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 (…)
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 (…)
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 (…)
States rely on trained and deputized fish and game wardens in order to protect natural resources within their states. It’s work for people who think the outdoors is serious fun. A fish and game warden is a highly trained professional. Their training prepares them for the important and difficult work of making rules and regulations that protect natural resources and enforcing those rules effectively. A fish and game warden is a representative of the state that protects natural resources on behalf of (…)
Tort law is the area of law that protects people from bad acts of others. When a person commits a tort, they violate civil law. If a person is damaged by someone else’s wrongful act, they can bring a claim for compensation against the person who commits the tort. The purpose of tort law is to ensure that wrongdoers pay for the damage that they cause instead of the victims. Torts aren’t crimes A tort can be a crime. However, (…)
Computer law encompasses all of the laws that relate to the transfer, use and storage of electronic information. Basically, it’s any law that has to do with computers and other electronic devices that store information. Computer law includes a wide range of topics including security, private property rights and even constitutional law. Contracts When you buy a computer, sign up for an account on a website or even complete a credit application online, you have to check the box that (…)
Your undergraduate years are a great time to have a legal internship. If you’ve already decided that you want to work as a legal intern, you need to figure out how to go about getting a law internship. Fortunately, there are things that you can do to find the right legal internship. Learning about what to expect in an internship and how to approach the application process can help you make your search a successful one. What are law interns? (…)
Immigration law is the combination of laws, rules and regulations that govern who can enter a country. Immigration and naturalization are two different things. Immigration governs who can come and go from a country. Naturalization controls who can become a citizen. However, they’re interrelated topics. Attorneys who practice immigration law usually have a practice that encompasses both immigration and naturalization. Where Do Immigration Laws Come From? In the United States, immigration laws exist on a national level. The U.S. President has significant control over (…)
Antitrust law is the broad category of federal and state laws that are meant to keep business operating honest and fairly. Antitrust laws regulate the way companies do business. The goal is to level the playing the field in the free market and prevent businesses from having too much power. For the purposes of antitrust law, a trust is a large group of businesses that work together or combine in order to form a monopoly or control the market. Major (…)
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 (…)
Patent law is the area of law that deals with an inventor’s exclusive right to use their own invention. The area of patent law aims to encourage new products and inventions by granting creators the legal right to use and profit from the things that they create. Patent attorneys help clients apply for patents, enforce patents and challenge them. Patent law is part of intellectual property law. What is United States patent law? Patent law is U.S. federal law. It comes (…)
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 (…)
Poverty law is the practice of law as it intersects with the less privileged in society. The practice of poverty law concerns itself with making sure that poor people and the disadvantaged are treated fairly under the law. Poverty law isn’t always representing clients in court. It might include analysis of issues that impact the poor. It also might include advocacy for changes in laws and policies. Poverty law is a broad term that includes many different government entities, private businesses, groups (…)
Obscenity law is the law that regulates what images, speech and other expressions individuals can lawfully communicate. Obscenity law concerns itself with banning or suppressing speech that violates standards of good taste and decency. The area of law balances legitimate communication in a free society with the purposes of public censorship. The practice of obscenity law involves prosecuting and defending cases that challenge and interpret obscenity laws. Why do obscenity laws exist? Obscenity laws protect a sense of morality in (…)
Criminal investigators are individuals who investigate crimes and other events for legal and official purposes. They’re professionally licensed, but they don’t work for a government agency like police officers do. Instead, they work for hire on behalf of private clients. They might end up using the results of their investigation in a criminal proceeding. What does an Criminal Investigator Do? An investigator for criminal offenses helps their client prove or disprove facts relating to a criminal allegation. They pursue leads (…)
Criminologists use social patterns, statistics, and psychology in order to analyze the behaviors of criminals and methods used by criminals in order to help predict and prevent criminal behavior from occurring in the future. Psychological profiling plays an important role in the profession as well. In addition, a criminologist will evaluate how different methods of law enforcement affect crime rates. A criminologist will use their education in federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies or work as college professors. In (…)
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA.gov), the DEA is the premier drug enforcement organization in the world and the only single mission federal agency dedicated to drug law enforcement. Using unique operational and intelligence capabilities, the men and women of DEA identify, investigate, disrupt, and dismantle major drug trafficking organizations and those who facilitate them, remove drugs and violent criminals from our neighborhoods, and fight the diversion of licit drugs. For those that are interested in working for the Drug (…)
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 (…)
Business law is sometimes called mercantile law or commercial law and refers to the laws that govern the dealings between people and commercial matters. There are two distinct areas of business law; regulation of commercial entities through laws of partnership, company, bankruptcy, and agency and the second is regulation of the commercial transactions through the laws of contract. The history of these types of laws dates back several centuries and can be seen in the peace-guilds where members would pledge (…)
While parole officers and probation officers are often discussed together, these two jobs are not identical. A parole officer works with a person that has been released from a state or a federal prison. A prisoner may be released on parole, but the individual is still not completely free of supervision and the release has strict conditions. Parole can be revoked for almost any type of infraction. The role of a parole officer is to help an individual that has been incarcerated (…)