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The Mall of America’s decision to hire a black Santa Claus for this holiday season made a big impact across the country. Even though there have been countless black Santas before, the prominent placement in America’s largest shopping mall sparked some unexpected controversy. As a business owner, if you are considering hiring a Santa Claus for your business, you need to be aware that race, gender, and other protected statuses, cannot be considered as factors in hiring....

An Uber class action settlement is now in front of a federal judge, with the two sides set to meet on October 29th. The settlement agreement in Duhlberg v. Uber requests Uber to pay $345,622 to over 4,500 Uber drivers for being consistently underpaid, according to the 2015 Technology Service Agreement (TSA) in force between Uber and the drivers. This will amount to about $75 per driver. Uber agreed to pay drivers 80% of the fares they collect, but, according to plaintiffs, the pay actually turned out to be between 70% and 80%....

The Anthony Weiner photo scandal took yet another strange twist Monday. Despite lewd Twitter photos and “internet affairs” via Facebook, Rep. Anthony Weiner will not resign. Weiner admits that photos sent from his Twitter account, which he originally claimed was hacked, were from him, the politician said at a New York news conference today. The scandal came to light after a picture of a man’s bulging crotch was sent through Weiner’s Twitter account....

If you default on a student loan, what happens? Unfortunately, more Americans are finding out the answer first-hand. Student loans now have the highest delinquency rate of any consumer loan, higher even than car loans or credit cards, according to Bloomberg Businessweek. Many of those student loan delinquencies – i.e., missed payments – will lead to student loan defaults. Default occurs when a borrower continues to miss payments on a loan....

When we hear that something is against the law, we generally don’t question where the law comes from. But ’the law’ can mean a lot of things, from general ideas about jurisprudence all the way down to a written ordinance. And while the words ’law’ and ‘regulation’ are often used interchangeably, they can refer to very distinct things. Although the effect of laws and regulations can often be the same, it is important to understand how they are different....

With hurricane season upon us, odds are at least one hurricane will cause massive damage. Insurance policies may, or may not, cover these costs. If the stakes are high, you don’t want to risk finding out what is covered, or more painfully, what isn’t covered, until it’s too late. This is an excellent question. And the answer is, it depends. In general, natural disasters such as flooding, also called “acts of God”, are not covered by standard insurance policies....

Between patent trolls, corporate and espionage, and employees taking your ideas with them as they walk out the door, there are myriad reasons to protect your intellectual property as a small business owner. But you entrepreneurs are a curious breed, so confident in your ability to do anything and everything. And, to be fair, a law degree is not a prerequisite to filing for a patent. Still, there comes a time when your intellectual property needs will require an expert in the field....

The Virginia couple who crashed last week’s White House dinner may now face possible charges for lying to federal officers. At President Barack Obama’s first state dinner, the couple actually shook hands and talked to him in the receiving line. Michaele Salahi is being considered as a participant in the upcoming “The Real Housewives of D.C.” program and on the day of the dinner was being filmed by Half Yard Productions, the producer of the program....

The SMS text is a beautiful thing. It can relay important time-sensitive messages like “running late”, “on my way”, or “in a meeting” as well as life-changing sentiments like “please say yes”, “it’s a girl”, or “your keys are ready”… and all without having to actually initiate a call. While texting can be an efficient way to communicate information, it has also proven to be deadly when combined with driving. The distracted driver is attributed to more than half a million injuries from car crashes in 2008 and over 6,000 deaths....

The mother of a mentally ill woman who disappeared after being released from police custody in the Malibu/Lost Hills area near Los Angeles last September has filed a wrongful death suit against Los Angeles County and Sheriff’s Department officials. Latice Sutton, mother of Mitrice Richardson, is alleging the sheriffs were negligent in releasing her daughter with no car, no phone, no purse and after she exhibited signs of being mentally unstable....

Mixing family and business can be as emotionally and financially rewarding as they can be legally troublesome. No one wants the workplace to intrude on their homelife, so how can we keep our family business from coming in between family members? Here are three legal tips for your family business: 1. Incorporation Protection. The decision regarding which incorporation structure is right for your business can be tricky. The decision regarding whether to incorporate your business is a little easier....

Whenever you buy a new pair of jeans online, book a weekend getaway using your credit card, or appease your a bank or cable company by giving them the last four digits of your Social Security number over the phone…of course it crosses your mind. Could my identity get stolen? And, how will I know if it is swiped? Here are 5 signs that can tip you off to a potential security breach with regards to your identity:...

A new California bill would put some child molesters in prison for life after a first offense under stricter sex offender laws. The parents of slain San Diego County teenager Chelsea King are pushing for a stricter penalties on sex offenders including more time on parole with electronic monitoring, the Los Angeles Times reports. The legislation is called Chelsea’s Law. As previously discussed, John Gardner, a 30-year-old registered sex offender has pleaded not guilty to murdering Chelsea King....

Just as Mark Zuckerburg declares victory in one lawsuit seeking a stake in Facebook, he’s faced with another. Paul Ceglia, who is suing Zuckerburg for a 50% share in the social networking site, amended his complaint yesterday, providing the court with new evidence that he says proves his case. This new evidence has come in the form of 7-year-old emails, which were purportedly exchanged by a young Zuckerburg and Paul Ceglia, who was an investor in the budding startup....

A new lawsuit alleges that a deaf man was held in county jail for 25 days without a sign language interpreter before the charges against him were eventually dropped. The suit was filed against Adams County, Colorado. Timothy Siaki filed the claim in federal court. He says that officials violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. Siaki was arrested on May 14, 2010 at a motel over a noise complaint. Siaki and his fiancé, Kimberlee Moore, were arguing....

If you’ve ever heard about someone making false accusations, chances are you’ve also heard about the resulting lawsuits. Some of them claim slander, others libel, and a few just say defamation. And then there are the ones that use all three terms. It may seem like these lawsuits are all alleging the same exact thing, and to some extent, they are. But there is a difference between slander, libel and defamation, and it’s a good difference to know....

There are a lot of decisions to make as a startup. Where to get funding, how to get your name out there, and how to run your day-to-day operations are just a few. With companies like Uber and Lyft depending on the gig economy, and states like California cracking down on who can be considered an independent contractor, these personnel decisions may seem even more daunting. One piece of guidance in this realm is the Economic Realities Test....

The Swimming Can Stay, the Suits May Have to Go. FINA, the governing body for international competitive swimming, voted last week to ban the full-body polyurethane suits that made a big splash in the 2008 Summer Olympic games. The world intently watched Michael Phelps wind up with his distinctive arm flail stretch—donning a suit that hugged his body from neck to toe—go on to win a record-breaking 8 Olympic gold medals at Beijing’s Water Cube last August....

A Kansas foster care agency is being sued in federal court after a foster child, who was placed back into her father’s home, died from being attacked by pit bulls that lived in the home. The lawsuit is against the Department for Children and Families (DCF) and KVC Behavioral Healthcare, a private not-for-profit foster care contractor, and seeks damages of more than $75,000. The child, identified in the lawsuit as “PND,” was removed from her family home when her father went to prison, and the home was deemed an unsafe environment....

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law an adoption ban that will prevent Americans from adopting Russian children. The Russian law seems to be politically motivated, and may be a form of retaliation against a new U.S. human rights law, reports Reuters. Americans who’d hoped to adopt Russian children now find themselves in a state of limbo. There were 52 Russian children whose adoptions to U.S. parents were already underway....