Health officials have identified bagged salad mix as the source of an outbreak of Cyclospora – a rare parasite that causes a lengthy gastrointestinal illness. The contaminated salad outbreak has sickened more than 170 people in Iowa and Nebraska, reports CNN. About 200 others in 13 additional states have also become ill from Cyclospora, but it’s not clear whether those cases were part of the same outbreak, according to the CDC....
Soft drink giant Coca Cola has recently found itself in the middle of a large ERISA class action lawsuit. The suit alleges that Coca Cola violated ERISA when it cancelled the health care plans of almost 500 employees, following an ongoing strike that charges the company with employee surveillance, intimidation, and bad faith bargaining, reports the Star Global Tribune. ERISA, which stands of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, is a federal law that promulgates minimum standards for employee health plans (among other things) in private industries....
Mobile payment services like Square and LevelUp are all the rage with pop-up cafes and micro-businesses, but are they right for established small businesses? Attaching a portable credit-card reader to your smartphone or tablet may seem like the right call, but doing so also raises a few legal concerns – such hackers potentially swiping customers’ credit-card info. Here are five legal tips for any business owner considering mobile payments: Many states have particular regulations about how money can be transmitted in legal sales or transactions, and the restrictions allow each state to keep a close eye on whether a business is paying taxes....
With recent news of security breaches attacking large companies like Sony Entertainment and Epsilon, it’s easy to think that small businesses don’t need to take steps to prevent cyberattacks. But, according to Armorize, a website security firm, in the last month a group of hackers has infected nearly 30,000 websites, many of which are run by small businesses. Unfortunately, this seems to be a growing trend. Focusing cyberattacks on small businesses makes a lot of sense for hackers, as USA Today reports that they often don’t have the resources to fend off even the most basic of attacks....
Part of the appeal of a family business is the family part, as opposed to the business part. Having a warmer, more informal relationship between the owners and employees stands in stark contrast to the calculating, profit-driven world of LLCs. Plus, why share profits with stockholders when you can keep all that money in-house, as it were? Then again, we all know how families are. There is the ideal of the “Mom and Pop Shop,” and then there is the cold reality of succession plans and sibling rivalries, where the fantasy of a happy family business often gives way to the realities of family and financial strife....
Matthew and Laura Eaton tearfully confessed their years long shoplifting and eBay selling spree to Dr. Phil and all of us last year. The good doctor queried: “I’m no lawyer or a cop, but isn’t that a federal crime?” “Yeah, it is,” responded Mrs. Eaton. She was correct. The couple has now been indicted for what federal authorities term “e-fencing.” Though lately we’ve been seeing many criminals bust themselves via Facebook, Twitter, or whatever, the Eatons reminded us that good old fashioned network TV is not dead....
Married couples are living apart now more than ever, and many spouses claim the two-roof strategy not only keeps their marriage fresh but their wallets flush. Aside from two residences giving each partner the space he or she needs, possible legal binds like joint mortgages or joint tenancy of a large property can make simply paying rent an alluring avenue, reports The New York Times. Given all the legal benefits of marriage, does living apart make sense?...
You’d probably be hard-pressed to find a smoker who has not tried, or at least considered, giving up rolled tobacco for electronic cigarettes, more commonly known as e-cigs. These alternative nicotine delivery systems eliminate the smoke from the smoking habit by using a lithium-ion battery to heat an aerosol cartridge that releases an inhalable vapor. E-cigs have grown popular in the last decade and are often touted as the lesser of two evils when compared to smoking tobacco....
The New York Times has settled its “Parentlode” lawsuit against the Huffington Post. The Times originally filed suit against AOL’s HuffPo when ex-columnist Lisa Belkin switched teams. Belkin penned the “Motherlode” blog when she worked at the Times. When she started at the HuffPo, she still wrote about parenting issues. Just under a new name: “Parentlode.” The Times responded with a cease and desist letter. They then followed up with a full-on lawsuit....
There’s a growing trend in the working world, and unsurprisingly, it involves Facebook. More and more job interviewers are reportedly asking job applicants for their Facebook passwords, hoping to get a little more insight before they offer anyone a position. Public agencies are also getting in on the trend, especially when hiring individuals for law enforcement positions. They want to ensure there are no gang connections or photos of illegal activity....
How do you look up a patent or trademark? As today is National Inventors Day, it’s a question many creative minds may be wondering about. When contemplating a patent or trademark, it’s important to conduct a preliminary patent and trademark search to make sure there isn’t one that’s similar – or even identical – to your idea. Regardless of the reason for your search, there are a variety of ways to search for a patent or trademark....
When an officer pulls you over to issue a traffic ticket, you may be upset. But receiving a citation that lists incorrect information can be even more frustrating. Despite many myths surrounding traffic tickets, clerical errors on a traffic citation are generally not sufficient cause for a judge to dismiss your case, even if the officer fails to spell your name right, according to the privately owned website DMV.org. However, there may be some cases in which traffic ticket mistakes can help in your defense....
Perhaps it is foolish for anyone to be surprised that the combination of the internet, cell phone cameras and teenage hormones leads to naked pictures being sent back and forth. The legal system is still trying to figure out what to do when teenagers send nude pictures of themselves to each other. Some call it child pornography, while others call it harmless flirting. Susquenita High School, near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania is currently dealing with this situation after eight students between the ages of 13 and 17 were accused of using their cell phones to transmit nude photos of each other, including one that depicted a sex act....
New sex offender laws in California may require sexual predators to carry new specially marked IDs. California lawmakers are backing new legislation requiring marked IDs for sex offenders. A new full legislative package was rolled out on National Missing Children’s Day and endorsed by Maurice Dubois, father of slain Escondido teenager Amber Dubois, the Associated Press reports. As previously discussed, John Albert Gardner III was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the rapes and murders of Amber Dubois and Poway teen, Chelsea King....
No child should have to endure what those at Parkland High School went through during the mass shooting at their school on February 14. Understandably, many are asking questions about how it could have been avoided, whether there were missed warning signs, and how to avoid this type of tragedy in the future. In answer to some of those questions, one of the Parkland victims is suing the gunman, his mother’s estate, the family the gunman stayed with, and three mental health facilities....
The school yoga lawsuit is over and the bohemian bourgeois – or “Bobos” – may rejoice. A judge is allowing a California school district to teach yoga, rejecting the claims of disgruntled parents who called it an effort to promote Eastern religion. In his ruling, San Diego Superior Court Judge John S. Meyer said yoga is a religious practice, but not the way that it is taught by the Encinitas Union School District at its nine campuses, reports The Associated Press....
It’s a lawsuit so frivolous that some are theorizing the case is spoofed – an attempt to force legislators to pass tort reform laws that would hinder a person’s ability to bring lawsuits in the first place: A couple McDonald’s customers in Florida sued the burger chain, claiming they were charged for cheese on their Quarter Pounders, even though they didn’t want it. Whether their legal beef is legit, whether they’re just looking for a quick settlement, or whether the whole thing is a false flag operation designed to make consumer lawsuits look bad, we may never know....
The Teresa Lewis execution may have exhausted its final avenue for appeal. 41 year-old Teresa Lewis was found guilty of killing her husband and stepson in 2002. The Virginia native has been appealing her death row sentence ever since. Her two co-conspirators were both given life in prison without parole. The Supreme Court has now denied her final stay of execution appeal. Lewis is scheduled to die by lethal injection Thursday evening....
The U.S. Supreme Court is on summer break for the moment, but its next term begins in October with a handful of very interesting cases. Beginning October 6, the nation’s highest court will hear appeals involving issues of criminal law, prisoner’s rights, labor law, class-action claims, and patent law. Here’s a preview of the Supreme Court’s first 10 cases of the October 2014 Term: To see how these cases play out, we’ll have to look to the Supreme Court beginning in October....
There is no definite answer for those of you who wish to know just what is tax deductible for a small business. According to the painfully dry tax code, a business may deduct all expenses that are ordinary, necessary and reasonable. Just what does that mean? Think about expenses that are helpful, appropriate and common in your line of work. Oh, and they can’t make you laugh. Internal Revenue Service Code section 162 provides a list of what is tax deductible–including travel, meal and entertainment expenses–under the ordinary and necessary clause....
