Listen to any morning traffic report or talk to any friend and you know – car accidents happen all the time. And everyone’s got their own story. So how do you separate fact from fiction? Here are five of the most persistent car accident myths, and why they’re they are just plain wrong. If You’re Not Hurt Right Away, You Can’t Sue for Injuries Later. Some injuries, especially those like whiplash, can take weeks or months to develop noticeable symptoms....
When life gives you lemons, you can make lemonade – but you may not be able to sell it at a lemonade stand, at least not without jumping through some legal hoops. Here are five legal issues that can potentially stand in the way of your kid’s lemonade stand: If you’d like to squeeze out some more legal information about your kid’s lemonade stand, you may want to speak with a grown-up business attorney in your area....
Buying a house is a big deal. Beyond the financial investment, there are quite a few legal implications, not to mention the emotional attachment to a new home. No one wants to end up on the other side of home ownership, wishing they had known something else before they got started. Here are five things to know when buying a home, from incentives and inspections to insurance and the institutions that regulate home ownership....
Brooke Hundley, a former ESPN production assistant, is suing ESPN for defamation after the sports network fired her following her sexual harassment lawsuit against broadcaster Steve Phillips. She alleges that as a result of ESPN’s actions, she lost her job, lost future job opportunities, has faced public harassment, embarrassment and damage to her reputation. She is seeking at least $15,000 in damages. Phillips admitted to the affair with Hundley, but had denied Hundley’s accusations....
What if you could no longer listen to your favorite songs or wake up to the bird chirping outside? There are a million reasons we cherish our hearing and it’s understandable why we would be upset if our hearing was lost or damaged. Being upset, however, doesn’t always make for a valid legal claim. So when can you sue for hearing damage or loss? That will generally depend on how and where you were injured....
Dealing with the death of a loved one is difficult enough without adding on a legal dispute about your inheritance. But you may need to fight for your inheritance if you believe a loved one’s will is outdated or has been improperly altered. While most estates will pass through probate without an issue, here are some legal considerations when challenging a will and your rights to an inheritance. Not everyone has legal standing to challenge a will....
Californians have a lot to brag about. Beaches, mountains, the Warriors, and avocados are just a few of their treasures. But the ridiculously expensive housing market and high cost of living leave many residents scrambling for extra income. Independent Contractor vs. Employee Many companies like to classify workers as independent contractors because it usually costs less, they can provide fewer benefits, and they can avoid payroll taxes. And prior to the new ruling, the test for proper classification of a worker was how much control the employer had over the worker’s performance....
Jamie Oliver may have set his sights on Los Angeles, but Principal Elsa Carmona has picked up the Food Revolution slack at Chicago’s Little Village Academy. Brown bag lunches are a thing of the past for the school’s parents and students. Carmona has banned them from campus. Chicago Public Schools permits principals to decide how to handle home-packed lunches, reports the Los Angeles Times. While some merely confiscate sugary and salty snacks, Little Village Academy has stopped allowing them altogether....
Whether you consider Ugg boots a fashion friend or foe there now may be some health concerns associated with the popular sheepskin boots. Which begs the question: Are Ugg boots bad for feet? Because of the minimal arch support and toasty environment of the boots, users are now experiencing some unwanted side effects: back and foot pain as well as skin infections such as foot fungus and dermititis. The lack of arch support means that feet and ankles are put into unnatural walking patterns when worn for extended periods of time....
Small business e-tailers take note: Make sure your website isn’t selling counterfeit goods, or it could get seized by the feds in a Cyber Monday crackdown. The Justice Department announced Monday it’s seized 150 websites that investigators say were hawking fake name-brand goods. Seized domain names include pumaoutlets.net, myjerseyshop.com, and uggbootsclearanceoutletstores.com, Reuters reports. Shutting down the sites is relatively easy, but prosecuting the counterfeit sellers will be more difficult. That’s because the sellers are typically located overseas, mostly in China, according to Reuters....
The tax man always gets his cut. If your business sells clothes or shoes, you probably already know you have to collect sales tax. But, what if your business only provides a service? Do you need to collect sales tax on services? The law on collecting sales tax on services varies from state to state, but here are some things to know: Hawaii, New Mexico, and South Dakota impose a sales tax on all services provided....
Pennsylvania has introduced new legislation aimed at cracking down on DUI first time offenders by requiring them to have ignition interlock devices on their vehicles. The goal of the newly proposed DUI legislation is to deter people from drinking and driving or even stop drinking alcohol altogether, Myfoxphilly.com reports. As previously discussed, the state assembly recently passed Leandra’s Law, which pushes for some of the nation’s toughest penalties for drunk driving, including making it a felony to drive intoxicated with children as passengers and forcing first time DWI offenders to have the ignition interlock devices installed....
We recently learned that Batman has to pay his taxes. Now we learn that even U.S. Supreme Court Justices have to show up for jury duty. “Sporting dark trousers and a checkered patterned sweater jacket, she sat quietly, reading through what appeared to be a legal brief and making handwritten notes in the margin,“ABC News reported. Elena Kagan wasn’t ultimately called to sit on a jury however. If she had, that would have certainly been an interesting trial and deliberation....
Severance packages are becoming more and more popular these days, and are no longer just golden parachutes for exiting executives. In fact, some states require severance pay in certain circumstances. So how do you know when to offer soon-to-be-former employees severance packages, and what does a severance package need to include? Here are a few tips to help: Know the Code As noted above, there are some situations where severance pay is statutorily required....
When it comes to food, many people usually have one specialty they believe they make better than anyone else. But making the jump to selling it isn’t as easy as just having a good product. Whether it’s a sandwich or Beef Wellington, figuring out how to start a homemade food business is not without its legal risks. So before you start investing in your own homemade food start-up, consider looking into the following issues first....
It’s the holidays and it’s time to party. But before going all crazy this Christmas, you may want to consider that the host of a party may be liable for holiday party injuries and other party-related incidents. So as you prepare the food, entertainment, and beverages that make a holiday party fun, you should also prepare the designated drivers and babysitters, and perform the chores that make a holiday party safe....
With so much public focus on health care reform in anticipation of next week’s vote in the Senate, the issue of abortion has been out of public purview. However, out of sight is not out of mind. According to a new Oklahoma state abortion law, details of women who undergo the procedure will be posted online and viewable to the public. Physicians will be required to collect the information from women and will forward it to the state Health Department which will then post the information....
If you suffer from a high risk of blood clotting due to surgery or an accident, an inferior vena cava filter or IVC filter can save your life. But in most cases, IVC filters are only supposed to be temporary fixes: the Food and Drug Administration has repeatedly warned of the risks associated with IVC filters and documented hundreds of adverse health events due to leaving IVC filters in long after they are needed....
New Jersey is expected to become the 14th state in the nation to legalize medical marijuana, making the strictest marijuana laws in the nation. It will be one of the lasts duties by Gov. Jon Corzine who has said he’ll sign it into law before leaving office. According to the New Jersey Star-Ledger, the state legislature approved legalizing medical marijuana by a vote of 48-14 in the Assembly and 25-13 in the state Senate....
It’s all fun and games until a strange green mascot injures someone. Suzanne Peirce was relaxing on a lounge chair poolside at a Jersey Shore hotel. The Phillie Phanatic was nearby doing Phanatic antics, when it suddenly grabbed the woman and her chair, and tossed both into the pool, says Peirce in her Phillie Phanatic lawsuit. Is the Phanatic on steroids? As a result of the chair toss, the Phillie Phanatic was sued for allegedly causing injuries to the woman that included “severe and permanent injuries to her head, neck, back, body, arms and legs, bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments, nerves and tissues,” reports Reuters....
