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If a patient dies because of misconduct by doctors or medical personnel, surviving family members may be able to recover damages by bringing a wrongful death lawsuit. And if medical malpractice causes a mother to die during her pregnancy or childbirth, her survivors, including the baby could file a wrongful death of the mother claim. While these claims may look like standard wrongful death or medical malpractice lawsuits, there are some considerations to keep in mind in the situation that occurs when a mother has died before or during childbirth....

Making the decision to adopt a child is usually filled with positive emotions for most couples. That is, until they start looking into the process and get bogged down by the complexity. While hiring an adoption lawyer to handle the entire process can frequently set soon-to-be parents at ease, full service is not necessary. Adoption lawyers, like any other lawyer, may be rather costly. To control costs, you may wish to only have an attorney handle certain tasks....

Ms. Dee Spears of Texas has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Allergan corporation, the maker of the cosmetic drug Botox, over her seven year old daughter’s death. ABC News reports that the girl was using Botox in order to treat muscle spasms that she suffered from because of cerebral palsy. Ms Spears claims that her daughter’s death was a Botox death. She claims that the use of the drug led to her daughter Kristen’s increased severity of seizures, difficulty swallowing and ultimately led to the pneumonia that she died from....

You are sensitive to thefts and keep an eagle eye on customers in your shop. In fact, you are becoming so good at stopping shoplifters that you almost wish you were a cop. Well, if you are not, then you should be careful with your approach as what you are doing may not be legal. Let law enforcement handle the business of crime and punishment. Macy’s department stores in New York found that out the hard way already, according to The Guardian, and it may well pay heavily yet again....

Sound like a familiar routine? Lots of stores make it a routine to ask customers for their ZIP codes. But is that legal? Under the Song-Beverly Credit Card Act of 1971 retailers cannot record a customer’s “personal identification information.” But is a ZIP code personal identification information? “One cookbook and one set of wine glasses. That will be $120.17. What is your ZIP code?” “My ZIP code? Why do you need that?...

Mysterious 5th Eddie Long accuser Centino Kemp has recently made the news. That’s right, yet another person claims Eddie Long coerced him into having sex with him. While Bishop Eddie Long’s sexual misconduct allegations have resulted in a secret settlement with four other accusers, Kemp’s name was never made public during the settlement process, reports WAGA-TV. Bishop Long is the head of the New Birth Missionary Church in Lithonia, Georgia. The church has a congregation and following of over 25,000 members....

We have all been told the importance of contributing to a 401(k) as a retirement plan. 401(k)s are great because your employer sends your contribution straight to the company managing the investment plan, tax-free. Some employers will even make matching deductions to your retirement plan. But what happens when you are your own boss? Can you still have a 401(k)? 401(k) for One Lucky for you, you’re both self-employed and you can have the benefit of a retirement plan....

There’s not much upon which nearly all business owners agree, but they are fairly unified in denouncing patent trolls. You know, a shadowy company that’s only in the business of litigation, snapping up patents on the cheap and, instead of producing something new or putting them to good use, are content with suing the pants off anyone making a similar product or using a similar technology. And patent trolls aren’t just a minor nuisance – they can bankrupt startups and small businesses, and stifle innovation before it can get started....

The first Caylee search lawsuit is here, and Texas’ Equusearch wants its money back. In a lawsuit filed on Wednesday, the volunteer search company claims that it expended $112,000 when searching for Caylee, turning down at least 15 other families that asked for its help. How might Casey Anthony’s lying convictions factor into this lawsuit? Collateral estoppel, or issue preclusion, prevents a defendant or plaintiff from relitigating an issue that has already been decided by the courts....

Can you leave the house without your ID? It seems like a silly question to most, but with some shifts in state immigration laws, it has become a serious question. In a perfect world, you wouldn’t need to carry your ID on you at all times. But here’s what you might expect in the real world: Despite the questionable legal status of Arizona’s immigration laws, there is no place in the nation where simply being in public without ID is illegal....

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced today a return to more strict enforcement of federal antitrust laws. As described in a DOJ press release, the move is intended “to let everyone know that the Antitrust Division will be aggressively pursuing cases where monopolists try to use their dominance in the marketplace to stifle competition and harm consumers.” Enforcing our laws against anti-competitive behavior could mean more room for small businesses to compete....

The server and waiter staff at Del Posto, the super-swank Manhattan Italian eatery owned by Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich, don’t like the portions they are getting. Not food portions. We hear the grub is four-star. A group of 40 Del Posto restaurant workers claim they suffered wage theft, discrmination, abuse and retaliation at the hands of Del Posto, and its owners, reports Change.org. The claim arises from a so-called “tip pool,” which distributes tip money based on a point system....

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination against employees based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Because it was enacted in 1964, many have wondered whether gay and lesbian workers were also protected under the law. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals answered that question this week, ruling that Title VII protects employees from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. The court reasoned that the statute’s ban on sex discrimination also prohibited sexual orientation discrimination because, among other reasons, the discrimination is based on outdated gender stereotypes....

Mental illness and disability can be especially hard for employers to identify and accommodate for, and people with cognitive disabilities have just a 24.2 percent employment rate. And if you are unable to work due to mental cognitive impairments, anxiety related impairments, or affective impairments, you may find it difficult to prove a Social Security Disability Insurance claim. While proving a mental disability can be a challenge, it’s not impossible. Here’s how to do it:...

Welcome to the new FindLaw series, “If I Find,” where we’ll discuss the rule of finders keepers as it applies to different topics. We hope you’ll check back regularly! When Quasimodo was left on the doorstep of Notre Dame, the priest took him in. When Moses floated down the river Nile in a reed basket, the Pharaoh’s sister found him and raised him as her own. If you found an abandoned baby today, could you keep it?...

When the tax man comes knocking at the door of a small business, the visitor can cause an owner to go dizzy with questions of what to do next, and how best to handle the overall tax audit process. And who better to answer those questions than the Internal Revenue Service, which now offers small businesses a guide to tax audits. The video series entitled, “Your Guide to an IRS Audit” is a step-by-step guide to a small business audit....

When a driver blocks traffic, it’s not only irritating, it may be illegal. So when is it illegal to block traffic? Often when a driver or pedestrian is blocking traffic, it is because a car (or person) is somewhere it (or he or she) shouldn’t be. Although the statutes will vary by state and municipality, blocking traffic in the following ways is likely in violation of traffic laws. Car in the middle of an intersection....

A Texas man who lost both of his legs after a botched weight-loss surgery is now seeking millions of dollars in damages. Carlos Saucedo, who weighed 275 pounds in 2013, went under the knife for a gastric sleeve procedure hoping to lose weight. But according to Dallas-Fort Worth’s WFAA-TV, when Saucedo woke up some two weeks later, he lost more than just a few pounds – his two legs had to be amputated at the knee....

Bride-to-be Elizabeth Ludwig plummeted 5 stories to her death at Georgia’s Marriott Evergreen Resort. The death took place only a few weeks before she was to be wed. Ludwig, 33, was staying at the hotel with her fiancé. She fell to her death early Sunday morning, reports the New York Daily News. Ludwig and her fiancé were at the resort and were attending the wedding of a friend. She somehow fell off of the balcony of their room, located 5 stories high....

This is the kind of story that makes you wonder about the randomness of events. A high speed getaway of two robbery suspects, with police just beginning to give chase, ended in the death of a nun, Sister Mary Celine Graham. Sister Mary Celine, 83, died of the injuries she sustained when one of the robbery suspects plowed into a Honda and ricocheted off, hitting three pedestrians, including Sister Mary Celine....