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The Utah Personal Injury Lawyers Checklist

25 Jun.
Posted by barticles in National, State, Local | No Comments

There are some things that you need to do and have before you go to any Utah personal injury lawyer. If you have these documents and facts squared away before you go your experience will be far better. It can seem like a daunting list at first but the information you gather will help you greatly. A personal injury lawyer will require a lot of information because they have never met you, have never heard your situation or story and the more information they have the stronger case they can build. It won’t be like telling the story to a friend you will have to prove the things that happened, because your lawyer is going to have to prove in the courtroom.

One thing you must have is as many facts about your story as possible. For instance things like the name and address of the ambulance service, the emergency room and all the doctors who have examined you. It may seem like small insignificant details but they provide basic information and leads for you lawyer.

Another important thing to gather that you may not think of right off the bat is a list of people you have talked to about the accident. As detailed as this sounds it really is important, like we established earlier your lawyer more than likely doesn’t know you at all and for sure knows nothing about the incident you were involved in. It is there job to gather a case that is viable and true and so they may have to look in every place possible to do that.

Now for documents. The above was just information you needed, there are actual legal documents that you will need to get a hold of. And if you grab them before you ever head to any or Utah’s Personal Injury lawyers then you will be more equipped to answer and handle their questions.

Here is a pretty good list of what to take. A copy of the accident report, copies of written statements, your insurance policy of any kind, medical bills, any correspondence you have had with insurers and any receipts you have from repairs. These can provide influential information and will help your attorney decide if you could win your case or if it is just going to be a waste or money.

All in all getting a personal injury lawyer in Utah can seem like a scary and overwhelming task. In reality though once you have the right information at your finger tips and can be prepared with the right documents your encounters with your lawyer will be positive ones. Don’t avoid a personal lawyer because you aren’t sure how the system works, research, ask questions, gather the documents above and you’ll find you can successfully hire a lawyer.

Bart Icles knows that searching for a Utah Personal Injury Lawyer is not the easiest thing to do. Having knowledge is power when it comes to a Utah injury attorneys so this article is meant to equip you with that knowledge. Go here http://www.utahpersonalinjurylawyerguide.com

Thai Legal System and Its Basic Laws

23 Jun.
Posted by gsmyth in National, State, Local | No Comments

These regulations comprise Royal Decrees, Ministerial Regulations, Notifications of Directors General, as well as less formal policies and procedures followed by departments within the Thai government. The policies have not passed through the formal legal processes, but as a practical matter can be as significant as an Act of Parliament for one carrying out business in Thailand.

The central Thai law for business and much more is the Thai Civil and Commercial Code (”TCCC”). The TCCC specifies general principles and particular rules for the gamut of civil law issues influencing businesses and individuals. Some of the topics of special attention to businesses comprise company and partnership law, contracts, sales, obligations, unlawful acts (torts, such as liability for negligence or intentional harm), property, mortgage and other forms of loan security, leases and agency. For individuals, the TCCC accounts for marriage, divorce, wills and estate administration, and parental rights and duties.

The TCCC became Thai law in 1925. Notwithstanding regular and sometimes dramatic changes of government and constitutions in Thailand, the TCCC has resisted admirably, delivering a consistent legal framework and structure during otherwise turbulent times. The TCCC contains a few peculiarities that might interest a foreigner as, well, foreign, but for the most part the TCCC specifies legal principles common to most capitalist countries.

The French Civil Code was used as the beginning point for the TCCC, with Japanese, English, German and American legal scholars giving substantial input to the Thai law authorities at the time of drafting. While some contentious issues are surfacing when one considers the details, the basics of Thai law are consistent with the laws of business prevailing from Tokyo to Toledo.

According to the Thai judicial system, a trial court in Thailand is not influenced by prior court rulings when it settles an issue under the TCCC, or any other Thai law. Every case appearing before a Thai trial court is subject to the trial court judge’s personal interpretation of the plain meaning of the applicable laws. Since the Thai laws, by necessity, are often not particular and sometimes not even plain, forecasting results on specific issues is sometimes an uncertain science. Still, the language of the TCCC is usually acceptable enough, and earlier court rulings - especially those of the Thai Supreme Court -act as reasonable guidelines for interpreting less certain provisions.

The TCCC is available across the country in English translation. The standard translation is the one done by late Professor Kamol Sandhikshetrin. While the TCCC is the central Thai law, there are undoubtedly many specific acts of significance when doing business in Thailand. One must have a clear idea about those specific acts before starting to do business in Thailand.

For nearly 30 years, BSA Law - http://www.bsalaw.co.th - has focused on providing reliable legal advice and services to the Thai and foreign business community in Thailand. We provide international standards of legal services while retaining the customs of the Thai business culture

How to Handle Holidays for Nannies

20 Jun.
Posted by perrone in National, State, Local | No Comments

If you have a nanny or housekeeper whose work schedule falls on any holidays, you must decide how to handle the holiday with your domestic help.

How do you handle the many holidays for domestic help? Do you give them time off for Labor Day, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day?

Here are the options:

1) Provide the day off as paid
2) Provide the day off as unpaid
3) Employee works with regular pay
4) Employee works with overtime pay

The holidays mentioned above are mostly considered standard federal holidays. However, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur being Jewish holidays are not usually provided to domestic help. On the other hand, the other holidays such as Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Day, New Year’s Eve and Day must be considered one way or another and discussed with your employee.

So your first decision is to decide which option you want to provide to your nanny or housekeeper. You can treat each holiday individually depending on your needs and your generosity. It is completely discretionary in the household industry to give holidays as a benefit.

You should be aware, however, that the standard practice for domestic help is to provide all 6 major federal holidays (New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Day) off with pay. You may choose to give the day off unpaid for those who want to celebrate with family members. Therefore, the employee would not be paid for the day, but would be happy to be able to take it off. Again, you simply need to think carefully about the individual holiday with respect to your needs, your budget and how you want to structure a benefit package for your employee. This is best decided at the inception of hiring an employee and should be documented in an employee/employer agreement.

Here are some questions that domestic employers frequently ask with respect to holidays that might apply to you along with my advice.

Question: In a corporate setting, usually the day after Thanksgiving is also provided as paid. However, I do not think this should apply to household help. What is the standard practice?

Response: True in an office setting, although very often the day after Thanksgiving is provided as paid, this is not standard practice for household employees. However, keep in mind that if you decide to take these days off for a long weekend and do not need your employee, it would be only fair for you to pay for these days that the employee is forced not to work.

Question: On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, I often have a big party and desperately need my housekeeper’s assistance. She, however, celebrates on these days and wants them off. How do I handle the fact that I need her but she doesn’t want to work?

Response: For most of the Christian world, and especially the Christian Latin people, Christmas Eve is one of the most important holidays of the year. If your employee must have this day off (paid or unpaid), you can always consider finding additional help who is available to work on this holiday. Agencies usually have a list of employees that work holidays. You would have to pay more when hiring on these days for temporary help, but it would be well worth it in order to keep your full time employee happy. Question: I don’t really like providing paid holidays, but I know that I should provide at least one or two as a perk to the job. If only selecting a few, which of the standard holidays should I provide as paid?

Response: If you are unwilling or unable to provide your employee with ALL the Federal Holidays as paid, the ones that you most definitely should consider are: Christmas Day, New Year’s Day. These are the most common holidays provided to employees.

Question: It really upsets me that an immigrant who is not a legal resident wants some of these federal holidays off and paid. Why should these be considered “their” holidays?

Response: First of all, we are all immigrants to some degree and certainly those of us who are legal to work here and contributing to the workforce, should be allowed to join in on the celebrations of national holidays. It is not a question as to whether or not the holiday can be labeled as “mine” and “not yours” depending on your heritage or immigration status. The fact remains that we are all here to work and hopefully integrate together into this country in every manner. Acknowledging that an employee who has not yet reached citizen status should not be granted the right to celebrate a national holiday does not encourage integration.

There are many different approaches to handling holidays for your nanny and housekeeper and you may choose to handle each one differently. Whatever your choices, please be sure to discuss each one with your employee at the onset of hiring and to document the manner in which you plan to handle holidays so that there are no misunderstandings.

Marta Perrone, author “Help! How to Find Hire Train and Maintain Household Help!”
Free report: “Top 10 Mistakes Household Employers Make When Recruiting Help.
http://www.domesticpublications.com - http://domestic-connections.com - http://martaperrone.com

The Myths of Personal Injury Lawyers

20 Jun.
Posted by barticles in National, State, Local | No Comments

Personal Injury Lawyers is one of those groups of people that just seem to have all sorts of myths and rumors flying around about them. Everything from jokes to stereotypes can surround the profession of a lawyer it seems especially with a Utah personal injury lawyer. Most of the things you hear aren’t true, they are blown out of proportion until they are almost too big to believe. Here are just a couple of those myths and the truths behind them.

Quite a few people believe that if you are an injured person and you hire a personal injury lawyer you are guaranteed big bucks when you win. The truth of the matter is a personal injury lawyer won’t just take any case, so just because you are injured doesn’t mean you have a case. There are very specific criteria they look at before they ever accept a case and even after that there is no promise that you will win.

Another idea that media has planted in our heads is that you shouldn’t cooperate with law enforcement until you have spoken with your lawyer. The fact of the matter is if you don’t cooperate it could hinder your case because the police will miss opportunities to find vital evidence. The questions they ask could lead to more information from other sources that could help your case. Not to mention that to a jury it can often cause them to wonder why you wouldn’t if you were innocent. Cooperating with law enforcement is always a good idea, whether your personal injury attorney is there or not.

Most of us are very independent people, we would rather just solve things on our own and forget about it. When it comes to personal injury cases that can be very dangerous because someone who was a fault could, one, take advantage of you and your situation and you will never receive the proper compensation even if they promised it. And two, if you do resolve it outside the court room that person may go on to commit the same crime again to another person.

There are several more stereotypes and myths that society buys into and that weren’t dispelled here. Just be careful what you believe before you research, believing the wrong thing can get you into a lot of trouble, especially when it comes to anything to do with the legal world. Getting your personal injury lawyer doesn’t have to be a scary thing if you gathering the right information.

Bart Icles recommends that you research further beyond this article by reading the following blog: Utah Personal Injury guide. And article: Do I need a Personal Injury Lawyer. Information will make your search for a lawyer a lot easier. Go Here http://www.utahpersonalinjurylawyerguide.com

Injured in an Accident in Utah? What do you do?

05 Jun.
Posted by jordanmcpelt in National, State, Local | No Comments

Have you been injured in an accident? Have you had a family or friend that has been injured and you are having problems getting the responsible party to pay for the medical bills or repairs even? As a personal injury lawyer, Gregory and Swapp (Craig Swapp) should be called to make sure that you receive the payments and the coverage that you deserve. If an accident has occurred through no fault of your own and you are now out of work or can not work, you need to contact a personal injury lawyer to make sure that you do not suffer and are not stuck paying bills that are not your fault.

Personal injury lawyers make sure that the responsible party, whether a business or corporation or even regular citizen, covers the cost of your recovery and any other damages that were incurred through the accident. If your car was wrecked or other property damages were incurred along with the personal injury, a personal injury lawyer will make sure that you do not have to pay for these costs. They work with the other party and when necessary will file a law suite to make sure that you are not held financially responsible for costs that are not your fault.

They are also able to work with the insurance companies and make sure that your coverage is taken care of and you are not charged for services that were a result of the personal injury. They understand the workings of the insurance companies and of course the state laws. They are able to weed through what you need to know, so that you can get the help you deserve and get on with getting better. Personal injury lawyers understand that you may be out of work or not able to work because of the injury. They also realize that you could lose your job from the injury you have suffered or are no longer able to perform your job as you once did before. Because they deal specifically with personal injuries and insurance companies and businesses regularly, they are able to help make sure that you do not lose or your job. Or if you do that the responsible party pays until you are able to get back on your feet again.

Being injured and losing your job are enough hardships at one time, personal injury lawyers help you to get back on your feet by making sure that the responsible party pays for damages and time lost at work. Also, they make sure that you are not bulldozed by large companies and corporations that may not want to pay for the damages they have incurred. Your law firm is on your side to get the correct settlement that will benefit you the most.

Large companies occasionally want to settle out of court or will want you to sign a wavier saying you will never go back to them for additional damages or injuries. However, many times this is not in your best interest, since there is no way to know if there will be other complications from injuries later on. Your lawyers should make sure that this does not happen to you and that all possibilities are covered and looked at, before agreeing to any terms.

Going through a personal injury is traumatizing enough, there is no reason to have to go through further pain and suffering. A personal injury lawyer can elevate some of this stress and anxiety for you.

Jordan McPelt is a professional writer specializing in utah personal injury lawyers. To learn more about Gregory and Swapp or Craig Swapp, please visit http://www.lawyerlair.com

San Francisco DUI Lawyers

05 Jun.
Posted by artgib in National, State, Local | No Comments

Throughout the past few decades, there has been a rather steady increase in auto accidents, particularly due to intoxication and impairment. As a natural result, the number of dui-related law suits is also increasing, providing a heavy burden on the justice system to try cases involving auto accidents, as well as non-accident related DUI offenses. The effect of these DUIs is not only felt by the courts, but also by the insurance companies. Insurance rates have risen dramatically, and premiums are currently sitting at an average of over $1,000 in some places.

In San Francisco, DUI lawyers are getting plenty of work as more and more people are facing charges for drunk driving and DUI offenses. These DUI lawyers in San Francisco should not necessarily be the first line of defense when dealing with a DUI defense, but they can help in many cases. DUI attorneys can use the law to ensure that proper avenues are followed to allow for a fair trial, fair treatment, and if found guilty, a fair sentence. Most DUI attorneys simply want accountability to be correctly assigned and their client’s right to a fair trial to be upheld.

There are so many different legal precedents for DUI related accidents and crimes, and there are thousands of legal codes, road laws, and procedures that relate to many different DUI and traffic law scenarios - from drinking laws and traffic laws, to laws involving Miranda rights, written and spoken statements, and the right a fair trial. A good DUI lawyer must be highly trained and extremely well-versed in all of these potentially life-changing procedures. A trained, competent DUI attorney could easily be the difference in freedom and jail time or hefty fines.

San Francisco DUI Lawyers

Recently, Men’s Health magazine ranked San Francisco as the city with the ninth-highest number of DUI arrests, making one of the most dangerous places to drink and drive. However, the demographics of San Francisco, as well as its geographic location in the bay area mean that the City by the Bay hosts some of the most competent and well informed DUI attorneys that can help ensure a fair trial and fair treatment.

A DUI does not have to be a life altering event, and find a dependable San Francisco DUI lawyer can help make sure that your rights are left intact and that you are represented and adjudicated under the law with your best interests intact. If you find yourself in the unfortunate situation of facing potential DUI charges, call a DUI lawyer in San Francisco and make sure your rights are protected.

Art Gib is a freelance writer and Legal Brand Marketing Legal Brand Marketing (http://1800duilaws.com/cities/San-Francisco-California-dui-lawyers.html) is a law firm offering San Francisco DUI lawyers.

Video Voyeurism and Surveillance Laws in the Workplace

03 Jun.
Posted by shamac59 in National, State, Local | No Comments

Are you thinking about installing Hidden or Surveillance Cameras in your place of business? Many employers consider video and other surveillance key to keeping an honest and productive workplace. It keeps employees on the straight and narrow - no fingers in the till, no time clock funny business, no drinking or drugging on breaks. Many business owners and managers also record or review phone calls and emails from the office.

But employers must be careful not to go too far in their surveillance or they will risk being sued by an employee for an invasion of privacy under federal or state law. This article is an overview of the laws applicable to workplace surveillance - you should always talk to your own attorney to determine exactly what the law is in your state.

VIDEO SURVEILLANCE
There are several variables when considering video surveillance in your place of business. Your choices include visible traditional and dome surveillance cameras or hidden cameras, with or without audio. Each of the variables has potential legal implications. Visible surveillance cameras (not hidden in any way) are generally not illegal if they are in a non-private place.

If the camera records sound as well as video, you must comply with federal and state wiretapping and eavesdropping laws. You will need consent of one or all parties to any recorded conversation, depending on your jurisdiction.

Hidden cameras are a slightly different story. Video recording (without sound) is usually okay, even if the camera is hidden unless the person(s) being recorded has a reasonable expectation of privacy, the taping is done for some illegal purpose or there was trespass to record the video.

Courts across the country are finding with more and more frequency that no reasonable expectation of privacy exists with non-covert video surveillance or even with hidden surveillance if the physical space examined is a public space. Note that, if an employer uses union employees, the employer may be required to notify the union of its intention to use hidden cameras, but probably doesn’t have to disclose where the cameras will be installed.

There is a federal law which makes it a crime to secretly capture photo or video images of people in places and situations in which they have an expectation of privacy. Most states have followed suit. These laws are often referred to as “video voyeurism” statutes.

VIDEO VOYEURISM LAWS
As you can see, surveillance technology has advanced so much over recent years that excellent cameras can be completely hidden from view in a number of different ways. These Spy Cameras are a great tool for many employers but can also be used inappropriately. The federal government and most states have recently passed “video voyeurism” laws.

These laws make it a crime to secretly record or distribute images of people in places where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy, such as bathrooms, dressing rooms, locker rooms, hotel rooms and tanning salons.

The federal law prohibits anyone from recording images of an individual’s “private areas” without consent when that individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy. Every state in the U.S. now has some legal prohibition of video voyeurism or invasion of privacy, except Iowa and Washington D.C. About half of these statutes actually make this kind of video recording a felony. Many have an even harsher punishment for distributing such videos.

You will need to check your home state’s particular laws as the courts from state to state may have differing opinions as to what types of places are expected to be private - bathroom and changing rooms may be “no-brainers” but some states’ courts have even decided that employee break rooms or lunch rooms are “private” for purposes of video surveillance.

OTHER SURVEILLANCE IN THE WORKPLACE
The monitoring of electronic communications such as telephone calls, voicemail, email and IMs is covered by the federal wiretapping and eavesdropping statute - the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. The ECPA does include several business use exceptions to allow employers to perform necessary investigations, protect trade secrets and keep an eye on inventory and receipts.

Under the federal law, the monitoring of things such as email and phone calls is allowed if either the sender or recipient consents or if it is done in the regular course of business. Employers can monitor only equipment which they own and do not have the right to monitor email hosted by a third party (like web-based email programs.

BEST PRACTICES
Whether they have a right to privacy at work or not, many employees find surveillance of any sort offensive. It is good practice for employees to be provided with written notification of the existence or possibility of any monitoring in the workplace - video, audio or otherwise.

Notices can be made a part of a written, distributed policy or a section in the employee handbook. Employees can even be asked to sign a consent to or acknowledgement of the monitoring. If you are cautious, ethical and respectful of your employees and of the law, video and other surveillance in the workplace can be a wonderful tool to keep your business running smoothly and profitably.

Sharon Macdonald, a retired teacher, distributes products to protect our families, property and businesses. For more information on Hidden Cameras and Surveillance Equipment please visit http://www.A1-HiddenCamera.com