For the Public

infringement

Infringement or Fair Use … It Depends

Copyright law can be a labyrinth, an infringement minotaur waiting to jump on the unwary. Your head may spin when trying to determine infringement, non-infringement and fair use. Fair use, or the limited unauthorized reproduction of copyright material, is a legal doctrine codified in The Copyright Act of 1976. 17 U.S.C. § 107 states, “[T]he fair use of a copyrighted

Read More »

Regulatory Enforcement Actions: A Special Brand of Commercial Litigation

In today’s world, businesses and their owners need to be prepared for legal threats from various sources. For example, competitors may engage in various conduct to obtain an unfair business advantage. Former employees may attempt to compete directly with their former employer in violation of restrictive covenants. Business owners may have partners that cause more harm than good to the

Read More »
false advertising

True Lies: Section 43(a) of the Lanham Act

There are many types of false and misleading advertising tactics. For example, bait and switch advertising, high pressure sales tactics, artificially inflating prices, deceptive form contracts, and the failure to disclose certain facts. Our focus in this article is how to deal with the situation where your client, a business owner, comes to you and says, “My competitor has published

Read More »

Birth Certificate Issues for Same-Sex Parents in Florida

Lawsuit claims Florida might be breaking the law by refusing to acknowledge married same-sex couples as parents on birth certificates When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the Constitution required that same-sex couples be allowed to marry no matter where they live, it also required all states to extend the identical benefits and obligations opposite-sex spouses

Read More »

The Fundamental Error Exception to the Preservation-of-Error Rule

An appeal is an opportunity for the appellate court to review an order or judgment of a lower tribunal and correct reversible errors. “But an appellate court will not consider an issue unless it was presented to the lower court. Furthermore, in order for an argument to be cognizable on appeal, it must be the specific contention asserted as legal

Read More »

Direct Challenges to Administrative Orders

There is a little-known tool hidden in the bowels of the Rules of Judicial Administration that may be used to challenge administrative orders issued by circuit court chief judges. This rule allows nearly a direct path to the Florida Supreme Court for review of administrative orders to ensure that changes to court rules and procedures are given the proper level

Read More »
Bail Orders

All Bail Orders are Not Created Equal

By now, everyone has heard about the arrests following the fighting and shootout at a Waco, Texas restaurant. Before any cases get filed, any plea agreements are reached, or any trials set, there was a critical stage in the due process of each defendant that has attracted a great deal of controversy and outcry in the legal community. When a

Read More »
Arizona

Arizona Election Law: A Staple on U.S. Supreme Court Docket

As nations around the world struggle transitioning to democracy, we may overlook that after more than two centuries we in the United States still grapple with our democratic system. Election law exists at the heart of our system of governance. If, as Justice Brandeis suggested, states are the laboratories of democracy, Arizona is conducting experiments in election law that are

Read More »
law

Intellectual Property & Employment Law Crossover

Overview of Patent Law, Trademark Law & Copyright Law Each area of intellectual property carries a uniquely shaped historical background and continues to develop as new regulations, litigation, and technologies emerge, but each shares the protection afforded by the California and federal courts. The most significant U.S. statutes pertaining to intellectual property are the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the

Read More »
ownership

Real Property Changes in Ownership

Changes in ownership of California real property permit county assessors to reassess the property for property taxation as of the date of the ownership change. Reassessments may cause taxes to increase or decrease. A change in ownership is any transfer of a present interest in real property or its use that is substantially equal to the fee interest in the

Read More »
infringement

Infringement or Fair Use … It Depends

Copyright law can be a labyrinth, an infringement minotaur waiting to jump on the unwary. Your head may spin when trying to determine infringement, non-infringement and fair use. Fair use, or the limited unauthorized reproduction of copyright material, is a legal doctrine codified in The Copyright Act of 1976. 17 U.S.C. § 107 states, “[T]he fair use of a copyrighted

Read More »

Regulatory Enforcement Actions: A Special Brand of Commercial Litigation

In today’s world, businesses and their owners need to be prepared for legal threats from various sources. For example, competitors may engage in various conduct to obtain an unfair business advantage. Former employees may attempt to compete directly with their former employer in violation of restrictive covenants. Business owners may have partners that cause more harm than good to the

Read More »
false advertising

True Lies: Section 43(a) of the Lanham Act

There are many types of false and misleading advertising tactics. For example, bait and switch advertising, high pressure sales tactics, artificially inflating prices, deceptive form contracts, and the failure to disclose certain facts. Our focus in this article is how to deal with the situation where your client, a business owner, comes to you and says, “My competitor has published

Read More »

Birth Certificate Issues for Same-Sex Parents in Florida

Lawsuit claims Florida might be breaking the law by refusing to acknowledge married same-sex couples as parents on birth certificates When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the Constitution required that same-sex couples be allowed to marry no matter where they live, it also required all states to extend the identical benefits and obligations opposite-sex spouses

Read More »

The Fundamental Error Exception to the Preservation-of-Error Rule

An appeal is an opportunity for the appellate court to review an order or judgment of a lower tribunal and correct reversible errors. “But an appellate court will not consider an issue unless it was presented to the lower court. Furthermore, in order for an argument to be cognizable on appeal, it must be the specific contention asserted as legal

Read More »

Direct Challenges to Administrative Orders

There is a little-known tool hidden in the bowels of the Rules of Judicial Administration that may be used to challenge administrative orders issued by circuit court chief judges. This rule allows nearly a direct path to the Florida Supreme Court for review of administrative orders to ensure that changes to court rules and procedures are given the proper level

Read More »
Bail Orders

All Bail Orders are Not Created Equal

By now, everyone has heard about the arrests following the fighting and shootout at a Waco, Texas restaurant. Before any cases get filed, any plea agreements are reached, or any trials set, there was a critical stage in the due process of each defendant that has attracted a great deal of controversy and outcry in the legal community. When a

Read More »
Arizona

Arizona Election Law: A Staple on U.S. Supreme Court Docket

As nations around the world struggle transitioning to democracy, we may overlook that after more than two centuries we in the United States still grapple with our democratic system. Election law exists at the heart of our system of governance. If, as Justice Brandeis suggested, states are the laboratories of democracy, Arizona is conducting experiments in election law that are

Read More »
law

Intellectual Property & Employment Law Crossover

Overview of Patent Law, Trademark Law & Copyright Law Each area of intellectual property carries a uniquely shaped historical background and continues to develop as new regulations, litigation, and technologies emerge, but each shares the protection afforded by the California and federal courts. The most significant U.S. statutes pertaining to intellectual property are the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the

Read More »
ownership

Real Property Changes in Ownership

Changes in ownership of California real property permit county assessors to reassess the property for property taxation as of the date of the ownership change. Reassessments may cause taxes to increase or decrease. A change in ownership is any transfer of a present interest in real property or its use that is substantially equal to the fee interest in the

Read More »

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