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Senators John Kerry of Massachusetts and Mary Landrieu of Louisiana have introduced a bill to help small businesses that seek broadband internet access and other new technology. The bill is called the “Small Business Broadband and Emerging Technology Enhancement Act of 2010,” S. 3506. It addresses many of the recommendations from the FCC’s March 2010 report entitled “Connecting America: The National Broadband Plan” which calls for increased broadband access for rural small businesses....

Current estimates value the health app market at around $10 billion. Everyone wants to get in shape, and they want easy access to their health data to help boost their fitness and wellbeing. The trick is giving them access to that data, and storing it, without violating medical privacy laws. Faced with the uncertainty of whether federal statutes like HIPAA apply to health tracking apps, the Department of Health and Human Services released new guidance to developers and vendors to make sure their health apps are HIPAA-compliant....

Have you ever slipped and fallen on something at a grocery store? One New York City supermarket thinks it has a solution to the problem: carpet. While the image of shoppers slipping on a banana peel might conjure up funny images from cartoons, to supermarket managers, it’s no laughing matter. When an item falls to the floor, a potential liability exists, and the clock is ticking. That’s because the longer the grape, tomato, kumquat or … banana remains on the floor, the stronger the evidence of negligence....

One school has put a Halloween ban in place after a brewing religious controversy spooked school administrators into denying the October celebration. The principal of Inglewood Elementary School in Towamencin Twp., Pennsylvania, sent a letter to parents clarifying the district’s policy on Halloween. The letter stated in part that the school will not “sponsor or support the celebration of Halloween parades” in order to respect those who believe the holiday has religious overtones, Philadelphia’s WPVI-TV reports....

Identity theft is an adult’s worse nightmare. Everyone has heard examples of innocent victims being held responsible for the debts of the perpetrators, leading to tax problems and even bankruptcy. Adults take so many steps to prevent this, whether it be dropping outgoing mail off at the post office, changing passwords monthly, or viciously interrogating anyone that asks for a social security number. House keys also present a problem. If an adult loses a briefcase, which often contains keys and a driver’s license, we know to call a locksmith ASAP....

As with any hospital procedure that goes awry, you can sue for medical malpractice when you are injured from a cesarean section. And with c-sec births dramatically rising since the nineties, there has been debate across the United States about their necessity. Last year in New York, one woman sued a hospital for medical malpractice because she was forced to undergo a c-sec when she wanted to give birth naturally. Doctors overrode the mother’s decision and put her in surgery, according to the New York Times....

By now, you’re likely aware that texting while driving is illegal pretty much everywhere. But what about texting while biking? Bike riders are generally subject to many of the same traffic laws as cars, such as observing traffic signals and not biking while intoxicated. So is texting while biking legal? Although it may be difficult to actually do both at the same time, texting while biking is generally not against the law....

Need some end-of-the-year tax tips? With less than two months to go in the 2013 tax year, many Americans are trying to figure out ways to maximize their deductions and reduce their tax bills. You’re probably already familiar with a few common strategies, like donating money to charity. But there are many other potential tactics that may work for you too. Here are 10 year-end tax tips for individuals: Defer your bonus....

Last week a celebrity daughter made headlines by posting her account of an attempted Uber pick-up in LA that was a fake, according to The Daily Mail. The child of Clerks and Dogma creator, Kevin Smith, received a consolation cake from her director dad for having to experience the trauma of almost getting in the wrong car. Here’s what safety experts told USA Today about what to do if you find yourself in a similar situation (minus the baked goods)....

The Army discharges Spc. Alexis Hutchinson and the military mom gets to be with her son. So what’s the catch? Hutchinson, a single mom will now be demoted from specialist to private and lose all military and veteran benefits for refusing to deploy to Afghanistan. According to the Associated Press, instead of facing criminal charges at a court-martial, the Army cook will be discharged by the military to care for her infant son....

A riot over the weekend at the prison in Chino, California injured 250 inmates and caused the lockdown of 9 other prisons. The news regarding California’s prisons continues to be bleak. Last week came the ruling that the state must trim its prison population by more than about 40,000 inmates. On Saturday night, one of those overpopulated prisons experienced a riot involving a reported 1300 inmates. As the Chico Enterprise Recorder reports, the California Institute for Men in Chino currently has approximately 5,900 inmates....

Thanks to the advances in technology, it’s easy for a noncustodial parent and a child to keep in touch. With these technological advances, courts have begun awarding virtual visitation, particularly when parents live too far apart to make regular visitation practical. However, sometimes, a parent may not want their child’s other parent contacting the child at all. Courts are generally very reluctant to put such an order in place barring abuse, neglect, or some other extenuating circumstance....

Do not mix business and personal assets. Protect yourself by keeping the two separate and both aspects of your life will be better for it. You’ll limit liability and improve organization by making legal and financial distinctions. This will make you more efficient, whether doing business or engaged in personal pursuits. Business structures exist in part to protect people when things go awry with the company. So do yourself a favor and do not stint....

Small businesses and online review sites like Yelp have a tenuous relationship. On one hand, websites like Yelp offer customers a way to sound off about a business’s services and goods. It can be a great publicity outlet. On the other hand, a particularly negative review can quickly turn profits into losses. That’s why some doctors and dentists began using contracts provided Medical Justice. These privacy agreements had a clause called the Code of Internet Ethics that stated patients couldn’t post “personal attacks” about the office’s well-being and reputation, only constructive criticism....

As an employer and business owner, you have a duty to maintain a safe workplace and protect your customers. To these ends, one day you may need to inquire about the legality of refusing to hire a sex offender, or, if you already did, terminating an offender’s employment. Unfortunately, there’s no definite answer to this inquiry. In most situations, there is a fine line between adhering to state laws limiting the use of convictions in employment decisions, and the responsibility not to engage in negligent hiring....

LaSalle County, Illinois, has agreed to pay $355,000 to settle a lawsuit that arose after a female inmate was strip-searched following a DUI arrest. Dana Holmes sued the county for violating her civil rights and causing her emotional distress after her forcible strip search at the jailhouse was caught by surveillance cameras, reports the Chicago Tribune. Five other plaintiffs who say they experienced similarly questionable strip searches at the hands of LaSalle County Sheriff’s deputies also joined the lawsuit and will share in the payout....

Resting in peace may not come easy at Elizabeth Edwards’ funeral. The 61-year-old Edwards, who passed away after a six-year battle with cancer is scheduled to be buried in Raleigh, North Carolina. In attendance will be Kansas-based Westboro Baptist Church to picket the funeral. The church known to take extreme and public stands against topics has taken a bizarre case against John Edwards’ estranged wife. The Huffington Post quotes the Church: “She is now a resident of hell, where her rebellion and rage will take full flower....

The Department of Justice has impaneled a federal grand jury to investigate allegations of abuse of power by Sheriff Joe Arpaio and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. According to the Associated Press, Sheriff Joe Arpaio initially said he was unaware of the federal grand jury probe despite subpoenas sent to at least two county officials. America’s self-proclaimed “toughest sheriff” now faces intense scrutiny from the federal government. But this isn’t the first time the feds have come down on Arpaio for using county’s resources to go after illegal immigrants under federal immigration laws....

After a few weeks of considering his options, George Zimmerman is suing NBC over their cut-and-paste job of the 911 call he made to police on the night Trayvon Martin was killed. Looks like Zimmerman’s been reading our analysis on whether he should sue. The lawsuit, as expected, claims that NBC’s manipulation of the 911 call constitutes defamation by portraying Zimmerman as racist. He’s also charging specific reporters who presented the manipulated call on their shows....

Touring a haunted house attraction is supposed to be scary. If you rub shoulders with the Grim Reaper, you can count that as having a good time. But the dangers aren’t supposed to be real. If they are, and if someone gets injured, the haunted house may face real legal liability. Ms. Turner’s lawsuit alleged that she was knocked down in an area with inadequate lighting. Mr. Terebus, owner of the Erebus Haunted House, has only commented that the operation is safe and that it has been in operation for a long time....