is a tragic fact of life. Sometimes these juveniles are barely teens, and one has to wonder if they were capable of having the requisite state of mind necessary to spend the rest of their lives in prison. Many courts have said yes, trying them as adults, and handing down life sentences. When a minor commits a crime, a judge will decide whether the person will stand trial as a juvenile or an adult....

Can you sue a dead person? The answer is yes, via the dead person’s estate. But whether or not you’ll be able to recover any money may depend on how quickly you pursue your claim. The ability to sue a dead person’s estate typically arises under two scenarios: When the deceased has debts to be repaid, and when the deceased’s negligence caused injury or death to another party. Under either scenario, time is of the essence....

We’ve all heard of doctor-patient confidentiality or doctor-patient privilege many times on television. We know that doctors can’t disclose our private medical information without our permission. However, as with all things law related, there are exceptions. Sometimes doctors are required by state law to disclose certain confidential information. Is there an exception that will allow your doctor to testify against you at trial? Doctor-Patient Privilege Doctor-patient privilege is governed by state laws, so it can vary from state to state....

[Editor’s Note: This post has been edited to emphasize that the claims involved (which were denied by the defendant) have been settled, and to remove discussion of any potential evidence claimed.] An $80 million dollar lawsuit alleging harassment at the German toymaker Steiff, long famous for its teddy bears, has been settled this week. The AP reported that the lawsuit was settled on Tuesday Nov. 10. Details of the settlement were not disclosed....

Cruise-ship disasters like the deadly Costa Concordia accident in Italy raise questions for passengers: What are your rights when you’re injured on a cruise ship? The answer depends on what’s in your cruise contract, and where the injury took place. Here are some general guidelines. Your cruise contract Your cruise tickets are probably the first place to look for contract terms that explain your rights. Many cruise lines impose requirements on passengers who seek to sue for cruise-ship injuries, for example:...

A new father’s bundle of joy means new responsibilities for him, and a potential bundle of legal questions for you as an employer: Do you have to offer paternity leave, and does it have to be paid? For small businesses, the answers depend on how many employees you have and where your employees live. If you employ at least 50 people within a 75-mile radius, your business must abide by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, which requires unpaid paternity leave....

A drugged driving crash in Colorado ended in an explosion last week. Pieces of the car flew into the air as it burst into flames, after being rear-ended. According to Colorado Springs police, oxygen canisters in the trunk of the car caused the explosion. The driver who allegedly rear-ended the car was arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs, Denver’s KMGH-TV reports. The driver in the car that got hit broke his vertebrae....

The estate tax is a tax on the estate of a deceased person. 2010 represented a year in which, upon dying, no tax was levied against the estate. But with a new year brings new standards and a dramatic departure from 2010. It’s been a roller-coaster ride, but some estates may end up getting a huge tax hike – depending on what Congress does in its final days. One approach to combat the rise …....

The U.S. Department of Justice has rejected Texas’ voter ID law, which would require all residents to present photo identification at the polls. Voters would need to acquire a driver’s license, a state-issued ID card, a military ID or a passport. A concealed handgun license would also fit the bill. Despite the number of eligible documents, the Justice Department believes the legislation would have a discriminatory impact on Hispanic voters. They are between 46....

You are getting out of your marriage and out of this place. But wait. How do you file for divorce if you move? Splitting from separate states brings a few added considerations to the question of where to file for divorce. Let’s look at them here. Residency If you are splitting up and splitting town, your soon-to-be-ex should hang around. Requirements differ from state to state but generally for a court to have jurisdiction over a marriage – even if only in order to dissolve it – at least one of the two people who make up the couple must be a state resident....

When Rebecca Elizabeth Feldhaus and Delphine Renee Baumert attempted to legally change their names – to Rowan Elijah Feldhaus and Andrew Norman Baumert, respectively – they were told by a Georgia judge that their choices weren’t gender-neutral enough to suit his taste. “I do not approve of changing names from male to female – male names to obvious female names, and vice versa,” Columbia County Superior Court Judge J. David Roper, said in denying Feldhaus’s request....

It’s hard to come up with a more polarizing and vitriolic presidential election in recent memory. Families were pitted against each other; Facebook friendships torn asunder; and, it seems, bosses playing resignation chicken with their employees. Grubhub CEO Matt Maloney took a decidedly anti-Donald Trump tack in an email to employees, daring those who don’t agree to “reply to this email with your resignation because you have no place here.” Maloney added, “We do not tolerate hateful attitudes on our team....

If your business is looking to take on foreign workers, you may want to hurry. The H-1B visa application process isn’t easy, and there are only a limited supply of these visas going around. These visas are available for businesses that want to hire foreign workers, as Forbes reminds us. They’re available to workers with special skills and from certain professions. Typically, these visas will be available to teachers, scientists, and those in computer-related fields....

The U.S. Supreme Court will review protesters’ anti-gay message at military funerals and whether it is protected by the First Amendment. According to the Associated Press, the high court will hear an appeal father of Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder killed in Iraq. The Synder family won a $5 million judgment from the protesters, which was overturned on appeal. The Synder family brought the first lawsuit against the church over the protests....

One of the most tragic stories emerging from the wake of Hurricane Irma was the death of 11 residents at a single nursing home in Hollywood, Florida. The Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills lost its air conditioning during the storm, and allegedly didn’t contact 911 until two days later. Eight of the facility’s patients died the next day, many from respiratory or cardiac distress, some of whom arrived at hospitals with body temperatures of 109....

What, exactly, is a media influencer? According to Influencer Marketing Hub, influencers are individuals who have a following in a particular niche, with which they actively engage. Influencers can include “industry experts and thought leaders,” like journalists, academics, and industry experts. These definitions are handy if you’re trying to make sense of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s announcement that it will be compiling a searchable database of media influencers that can be used to monitor social media and traditional news sources....