The State of Iowa will pay $3.75 million to settle a baby’s brain injury case. Five years ago, Martha Fountain went to the University of Iowa near the end of a normal full-term pregnancy. She was given the drug Pitocin to help speed up her delivery, the Associated Press reports. Instead, the drug allegedly had the opposite effect, prolonging her labor to 28 hours. Fountain eventually gave birth to a baby boy, but the boy suffered brain injuries....
Most drugs have some type of negative side effect. But you usually know what those side effects are and decide that the medical benefits outweigh those risks. So, if you’re not told what the risks are, you can’t make that analysis. In a recent case out of federal court, a man claimed that a drug manufacturer misrepresented the risks of his medicine, and he found out the hard way when he suffered a heart attack....
SmartBuy, a national computer seller, is being sued by the state of New York. Attorney General Andrew Cuomo sued SmartBuy on behalf of the state, claiming that they were scamming soldiers by grossly over pricing computers and charging usurious interest rates. SmartBuy allegedly purchased the computes not from wholesalers, but retail stores, and then re-sold to them to military personnel. SmartBuy has several locations across the United States. The Attorney General believes all operate in the same manner....
A new study finds that teen drivers are far more likely to be distracted than older, more experienced motorists. Researchers at Virginia Tech’s Transportation Institute found that “novice drivers are more likely to engage in high-risk secondary tasks” such as dialing cell phones, eating, and even chatting with passengers. These distractions “greatly raise their risk of crashes,” researchers found. How can drivers protect themselves in light of this study? Charlie Klauer, group leader at the Institute’s Center for Vulnerable Road User Safety and author of the study, states that increased rate of distraction among teens is “worrisome....
In a video clip that’s gone viral, Pat Sajak of TV’s “Wheel of Fortune” admits to an HWI – hosting a game show while intoxicated. “Yes. When I first started and was much younger and could tolerate those things,” Sajak said during an ESPN2 talk show on Tuesday, the Los Angeles Times reports. Pat Sajak and co-host Vanna White routinely tossed back “two or three or six” margaritas between tapings of “Wheel of Fortune” in the early 1980s, Sajak said....
Business owners may often endure screaming children alongside paying customers, but they may not have to. A Northern California restaurant heard an awful lot of complaints after it posted a sign announcing its new policy: No loud kids in the dining room. According to Monterey’s KSBW-TV, the Old Fisherman’s Grotto restaurant in the city’s historic Old Fisherman’s Wharf has also barred strollers, high chairs, and booster chairs. Can your business put a loud-kids ban like this in place?...
Two years ago the SBA began its Patriot Express Pilot Loan Program. The goal was to assist military veterans and their spouses start or expand small businesses. The program recently surpassed the milestone of $300 million in money lent. Here are some basics about how the Patriot Express loan program works. According to an SBA press release, in less than 2 years, more than $315 million in Patriot Express loans has been lent to more than 3,750 veterans and their spouses....
A worker at a Florida Chili’s restaurant was fired after posting a series of shirtless pictures of himself in the restaurant’s kitchen on Facebook. The pictures, posted by a man calling himself Justin Speekz on a publicly visible Facebook profile, were labeled “Sexy Cooks of Chili’s,” reports Tampa’s WFTS-TV. The pictures were discovered on Facebook by a customer of the restaurant. What lessons can employers learn from this latest employee social media stunt?...
The stereotype is deeply embedded in our minds and media when it comes to jury trials: the jurors sit passively, perhaps nodding or even crying in response, as the attorneys, witnesses, and judges battle before them, then retire to a room to argue about a defendant’s freedom or the fate of millions of dollars. They are instructed to decide the case based only on what they have seen and heard in the courtroom, but have little or no input on the evidence....
Whether to solve the crime in the first instance, or to exonerate an innocent person, there are many reasons to fully process rape kits as quickly as possible. And while there is some federal funding set aside to address the enormous backlog of unprocessed sexual assault kits nationwide, the actual processing is left up to local law enforcement. But that is starting to change. Several states are passing legislation aimed at decreasing the backlog of unprocessed rape and sexual assault kits, as well as requiring law enforcement agencies to fully process kits with a specific amount of time....
The U.S. Supreme Court waited until the final day of its 2013 Term to rule on what was for many the year’s most anticipated case: Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, involving Obamacare’s birth-control mandate. In a 5-4 opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito, the Court ruled that certain private companies can object to Obamacare’s mandate that they provide coverage for birth control through their employee health insurance plans, Reuters reports. Want to know more?...
Since Black Friday and Cyber Monday can make a retailer’s year, small business retailers need to do everything they can to keep their operations up and running during those times. While brick and mortar retailers might need to hire security guards, hire extra sales staff, or extend store hours, for online retailers the concerns are a bit different. To prepare for the biggest online shopping days of the year, business owners need to ensure that their site’s security, and digital emergency plan, are in place, and that they have an adequate disclaimer to warn customers in case of high volumes of orders....
If you’re going to be a summer bride, or groom for that matter, you’re probably up to your eyeballs in wedding-related contracts. Between the venue, the flowers, the caterer, and everything else, there’s a lot of paperwork to sign. You know what’s not romantic? Having an attorney along while you and your sweetie taste cake and look for a spot. There must be a better way to review all that paperwork....
Small business owners: Do you know what are your options are under Obamacare? With open enrollment set to begin October 1, you should. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare, will usher in many changes for both individuals and small businesses alike. Your business may be affected depending on the number of full-time employees (those who work at least 30 hours a week) you have. With that said, here are seven potential options for small business owners to consider:...
You can contract for all sorts of things, but is it legal for a contract to contain a “morality clause”? That’s the question many are asking after several teachers at California Catholic schools run by the Oakland diocese have chosen to resign rather than sign a new clause in their contract that requires teachers to model their private lives after church teachings. Can an employer make you contractually agree to be subjectively “moral”?...
Individuals who have HIV or AIDS will generally be protected under the law from discrimination. However, recognizing HIV or AIDS discrimination may be difficult. Individuals with HIV or AIDS can face discrimination in nearly every facet of life. Sadly, even children have been shunned by schools, daycares, after school programs, and their peers and other parents. Adults can suffer discrimination at work, in businesses, at hospitals, and also among their peers and colleagues....
Here at Law and Daily Life, you can read about everything from the 20-year anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act, to Banned Books Week. And since you can never have too many reasons to count your blessings, we would like to shed some light on National Adoption Day, which is November 20. On this day, family courts in all 50 states will focus on and celebrate some of the good things that can take place in a courtroom, reports the Middletown Journal....
Whether your last lease ended amicably or atrociously, your former tenant may have left a few of their things behind. So how long do you need to wait before clearing their belongings out? And do you have to hold onto their stuff before you toss it into the trash? Can you keep it if you like it? State laws on leases and rental agreements can vary, so the answer may depend on where your rental unit is located....
If you’ve been the victim of harassment or domestic violence, or you reasonably fear that a divorce will lead to such behavior from your spouse, you may be considered filing for a restraining order. And while a restraining order or order of protection may not always be a perfect deterrent to stalking or abuse, they can provide you with some legal recourse if your soon-to-be-ex violates the order. There are different types of restraining orders, and different conditions they may come with, as well as different criteria for filing and enforcement, all depending on your specific circumstances and even where you live....
A lawsuit for wrongful death is a claim that a person’s life was taken due to the negligence of another person or company. It’s not an accusation of criminal wrongdoing, but it does ask the defendant to pay for the damage caused. But there’s a big difference between wrongful death and most other civil lawsuits: the person who was injured isn’t the plaintiff. The reason for that should be obvious given what the lawsuit is about....
