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When you’re involved in a car accident, who you can sue will depend on a range of factors, including your state’s laws and details about who else was involved and at fault. Generally speaking, you can sue anyone who was in the crash, but specifics really matter when it comes to negligence. Car accident cases have a lot of limitations by design. Many states have laws governing and limiting these negligence claims to particular circumstances, and insurance is expected to cover most claims arising on the road....

When you buy a piece of property you want to know that you, and you alone, own what you’ve just purchased. This may seems obvious, but when it comes to buying real estate, ensuring that no one else has a legal claim to the land can get a bit more complicated. This is especially true in Hawaii, where state law can grant property rights to descendants, sometimes without their knowledge. And if you’re Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and you just bought 700 acres on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, that means filing legal claims against hundreds of Hawaiians to ensure their legal claims to the land are extinguished....

It’s often said that guns don’t kill people, people kill people. But a new analysis finds people with guns cause more deaths per capita than people with cars in 10 U.S. states. In those states, you are more likely to be killed by a person wielding a gun than in a car accident, according to the Washington, D.C.-based Violence Policy Center. The analysis compared gun-related and motor-vehicle death rates in 2009, the most recent year with state-level data in both categories....

If you are in business, or just about to start one, you probably already know that there are countless resources on starting and running a successful operation. As nice as it is to get advice, you should nonetheless be careful about whose wisdom you choose to follow. The National Federation of Independent Businesses has some guidance on guidance that can help you avoid making bad choices, even if these were recommended by someone you know or trust....

How do you enforce a divorce decree? Unfortunately, there may be situations in which you’ll need to know how to enforce the agreed-upon terms that ended your marriage, even long after your divorce has been finalized. A divorce decree is the final judgment in a divorce proceeding that spells out each party’s obligations. But if your ex-spouse is not making the proper payments or fails to follow the terms of the decree, how can you get it enforced?...

If you are planning to get divorced, don’t decide where to file based on cheap fees or fast processing times alone. Getting divorced is easier or harder in different states, and there are various waiting periods and restrictions depending on the location. But your major considerations will depend on the specifics of your situation – whether you have children or property to split and whether you will be seeking spousal support, among others....

Estate planning is a subject some people would rather avoid. After all, making arrangements for what happens to your assets following your own death isn’t necessarily a pleasant subject. But consulting with an experienced estate planning lawyer is something you should consider doing sooner, rather than later. Why? Here are five reasons you shouldn’t wait to call an estate planning lawyer: The needs of your estate plan can vary depending on your age, your marital status, and other individual circumstances....

Tax day is fast approaching, and some of you are still looking for some tax filing tips for your business. Don’t worry – FindLaw has you covered. Here are five things you should know before filing your taxes on April 15: Some great software allows us to file our personal taxes online, but our businesses and the tax laws that cover them can be a bit more complicated. If you have questions regarding your business’s tax filing, you may want to consult with an experienced tax attorney in your area....

Bankruptcy filings are tough decisions to make, both financially and emotionally. Most of us are too proud to admit we can’t pay our debts, and we’re also unsure of the long-term effects on our credit and our lives. And most of us will be eager to return to our normal lives as soon as possible after filing bankruptcy. Chapter 7 bankruptcy can help relieve your debt burden now, but how long will that bankruptcy filing hamper your ability to buy a home in the future?...

Literature provokes and exposes readers to new ideas. But some books make us uncomfortable for that very reason. So, each year, American libraries and literary institutions celebrate Banned Books Week to remind us that freedom of expression is a constitutional right, guaranteed by the First Amendment. “Art certainly cannot advance under compulsion to traditional forms, and nothing … is more stifling to progress than limitation of the right to experiment with a new technique,” wrote Judge Augustus Hand in his opinion in United States v....

The family of 8 year old Christopher Bizilj (who died because of a Micro Uzi machine gun accidentally discharging during a Westfield Connecticut gun fair last year) filed a civil wrongful death lawsuit. The lawsuit is for $4 million dollars. A newsclip of the story can be seen here: The Daily Hampshire Gazette reports that the event was advertised as “an opportunity to shoot machine guns and automatic weapons, without the requirement of permits or licenses to do so....

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which included a COBRA subsidy to help laid off workers afford health insurance. That COBRA subsidy begins to expire today. These payments were designed to last nine months for unemployed workers, so those who joined the unemployment rolls in March stand to lose their COBRA subsidy starting today. As of October, an estimated 15.7 million Americans were out of work. COBRA, which stands for the 1985 Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, is the plan which allows an unemployed worker to continue to purchase health insurance through their former employer’s plan....

The doctor in legal trouble over implanting too many embryos into “Octomom” Nadya Suleman is facing yet more charges for the same types of actions. Dr. Michael Kamrava is facing allegations from the Medical Board of California that he implanted too many embryos in an additional patient and, in another case, failed to order tests in a patient facing stage 3 ovarian cancer. The Los Angeles Times reports that the California Medical Board is alleging Kamrava’s actions in one case “constitute an extreme departure from the standard of practice....

A Pennsylvania appeals court recently upheld an eye-opening $10 million verdict in a multi-vehicle wreck caused by an out-of-control and poorly maintained dump truck. The award included over $1 million in punitive damages, as The National Trial Lawyers’ blog pointed out. In May 2010, Theodus Williams was driving a dump truck with numerous mechanical issues near Scranton, Pennsylvania, when the brakes on the truck failed. The truck hurtled downhill, reaching speeds of over 45 mph when it hit a car which then rear-ended Holly Ann Kuchwara, according to The National Trial Lawyers....

The presidential race is getting all the attention in the Election 2012 coverage, but there are several state ballot issues that are worth taking a closer look at. Even if the issues don’t apply to your state, some of these important ballot measures could end up on your state ballot in the next election – especially if they pass. Here are just a few of the most closely watched issues:...

The Planet Hollywood casino-hotel in Las Vegas is known for its memorabilia. Autographed wardrobe items, set pieces, and other film collectibles line the casino and adorn hotel room walls. But apparently one of those relics got a little too real for one guest. Kent Jacobs Boutwell thought a life-sized mannequin wearing a “Miller Lite” racing suit was a life-threatening intruder and sent him racing from his room, suffering injuries to his “body, limbs, organs and nervous system,” that might be “permanent and disabling....

Filing for bankruptcy is never pleasant, and it requires a vast amount of forms that can overwhelm even the most organized petitioner. Don’t become crushed under the weight of confusion over bankruptcy forms. Most of the essential forms you will need fall into these categories: Whether you are filing for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, your main document to present to the bankruptcy court is your bankruptcy petition. The voluntary bankruptcy petition is available from the federal government, and requests the following information:...

A boat crash in the Florida Keys sent 10 people to the hospital. Authorities are still working to determine the cause of the crash. The collision occurred near Elliot Key on Sunday night, when a 36-foot Carrera powerboat carrying 16 people hit a smaller boat, causing the smaller craft to sink, reports the Associated Press. Though many of the details are still unclear, both boat captains face potential liability for the injuries and property damage sustained in the crash....

An 18-year Navy veteran, Carmen Cardona recently learned that the military does not award disability benefits to gay couples. Cardona has received disability benefits since 2000. When she married her now-wife in 2010, she applied for a monthly increase as provided by the rules. The Department of Veterans Affairs denied that application, citing two federal laws. One law defines “spouse” as a person of the opposite sex. The other, popularly known as DOMA, prohibits federal recognition of same-sex marriages....

General Motors has offered to pay compensation for 19 deaths caused by faulty ignition switches in the company’s vehicles. The dollar amounts of the automaker’s offers weren’t announced. But the 19 deaths marked an increase from the 13 deaths GM had previously said were caused by the faulty ignition switches, Reuters reports. The ignition switch flaw, which led the company to recall millions of vehicles earlier this year, can cause a vehicle’s ignition to slip out of the run position, stalling the vehicles and disabling features such as airbags....