Procedural law is the collection of rules that govern how courts do their business. All levels and types of courts use procedural law. It controls how courts hear cases. It also dictates what a party must do in order to bring their case before the court. Where does procedural law come from? Each court has their own procedures. For example, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure apply to federal courts. States have their own rules of civil procedure. There are also separate (…)
A class action lawsuit is a lawsuit with many plaintiffs. When a case is a class action case, there are a lot of people who claim they’ve been wronged by the defendant. The plaintiffs have similar complaints. The courts allow all of the plaintiffs to join together in order to litigate their issues together. Why do class action cases exist? Courts allow litigants to join together and bring their cases as one class action in order to conserve resources. Rather (…)
Franchise law is the body of law that relates to making, operating and ending franchise relationships. Franchise law encompasses laws and regulations at all levels of government that govern how corporations and individuals may enter into franchise relationships. The practice of franchise law involves helping clients understand and comply with franchise laws. It may also include enforcing franchise laws or advocating for changes to the law. What is a franchise? A franchise is the legal use of another company’s business (…)
Railroad laws encompass all areas that are related to railroad services. Most often the cases regarding railroad laws will be wrongful death litigation by employees, passengers, or non-passengers, or personal injury cases. Another issue that arises is workers compensation for when railroad employees are injured while working. The major (“Class I”) railroads in the United States, of which there are fewer than ten, and the multitude of regional (“Class II”) and short line (“Class III”) railroads consume types of legal (…)
Juvenile law is the unique body of law that relates to minors. To put it another way, juvenile law is the law that applies specifically to juveniles. Although the juvenile criminal court is likely the most known example of juvenile law, there are many cases where the law treats a minor differently than an adult. While many constitutional rights are the same for both minors and adults like the right to the representation of an attorney in a criminal matter and the right to (…)
Property law is the area of law that governs what people own. It’s the area of law that says who can own land and personal items, how they can use them and with what conditions. Property law applies to both real property and personal property. Ownership and use of property is an area of law that impacts everyone in society. Property law is also an important part of estate law, family law and municipal law. Property law is the area of law that (…)
Music law is the law that affects the music industry. Music is commercially bought and sold in the United States and around the world. Any law that impacts how the music industry does business is part of music law. Music law includes any laws of any kind that apply to the business of creating, selling, performing and listening to music. Music law is a part of entertainment law. Who does music law impact? Music laws impact most people in society (…)
What is a Crime Scene Investigator? The Crime Scene Investigator (CSI) collects and preserves a variety of evidence from an active crime scene. The crime scene investigator is most often a law enforcement professional responsible for the identification, collection, preservation, and cataloging of physical evidence at the crime scene. What Does a Crime Scene Investigator Do? Although many people assume that the crime scene investigator is responsible for the performance of tests of various types of physical evidence, forensic professionals (…)
Energy law is the field of law concerned with creating, enforcing and challenging laws that regulate energy use. Laws exist that regulate the creation and harvesting of energy. There are laws that regulate taxation of energy use. Energy companies and the public alike must navigate energy laws as they relate to the sale, use and conservation of energy resources. Many people don’t realize how much energy laws and regulations impact their daily life. Each time you put gasoline in your (…)
Entertainment law is the collection of the many areas of law that impact the entertainment industry. Entertainment law is the sum total of several different types of law that are relevant to the entertainment industry including transactional law and litigation. Laws that impact the entertainment industry include federal and state laws, rules created by government agencies and common law legal precedent created by the courts. Entertainment law impacts not only the talent that performs in the entertainment industry but also the production aspects (…)
Private funds and hedge funds are investment funds that are a part of a diverse market range. In the United States only accredited investors are allowed to participate in Hedge Funds. The term hedge fund is credited to Alfred W. Jones, a financial journalist who first used the phrase “hedged fund” in 1949. A private / hedge fund is an investment fund that pools capital from accredited investors or institutional investors and invests in a variety of assets, often with (…)
Social Security disability laws provide assistance to individuals with disabilities. Benefits provided under these laws include insurance that will pay benefits to both the disabled individual and their family as long as you have paid enough in social security through work. Supplemental security income is provided based on financial needs. An attorney is not allowed to charge you a fee unless it has been approved by Social Security. Social Security Disability Insurance benefits are only paid to individuals who are totally disabled, as that term (…)
Employment law is the collection of laws and rules that regulate relationships between employers and employees. Employment laws say when an employer can hire employees and when the employees can work. The laws cover what an employer must pay the employee for their work. They create minimum requirements for working conditions for employees. Following employment law When an employer wants to hire someone, there’s a lot they have to know. There are minimum wage laws that require the employer to (…)
FBI agents have the difficult job of conducting national security investigations that can be extremely sensitive. In addition, the job as an FBI agent requires an individual to enforce more than 300 federal statutes. Some matters that an FBI agent may work on include cyber crime, foreign counterintelligence, terrorism, white collar crime, organized crime, civil rights violations, public corruption, bank robberies, kidnapping, air piracy, drug trafficking, as well as other violations of federal law. FBI Requirements There is a specific (…)
Maritime law is the collection of laws and agreements that govern behavior and activities on the seas. The area of law governs how people interact and do business on the waters of the world. Also called admiralty law, maritime law primarily governs activities on international waters. However, there are also laws that apply to the waters in and near each country. Generally, each country applies their own laws to inland waters like lakes and rivers. When most Americans board a (…)
Chief legal officers (or general counsels) are chief lawyers and have the responsibility of overseeing every legal aspect of a business or law firm. As the head lawyer, they are paid a premium salary which according to the Bureu of Labor Statistics (BLS) can be as high as $187,199 (90th percentile in 2013) or more depending on the industry. The majority of the time a chief legal officer will advise the business when changes are made to the laws and (…)
Native American law is the collection of laws, administrative rules and other authorities that impact Native American populations and their relationship to the United States and state governments. Native American law defines the relationships between Native American tribes and other governments. It also encompasses the self-government of Native American tribes. Achievements in Native American law There are several purposes to Native American law. The laws seek to allow Native Americans to self-govern in an effective and fair way. The laws (…)
Does the United States own the moon? Have you ever wondered if there are laws about space? Space law is the body of laws, agreements and treaties that govern outer space. Worldwide leaders must grapple with how to regulate activity in space. Space law covers issues like rules for exploration, weapons use, damage for liability, rescue efforts for astronauts in distress, environmental regulations and records of space activity. What do space lawyers do? Space lawyers draft international treaties and national (…)
Insurance law is the collection of laws and regulations that relate to insurance. Insurance is a contract between two parties. It transfers the risk of loss to the other party to the contract in exchange for a fee called a premium. Insurance laws and regulations manage and control how insurance contracts are formed and enforced. Insurance laws manage the offering, buying, selling and claims processes for insurance in the United States. In the United States alone, insurance is a trillion dollar (…)
A probation officer has the responsibility of supervising the activities of individuals that have been convicted of crimes and released on probation. A probation officer is very similar to a parole officer in that both types of law enforcement deal with convicts, but probation officers primarily deal with convicts of lesser crimes who have not been recently discharged from state or federal prison. Probation officers work with local, state, and federal prison systems. When a convict is released from state (…)