For those who have spent any time working in the Human Resources profession, you know that California is famous for setting precedence when it comes to the enactment of employment law. We have learned that what starts in California, makes its way East. So we watch, listen and learn. As a business leader, it is also important to be aware of what occurs in the West, especially for those who may be considering establishing a business there.
There are five major differences between California and Arizona employment laws. Above and beyond, California tends to be considerably friendly in the employment law arena as compared to other states.
Daily overtime
In Arizona, we know that non-exempt employees are entitled to overtime pay at one and one half times the hourly rate when weekly hours exceed 40; a provision under the Fair Labor Standards Act. In California, non-exempt employees are entitled to overtime pay of one and one half hours after exceeding eight working hours in a day. Additionally, employees are entitled to overtime pay at two times the hourly rate when daily working hours exceed 12.
Vacation Pay
California law considers vacation pay to be earned wages and therefore, employer must pay out all earned vacation pay. Consequently, California law prohibits the ?use it or lose it? policy of vacation usage.
Non-Compete Agreements
In California, contracts and/or agreements that prohibit employment with a competitor after employee terminates is generally not enforceable. The contracts tend to interfere with an individual?s ability to achieve gainful employment, which is restricted. Contracts can limit one?s disclosure of proprietary information.
Sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination
As described in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which identifies race or color, religion, sex and national origin as the classes which are considered to be protected against discrimination. Other Federal statutes protect certain individuals against discrimination based on disability, age, veteran status and so on. California has expanded upon the Federal law to include one?s sexual orientation and gender identity (one?s perception of own sex).
Termination Pay
When an employer terminates an employee, all unpaid wages must be paid out immediately, and when an employee terminates their employment, all unpaid wages must be paid out within 72 hours, unless a signed contract of employment stipulates otherwise.
What does this mean for Arizona? It simply may be that we need only be aware and be prepared for the future. Times change, the world changes and in doing so, we must all change accordingly. And although it?s true that we don?t definitively know when the changes will occur, or if they definitely will change for certain. We can only anticipate what may be.
http://www.articlepros.com/legal/Business-Law/article-26672.html
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Washington State Outlaws Gambling And Speech
The state of Washington has a new law that makes gambling online a Class C Felony. Those who gamble online will now be charged with the same crime as someone who possesses child pornography. Live in Washington and like to play poker? Doing so is now a crime that will land you in jail for up to 5 years. You can also be fined $10,000. Washington is setting a new precedence in the legal arena.
For years the federal government of the United States has tried to pass specific legislation to revise the Federal Wire Wagering Act. The most recent attempt is expected to pass the house, but it will most likely fail in the Senate. Washington State legislators decided to take matters into their own hands by passing this new law. Since there is no contradictory federal law, the Washington State law will face clear sailing.
The legislation does more than ban online gambling. It also bans talking about online gambling?quite the communist move by legislators. The legislation specifically outlaws the passing of any ?gambling information.? Furthermore, gambling information is defined as: ?information as to wagers, betting odds and changes in betting odds shall be presumed to be intended for use in professional gambling.? Technically, a blog that talks about a nationally televised sports game and mentions the ?spread? would be in violation of the law and subject to penalty.
As expected, legislators are quick to point out that the law would not be used against individuals in this way. While that is all warm and fuzzy, the fact remains that the law is still on the books. Perhaps a better way to put it is that they don?t currently plan to use it in this way?just wait until they need it. Also, if there was an ounce of truth to those statements, then how do you explain the official statement by Rick Day, the Executive Director for the Washington State Gambling Commission? When asked whether or not a site simply linking to an online gambling destination was in violation he said, ?If the site also has a link to a gambling site, then to us that's no different.? According to this statement, simply linking to a site can get you charged with a Class C Felony.
There is further cause for concern here, in regards to the way laws are written and the precedence they set. It?s possible other states will look at Washington State?s actions and decide to enact something similar. Even if you are against gambling, are you also against censorship? Today it is gambling; tomorrow it is something you care about even more.
http://www.articlepros.com/legal/Business-Law/article-26752.html
For years the federal government of the United States has tried to pass specific legislation to revise the Federal Wire Wagering Act. The most recent attempt is expected to pass the house, but it will most likely fail in the Senate. Washington State legislators decided to take matters into their own hands by passing this new law. Since there is no contradictory federal law, the Washington State law will face clear sailing.
The legislation does more than ban online gambling. It also bans talking about online gambling?quite the communist move by legislators. The legislation specifically outlaws the passing of any ?gambling information.? Furthermore, gambling information is defined as: ?information as to wagers, betting odds and changes in betting odds shall be presumed to be intended for use in professional gambling.? Technically, a blog that talks about a nationally televised sports game and mentions the ?spread? would be in violation of the law and subject to penalty.
As expected, legislators are quick to point out that the law would not be used against individuals in this way. While that is all warm and fuzzy, the fact remains that the law is still on the books. Perhaps a better way to put it is that they don?t currently plan to use it in this way?just wait until they need it. Also, if there was an ounce of truth to those statements, then how do you explain the official statement by Rick Day, the Executive Director for the Washington State Gambling Commission? When asked whether or not a site simply linking to an online gambling destination was in violation he said, ?If the site also has a link to a gambling site, then to us that's no different.? According to this statement, simply linking to a site can get you charged with a Class C Felony.
There is further cause for concern here, in regards to the way laws are written and the precedence they set. It?s possible other states will look at Washington State?s actions and decide to enact something similar. Even if you are against gambling, are you also against censorship? Today it is gambling; tomorrow it is something you care about even more.
http://www.articlepros.com/legal/Business-Law/article-26752.html
Trademark Law - The Protection of Famous Trademarks
Famous trademarks are awarded significant protection under the Canadian Trademarks Act. The trademarks act protects the owners of trademarks from others who would use a confusingly similar trademark. Section 6 of the act defines what constitutes confusion. In particular, section 6 states that the use of a trademark causes confusion with another trademark if the use is likely to lead to the inference that the wares or services associated with those trademarks are manufactured, sold, leased, hired or performed by the same person or business, whether or not the wares or services are of the same general class. Hence, trademarks which are quite famous, can theoretically be protected against others who would use similar trademarks for completely different products or services. This has lead some to speculate that famous trademarks can be enforced beyond the scope of their original trademark registrations. Hence, the trademark registrations for the famous trademark VIRGIN, used by the Virgin group of companies, could theoretically be enforced against any person or company who used the trademark VIRGIN for virtually any product or service. The supreme court of Canada in the recent case of Mattel Inc. V. 3894207 Canada Inc. has clarified the law concerning the issue of confusion as applied to famous trademarks. The case involved a numbered company which operated a chain of restaurants in the Montreal area under the trademark BARBIE’S. The numbered company filed a trademark application in order to protect its trademark. The application was approved by the trademarks office, but later opposed by Mattel Inc. on the basis that the mark was allegedly confusing with Mattel’s registered trademark BARBIE. The opponent, Mattel, brought forward survey evidence which demonstrated that, in the mind of the people surveyed, that there might possibly be a link between the applicant’s restaurant and the opponents trademark. Despite Mattel’s evidence, the opposition board rejected Mattel’s position. Mattel appealed to the Federal Court. The Opposition board’s decision was confirmed by the Federal Court and then again by the Federal Court of Appeal. Mattel appealed yet again to the Supreme Court of Canada. The Supreme court dealt with two principal issues, namely the nature of confusion and the nature of the evidence used to find confusion. On the issue of confusion, the court accepted Mattel’s contention that the BARBIE trademark was famous. Indeed, the justices agreed with Mattel’s contention that the BARBIE trademark had reached the status of a cultural icon. Nevertheless, in the court’s opinion, the mark was famous only with respect to dolls and not with respect to restaurant services. While the court concluded that resemblance of the wares/services is not a requirement for a finding of confusion, a significant difference in the nature of wares/services used in association with two trademarks was an important consideration in determining confusion. Simply because the BARBIE trademark was famous with respect to dolls, that fame, in itself, did not render the mark famous in other areas such as restaurant services. In effect, the court held that since the “doll” business and the restaurant business appealed to different tastes and largely different clienteles, there was no likelihood of confusion between the two trademarks. As to the issue of the survey evidence introduced by Mattel, the court dismissed it as irrelevant. The court noted that the test is one of likelihood of confusion, i.e. that there must be a finding that the two marks are likely to be confused. The court noted that the survey asked the question “Do you believe that the company that makes BARBIE dolls might have anything to do with this sign or logo”. The survey asked a question addressing the issue of possible confusion, not likely confusion. The court seemed to leave open the door for the possible relevance of this type of survey evidence, provided of course the wording of the question resulted in a clear test of likelihood of confusion. Of course, evidence of actual confusion would have been highly relevant; however, no such evidence was submitted. While this case does seem to limit the scope of protection afforded to famous trademarks, the case did leave the door open to marks whose fame was such that confusion could be found even if the competing mark was used for very different wares/services. Indeed, the court sited the example of the VIRGIN trademark, which has been used with a diverse nature of wares and services including soft drinks, music, games, resorts, cellular phones, clothing, books, cosmetics, credit cards and even air lines. The fame of the VIRGIN trademark may be of such breadth that using a similar mark for an unrelated service or product may result in a likelihood of confusion. In essence, since the VIRGIN trademark is famous in such a variety of different areas, it is possible that the average consumer might be confused if confronted with a similar trademark in a line of business not presently occupied by Richard Branson’s group of companies.
http://www.articlepros.com/legal/Business-Law/article-40657.html
http://www.articlepros.com/legal/Business-Law/article-40657.html
Protecting Your Website Legally From the Music Industry
In the connected world, where businesses pop up like dandelions and anyone with a computer can upload video, audio and text-based content to be shared across the web, it is of growing importance to understand the potential legal risks that online businesses face.
Most internet businesses make use of some sort of rich media on their websites such as video or music. What most don’t realize is that even the smallest S-Corp can find itself in hot water with the music industry if it doesn’t understand the basics.
The intent of this article is to focus on the use of production music (any music on your website you didn't personally create) and the ways you can protect your business or yourself from copyright infringement.
What is production music?
Production music is music intended for use in connection with websites, films, corporate videos, television shows, commercials, Internet video, multimedia and any other form of media that requires music.
If you’ve ever listened to an advertisement on the radio, watched an infomercial, or heard menu music on a video game, then you have probably heard production music.
Production music libraries cover a multitude of genres, providing music for most tastes at varying levels of quality. Traditionally, production music comes in shorter lengths. These lengths are normally 30 seconds, 60 seconds and 90 seconds. Production music also comes in different variations known as full and reduced versions. Reduced versions are identical to full versions with the exception of one or possibly two of the main instruments having been removed.
Who uses production music?
Production music is most widely used by industry experts like, video editors, producers, music supervisors, videographers, and creative directors. Although increasingly, it is being used by relative amateurs for websites, podcasts, streaming video and more.
How do I Get a License?
Something called a Synchronization License or Sync License must be obtained for the music in question before it can be utilized in any audiovisual production, such as a motion picture, television program, television commercial, video production, or website.
Sync Licenses come in different shapes and sizes. Two of the most popular are a Drop License and Blanket License. They are most commonly made available by production music publishers such as Slynth (www.slynth.com).
How do I get a Sync License?
Production music publishers will usually license music on what is called a needle drop (a.k.a Drop License) or a Blanket License.
A needle drop or Drop License is a license that requires payment for individual songs. The prices for each song vary depending on the type of production in which the song is being used. The rule of thumb when pricing Drop Licenses is - the larger the audience, the higher the price. (Rate cards can be requested with Drop Licenses.)
A Blanket license is a license that affords a user either a set number of music selections or unlimited use of music selections in any given production. The distinction between a blanket and drop license is a drop is issued for one song, a blanket for many. Obtaining a blanket license involves dozens of variables, so it usually requires some negotiation. Venues such as radio stations or night clubs will often require blanket licenses.
Is A Sync License the Same as a Performance License (Permission from the Musician)?
Unfortunately, no it isn’t. Obtaining a Sync License doesn’t absolve you from getting legal permission from the artist. And, seeing as musicians aren’t known for their knowledge of the legal system, you might imagine that obtaining such a license would be rather difficult. In actuality, the opposite is the case.
The reason for the relative ease of obtaining a Performance License is most musicians are represented by one of two agencies or "performance right societies" that handle the legal jargon. These societies manage the rights of performers and see to it that artists get paid when you play their songs in a "public" venue.
Performance rights societies such as ASCAP, BMI and SESAC collect monies for composers and publishers. These societies handle Performance Licenses and should be consulted before you publish any finalized work.
Who needs a performance license?
Anyone who uses copyrighted music in a public place including radio and television stations and/or their networks, all new media, like the Internet and mobile technologies such as ringbacks and ringtones, satellite services like XM and Sirius, discos, nightclubs, bars, restaurants, hotels, and other venues. This includes digital jukeboxes and live concerts. All should obtain a performance license.
What happens if I don’t have a performance license?
Production music users are in danger of copyright infringement without a license from a performing rights organization. If you’re an individual with a small audience and no real money (ie you’re not a business), then you are at lower risk of having suit brought against you for copyright infringement.
However, if you’re an individual with a large audience or you’re a business or organization and you fail to obtain the proper licensing, be prepared to hire a lawyer.
The basic rule of thumb with rich media on your website is this: If you’re going to use audio without a license, make sure no one sees it. This may be a difficult rule for most webmasters to cope with, as the purpose of internet businesses is to be seen. Although its far more expensive than "free" the best choice for sites with large audiences, is to be safe and purchase the required licenses.
http://www.articlepros.com/legal/Business-Law/article-62277.html
Most internet businesses make use of some sort of rich media on their websites such as video or music. What most don’t realize is that even the smallest S-Corp can find itself in hot water with the music industry if it doesn’t understand the basics.
The intent of this article is to focus on the use of production music (any music on your website you didn't personally create) and the ways you can protect your business or yourself from copyright infringement.
What is production music?
Production music is music intended for use in connection with websites, films, corporate videos, television shows, commercials, Internet video, multimedia and any other form of media that requires music.
If you’ve ever listened to an advertisement on the radio, watched an infomercial, or heard menu music on a video game, then you have probably heard production music.
Production music libraries cover a multitude of genres, providing music for most tastes at varying levels of quality. Traditionally, production music comes in shorter lengths. These lengths are normally 30 seconds, 60 seconds and 90 seconds. Production music also comes in different variations known as full and reduced versions. Reduced versions are identical to full versions with the exception of one or possibly two of the main instruments having been removed.
Who uses production music?
Production music is most widely used by industry experts like, video editors, producers, music supervisors, videographers, and creative directors. Although increasingly, it is being used by relative amateurs for websites, podcasts, streaming video and more.
How do I Get a License?
Something called a Synchronization License or Sync License must be obtained for the music in question before it can be utilized in any audiovisual production, such as a motion picture, television program, television commercial, video production, or website.
Sync Licenses come in different shapes and sizes. Two of the most popular are a Drop License and Blanket License. They are most commonly made available by production music publishers such as Slynth (www.slynth.com).
How do I get a Sync License?
Production music publishers will usually license music on what is called a needle drop (a.k.a Drop License) or a Blanket License.
A needle drop or Drop License is a license that requires payment for individual songs. The prices for each song vary depending on the type of production in which the song is being used. The rule of thumb when pricing Drop Licenses is - the larger the audience, the higher the price. (Rate cards can be requested with Drop Licenses.)
A Blanket license is a license that affords a user either a set number of music selections or unlimited use of music selections in any given production. The distinction between a blanket and drop license is a drop is issued for one song, a blanket for many. Obtaining a blanket license involves dozens of variables, so it usually requires some negotiation. Venues such as radio stations or night clubs will often require blanket licenses.
Is A Sync License the Same as a Performance License (Permission from the Musician)?
Unfortunately, no it isn’t. Obtaining a Sync License doesn’t absolve you from getting legal permission from the artist. And, seeing as musicians aren’t known for their knowledge of the legal system, you might imagine that obtaining such a license would be rather difficult. In actuality, the opposite is the case.
The reason for the relative ease of obtaining a Performance License is most musicians are represented by one of two agencies or "performance right societies" that handle the legal jargon. These societies manage the rights of performers and see to it that artists get paid when you play their songs in a "public" venue.
Performance rights societies such as ASCAP, BMI and SESAC collect monies for composers and publishers. These societies handle Performance Licenses and should be consulted before you publish any finalized work.
Who needs a performance license?
Anyone who uses copyrighted music in a public place including radio and television stations and/or their networks, all new media, like the Internet and mobile technologies such as ringbacks and ringtones, satellite services like XM and Sirius, discos, nightclubs, bars, restaurants, hotels, and other venues. This includes digital jukeboxes and live concerts. All should obtain a performance license.
What happens if I don’t have a performance license?
Production music users are in danger of copyright infringement without a license from a performing rights organization. If you’re an individual with a small audience and no real money (ie you’re not a business), then you are at lower risk of having suit brought against you for copyright infringement.
However, if you’re an individual with a large audience or you’re a business or organization and you fail to obtain the proper licensing, be prepared to hire a lawyer.
The basic rule of thumb with rich media on your website is this: If you’re going to use audio without a license, make sure no one sees it. This may be a difficult rule for most webmasters to cope with, as the purpose of internet businesses is to be seen. Although its far more expensive than "free" the best choice for sites with large audiences, is to be safe and purchase the required licenses.
http://www.articlepros.com/legal/Business-Law/article-62277.html
Seek legal assistance from a reputed New York personal injury lawyer
Being injured is undoubtedly a matter of uncertainty and anyone can become a victim. If a person gets injured, the victim needs to contact a personal injury lawyer in order to seek compensation that he is eligible to him. Injury can happen to any individual and at any time in life and a good and experienced New York personal injury lawyer helps out an individual from the various legal aspects. There are various lawyers that specialize in their law field but a personal injury lawyer is one that deals only with those who are injured due to the action of another individual. It is the entire liability of the lawyer to help out his client from the legal procedure. The injured should hire an efficient and qualified lawyer who would certainly help him to get the compensation. An injured person suffers from emotional and physical injury which is really a traumatic experience for him and his family. It is a law in United States that if someone is injured by other’s mistake then he is entitled to get the compensation from that individual. This particular law is also called tort law and a personal injury lawyer has to be well versed in this law to help his client in a better way. The New York personal injury lawyer is committed to help his client as he wants him to be rewarded with the compensation amount. He puts his best effort and endeavor to bring the case in the errand of his client. The lawyer also awares his client with all the legal laws that can help him to know about all the aspects of legal authority. This would help the injured in his future as reference if this situation appears again. Sometimes, injuries have proved to be fatal and this is really distressing moment for victim’s family. It is advisable that before hiring the services of a personal injury lawyer, one must seek the consultation with him. This is required as people are hardly familiar with legal laws and other nuances related. Search for a good personal injury lawyer from internet or can consult some friend who has ever gone through this situation. Let the lawyer know about the sight of the accident and other prospects that happened on the spot. This will help him in better dealing with the injury case and can surely help his client win the case. The charge of one lawyer differs from other lawyers and so the victim must choose one that is suitable according to him.Generally, highly experienced and reputed personal injury lawyers charge more for handling the injury case although the chances of getting compensation are extreme. There are other lawyers too who charge reasonable fee for the case. The case is filed in the court of law and then a date is defined for the hearing of case. The lawyer represents the proofs and other aspects to get his client rewarded with compensation. Advantage of a personal injury lawyer over a general lawyer is that they are anytime available to help his client and helps them to receive the compensation. While a general lawyer can assist victims only during office hours.
http://www.articlepros.com/legal/Business-Law/article-78417.html
http://www.articlepros.com/legal/Business-Law/article-78417.html
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Getting a Divorce? What you can expect in Texas?
You live in Texas, you have just been served with divorce papers, and you have no idea about what the process entails. This article will provide some answers to those questions; however, it should be noted that everyone's circumstances are different and just as no two marriages are alike, no two divorces are alike. Thus, every divorce has its own outcome.
Mental Preparation for the Divorce Process
Usually when you think about divorce, you have some notion as to what it entails. You may have watched characters in movies or television soap operas going through a divorce, or maybe your co-worker, best friend, or neighbor may have confided in you. Perhaps, your own parents have gone through a divorce. However you may have encountered it, facing this type of a proceeding can be very stressful and can cause you emotional distress. Not only are you faced with the prospect of losing your spouse, nut you suddenly have to think about a multitude of other unpleasant circumstances such as making new living arrangements, division of property; and, if there are children involved, you will then have to come to terms with the possibility of not being able to see them on a daily basis. Therefore, it is important to understand the process, so that you are better prepared for what lies ahead.
Division of Property
The first thing you need to understand is that a divorce is a lawsuit. One spouse sues another to terminate the marital contract. After the Original Petition is filed, one of the first things that a divorce court will do is devise a plan for the division of property. Texas is a community property state. Community property is defined as all property acquired during the marriage except property acquired by inheritance or gift. Separate property is that which you owned before marriage and that which you acquired by gift or inheritance. With regard to property, it is the job of the Court and/or jury to divide the community property and to determine the character of property in the marital estate. The court's only guidance by Statute with regard to property is to make a "fair and just" division of the property. Depending on the facts of the case, the property will not necessarily be divided evenly. The Court takes various factors into account such as fault in the breakup of the marriage, age, education, work experience, and earning potential, to name a few. The Courts generally require an inventory of the property. The parties are free to work out their own division of the property and the Court will encourage you to make an agreement on the issue of property division as well. However, all agreements are still subject to approval of the Court.
Support Obligations
The next thing to consider is that a divorce court will ultimately determine the couple's support obligations, which might include spousal support; however, the award of spousal support in Texas is very rare and only occurs under very specific circumstances. And, if there are children, child support will be awarded to the custodial parent. The amount of child support is statutory and is based on an equation used to calculate your net income. If temporary spousal support is awarded, it is often awarded at a temporary orders hearing on a temporary basis, where one spouse is unemployed or earning significantly less than the other spouse. There are no set guidelines for temporary spousal support, thus the party seeking support should be prepared to show what his/her needs are and what resources are available to the other spouse to meet those needs. Permanent spousal maintenance may also be awarded in certain situations. Child support payments are largely set by state law, however, deviation from those standards are not uncommon. Also, child support orders may depend on the custody arrangements ordered.
Child Custody and Visitation Schedules Lastly
When there are children involved, the divorce court is also responsible for setting child custody and visitation schedules. The court is required to make their decisions based on a set of factors that promote the best interest of the children, which can vary depending on the circumstances. Based on a limited view into the parents' lives, a divorce court may not always make a decision that serves the best interests of the children when it comes to determining custody rights. Therefore, it is important to consider negotiating a child custody arrangement that is mutually acceptable, as it will benefit everyone involved in the divorce proceedings, especially the couple's children. Absent an agreement by the parents and sometimes in addition to an agreement by the parents, the Court will insert something called the Standard Possession Order into the final decree. The Standard Possession Order is a set of guidelines based in statute which outlines child visitation standards.
A divorce is a lawsuit
One party is served with a Petition, the other party answers, temporary orders are addressed, discovery is conducted, and, then, the Court enters a final order. Having an experienced attorney guiding you through the process and knowing what to expect serves as a good beginning point for a satisfactory end to your marriage.
Mental Preparation for the Divorce Process
Usually when you think about divorce, you have some notion as to what it entails. You may have watched characters in movies or television soap operas going through a divorce, or maybe your co-worker, best friend, or neighbor may have confided in you. Perhaps, your own parents have gone through a divorce. However you may have encountered it, facing this type of a proceeding can be very stressful and can cause you emotional distress. Not only are you faced with the prospect of losing your spouse, nut you suddenly have to think about a multitude of other unpleasant circumstances such as making new living arrangements, division of property; and, if there are children involved, you will then have to come to terms with the possibility of not being able to see them on a daily basis. Therefore, it is important to understand the process, so that you are better prepared for what lies ahead.
Division of Property
The first thing you need to understand is that a divorce is a lawsuit. One spouse sues another to terminate the marital contract. After the Original Petition is filed, one of the first things that a divorce court will do is devise a plan for the division of property. Texas is a community property state. Community property is defined as all property acquired during the marriage except property acquired by inheritance or gift. Separate property is that which you owned before marriage and that which you acquired by gift or inheritance. With regard to property, it is the job of the Court and/or jury to divide the community property and to determine the character of property in the marital estate. The court's only guidance by Statute with regard to property is to make a "fair and just" division of the property. Depending on the facts of the case, the property will not necessarily be divided evenly. The Court takes various factors into account such as fault in the breakup of the marriage, age, education, work experience, and earning potential, to name a few. The Courts generally require an inventory of the property. The parties are free to work out their own division of the property and the Court will encourage you to make an agreement on the issue of property division as well. However, all agreements are still subject to approval of the Court.
Support Obligations
The next thing to consider is that a divorce court will ultimately determine the couple's support obligations, which might include spousal support; however, the award of spousal support in Texas is very rare and only occurs under very specific circumstances. And, if there are children, child support will be awarded to the custodial parent. The amount of child support is statutory and is based on an equation used to calculate your net income. If temporary spousal support is awarded, it is often awarded at a temporary orders hearing on a temporary basis, where one spouse is unemployed or earning significantly less than the other spouse. There are no set guidelines for temporary spousal support, thus the party seeking support should be prepared to show what his/her needs are and what resources are available to the other spouse to meet those needs. Permanent spousal maintenance may also be awarded in certain situations. Child support payments are largely set by state law, however, deviation from those standards are not uncommon. Also, child support orders may depend on the custody arrangements ordered.
Child Custody and Visitation Schedules Lastly
When there are children involved, the divorce court is also responsible for setting child custody and visitation schedules. The court is required to make their decisions based on a set of factors that promote the best interest of the children, which can vary depending on the circumstances. Based on a limited view into the parents' lives, a divorce court may not always make a decision that serves the best interests of the children when it comes to determining custody rights. Therefore, it is important to consider negotiating a child custody arrangement that is mutually acceptable, as it will benefit everyone involved in the divorce proceedings, especially the couple's children. Absent an agreement by the parents and sometimes in addition to an agreement by the parents, the Court will insert something called the Standard Possession Order into the final decree. The Standard Possession Order is a set of guidelines based in statute which outlines child visitation standards.
A divorce is a lawsuit
One party is served with a Petition, the other party answers, temporary orders are addressed, discovery is conducted, and, then, the Court enters a final order. Having an experienced attorney guiding you through the process and knowing what to expect serves as a good beginning point for a satisfactory end to your marriage.
About The Author
Law Offices, Professional Image, And Marketing
Face it. Financial bottom lines are affected by the fact we live in a world that judges a book by its cover. Pretty singers sell more records, court cases rank higher in the news if the person is attractive, and politicians are elected based on their image as much any other factor.
Looking at your own industry, don’t you have to fight the public’s perceptions? We see it on TV and in movies every day. More often than not, young lawyers, paralegals, and others just starting out in the profession are portrayed as cheap, petty, low-rent, and usually called “ambulance chasers.”
It’s not right, but this issue of image is one that you have to live with and learn to work with.
Let’s cut to the bottom line which is this: In today’s business climate, everyone should realize that a professional image is crucial to reputation and everyone could stand to improve theirs to some degree or other. It’s what you need to do to keep your individual firms alive. Therefore, let’s cover some opportunities for improvement using the acronym A.L.I.V.E.:
Appearance – Your physical persona and the way present yourself.
Letterhead – The level of professionalism demonstrated in your printed marketing materials.
Information – Accuracy and honesty; the keys to presenting the data gathered during a case.
Voice – How you communicate to everyone you’re associated with.
Education – The continual improvement to your professional knowledge base.
Appearance: People base a large percentage of their first impression on your appearance. When a client meets you for the first time, they’re sizing up your credibility, your ability as a legal professional, and deciding just how well you might conduct yourself in public. As the saying goes, you only get one chance to make a good first impression, so let’s look at a few pointers.
- Always dress in a professional manner. For men and women both, the attire should be “business professional,” which for men means suit and tie whenever possible, and for the ladies, business suits, nice skirt and blouse, or dresses. If you look unkempt or “second rate” the client will wonder how you’ll represent them while working their case.
- A close cousin to dress is personal grooming. Simply put, make sure your hair, facial hair, hands, nails, and teeth are all clean and well kept. By the way, how’s your breath? Always keep some mints handy.
- Keep jewelry at a minimum. Jewelry should follow the rule on colognes. It’s best to smell of nothing than to overpower with the wrong thing. A general jewelry guideline is no more than 2 rings per hand, no more than 2 thin necklaces, and either post or small-ring earrings. And... you guessed it, visible exotic piercings or tattoos are out if you’re going to be taken seriously by the legal community. The “Professional Image Dress” website at http://www.professionalimagedress.com has some good articles and checklists. Also, you’ll find some good books and magazines on business and professional image at your local library.
Letterhead: In some cases, the first contact someone may have with you might be one of your business cards. For our purposes though, “letterhead” refers to any printed material (paper or electronic) anyone outside your office might see.
- Business cards are a must. Make them distinctive, but with minimal content. Let your website or brochure carry the heavy content.
- On business cards, stationery, and your website stay away from trite, cliché, or negative icons such as someone running after an ambulance. In your web address, phone numbers, or email addresses, stay away from negative phrases like “makethempay@mylaw.com.” These might seem cute, but to many potential clients, they’re a turnoff.
- For stationery, choose quality paper and have your letterhead and envelopes, as well as your contracts, professionally produced by the same people who do your business cards. Make sure their color themes match. Your local print shop or office supply store should have everything you need. If there’s any one place you want to spend a little money, this is near the top of the list.
- If your stationery has a particular logo or color scheme, it should be reflected on your website, or vice versa. As with business cards, your website should be an exercise in minimalism after it’s done its job of relaying all the necessary information about your firm. Avoid animation, sound files, heavy graphics, flash, or anything else that makes your site slow to load. Slow loading or “busy looking” sites are more an annoyance than an attraction. Relatedly, though they might provide a tiny bit of pocket change per year, try to stay away from banner ads and other outside links on your home page. If you have outside links, put them all on your links page. You don’t want your client clicking off into cyberspace before they’ve read what a good job you can do for them.
- Stay away from blank notepads and manila folders. They’ll both get too messy too soon and not only will that make you look unprofessional and disorganized, but blank notepads make you look unprepared, and lost or disorganized notes lead to inaccurate reports and invoices. Invest a little time and/or money into buying or developing a comprehensive set of forms or an organizer system to use while assembling your case.
Information: In the legal business, the glass is neither half full nor half empty. It’s 50%. And, unless you know what’s in it, don’t speculate. “Just the facts Ma’am.” One of the biggest opportunities for a good impression, and naturally the most important, is the timely delivery of honest, accurate, information. Nothing will kill your image, reputation, and livelihood, like incomplete, inaccurate, biased, or late case work. Likewise, an inaccurate invoice can cost you by being either too low or too high.
- Rule one is, always has been, and always will be, “Use a good case management system.” Make sure everyone working for you uses the same system, and that your standards of accuracy start at the beginning, and continues through the whole case and through any follow-up you may ever have with that client. Then treat all of your other clients the same way.
- Use nice presentation folders for all your reports; even the “small dollar” ones. Each client is important to you from a marketing standpoint and therefore deserves to be treated with respect. Putting your work product on better stationery, in a well-organized format, and in an attractive presentation folder will provide a greater perceived value to your client. These people have probably paid a hefty sum for your service and a more professional report will help assure them that it was money well spent.
- With any kind of information transfer, the key word in today’s legal climate is “PRIVACY!” Reassure your clients in your contract, and in your final report that your relationship with them is as private as the law allows, and everything you do in connection with their case, before, during, or after the fact, will remain confidential. Loose lips not only sink ships, they destroy good client relationships.
Voice: Voice is a general term used to describe not only the actual verbal communication you have with your clients and others, but the “tone” your business has with those it deals with.
- When you answer the phone, do so cheerfully and actually smile. You can tell when someone’s not happy to be on the phone and so can others. This phone call might be your first contact with the next big client, so make it count.
- If you can’t personally answer every call, the next best thing is to have a receptionist or answering service. A person is always better than voice mail. Go with what you can afford, but since the phone call is one of your opportunities for a first impression, anyone answering the phone should be trained to be courteous, cheerful, informative, and as professional as possible.
- If voice mail is your only option, make the best of it. First, be smiling and cheerful when you record the message. Second, have the message convey your high standards. Say something like “As we’re extremely devoted to all our clients, we’re probably working a case on their behalf right now. However, YOU are just as important to us so please leave us your name and number and we’ll get back to you within the hour.” Then, if you say you’ll be back to them within the hour, actually do it. Prompt personal attention is a major plus in any business.
- Education and intelligence are just as necessary as a cheerful hello. You want people to know that you are every bit as qualified and capable as they could hope for. Therefore, when speaking with people, speak clearly, and choose your words carefully. They don’t have to be big words, but they do have to make sense, and grammar is important.
- The written word should follow the same rule. Make sure your business cards, letterhead, brochures, reports, invoices, and all other written documents use correct spelling and proper grammar. Though your client may be enamoured enough with your abilities as a legal professional to overlook a minor grammatical error, you never know who else of importance might see your report or correspondence.
Education: Here we continue where your writing skills leave off and cover the actual knowledge or skill base upon which your legal expertise is founded. Experience is the best teacher, but classroom education can certainly help keep you informed and up to date. Also, the fact that you are continually updating your expertise is impressive to most potential clients.
- Many states require continuing education. If your state does, you should publish this fact in your firm’s literature. If your state does not require CEU, you should still take it upon yourself to keep your own training updated and make that fact a prominent component of your marketing materials.
- Join professional organizations where possible. Many of them will offer various classes and training programs and the benefits of networking are considerable.
- Many online communication forums are professionally dedicated and will provide educational information and opportunities through either on-site or on-line courses, or through the hints, tips, and suggestions offered by members. One good online communication forum is found through “Yahoo Groups” at http://www.yahoogroups.com. The free registration is easy to complete, and all you’ll need to do is search through the groups using the phrase “private investigator” or other keywords associated with your specialty.
- Keep your library stocked. Many people learn as much from books and videos as they do in a classroom setting.
As you attend some of these educational functions, take the opportunity to look around you and either further your own education on this issue of appearance by studying your colleagues, or help improve the way they represent you by helping educate them as to the benefits of a more professional image.
Looking at your own industry, don’t you have to fight the public’s perceptions? We see it on TV and in movies every day. More often than not, young lawyers, paralegals, and others just starting out in the profession are portrayed as cheap, petty, low-rent, and usually called “ambulance chasers.”
It’s not right, but this issue of image is one that you have to live with and learn to work with.
Let’s cut to the bottom line which is this: In today’s business climate, everyone should realize that a professional image is crucial to reputation and everyone could stand to improve theirs to some degree or other. It’s what you need to do to keep your individual firms alive. Therefore, let’s cover some opportunities for improvement using the acronym A.L.I.V.E.:
Appearance – Your physical persona and the way present yourself.
Letterhead – The level of professionalism demonstrated in your printed marketing materials.
Information – Accuracy and honesty; the keys to presenting the data gathered during a case.
Voice – How you communicate to everyone you’re associated with.
Education – The continual improvement to your professional knowledge base.
Appearance: People base a large percentage of their first impression on your appearance. When a client meets you for the first time, they’re sizing up your credibility, your ability as a legal professional, and deciding just how well you might conduct yourself in public. As the saying goes, you only get one chance to make a good first impression, so let’s look at a few pointers.
- Always dress in a professional manner. For men and women both, the attire should be “business professional,” which for men means suit and tie whenever possible, and for the ladies, business suits, nice skirt and blouse, or dresses. If you look unkempt or “second rate” the client will wonder how you’ll represent them while working their case.
- A close cousin to dress is personal grooming. Simply put, make sure your hair, facial hair, hands, nails, and teeth are all clean and well kept. By the way, how’s your breath? Always keep some mints handy.
- Keep jewelry at a minimum. Jewelry should follow the rule on colognes. It’s best to smell of nothing than to overpower with the wrong thing. A general jewelry guideline is no more than 2 rings per hand, no more than 2 thin necklaces, and either post or small-ring earrings. And... you guessed it, visible exotic piercings or tattoos are out if you’re going to be taken seriously by the legal community. The “Professional Image Dress” website at http://www.professionalimagedress.com has some good articles and checklists. Also, you’ll find some good books and magazines on business and professional image at your local library.
Letterhead: In some cases, the first contact someone may have with you might be one of your business cards. For our purposes though, “letterhead” refers to any printed material (paper or electronic) anyone outside your office might see.
- Business cards are a must. Make them distinctive, but with minimal content. Let your website or brochure carry the heavy content.
- On business cards, stationery, and your website stay away from trite, cliché, or negative icons such as someone running after an ambulance. In your web address, phone numbers, or email addresses, stay away from negative phrases like “makethempay@mylaw.com.” These might seem cute, but to many potential clients, they’re a turnoff.
- For stationery, choose quality paper and have your letterhead and envelopes, as well as your contracts, professionally produced by the same people who do your business cards. Make sure their color themes match. Your local print shop or office supply store should have everything you need. If there’s any one place you want to spend a little money, this is near the top of the list.
- If your stationery has a particular logo or color scheme, it should be reflected on your website, or vice versa. As with business cards, your website should be an exercise in minimalism after it’s done its job of relaying all the necessary information about your firm. Avoid animation, sound files, heavy graphics, flash, or anything else that makes your site slow to load. Slow loading or “busy looking” sites are more an annoyance than an attraction. Relatedly, though they might provide a tiny bit of pocket change per year, try to stay away from banner ads and other outside links on your home page. If you have outside links, put them all on your links page. You don’t want your client clicking off into cyberspace before they’ve read what a good job you can do for them.
- Stay away from blank notepads and manila folders. They’ll both get too messy too soon and not only will that make you look unprofessional and disorganized, but blank notepads make you look unprepared, and lost or disorganized notes lead to inaccurate reports and invoices. Invest a little time and/or money into buying or developing a comprehensive set of forms or an organizer system to use while assembling your case.
Information: In the legal business, the glass is neither half full nor half empty. It’s 50%. And, unless you know what’s in it, don’t speculate. “Just the facts Ma’am.” One of the biggest opportunities for a good impression, and naturally the most important, is the timely delivery of honest, accurate, information. Nothing will kill your image, reputation, and livelihood, like incomplete, inaccurate, biased, or late case work. Likewise, an inaccurate invoice can cost you by being either too low or too high.
- Rule one is, always has been, and always will be, “Use a good case management system.” Make sure everyone working for you uses the same system, and that your standards of accuracy start at the beginning, and continues through the whole case and through any follow-up you may ever have with that client. Then treat all of your other clients the same way.
- Use nice presentation folders for all your reports; even the “small dollar” ones. Each client is important to you from a marketing standpoint and therefore deserves to be treated with respect. Putting your work product on better stationery, in a well-organized format, and in an attractive presentation folder will provide a greater perceived value to your client. These people have probably paid a hefty sum for your service and a more professional report will help assure them that it was money well spent.
- With any kind of information transfer, the key word in today’s legal climate is “PRIVACY!” Reassure your clients in your contract, and in your final report that your relationship with them is as private as the law allows, and everything you do in connection with their case, before, during, or after the fact, will remain confidential. Loose lips not only sink ships, they destroy good client relationships.
Voice: Voice is a general term used to describe not only the actual verbal communication you have with your clients and others, but the “tone” your business has with those it deals with.
- When you answer the phone, do so cheerfully and actually smile. You can tell when someone’s not happy to be on the phone and so can others. This phone call might be your first contact with the next big client, so make it count.
- If you can’t personally answer every call, the next best thing is to have a receptionist or answering service. A person is always better than voice mail. Go with what you can afford, but since the phone call is one of your opportunities for a first impression, anyone answering the phone should be trained to be courteous, cheerful, informative, and as professional as possible.
- If voice mail is your only option, make the best of it. First, be smiling and cheerful when you record the message. Second, have the message convey your high standards. Say something like “As we’re extremely devoted to all our clients, we’re probably working a case on their behalf right now. However, YOU are just as important to us so please leave us your name and number and we’ll get back to you within the hour.” Then, if you say you’ll be back to them within the hour, actually do it. Prompt personal attention is a major plus in any business.
- Education and intelligence are just as necessary as a cheerful hello. You want people to know that you are every bit as qualified and capable as they could hope for. Therefore, when speaking with people, speak clearly, and choose your words carefully. They don’t have to be big words, but they do have to make sense, and grammar is important.
- The written word should follow the same rule. Make sure your business cards, letterhead, brochures, reports, invoices, and all other written documents use correct spelling and proper grammar. Though your client may be enamoured enough with your abilities as a legal professional to overlook a minor grammatical error, you never know who else of importance might see your report or correspondence.
Education: Here we continue where your writing skills leave off and cover the actual knowledge or skill base upon which your legal expertise is founded. Experience is the best teacher, but classroom education can certainly help keep you informed and up to date. Also, the fact that you are continually updating your expertise is impressive to most potential clients.
- Many states require continuing education. If your state does, you should publish this fact in your firm’s literature. If your state does not require CEU, you should still take it upon yourself to keep your own training updated and make that fact a prominent component of your marketing materials.
- Join professional organizations where possible. Many of them will offer various classes and training programs and the benefits of networking are considerable.
- Many online communication forums are professionally dedicated and will provide educational information and opportunities through either on-site or on-line courses, or through the hints, tips, and suggestions offered by members. One good online communication forum is found through “Yahoo Groups” at http://www.yahoogroups.com. The free registration is easy to complete, and all you’ll need to do is search through the groups using the phrase “private investigator” or other keywords associated with your specialty.
- Keep your library stocked. Many people learn as much from books and videos as they do in a classroom setting.
As you attend some of these educational functions, take the opportunity to look around you and either further your own education on this issue of appearance by studying your colleagues, or help improve the way they represent you by helping educate them as to the benefits of a more professional image.
About The Author
Paul Purcell is an Atlanta-based investigative trainer and case management specialist. In addition, he’s the creator of “The Case File” (found at http://www.thecasefile.com).
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