Law For The Rest Of Us

A deposition can be an intimidating matter, especially if it is the first time that you are being deposed. Knowing what to expect can help. The purpose of this article is to help the lay reader understand what a deposition is, how it functions and what you might expect at a deposition if you are a deponent. A caveat—even with this information, if you have been served with a deposition subpoena, you should seek the advice of an attorney and engage an attorney to represent you at the deposition. Civil litigation is a method used to sort out the liability for purported wrongs against people. It is a type of civilized warfare. The people involved are dressed nicely. They often smile at you when asking the most damaging questions. A deponent’s testimony is often critical to the resolution of the matter at hand, but it is important to understand what is being asked of you, and to answer truthfully to the best of your ability within the context of your attorney’s advice and representat

In a word, the answer is" yes." "Much is expected from those to whom much has been given." Lawyers, like doctors and other professionals, have been given much. They have had access to education. They have specialized knowledge. And although lawyers, like doctors, have worked hard to get through school and to practice in their respective fields, they also have the ability to earn much by virtue of their education. The average attorney, if he or she is charging by the hour, now charges over $250.00 per hour. Most attorneys work a great deal of hours over the course of any given week. Attorneys generally work longer than an eight hour day. Some of that time is billable, meaning the attorney is able to charge their client for that time. Some is not. Most law firms have a billable hour requirement. Many attorneys in larger firms must bill 2000 hours per year. We can all do the math. It adds up to a lot over money over time. I believe that attorneys are justified in reque

Legal memoranda, like legal briefs, are usually written in a formulaic fashion, following certain rules that make is easy for a judge or other legal professional to digest the document quickly. Legal memoranda usually provide the underpinnings for most legal briefs. So, whether you need to prepare a memorandum or brief or merely need to decipher one, it may be helpful to know that most memoranda and briefs follow the same format. A very simple legal brief format follows this discussion. The format is called IRAC, which stands for Issue, Rule, Analysis/Argument and Conclusion. The following further explains the format. Issue In a clear and succinct manner, state the issue at hand. The issue can be formulated as a heading such as: “Whether the statute of limitations prohibits the cause of action for negligence by the plaintiff.” This may be how you see the issue stated in a legal brief. This heading is numbered and centered on the page as are all the subsequent headings.

wikimedia commons official portrait My household is abuzz over retired Justice John Paul Stevens' book, Six Amendments: How And Why We Should Change the Constitution. (Little, Brown & Co.) Run, don't walk to your nearest bookstore or Amazon, and plunk down the $20 or so it will take to buy it. This is a first. This is the first time a retired Supreme Court Justice has published a manifesto, if you will, on our Constitution. And in my humble opinion, this book, while short, opens a much needed dialogue on the need for Constitutional change by amendment in this county. The book is short and covers a number of topics, campaign finance, gerrymandering and perhaps the most important, and most controversial, the death penalty and the right to bear arms. Stevens would add words to the Second Amendment to read, "the right of the people to keep and bear arms when serving in the militia shall not be infringed." He writes: Emotional claims t

Does an employer have the right to see your postings on various social media outlets on the internet?  States are moving to pass laws preventing an employer from asking for your password for Facebook and other social media sites. In 2012 six states passed laws to prohibit this employer practice. In 2013 seven more states followed. Other states are considering legislation. This is basically a privacy issue. And while an employer may have a right to perform a background check on  an employee or prospective employee when relevant to that employee's job performance, an employer may not have the right to invade an employee's private life where the matter is not directly relevant to the workplace. In all, as i=of the date of this writing, 26 states have either passed, introduced or have pending legislation on the matter. Here is a list :

Legal Duty. What is it and why do we care about it? This article will explain. This article will explore the basic concept and role of legal duty.  “Duty” is a term of art within the law. Its use is pervasive and it provides a floor or minimum level of legally acceptable behavior within a given set of circumstances. It is a method of imposing a legal obligation upon a person to behave in some manner. Injury occurs on a regular basis through accident, neglect, and even through intent. Not all injury is compensable under the law. It is only when a legal duty arises and has been breached that a person is entitled to legal reparations for that injury. Duty provides the very basic threshold of inquiry into the question of liability. Thus, the question of when a legal duty is owed has occupied courts for some time. The seminal U.S. case on the matter is Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co. [i]  The facts of the case are instructive on the question of duty.  A passenger, hurrying