They confessed to rape and murder. They pleaded guilty and went to prison for decades; but they were innocent and DNA evidence proved it last week. On September 16, a judge in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, overturned the convictions of two of the three men serving time for the rape and murder of Eva Gail Patterson, in 1979. The third man, Larry Ruffin, died in prison in 2002. The Innocence Project organized DNA testing for the three men....
A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol, or device – such as a brand name or logo – which identifies your business or product and distinguishes it from other similar businesses or products. The owner of a trademark can enforce his trademark rights to prevent others from infringing upon it by using a similar name or selling the same goods or services under a different name. But how are those rights established?...
Employers often wonder about their obligations under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Which employees are entitled to time off, and what types of situations qualify for FMLA leave? To begin, the FMLA is only applicable to private businesses that employ 50 or more employees for at least 20 weeks during the year. If applicable, employees are only eligible if they have been employed for at least 12 months and worked at least 1,250 hours during that time period....
Earlier this summer, a Pennsylvania grand jury report detailed decades of sexual abuse allegations in six Catholic dioceses in the state. The report included thousands of child victims, over three hundred “predator priests,” and an “Appendix of Offenders” section that ran over 550 pages. And even after all that, the grand jury reiterated that, “while the list of priests is long, we don’t think we got them all.” That may be the intent of the U....
A Southern California man faces charges of vehicular manslaughter and negligence for running over and killing a pedestrian. He is alleged to have been texting while driving, but the lack of evidence regarding when he texted illustrates that what really matters is whether he was grossly negligent. Lately we’ve seen much coverage of the dangers of texting while driving. Many states have instituted bans against it. The case of Martin Burt Kuehl shows us that even if not texting at the exact moment of collision, having texted near the time of the accident can be part of a larger question: where you distracted while driving?...
It sounded like such a good idea at the time, right? The thought of owning your own little piece of paradise seemed so reasonable. But now you’re realizing that owning a timeshare is less of a dream and more of a nightmare, and you’re wondering if there’s any way out. A timeshare contract can seem iron-clad at first glance, but there may be legal ways to terminate your timeshare obligations....
The Internal Revenue Service is cracking down on the “independent contractor vs employee” question in a new program. As a result, small and large businesses alike are on their toes. Watch out for misclassification of employees and workers. It’s a huge money-saver for a small business to get into the practice of working with independent contractors. There is a lower tax bill, less withholding to be responsible for, and in some states, fewer obligations under workers’ compensation requirements....
Jimmy John’s franchise, the sandwhich chain famous for well, sandwhiches, is making headlines for the recent unionization of many of it’s full and part-time employees at nine Minneapolis locations. The newly formed union is part of the much larger Industrial Workers of the World, according to the News Gazette. Union member David Boehnke explains the reason behind the fast food workers union: “We formed a union to fight for change, starting at Jimmy John’s today, and throughout the entire fast food industry tomorrow....
The Justice Department has Texas’ new election changes in its sights, as it announced this week that it would support federal courts reviewing Texas law in order to preserve voting rights. Attorney General Eric Holder stated that based on Texas’ history of past discrimination and the passage of redistricting and voter ID laws, “Texas should be required to go through a preclearance process whenever it changes its voting laws and practices,” reports The Houston Chronicle....
Here’s something to think about … did you do all the things you need to do before saying “I Do?” More than a ring, white dress, and flower-filled ceremony, getting married is a legal contract that two people enter into, and a partnership where love law meets marriage law. There are legal benefits and burdens to a marriage, and many things to consider before and after exchanging vows. First things first, before walking down the aisle, make sure you walk down to the county clerk’s office and file for a marriage license – a certificate which essentially grants you and your spouse the legal right to get married (usually for a small fee)....
After 33 eyelid surgeries–3 cosmetic, 30 reparative–a woman can’t close her eyes. So she sued. A jury in New Jersey last week awarded $115,000 to Marilyn Leisz, who sued her plastic surgeon after a failed 2005 eyelid surgery. She lives in constant fear of losing her eyesight. Prior to her 2005 surgery, Marilyn Leisz had two others: one to fix a sagging eyelid, and one cosmetic, reports ABC News. During trial, Leisz’s attorney provided testimony explaining that prior eyelid work should have precluded Leisz from a third surgery, reports CBS New York....
What began with a horrific 2009 Oklahoma trunpike accident, ended on October 8, in a settlement agreement. One day before jury selection in the civil trial over the deaths of those killed in the accident caused by trucker Donald Creed, eight of the parties settled with defendants for $62.7 million. Representatives for the other two people killed had reached a previous settlement. The turnpike accident, which killed ten people, occurred when traffic had stopped for another accident between two drivers who were also named as defendants in the suit, reports Tulsa World....
Yes, this whole Pokémon Go thing is crazy. It’s got more daily users than Twitter, players are battling over the White House, and weather websites are telling users how to take advantage of lightning to catch Electrabuzz. Suffice it to say, while Pokémon Go may seem like just a digital game, its augmented reality platform means it is having some real world implications. So before you hit the Pokémon gym this weekend and pump imaginary iron (that’s how all of this works, right?...
For once I’m here with good news. About bankruptcy. And the economy. Yes, seriously. A pair of recently released studies indicate that small business bankruptcies are declining nationwide. According to Equifax Commercial Information Solutions, bankruptcies declined 11 percent in the third quarter of 2010 alone. That also marked the fifth consecutive quarter that bankruptcies have dropped for small businesses. This signals a remarkable shift from only 18 months ago. For the purposes of the study, small businesses are classified as those with 100 or fewer employees....
Spousal support. Alimony. Sure, we’ve heard of it. Most people know that when you get divorced one spouse may have to pay spousal support to the other. However, many people also have a lot of questions regarding how much, how long, and how to enforce. So, here is a round-up of the top five questions regarding spousal support: 1. How Is Alimony Calculated? Unlike child support, there is no clear-cut guideline for determining the amount of alimony, or spousal support, a divorced spouse may get....
Between 2009 and 2011, over 8 million Toyota vehicles were subject to sudden acceleration recalls, which the company attributed to floor mats becoming lodged in pedal wells and mechanical sticking. The first of the Toyota sudden acceleration lawsuits wrapped up last Friday when a federal jury in New York found that the accident was attributable to driver error–not a design defect. Though there are still hundreds of Toyota sudden acceleration lawsuits waiting for trial, Friday’s verdict is not necessarily indicative of their outcome....
The terror suspect, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, has been charged in federal court with trying to detonate a device as a plane approached Detroit carrying 300 passengers on Christmas Day. However as the investigation continues into the Christmas Day attack on a Northwest Airlines, some lawmakers would rather see a military trial for alleged plane bomb terror suspect. According to the Associated Press, Rep. Peter King of New York says says the accused Nigerian man should be tried by a military tribunal rather than a civilian court....
You no longer have to be an absentee voter to vote-by-mail in New Jersey. According to a new state law that passed in the spring, voters absent and present can choose to exercise their voting prowess by darkening circles and filling blanks in the comfort of home. What about fraud? A game-changer? Candidates acquiesce that the New Jersey state law will be a game-changer for the way in which they conduct campaigns....
Worrying about dying in a foreign country is not something that should eat up your free time, but as the family of James Gandolfini learned Wednesday, a death outside the United States can be tricky. “Sopranos” star Gandolfini died in an Italian hospital following a suspected heart attack, reports Reuters. Gandolfini was 51. Even a short vacation abroad may leave your family wondering how to handle your funeral, but there are things you can do to prepare....
A federal judge has overturned Wisconsin’s gay marriage ban, just days after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to halt gay marriages in Oregon. Gay marriage supporters cheered after U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb’s ruling on Friday, striking the laws preventing same-sex couples from marrying in Wisconsin. The state’s first same-sex marriage licenses were issued Friday afternoon. In a separate case, Justice Anthony Kennedy responded Wednesday to an emergency stay request by the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), a non-profit dedicated to opposing gay marriage....
