It wasn’t until attorneys handling the results of car crashes began to ask questions about the nature of the injuries sustained to the head and neck that the medical profession began to take a closer look at what consequences whiplash really had. On the other side of the fence were the insurance companies whose stated preference was to not compensate for whiplash because it would save millions of dollars. And so it did, until the furor over whiplash injuries became great enough that they had to sit up and take action.
Insurance companies just didn’t “get” that whiplash had the potential to cause disabling pain and because it could not be “seen” then it must not be that bad. Based on that premise the insurance gurus came up with something called Minor Injury Soft Tissue Injury or MIST. The theory behind MIST was that whiplash was merely a psychosocial incident.

In reality of course whiplash is better known as cervical acceleration-deceleration injury and it is incredibly painful. Whiplash doesn’t just affect the neck; it may also damage ligaments, cervical discs, cervical facets and muscles. Recovery is a long and painful process.

Anyone who has suffered whiplash knows the worst manifestation is headaches. At one time insurance companies offered the attitude that headaches were caused by other things. The scientific evidence shows otherwise when dealing with cases of whiplash. The problem in the courtroom, even today, is that there are experts for hire who still claim whiplash victims are suffering because of “other” conditions. It then boils down to a he says/she says proposition that a judge or jury has to sort out in the final analysis.

Thankfully, it appears that recent research demonstrating the obvious connection between whiplash and headaches is beginning to make a dent in the insurance companies dogged insistence that they are not related. Although even the latest research is still being closely questioned in order to find a loophole for the insurance industry to deny claims and save money. Never assume that a person who has sustained a whiplash is “faking” the symptoms. Anyone who has been in an accident that resulted in neck trauma needs to consult with a skilled personal injury attorney to have their case assessed.

Living with constant pain and not being able to work or carry out daily activities, as a result of severe whiplash sustained in a car accident or other mishap, may mean recovering damages in court as a direct result of someone else’s negligence.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

Many construction sites have their fair share of minor accidents, as that seems to be the nature of the job. Unfortunately for the workers on site, deadlier accidents also take place like the collapse of scaffolding, electrocution, burns, amputations and crush injuries. The fact of the matter is that the construction industry ranks as number one when it comes to the number of on the job injuries sustained each year.

Across the United States there are approximately 250,000 construction sites at any one given time, with close to 6 million construction workers plying their trade. For every 100,000 construction workers on the job, at least 23 will die in a work-related accident. On many, if not all of the sites, there is scaffolding that poses a real hazard to people’s safety and lives in more than one way.

Not only can the scaffolding collapse, tip or disintegrate, there is the very real danger of falling material and tools striking people on the ground. Workers who are dealing with laying electrical wire and other potentially dangerous utilities, such as running gas lines, also face significant personal injury risks on the job site.

The US Department of Labor is predicting that over 1,000 workers will die this year as a result of sustaining a construction site injury. Those who do not die from their wounds may be permanently disabled and unable to work again. Interestingly enough, the second leading industry in terms of high numbers of personal injuries and deaths was the trucking business, reporting over 500 deaths. Some of those deaths involved crane accidents, something that has been in the news quite frequently as of late.

Turning to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for further statistics in this area, they show there were ten top factors in construction worker injuries and death. These factors included the number one spot going to scaffolding, hazard communication, fall protection, respiratory protection, lockout/tagout (LOTO), powered industrial trucks, electrical wiring, machine guarding, general electrical maintenance and ladders. Lockout/tagout refers to a safety procedure of shutting down dangerous machinery and not starting it again until maintenance and servicing has been completed.

Workers that have survived a workplace injury or those that are grieving a wrongful death need to consult with a highly skilled personal injury attorney in order to ensure justice is done. The attorney will be able to guide claimants through the difficult process of securing damages for severe injuries or to obtain just damages for a negligent wrongful death.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

Entertainment law is an area that is a mystery to many folks and they don’t understand what this kind of attorney actually does. Given the nature of the specialized knowledge these attorneys deal with, it goes without saying that their expertise will protect your rights. Entertainment attorneys handle all the legal aspects of film and TV productions, set up music and film production companies, deal with talent agreements (including modeling, singers, actors and musicians) and ride herd on the details for film financing and production issues.

Along with all those issues, entertainment attorneys also draft producer agreements for both film and music, put together music licensing agreements and writer option agreements plus tend to copywrite law and all appropriate registrations. Mixed in with all these tasks, the attorney will also take care of trademark applications, distribution matters, draft solid non-disclosure agreements and confidentiality agreements and take care of prepping releases.

Hiring a lawyer like this is a guarantee that your legal rights will be protected in an industry known for its particularly fierce competition. Unfortunately there are also stories of abuse of power and control when it comes to the various agreements needed to make it in the entertainment business. Having an expert entertainment lawyer on board will also ensure your co-production agreements are handled correctly, that artist/management agreements protect the artist and management equally, that artist recording agreements reflect the needs of the artist and that director agreements accurately spell out what the director is required to do and receive in return for his or her services.

Generally speaking a great deal of the work an entertainment lawyer does is transactional in nature – meaning they draft a lot of contracts. However this isn’t to say that they don’t handle cases that need litigation or arbitration. Entertainment law is an eclectic mix of subcategories and is also referred to as media law. It has a great deal in common with the field of intellectual property law.

If you were to ask an entertainment lawyer what they do, their answer would likely be that they deal with such diverse areas of law as immigration, securities law, agency, bankruptcy law, labor law, international law, insurance law and employment law. Even these particular categories have further areas within them that have their own unique trade unions, rules, case law, production techniques and negotiation strategies.
For example if you hire an entertainment lawyer to deal with agreements, contracts and options, etc. in film, they would also need to be well aware of chain of title, finance; and what screen writers, film directors, composers, designers and actors do. This would also include post production, trade union issues and distribution issues, and motion picture industry negotiations distribution. As you can see, having a highly skilled entertainment lawyer on board will make all the difference in the world to how smoothly your operation runs.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

Making music may be fun, getting recognized isn’t always easy, but when that happens, it’s definitely time to bring a lawyer onboard to make sure you are protected as your career takes shape. It doesn’t matter if you’re a band or solo, the fact is if you are the new kid on the block, you are fresh fodder to be taken advantage of in the entertainment business.

If you’re thinking right about now that it couldn’t possibly be “that” complicated to have a contract written, signed and be on your way, then it’s time to do your homework about what really happens in this business. It’s not unusual to see music contracts that are 30 pages or more, and most of them are so complicated only an entertainment lawyer is able to make heads or tails of them. Unfortunately, most of them are also couched in terms that are so circuitous that many artists take one look at the legal document and beg to see the places where they have to sign.

Obviously signing something without reading it isn’t a good idea, especially in the music industry, as there are a lot of contracts that musicians have to sign. One mistake by signing a contract you didn’t really pay much attention to could mean being stuck with a lousy record company, a bad distribution deal, or a shady manager, agent or promoter. If that happens, your career could be over before it even got started. Like the old saying, “Buyer beware,” make sure you know precisely what is in any contract you sign.

It’s not just dealing with contracts for agents and recording companies it’s also managing issues like copyrighting your music, ensuring you have a trademark for your band name, and having a logo designed. This can be done for an individual as well, and it’s called branding, or brand name recognition. Think Shania Twain or Mariah Carey.

This still isn’t the limit to the issues you will face when it comes to what is contained in the various agreements you need to sign; they may also include licensing contracts, festival and concert contracts, promotion deals and publishing contracts. Each contract you sign has even more convoluted clauses and provisions within it as well. Being a musician isn’t for sissies or total novices when it comes to legal issues. Always consult with experienced legal counsel when it comes to getting a contract that protects your rights.
Your entertainment lawyer will have highly specialized knowledge of things like advertising law, employment law, immigration, negotiation, ring tones, mechanical licenses, peer-to-peer file swapping, synchronization rights, digital rights and a superb knowledge of how music is created from start to finish – the mixing to the mastering. They will also have a good working understanding of the roles of a producer, promoter and manager.

The best advice to give someone just starting out in the music industry is to seek legal representation for everything because it is essential. No one wants to get saddled with a lousy one-sided contract.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

A breach of contract lawsuit isn’t quite as straightforward as many people might think. It isn’t just a matter of someone making a promise and then not following through. There is more to it than that, as not all promises are enforceable in a court of law. The real question becomes just what is a legally enforceable promise as compared to those little promises people make, and then don’t actually follow up on them.
To know what is enforceable is to know what is not enforceable, and that would include things like promises or jokes that a reasonable person wouldn’t take seriously; any undertaking made by someone under the age of 18; assurances made by someone with mental problems; oaths to commit illegal acts and pledges not in writing when they are required to be in writing. There are many other vows that are not legally enforceable as well, but these are best discussed with a skilled Sacramento business lawyer when discussing the possibilities of a breach of contract lawsuit.

There is a fairly strong emphasis on the use of the term “reasonable” in the justice system. This is due to the fact that many cases are decided on the basis of what a “reasonable person under similar circumstances” should have known or done. In other words, that “reasonable person” makes their presence known in the courtroom and to juries trying to arrive at a decision as to whether or not a legally enforceable promise has indeed been shattered. If a contract has been violated, the person who caused the damage (broke the promise) must make it up to the person who lost the benefit of the original promise in the first place.
Suffice it to say that a legally enforceable promise then becomes one made by an adult of sound mind to do or not do something on which another person relies. It’s often not quite that simple, which is why consulting an expert Sacramento business lawyer is a necessity in breach of contract cases. Deciding if a lawsuit is worth it, depending on the facts of the case, may be the first hurdle to surmount, as lawsuits are expensive. There is the option to sue in small claims court, but the limit in California is $7,500.
The best thing to do if faced with a possible breach of contract situation is to discuss all the details of the possible case with a Sacramento business lawyer. Choose battles like this wisely, as much may be riding on the outcome.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

California has an unenviable record of having the highest number of wrongful deaths caused by drunk drivers. In fact, the statistics show that on average, every year, over 42,000 people are killed in alcohol related crashes nationwide. In California, the yearly number of those killed in crashes is 4,229 with 36% of those being alcohol related deaths or 1,509; a staggering number of needless deaths.

It would then make sense that the laws in the Golden State are as tough as the dickens and that California leads the nation in DUI arrests. Law enforcement is deadly serious about stopping drunk drivers from killing others. Thanks to the state having two statutory offenses for DUI it is easier to make more arrests.

The first offense is called DWI, DUI or OWI meaning driving while intoxicated or impaired, driving under the influence, or operating a vehicle while impaired. No matter what it is called, charges laid for these offenses are based on police observations that include slurring while talking, driving erratically and possibly a roadside sobriety test. Other things will likely happen at the same time and they may include immediate suspension, a field sobriety test and checking ignition interlocking devices installed in the vehicle (if any).
The second offense is referred to as being “illegal per se.” This simply means that a person is driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.08% or higher. This has actually been an offense since 2002 in all 50 states.
The thing to remember about going to court in California is that offenders may find themselves facing a wide variety of penalties depending on the charges, e.g. causing death, personal or property damage and injury. Generally speaking, a first time offender may face jail time and/or probation from three to five years, pay a fine and lose their license for six months. This tends to vary with the specifics of the case and each case is different given the circumstances so “one shoe does not fit all” when it comes to punishment on conviction.

Second offenses within seven years of the first offense may face more jail time, fines of up to $10,000 and suspension of driving privileges for not less than three years. Again, the facts of the case will make the difference in how it is handled when or if it does get to court. Interestingly enough, there are two schools of thought on automatically finding drivers guilty. Some attorneys feel a driver then loses their right to have a trial by jury. On the other hand, there are lawyers who argue that legal per se is a preventative measure to stop a drunk driving death every 30 minutes. Suffice it to say that the “jury” is still out on this issue and in the meantime, the DUI justice system carries on.

If the convicted offender chooses to continue to drink and drive, each subsequent offense nets longer jail terms and higher fines. If that person hits their fourth charge, this is considered to be a felony DUI. Felony DUIs definitely require the expertise of a skilled attorney.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

It goes without saying that any business, regardless of size, needs to have a comprehensive general business policy in place. Why? Without having a general business policy in place, the problems would be monumental. Along with the stated company policies there must also be a well written company employee manual and company procedures. In the event of a lawsuit, these documents are paramount.

This is where the services of a Sacramento business lawyer/ litigator come into play. A business litigator is a Sacramento business lawyer who handles actual court cases. This is not to be confused with transactional lawyers who deal with contracts and corporate matters only. In other words, the business litigator has the skill set and experience to handle the demands of business lawsuits in a court setting.

While it’s not always a good idea to go to court, it solely depends on how high the stakes happen to be in the case. Litigation does have some definite advantages and one of those is the potential financial gain. In fact, one of the leading disputes in business lawsuits usually deals with money. In cases like this, it is possible to get punitive and compensatory damages as settlement.

Oftentimes the plaintiff will be applying for injunctive relief to stop a competitor or ex-employee from blabbing a trade secret around town. If it doesn’t make sense to litigate from a strategic point of view, then there are usually other alternatives to be considered and your business lawyer will spell them out for you (alternative dispute resolution). This kind of decision, to sue or not, is often based on whether or not you have the upper hand in the lawsuit. If not, it might not make sense to proceed. After all, you have to think about the future of your business as well.

Taking a business lawsuit to court is by no means an easy task. It involves hundreds of hours of prep time. If you happen to be facing a lawsuit, you will thank your lucky stars that you had the sense to have a set of company policies put in place as a preventive measure for this very type of situation. Never underestimate the value of having a corporate compliance program.

Whether or not you ultimately choose to file a lawsuit or opt for alternative dispute resolution, speak to a highly skilled Sacramento business lawyer to define the lay of the landscape prior to making any decisions.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

To put this another way, think about protecting those conceptions of the mind and you are on the right track if you realize that those mind creations are actually property. Thus intellectual property rights are granted for handiworks of the mind. Those creations “belong” to someone and should not be infringed upon. Aside from the fact that the ideas and works should not be stolen, there is an underlying principle that recognizes people who create ought to be rewarded for their innovations, often financially, so they keep on creating.

Without confusing the issue too much, there are two types of intellectual property: copyright and industrial property. Industrial property lays claim to patents, industrial designs and trademarks. Trademarks are used to differentiate one product from another and that usually means using things like sounds, smells, signs, shapes, symbols, colors and brands.

Patents give the inventor a window of opportunity to stop others from creating, using or selling their inventions or creations without being authorized. On the other side of the coin, copyright applies to artwork like sketches, photos, sculptures and paintings, and literary works such as films, plays, books and poems. There are other areas covered as well, but for a full discussion of this area of law, it’s best to speak with a Sacramento business lawyer who has expertise in this area, as it’s a complex domain and sometimes understanding what is protected and why is a bit difficult to grasp.

Copyrights give authors the exclusive right to their works, but for a defined period of time. Again, discuss this with a Sacramento business lawyer who will also explain that copyrights must be renewed if the original creator wants the chance to promote their creation and derive financial benefit from it.
If you feel that your intellectual property rights have been violated, discuss your potential case with a Sacramento business lawyer to determine if you indeed have a case. Intellectual property rights cases tend to be complex and lengthy, but that is not to say they are cases that can’t be won.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

When it comes to neighbor disagreements and pointing fingers at each other, the top reason for getting into a battle royale happens to be trees. Yes, that’s right, fallen trees. When things like that happen, one hopes there is a cordial rapport between the neighbor whose tree fell and the neighbor who now has the tree right in the middle of their picture window.

“In theory, a tree falling over during a major storm is considered to be an act of God. That would mean no one would technically be responsible for the damage, even if the tree was at one time in one person’s yard. The house that sustained any damages would (also in theory) have homeowner’s insurance and be able to place a claim,” said Deborah Barron, of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

That’s just one example of what has the potential to light the fuse under one neighbor. Another one, with a few small changes in details, may tell a totally different story. “For instance, if the tree that crashed into the neighbor’s picture window was being trimmed at the time, chances are the tree owner is at fault. What if the tree’s owner was negligent in maintaining the tree properly and it had rotted away inside becoming a hazard just waiting to be blown over?” suggested Barron.

In many of these cases, it’s pretty hard to actually prove anything about causation after the tree has taken a tumble, which means in a lot of instances, the victim’s insurance antes up payment to allow the victim to get repairs done. Herein lies the conundrum. In order to maintain a good relationship with one’s neighbor, it might make some sense to offer to help pay the deductible for the insurance – so long as it was truly an act of God that caused the tree to fall. If it wasn’t, and things go from bad to worse with the neighbor, it’s time to consult with a lawyer and salvage what’s possible.

“Mediation is another alternative solution, and there are other cities in the US that have programs especially designed to assist fighting neighbors in dealing with issues like fallen trees and barking dogs – the second biggest complaint one neighbor has against another, along with excessive noise and encroachments on property like – well – trees,” added Deborah Barron, of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

When all else fails, then speak to an attorney who is able to handle situations like this with skill and a fair dash of mediation skills as well.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

While this isn’t always a reality for everyone, getting a large payment from the IRS is entirely possible depending on what is done to achieve that goal. “In this instance, all a person would need to know is how to access the IRS Whistleblower Reward Program and then have pertinent information that pans out,” outlined Deborah Barron, of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

All the IRS wants from people who access the Whistleblower Program is for them to step up and report tax fraud. It’s that simple, and yet that complex all in the same breath. “It takes a great deal of courage to step forward and be counted and identify tax fraud,” added Barron.

This particular rewards program actually pays out a hefty amount of money based on a percentage of any underpaid taxes recovered by the IRS. The percentages aren’t small potatoes either and range from 15% to 30% of the money the IRS recovers. They keep the balance, of course.

The bigger the tax fraud reported, and subsequently verified and acted upon to obtain recovery, the bigger the reward payout. “For instance, let’s just make mention of one well-known $3.4 billion tax recovery from a major drug company who had been cheating on their taxes. They’d been participating in offshore tax fraud and someone blew the whistle,” explained Barron.

It seems like it was a good year for drug companies to pay the piper what was stolen, as yet another drug company had to ante up $2.3 billion to settle on allegations of tax evasion. This particular big Pharma outfit shifted profits offshore and once again, someone objected to the less than honest tactics and turned them in. “In both instances, the whistleblower rewards ranged as high as $1 billion. Imagine that kind of money for merely telling the truth,” said Deborah Barron, of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

The kind of tax evasion that typically pays the bigger rewards to whistleblowers are instances where a company (drug, high tech, telecommunications, etc.) is hiding ownership of patents and other large assets (manufacturing processes, franchises) or other intangible property rights to an offshore company it either owns or is affiliated with in some way.

If someone has reliable evidence of schemes like the ones discussed here, the IRS will get on it. If there are taxes owing and they collect, there is a reward. This is a real short cut to becoming a billionaire.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

It’s an interesting world out there, full of signs, slogans, logos, books, artistic work, and too many other things to mention in a short article. But the main thing to know is that there is a distinct difference in what a trademark is, what copyright means, and what one does with a patent.

Trademark rights act to protect a word or logo as being “the” source for goods/services. E.g. Nike. The instant anyone says that word, we all think of running shoes and well, Michael Jordan. This is the true definition of a trademark. Now here is the interesting thing. You don’t need to file for trademark registration to have common law trademark rights, but let’s put it this way – if you don’t file and someone infringes on those rights, you’d have a tough time enforcing them. So, it’s best to be safe and not sorry, and file with the US Patent and Trademark Office.

Other things that registering will do for you is provide the “presumption” you’re the trademark’s rightful owner and gives you statutory damages against someone using your mark in bad faith. Once your “mark” is registered, you need to remember to always keep protecting it to keep your trademark rights.

The Copyright Conundrum

The easiest way to explain copyright is to say that if you create something and it falls under the definition of being a creative work, it’s up to you who makes copies and how many copies. Of course, there are exceptions, and knowing what those exceptions are happens to be important.

At this point, it’s usually smart to contact a lawyer well versed in this area, as this type of law has the potential to be extremely complex. By the way, you may sell or even license this copyright, or if you have done work for someone else, then they buy this right in advance.

The major difficulty is defining what constitutes a creative work. Legally, it has to exist in some tangible form – on paper, a disk or even written in stone. However, what it’s written on isn’t what makes it creative. To be creative, it can’t be just straight factual data; that is where an easily understandable explanation usually ends, as there honestly is even an element of creativity to coding in computer language.

Anything you do that is classified as creative writing, creative editing, etc., is copyrighted. So the distinction is this: the facts can’t be copyrighted, but a very clever and creative organization of those facts may be. This is referred to as compilation copyright. In short, this area may make your head spin, so speak to a copyright lawyer who has their head on straight and can outline what you need to know.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

The number of people that die in the US every year as a result of medical mistakes is higher than the number of people killed in car crashes on an annual basis. This is hardly a spectacular record to be proud of either.

Aside from death as a consequence of errors, injuries resulting from medical mistakes are even more common, and sadly, don’t get reported that often. In fact, there is a lot of carnage that seems to lie just below the surface of the medical profession that no one wants to directly address. You know it’s more than “just a problem” when the Kaiser Family Foundation actually carries out a study on medical mistakes.

The results of the study were quite interesting and raised a few eyebrows in the process. There were 1,200 adults involved as well as 800 doctors. Turns out that roughly 35% of the physicians commented that either they or members of their family had experience with medical errors. The errors were not of the benign nature either, and resulted in severe pain, long-term disabilities and death.

The very fact that doctors were the victim of other doctors and medical personnel should have awoken a few people. In fact, the Kaiser study did collect data that pointed to the medical community being unwilling to change to make a difference. This of course, left medical malpractice attorneys on the leading edge of demanding change in the medical system.

It’s interesting that taking legal action against a doctor would seem to be the only solution to get any real changes made within the system; however, this makes much more sense when put into perspective. Most physicians are relatively indifferent to regulating themselves and/or making changes to procedures to avoid mistakes. Now that’s a chilling thought in itself.

Oddly, doctors also seem resistant to trying built-in system checks, such as taking a pharmacist on rounds or cutting back the number of hours a resident has to work. This is odd because these things would make a big difference in addressing the issue of fatigue, a primary cause of medical errors.

In the meantime, the other option appears to be suing for redress of a medical error and perhaps forcing the medical community to begin to police itself.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

While the labor law in California attempts to find a delicate balance between the employer and the employee’s rights, much of this balancing act is undone by the unfortunate occurrence of discrimination in many forms, one of which is racial discrimination.

Also called racial prejudice, racial discrimination is something that people would like to think went out with the advent of the human rights movement. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case in many workplaces in California. “Although the law clearly states that a person may not be discriminated against because they are a different race, unfortunately there are many companies – even today in the 21st century – who go out of their way to make things difficult for some to be treated fairly at work,” stated Deborah Barron of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

Some of these discriminatory acts include things such as adverse hiring procedures weighted against certain racial categories, the assignment of difficult or dirty tasks to those of color, a greater workload for those individuals, lower salaries, fewer benefits, fewer chances or no chance of promotion and lack of training that others are required to have for the job.

Several other areas where discrimination may rear its ugly head also include not allowing those of color the same access to company facilities and equipment, not offering them the same kind of support and access to dispute resolution opportunities, and terminating them for vague reasons and hiring a white person to replace them. “While many of these activities may look innocent enough on the surface, when all of them are taken into consideration during an investigation, it’s hard not to assume there is evidence of racial discrimination,” said Barron.

There are two types of discrimination a worker may face on the job and those include disparate treatment and disparate impact. Disparate treatment mainly refers to acts of discrimination that an employer perpetrates against a person of a different race.
Those acts might involve insults and offensive remarks that create an intolerable workplace. Disparate impact refers to the company implementing rules and regulations that exclude certain classes of individuals applying for a job, asking for a promotion or a raise.

The bottom line is that racial discrimination laws guarantee protection for workers who have faced harassment or have been fired from their jobs because of their race. “Consulting with a knowledgeable attorney will go a long way toward getting justice in situations like this,” commented Deborah Barron of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

“If a case of sexual harassment is filed in California, it is filed under the auspices of the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, and may fall into one of two categories – hostile work environment or the quid pro quo theory,” indicated Deborah Barron of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

To further differentiate these two categories, in one (hostile work environment) the complainant needs to have been harassed by a fellow worker; in the other, the harassment could have taken place at the instigation of a supervisor (the quid pro quo theory).

“Without getting too technical, if an employee is complaining of a hostile work environment, then that person’s co-workers or supervisor needs to have been making repeated unwanted sexual advances in such a pervasive manner, that working conditions are totally intolerable (meaning the workplace is a hostile environment),” explained Barron.

If these kind of shenanigans are going on already, it may be that the employee feels their job security is predicated on giving in to the other person’s sexual advances. This situation is a prime example of quid pro quo. Nowhere in the code defining these categories does it specifically state that the people involved need to be a male and a female only, nor does the code address same sex harassment specifically. “This is usually where case law comes into play,” said Barron.

“We know of one landmark case in which the court held that a cause of action for sexual harassment may be filed by a member of the same sex as the harasser under the auspices of either quid pro quo or hostile work environment,” commented Deborah Barron of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California. The whole point is that even if someone of the same sex harasses a person, it does not deny him or her the right to protection under the law.

If facing a situation such as this, now is the time to contact a highly qualified employment attorney to get advice and find out what protections the law offers people in this kind of a situation. Knowing what rights are accorded to people facing these types of situations goes a long way toward making informed decisions about how to proceed with any potential lawsuit.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

When you’re walking across the street, you should feel safe, not like you’re a moving target. Unfortunately, walking across a crosswalk is not a cakewalk any longer, as the incidents of car versus pedestrian accidents are on the rise. All it takes is for one inattentive driver, perhaps talking on a cell phone, to run a red light and – the consequences may be deadly.

One of the most disturbing statistics, when it comes to car/pedestrian accidents, is the fact that many of the “at fault” drivers insist they never saw the person they hit. How could they have not seen a pedestrian? Most often the answer may be one of several things, including the fact that they were combing their hair, trying to access their email on their phones, paying attention to a GPS device or yakking with their passenger, and not paying attention to their surroundings.

It’s rather obvious that in an accident of this nature, the pedestrian is going to wind up on the short end of the stick, with either very serious injuries, or they may not live through the experience. If you don’t think the number of deaths as a result of being hit by a car are that high, consider the statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, that indicate almost 70,000 people meet their death in this manner yearly.

The end result of this carnage for survivors is quite often head trauma or Traumatic Brain Injury, broken or shattered bones, and either permanent or temporary disabilities. To say that the individuals who were hit experience a significant change in lifestyle thanks to a negligent driver, would be an understatement.

If you have been hit by a car crossing at a crosswalk, or have experienced injuries as the result of a car accident caused by the negligence of another, contact a highly skilled personal injury attorney. S/he will sit down with you and discuss the facts of your potential case. Your attorney will ensure you receive justice.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

The regulations that accompany RESPA actually represent one of the biggest shifts in the real estate industry since the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act came into being. What do the new regulations mean? In most instances, they mean you will need to redefine your sales and marketing strategies. It may seem a bit confusing since you’ve likely been doing just fine prior to this new wrinkle being introduced.

Here’s a bit of history about the RESPA, which has a significant impact on everyone involved in real estate transactions. It came into being with the stated goal of standardizing the buying of residential real estate and the reforms in it, among other things, raised the bar for making disclosures to consumers and also streamlined loan processes.

What the RESPA was intended to accomplish is to provide consumers with the benefits of cost savings and better, more transparent disclosure of things such as settlement fees, loan terms and costs. You can well imagine how pleased buyers were to have this new legislation working “for” them and making their ultimate purchase less confusing financially.

Let’s deal with the “less financially confusing” part now. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (or HUD for those who want another acronym to learn) figures that the more information about the loan application process a consumer has – all the way through settlement – the more informed consumers are; thus, they make smarter purchases. That makes sense if you stop to think about it, but also be aware that HUD has another objective and that is ensuring there is a competitive market for settlement service providers.

So what do we have in the final analysis? The RESPA rules and regulations now include changes to two previous forms (HUD-1 and the Good Faith Estimate document) and the term “required use” has finally been spelled out so people understand what it actually means.

The most interesting change, however, is one that deals with the yield spread premiums lenders pay for loans, and the fact it must be stated as a credit to the borrower upon closing. These reforms have been a long time coming and are a refreshing change to the industry, not to mention a benefit for consumers.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

Illegal discrimination is one thing, being given work that isn’t challenging, being given a poor performance rating at work or even being yelled at in the workplace is not cause to file a discrimination suit. “The major distinction is that discrimination takes places when an employer treats an employee differently because that person is a member of a “protected” class – age, race, religion, disability, gender and/or familial status,” commented Deborah Barron, of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

While being treated differently might not be hard to prove, proving why those differences exist and finding out what the motive is for the conduct is another can of worms altogether. Suffice it to say that it would be a challenge to find out those factors and be able to prove them in a court of law.

It is often difficult to prove discrimination, but it should be pointed out that some forms are easier to get a handle on. “For example, racial discrimination may be quite evident if the employer/supervisor makes constant remarks of a derogatory nature about a person’s race, constantly tells jokes about them and/or uses slang terms to refer to them,” said Barron. Often another telltale sign is if the employer is slowly replacing workers of a certain race with others of a different ethnic origin, which may be the same as the employer.

Discrimination of a medical nature (disability) often may be implied or outright proven causally if an employee was let go or given a demotion right after they suffered a serious injury or had been diagnosed with a debilitating medical condition.

In the area of age discrimination, the proof may lie in demonstrating the company fired an employee over the age of 40 or 50 without any other valid reason (poor performance, etc.) and then got a new person who is younger. “If a consistent pattern exists of the company doing this kind of thing, it’s fairly strong evidence of age discrimination,” explained Deborah Barron, of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

There are many faces of discrimination in a workplace and if faced with a situation such as this, consult with an attorney who has experience in this area. “The attorney will advise the plaintiff of their rights and outline what steps would need to be taken should the complainant wish to file a discrimination lawsuit,” explained Barron.

To learn more, visit http://www.lawbarron.com.

The idea with sexual harassment training in California is to stop it before it gets a foothold in a workplace. “The specific legislation used in California is dubbed the AB 1825 law and it outlines some incredibly stringent requirements for sexual harassment training,” said Deborah Barron, of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California.

What is unusual about AB 1825 is that it has a very high level of accountability attached to it. The driving point behind this piece of aggressive legislation is that education is the best protection against any potential sexual harassment claims.

California’s legislation also specifically outlines that companies who have 50 or more workers must hold this type of training, although the only people required to receive it are those that hold jobs as supervisors. “The Golden State mandates that sexual harassment trainers must be from one of several pre-determined categories that include an attorney, a law school/college professor, a harassment prevention consultant or human resources professional,” explained Barron. The ideal trainer would have in-depth experience in not only harassment, but discrimination and the boomerang companion complaint in these kinds of cases, retaliation claims.

It is no longer acceptable to just give sexual harassment training a cursory nod and put out a newsletter with tips now and then or have a lecture on the topic. Employers are being mandated to have properly trained personnel teach their staff what they need to know about this inflammatory workplace issue.

California also requires complete documentation of all people who have taken a sexual harassment course. “This doesn’t just mean their names and addresses, it means every supervisor must have a copy of the company anti-harassment policy and provide proof that those supervisors did receive it,” said Deborah Barron, of the Barron Law Office in Sacramento, California. This isn’t just because someone wants to keep good records, as the documentation on the training process must be kept for two years.

Last but not least, California takes the lead over other states in how they teach sexual harassment awareness and prevention. No other state has anything like this. The course must feature skill-building exercises, ways to assess learning, interactive questions that involve all participants, real life examples, methods for reporting harassment, and ready access to the trainer to get questions and concerns ironed out.

Sexual harassment is an issue long overdue for the attention it is now rightfully receiving. “California has taken the reins and proactively put legislation into place to prevent this kind of harassment in the workplace,” added Barron.

To learn more, visit http://www.lawbarron.com.

In this day and age, with things changing at the speed of light, ideas being transmitted around the world with a click of a mouse and books being published online and in print, it becomes almost second nature for people to think it’s OK to use someone else’s writing and call it their own. The same seems to apply to paperbacks, hard copy books, and other written materials.

Copyright law has its origins from earlier times when authors, individuals working in the printing and publishing fields, and journalists needed to ensure their work was protected from unauthorized copying. Legislation to accomplish this protection was first introduced in the 18th century in England. The first attempt at embodying a copyright law gave authors, etc., the right to keep ownership of original works. If anyone wanted to copy those original documents, they had to get permission.

You might see this is where the term copyright came from – because the law recognized a writers “right” to not be copied. Over time, this area of the law expanded and was applied to musicians, photographers, all original drawings (engineering, maps etc.) and even scientific formulas. These days the laws cover even more areas and are far stricter than the original ones.

Imagine if you lived in a time where you could freely take and copy anyone’s works or documents, change them and sell them without the consent of the person who first wrote the material. You’d be making money for the fraud of selling someone else’s work as yours, but the original writer would not be getting any profits. Again, all the more reason for copyright being in place, not only to protect an author’s original works, but to protect their potential source of income.

In 1886, there was an international agreement on the nature and extent of copyright law. The same general agreement, except for it being reaffirmed in 1952, has remained in place (with some legal tweaking) until the 21st century. We’re not so different these days that we don’t see the value in protecting original works of writing, etc.

Today’s copyright laws are very clear on their definition of rights and because they are so clear, there are far fewer legal disputes over its infringement. What may vary in this field are how the law applies to copyright renewals, how long the rights apply, and the question of eligibility for a copyright. This isn’t to say that copyright cannot be transferred because it can, so long as the original author gives their consent.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

Renting at the best of times might not be the most wonderful experience, depending on the landlord you have. That having been said, you need to be aware that there are a complete set of rules, regulations and laws that govern not only what rights you have as a tenant, but what rights the landlord has as well. These laws do apply to evictions, which tend to vary from state to state – all the more reason to consult a lawyer if you are faced with eviction.

The first thing you should be aware of, depending on where you live, is that the landlord might not need to provide a reason for evicting you. Check this out before you rent if you don’t want any unpleasant surprises later. In California for instance, there are a fair number of jurisdictions with laws on the books that say the landlord doesn’t have to give you a reason for evicting you. So, before you fight eviction, check with an attorney to find out what laws apply in your state.

Just for the record, other states do have various good reasons on the books for a landlord to evict. Some of them include failing to pay the rent, that a provision in the lease was violated (always read the fine print on your lease first), there are damages to the rental unit or you are a nuisance and/or doing something illegal.

Another reason that landlords may also use is that the tenant is not letting them into the unit to repair things or to inspect it. If you don’t like the idea of someone going into your home to inspect it, then you might want to think twice about the concept of renting.

A notice of eviction cannot be verbal, it must follow specific rules as laid out in the laws of your state. Generally speaking though, the eviction must be contained in a written notice. Whether the reasons for the eviction are contained in that notice may depend on the reasons for eviction in the first place. The length of time to vacate the premises may also range (depending on where you live and the reasons for the eviction) from 3 to 120 days.

Landlords may also file something called an Unlawful Detainer, which indicates you have violated the terms of the rental agreement in some manner. Do not ignore this notice, as it was filed in court and is a valid legal document. Speaking of legal documents, there is another method of being evicted, being served by a Sheriff. Again, this is usually the result of a case that has gone to court.

Read every document you get during this process very carefully, as it might not mean you need to leave right away. There may also be things you are able to do, with the help of a highly skilled attorney, to fight the eviction. You won’t know until you call an attorney and ask for a consultation. Don’t think that you have to fight an eviction on your own, not when competent legal counsel will be able to sort things out for you.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.