 |
With Felony-Murder Rule Change, CA Starts to Release Some InmatesIn California, approximately 800 prisoners incarcerated for murder may soon be set free. Last fall, California legislature, joined by then-Governor Jerry Brown, passed SB 1437, a bill co-sponsored by Democratic State Senator Nancy Skinner and Republican State Senator John Anderson. This law significantly modifies California's felony murder rule, and...
How Does PG&E Bankruptcy Affect Consumers?Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) announced its intent to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy next week, primarily due to the costs and liabilities stemming from the 2018 Camp Fire and 2017 Napa and Sonoma Country fires. What should consumers expect from this filing? Will PG&E still be held accountable for...
Price-Fixing Suit Dismissed Against No-Tip RestaurantsA class action lawsuit threw everything but the kitchen sink at a group of restaurateurs. At the heart of the suit was a tipless policy that defendants had instituted at their various east and west coast restaurants. Defendants claimed that they instituted the policy, along with increasing prices 20...
High-Profile Instagram Accounts Targeted by HackersTo many Gen X'ers, social media influencer seems like a preposterous career. But to Millennials and beyond, it's a dream come true. Social media influencers are online personas that have established a certain level of credibility and reach among followers within a specific industry, to the point that they...
5 Legal Tips to Kick-Start Your 2019New year, new you. And while you might've already made resolutions to eat better, exercise more, and watch less TV, if your resolutions don't include some legal planning, you might be missing out. So, FindLaw put together five legal resolutions to add to your list, to get your 2019 started...
Beyonc� Drops Suit Over Unauthorized 'Feyonce' MerchBeyonc� has voluntarily dropped her lawsuit against Feyonce Inc., a Texas company that was selling unauthorized Beyonc�-related merchandise under its company label, targeting engaged couples. The mega star's lawsuit, filed in 2016, had listed claims such as willfully engaging in trademark infringement, unfair competition, and trademark dilution, among others,...
When Do You Need Permission to Photobomb Someone?At the recent Golden Globe Awards in Los Angeles, some crafty photographers were creating, in essence, photobombing situations. Actors would pose for photographers standing in front of them, but a strategically placed paid muse would stand at an angle, displaying a commercial product, while a coordinated photographer would take...
Why Does the Turkish Gov. Want to Arrest Knicks' Enes Kanter?In 2017, the last time Kanter was overseas with the Knicks, Kanter's Turkish passport was seized during a layover in Romania, and he was nearly arrested and extradited to Turkey. Since then he has refrained from leaving the United States, for fear that he will be arrested, and worse...
Craft Brewery Sues Over Gov. Shutdown HarmsThe partial government shutdown has affected everything from international diplomacy to consumer rights. It has also affected small businesses, and one company has now filed suit. Atlas Brew Works, a craft brewery based in Washington D.C., claims the shutdown has violated its First Amendment right to speak to consumers because...
What Is Subornation of Perjury?Subornation of perjury is a fancy legal name for inducing someone else to lie under oath, and then that person, when called as a witness, goes through with the lie. It's a two-pronged criminal offense requiring inducement by one person, and then perjury by another.The necessary level of involvement...
Mariah Carey Blackmailed for $8M, Lawsuit ClaimsMariah Carey, a self proclaimed diva in the pop music world, has decided enough is enough, and has sued her former personal assistant for a host of bad deeds in Los Angeles Superior Court, including blackmail.Lianna Shakhnazarian, also knows as Lianna Azarian, was Carey's assistant from 2015 until November...
Cops Can't Force Phones Unlocked With Face and FingerprintsIn a landmark ruling, a federal district court judge in Northern California ruled that police cannot force people to use biometrics to unlock their phones without a specific warrant. As technology advances, some are worried about their invasion of privacy, both civilly and criminally. Though this ruling has limited...
3 Popular Side Hustles That Are (Still) IllegalThese days, everyone's talking about a side hustle, either doing one, fixin' to do one, or just daydreaming about the possibilities. Side hustles take up a lot of spare time, but can make you a lot of spare money too! If you're thinking about joining the gig economy, but...
Domino's Pizza Ordered to Make Website AccessibleThe Ninth Circuit put in its order to Domino's, but it wasn't for pizza, or even chicken wings. It was to get its website and mobile app compliant with the American Disability Act so that the visually impaired could have full use of their site, including ordering and discounted...
This Oreo Lawsuit Might Have Huge Implications for Cyber InsuranceLawyers love to haggle over definitions, and insurance companies love to get out of paying out policies. So imagine the conversations brewing over the Oreo-NotPetya lawsuit.NotPetya is ransomeware that infected millions of computers in 2017, causing $10 billion dollars in damage to companies worldwide. Though the Russian government vehemently...
What's a Violent Felony? Supreme Court Just Lowered the StandardRepeated violent felonies can have dire consequences for some criminals. Many states, and the federal government, have three-strike type rules that require mandatory sentencing for certain convictions post-third-strike. Therefore, defendants can, and should, fight tooth-and-nail to keep convictions from coming under violent felony codes.But what is "violent"? According to...
Consumer Protection Websites Are Down as Gov. Shutdown ContinuesAs the old saying goes, "problems" roll downhill, and at the bottom of The Hill's federal shutdown are consumers. Numerous governmental entities, products, and services that protect consumer interests have been shuttered. None have mentioned any date of reopening soon, as the federal government shutdown now reaches the longest...
Federal Judge Blocks Employers From Opting Out of Birth Control CoverageAt the eleventh hour, one judge in Philadelphia blocked employers from opting out of providing birth control coverage to employees.The Trump Administration, specifically the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor and Treasury, issued new federal laws in October 2018, allowing business and nonprofits to opt out...
Chicago Airbnb Hosts Lack Standing in Class Action, Court RulesIn 2016, the Chicago City Council passed a very lengthy ordinance that governs home-sharing agreements, placing certain requirements on the host and host-sharing platform. A group of individual Chicago residents and a home-sharing advocacy group joined together to file a class action lawsuit against the city, claiming this ordinance violated...
When Is It Too Late to Sign Up for Obamacare?For those that don't already have health insurance through their employer, the Affordable Care Act provides a marketplace for insurance plans. Known more broadly as Obamacare, the ACA also requires everyone to have some health insurance plan while guaranteeing coverage regardless of pre-existing conditions. So, when do you need to...
|
|
