texts: Can a name from an inactive Github project be reused?

texts:
I have a personal project started in 2018, which essentially aims at running Arduino code on an FPGA and is posted on Github. Being not very imaginative while picking a name, I just added the "duino" suffix to the CPU core name. The project was essentially dormant until recently when someone posted a blog article and a video tutorial about it, and I got a few issue reports.
At this point I have discovered that there is another project on Github with essentially the same name. It uses a different approach (extending Arduino IDE rather than FPGA IDE), so the two projects share almost no common code, but they strive to achieve the same goal and can obviously be mixed up. The sister project seems inactive, with the last commit dated 2016.
I don't think this name collision will actually transform into an actual problem anytime soon (if ever), but it made me curious: how would such conflict be resolved if it did? Could the author of the other project force me to rename mine, on the grounds that his project started earlier? Is such right to the name persistent, or can it "expire" if a project is unused / abandoned for some time, similar to a trade mark?
If that makes any difference, my project is a derivative work of Arduino core library, released under LGPLv2. The sister project doesn't specify a license explicitly, and seems to include parts of Arduino core library and a custom GCC toolchain.


texts: What is the term for the contentious/non-contentious property of a lawyer?

texts:
If I were to summarize a given lawyer based on their work, what would be the name of the property that describes whether their work is contentious or non-contentious?

For example, if Susan works in Commercial Litigation (a contentious practice) and also Corporate Commercial (a non-contentious practice), her summary would be:

Name: Susan
Practice: Commercial Litigation, Corporate Commercial
[X]: contentious and non-contentious

What is the property name [X]?

As a further example, to provide a use-case: imagine a situation where a CEO might want search their employee database for all the lawyers who practice in non-contentious fields within their firm to assign them to a particular case. If we want to give the CEO a single search box (so they don't have to type a list of every possible non-contentious practice area), what would the name of that search box be?


texts: Can an LLC be a non-profit 501c3? And can a for-profit LLC accept donations via patreon or kickstarter?

texts: Can an LLC be a non-profits? Or are LLC's by definition for-profit organizations? If the former, how would that designation be reached?


texts: Demanding lawyer fee discount after weak representation

texts:
Is there a practice or custom of demanding reduced legal fees for poor performance?

Background example: Our company was sued for alleged patent infringement. We provided a detailed explanation to our lawyers and plaintiff for why the patent in question was extremely narrow and the infringement allegations were baseless. The plaintiff persisted, and our lawyers constantly tried to persuade us to settle with the plaintiff (under terms that were not favorable to us).  After a year of litigation the lawsuit ended with an in-person meeting with plaintiffs and one of our lawyers.  We had other agents present who helped explain that if the plaintiffs were to lose in court they would lose their claimed patent rights, whereas if we were to lose we would lose an insignificant amount of our income.  The lawsuit was concluded by a dismissal without prejudice.

We feel that our lawyer did not vigorously and competently represent our interests and claims, and also that as a result of their incompetence and inattention the dispute was far more protracted than necessary.

Is there a common basis for demanding a discount in the lawyer's bills for these complaints?


texts: Written promise pre-purchase vs signed agreement, what's stronger?

texts:
Imagine the following situation:
A customer of a relatively high cost service asks a supplier for a full refund option bound to a specific condition that may or may not occur later in the process. The refund option isn't part of the standard supplier agreement. The customer signals that the refund option is a condition to move forward with the purchase of the service.
The supplier agrees to the refund option by email and tells the customer to refer to the email conversation in case the refund condition will be met, but provides their standard agreement template which doesn't include the refund option. The agreement additionally states that it supersedes any previous agreements. The customer signs the agreement in expectation that the supplier will stand by their word of offering a the refund option, even if it's not part of the signed agreement.
Has the customer still a claim on the previously offered refund option once the refund condition is met?
Based on the signed agreement I would say no, however, the refund option was a condition to move forward in the first place, so it may be seen as an attempt to defraud the customer, tricking them into signing something they didn't want. Also, what about false advertising?


texts: What are the conditions under which personal data can be sold in the UK?

texts:
Say that a business has a list of customers' names, telephone numbers, email addresses and job titles.

This business would like to sell this data to another business, with the aim of the new business using the data to generate sales through emailing and telephoning.

Importantly, the customers in the list have not been made aware that their data may be sold.

Would the sale of such data be compliant with UK laws, e.g. the Data Protection Act?


texts: Using BBC podcasts in a software, legality

texts: This software will be a freeware, which will be used to improve language abilities of English exam takers. My software will play a part of their (BBC-United Kingdom) pod cast (a minute or 2) and the relevant transcript will be displayed. Many audio files and transcript files will be distributed with the software. Is this legal? any copyright issues? if so, what are the actions to be taken to overcome those issues. Permission to use from them is enough, what are the ways to get their permission, an email from them is enough for legal/copyright issues? Please advise.


texts: Is it common for plaintiffs to present their case at court hearings with an actual presentation?

texts:
At court hearings, where the plaintiff (or their lawyer) is given time to present their case, is it common for them to do it with an actual on-screen slide show presentation (like at a conference)?

Are there any rules or nuances about that?

(Any jurisdiction).


texts: What is the effect of the repeal of a law amending a former law?

texts:
1 U.S. Code § 108 provides "Whenever an Act is repealed, which repealed a former Act, such former Act shall not thereby be revived, unless it shall be expressly so provided." However, many state codes provide rules on construction on both this and in cases where the amendment to a former act is repealed without also amending or repealing the former act itself. This is, as far as I know, not covered by Federal law directly.
In general, I would like to understand, on the Federal level, the rules of construction regarding the repeal of an amendment amending a prior act. Would the original, unamended, text be in effect, or would the amended text still be in effect?
For example, say Law A provides "XYZ", Law B provides "Law A is amended to say 'ABC'", and Law C provides "Law B is repealed." In this instance, after the effect of all three laws, does Law A provide "XYZ" or "ABC"?
To be more specific, I am only interested in this instance in regards to legislative amendments, not constitutional amendments.


texts: What are the various legal roles along the line of POA

texts: I've heard legal speak of executor, agent, power of attorney, guardian.  I don't understand the differences.  Are these legal terms?  how/where are they defined?  Are their other terms for the same or other roles in the situation of an elderly person ?


texts: Does an illegal clause create liability, or just invalidate the contract?

texts:
A private company in Arizona wanted to bring me on as an independent contractor to research what they need to do for (ISO/etc) standards compliance. I was asked to sign an NDA before learning details; I reviewed the NDA, rejected it, offered instead my word not to steal their stuff, and was accepted. The CEO is moving away from NDA's, anyway. But there may be a few people who have already signed it, and this worries me, because I wonder if the company can get in trouble later just for trying to contractually take away someone's rights. Legal compliance isn't my department (I'm not a lawyer), but it's close enough to my other duties that I would write up a cost-benefit proposal for paying a lawyer to write up a new (safe) NDA that can replace the old NDA (which ought to be terminated if there's any risk to letting it remain in effect).

The document combines the NDA with a non-compete. The early (NDA) sections restrict the use of company documents for "the pursuit of profit or employment with" followed by a list of potential clients, including "Legal representatives of ANY kind". The late (non-compete) sections have nothing to do with documents anymore, but (switching out the company name for "EMPLOYER") does have this clause:

  If CONSULTANT's employment with EMPLOYER terminates for any reason, the CONSULTANT shall not, for a period of one year from the date of termination, have any business dealings whatsoever, either directly or indirectly or through corporate entities or associates with any customer or client of EMPLOYER or its subsidiaries or any person or firm which has contacted or been contacted by EMPLOYER as a potential customer or client of EMPLOYER;

No restrictions (of industry) apply here, but taken in context with the NDA section (which implies intended clients), any legal representatives who were ever approached as potential clients (even if they immediately said "not interested" and refused to hear more), up to every legal representative anywhere if included in a marketing campaign that broad, would be off-limits for business dealings of all kinds. Such as, for instance, hiring a lawyer to review a contract before employment.

No lawyer reviewed this contract with him before he began using it:

  "I did not have a lawyer draft it actually, and I just added a ton of shit in there and wrote it in about 5 minutes as an afterthought late at night about a month ago."

I asked a lawyer from out-of-state (about this and other clauses), who noted that he was not giving legal advice, but this particular clause was unconscionable and (unless Arizona had some weirdshit rules) illegal. This is not the worst contract I've seen written by a non-lawyer, and I expect to see more people trying failing to create an enforceable contract because they think it will save them the money of hiring a lawyer; I believe the theoretical aspect (not my specific situation, which is more of an example) will be generally useful for employers to be aware of what penalties their company may risk facing later on. I don't expect to be lucky enough that this precise clause has come up in prior case law; I'm hoping for other instances of illegal clauses, so I can include links in a risk analysis to show any general trend of "this has or has not been problematic for similar cases".


texts: What standing does one state have to determine if another state(s)' implementation of their own constitution violates the federal constitution?

texts:
Background
Various media outlets have been reporting on the notoriety and expansiveness of State of Texas vs. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, etc..  This lawsuit alleges the following:

• Non-legislative actors’ purported amendments to States’ duly enacted
election laws, in violation of the Electors Clause’s vesting State
legislatures with plenary authority regarding the appointment of
presidential electors.
• Intrastate differences in the treatment of voters, with more
favorable allotted to voters – whether lawful or unlawful – in areas
administered by local government under Democrat control and with
populations with higher ratios of Democrat voters than other areas of
Defendant States.
• The appearance of voting irregularities in the Defendant States that
would be consistent with the unconstitutional relaxation of
ballot-integrity protections in those States' election laws

Issue
While the Supreme Court does have original jurisdiction over suits between two or more states, this suit seems to state that the way other states allegedly failed to follow their own state law in turn led to these states not following federal law.  There do exist cases where the Supreme Court invalidates certain state laws, but I do not see a successful case where a state invalidates another state's law on the basis of the other state's law violating the U.S. constitution.  Rather the cases I cited with two or more states seem to be with contractual disputes as opposed to one state saying that another state's law is wrong. This leads me to question...
Question
Can one state appeal a suit to the supreme court about the validity of a different states' state law in relation to the federal constitution?


texts: Are properties like APKMirror or APKPure legal?

texts: Are app stores that host free yet copyrighted APKs without the author's explicit permission legal? Examples include APKMirror and APKPure.


texts:
I want to upload screenshots of user manuals for different types of cranes on my mobile app to teach users how to operate cranes. Is this illegal?

I have seen a website that allows users to download manuals for almost any kinds of products free. Could they have asked all those manufacturers for permission to redistribute the manuals? As far as I remember, the site was pretty famous.


texts: Are animated GIFs Recognised as videos or images in court?

texts:
When settling legal disputes about copyrighted GIFs (or apngs webps etc) are they recognised by the court as videos or images (Or does it make no difference)?
It's worth mentioning that they are (in terms of computer science) recognised as images, but you can easily get a silent film and convert it into a really long GIF.
Since I'm not sure if this can vary with location, I'll leave it open (if it can, assume international, US and/or UK law)


texts: Can memorandums of understanding be used for a case of misrepresentation?

texts: If in an MOU it is written that "party A will provide [xxxx]", if later it transpires party A did not fully provide xxxx and party B suffers a loss due to this, can this case be viewed as misrepresentation, or are MOUs purely used for agreements in good faith?


texts: UK Single person council tax discount when owning joint property

texts:
We own a joint property in the UK, and are full taxpayers of all taxes including standard rate council tax band for the region.

But my partner will be going abroad for a significant amount of time (6 months+). Will I be able to claim the single person discount for council tax, if I am living alone in the property (thus using less of council services like rubbish collection, libraries, etc)?

It looks like that - because it's a lot of revenue, so councils try to sideline this scenario stating that - you still own property jointly, so ignoring the fact that only 1 person is living there (thus using less of council facilities).


texts: In which sense is software cracking illegal?

texts:
I wonder which of the following behaviors are illegal in China:

Cracking a software and using it.
Cracking a software and distribute it without charging.
Cracking a software and reselling the cracked version.
Using software cracked by someone else.
(Maybe there are other illegal behavior worth mentioning?)

Background information: This post actually comes from my previous question.


texts: Lohnsteuerbescheinigung - income tax certiicate

texts:
I currently live and work in Germany and I would like to apply for a tax return.

I have asked for help on a forum (in doing the paperwork) and one person wrote to me that she can help me out for a fee of 50 euros.

She asked me to send her my Lohnsteuerbescheinigung. Is it safe to send this document to a third party?

I have never met this person before, but the document does not appear to require strong security.


texts: Is the right to keep and bear crypto protected by the Second Amendment?

texts:
Stumbled across an interesting comment in regards to the recent events about TorProject and a public library in Lebanon, New Hampshire, U. S. of A.:
http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r30291606-So-let-me-get-this-right

The Committee for State Security (Komitet gosudarstvennoy bezopasnosti/ ) has no issues with encouraging freedom fighters from using a service that is illegal in their countries, but sends an "advisory letter" to anyone in the United States that uses it where it is legal. Shady.

The government has already classified encryption technology as a weapons system. Wouldn't this mean that use of encryption technology by US citizens is protected under the 2nd Amendment? (This isn't a serious argument, but it does make you wonder)

I still remember when the Department of Homeland Security got its name. I laughed my ass off. My buddy who was a Russian linguist for the military laughed even harder because it DIRECTLY translates to KGB. The soviets had Committees for everything instead of departments, and they used "the state" instead of "the homeland" in colloquial conversation.

Goldir

(emphasis mine)
Indeed, it's been well known in the technical communities that crypto has long been classified as munition by the US government.  Bernstein v. United States. http://export.cr.yp.to/
Doesn't it indeed make it protected under the 2nd Amendment?


texts:
On a recent foreign prank show the following scenario took place.

A group are dressed in realistic Hazmat suits.
The group are scanning an area with fake radiation detectors.

The detectors are set to emit a sound that indicates danger, more specifically high levels of radiation.

When the detectors emit the sound, the group run away making a scene to ensure the surrounding public take notice and react.

All of this being a façade to purposely incite fear in to the public.

I am sure that this wouldn't be tolerated in most countries, and would be breaking the law.

Which laws would cover this behaviour?


texts: Can I translate a copyrighted book with the intent of publishing it?

texts:
I recently read a book that impressed me so much I want to buy a copy as a gift for a friend. Unfortunately, the friend does not speak the language the book was written in, and no translations exist at this time.

Fortunately for him, I am a professional translator. I could translate the book in my own spare time, and given that no translations exist yet I am thinking of either publishing it on my own or sending it to a publishing house.

However, I am unsure about the legal aspects of such an endeavor. Obviously, if I just translate it for my friend there are no legal issues involved. On the other hand, I'm not sure what I risk by:

self-publishing it and selling it, say on Amazon, and
contacting a book publisher and telling them that I have a full translation of the book in my possession (without any agreed translation contract between me and the original author)?

Am I at risk by translating a copyrighted book?


texts: Does acceptance of communication with identifying characteristics originating from a disputed territory imply recognition of that territory?

texts:
To give an example:
One of the more well known currently disputed territories is Crimea. As telecommunication services, and users of such, do continue to operate from that territory under the aegis of a Russian persona, (like a Crimean based website using a .ru domain or personal and business phones in Crimea using a Russian country code), does acceptance of such communication imply recognizing the territory as part of Russia?
To me it seems a bit tricky because in the ordinary sense the answer would be of course. It would be silly to accept a phone call, carry on a conversation, then refuse to accept the first few digits of the phone number.
If this norm holds then the communication operators and their receivers are recognizing identifying claims. However, in this case that would mean accepting that Crimea is no longer part of Ukraine. And governments are receivers of communication too.
(There does not seem to exist technical means to block the propogation of such communication. And it also may not even be possible, for internet companies specifically, to refuse recognition of any technically valid domain without jeopardizing their interconnections.)


texts: Application of the GDPR to emails one has sent

texts: Reading https://gdpr-info.eu/issues/personal-data/, it seems you could use the GDPR for, well, unexpected request. For example, if I ask Google to remove any email from me I have send, not only from my account (you can do it yourself easily, BTW) but also from the account of the people who have received the mail (provided it is still there and owned by Google) and the Google server. I do not see why that's would not be possible. At the other hand, at least in some countries (Belgium, for example) email is the legal equivalent of a paper letter and can be used to prove something (that you have agreed to a contract, for example). This would obviously jeopardize this. Note that a paper letter would not be necessarily better... Has someone an experience about how the GDPR is interpreted?


texts:
I work on software that is a project of an encrypted cloud, created to protect users privacy.

We use a javascript crypto library called SJCL.

Only the user has the decryption key. That means only the user will be able to access his files. Not even our team will be able to see what's going on in the user's space and we can’t get the user's decryption key.

Is the legislation of country where servers are located prevail over legislation of country where company is registered?

Can we launch our software in Estonia or Lithuania (servers + company)?


texts: Is wearing ACLU's "Let People Vote Pin" to the polling place considered electioneering?

texts:
For context, the region I'm in is Sangamon County, Illinois.
I ordered an ACLU pin from their shop. I expect it to arrive before November 3rd and I am excited to wear it at the polling place. I am, however, not certain if this is permitted under the law. I checked on the Electoral Judge's manual for clarification and I found this:

Electioneering is defined as working for, against, or in the interest of a candidate, party, or proposition.
Electioneering is not allowed in the polling place or within the campaign free zone (a distance of within 100 horizontal feet of the room). No one is permitted to wear a campaign button, display political literature, or engage in any political discussion within the restricted area.

So I interpret this as putting me in the clear. The pin is unrelated to a candidate, party, or any proposition on my region's ballots.
I wanted a concrete illustration of the law so I did a search and found within the Illinois Compiled Statutes: 10 ILCS 5/7-41 (c)

No person shall do any electioneering or soliciting of votes on primary day within any polling place or within one hundred feet of any polling place, or, at the option of a church or private school, on any of the property of that church or private school that is a polling place. Election officers shall place 2 or more cones, small United States national flags, or some other marker a distance of 100 horizontal feet from each entrance to the room used by voters to engage in voting, which shall be known as the polling room. […]
[…] This subsection shall be construed liberally in favor of persons engaging in electioneering on all polling place property beyond the campaign free zone for the time that the polls are open on an election day.

It's striking that electioneering isn't defined within the section, so I reviewed 10 ILCS 5/0.01 et seq. and found section 5/7-4. Definitions does not provide clarification about electioneering.
Okay, maybe it’s a common sense term. I checked Black’s Law Dictionary 5th ed. and also found no definition of electioneering.
Well maybe there's relevant case law? I reviewed West's Smith-Hurd ILCS Annotated and found there were no reported cases related to 10 ILCS 5/0.01 et seq.
Last I checked West's IL Digest and found no relevant case law. There were surprisingly only 5 cases related to elections, none of which had anything to do with electioneering.
So I imagine if a judge were to make a determination about whether displaying this pin within a polling place is electioneering, they would have to refer to a dictionary definition. From Webster's:

electioneer verb
elec·tion·eer | \ i-ˌlek-shə-ˈnir  \
electioneered; electioneering; electioneers

Definition of electioneer
intransitive verb
: to take an active part in an election
specifically : to work for the election of a candidate or party

Well this is incredibly unhelpful! While this pin is not working for the election of a candidate or party, my very presence in the polling place is taking an active part in an election.
So in summary, would displaying this pin in a polling place be considered unlawful electioneering?


texts: What do I do if my son's dad wants to take back a gift he gave our son saying it's theirs and not his?

texts: My son's father gave our son a Nintendo Switch for his birthday. When he went to spend the night at his house (we are not together) he took it saying it was his and he would let our son borrow it. He later changed the story saying it was both of theirs and he (my son) can only play with it while being at his house. He ultimately let him take it to our house but now he can't even use it because dad disconnected the account so we can't reach any games. I bought him a game cartridge so he can play a game without the internet and when he went to his dad's house his dad kept it. What can I do?


texts: Can the state change its mind about dropping charges?

texts:
If a person is indicted on criminal charges, but before trial the state decides to "drop the charges," can the state later bring the same charges?

I'm actually not even certain what formal actions might be referred to as "dropping charges" after an indictment.  E.g., does the prosecution file a motion to "withdraw?"  Can a consent decree with the defense halt the case?  Can or do any of these actions prejudice the case?  Perhaps an enumeration of the possible mechanisms would be helpful (as well as the consequences for future prosecutions in each scenario).


texts: Under GDPR, is an image of a person's face a "Special Category Data"?

texts:
I'm triyng to understand whether, under European GDPR, an image of a person's face is a "Special Category Data".

From this image I could determine person's:

ethnic origin (for example: from the colour of the skin)
religion (for example: the person wears Sikh turban)

Is handling a person's image considered as handling "Special Category Data"?


texts:
I have bought Filimo account and think according some Iran relation problem with others world, i want to know does Iranian Filimo website give the foreign films copyright like this film ?
If not, for me as user of that website, according the Iranian law or international law, is it legal, to see the foreign films in this site even by paying fee.
Thanks.


texts: Can multiple people trademark the same name?

texts: I looked up a trademark on TESS and it turns out that it is already trademarked. This may sound like a noob question, but can I use it if my business is completely unrelated ? What if I own the domain, but someone else owned the trademark.


texts: What makes a shareholder a "shareholder of record"?

texts:
In public companies filling some reports with the SEC (10K for example), there is a mention of the number of shareholders of record.
Example:
"As of April 20, 2021, we had approximately 40 shareholders of record of our common stock."
Source: DTST 10K filling
A. What makes me legally titled the shareholder of record?
B. Is there a minimum equity to be owned to be recognized as a shareholder of record?
For example, if I bought 1 stock, am I included?
C. Can I view the list of shareholders, or get any information about them, or is it censored?


texts: Can "evidence of registration" be a "certificate of registration"?

texts:
8 CFR 264.1 states that

a valid, unexpired nonimmigrant DHS admission or parole stamp in a foreign passport constitutes evidence of registration

Does that mean that such a stamp also constitutes "a certificate of alien registration or an alien registration receipt card" for the purpose of 8 USC 1304(d) or (e)?

(d) Certificate of alien registration or alien receipt card
Every alien in the United States who has been registered and fingerprinted under the provisions of the Alien Registration Act, 1940, or under the provisions of this chapter shall be issued a certificate of alien registration or an alien registration receipt card in such form and manner and at such time as shall be prescribed under regulations issued by the Attorney General.
(e) Personal possession of registration or receipt card; penalties
Every alien, eighteen years of age and over, shall at all times carry with him and have in his personal possession any certificate of alien registration or alien registration receipt card issued to him pursuant to subsection (d). Any alien who fails to comply with the provisions of this subsection shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall upon conviction for each offense be fined not to exceed $100 or be imprisoned not more than thirty days, or both.

In particular, it seems unlikely that a stamp in a passport could be an "alien registration receipt card," because it is not a card, but I wonder whether it could be a "certificate" despite the use of the word "evidence" in the regulation.
(This question is intended to help discover whether a nonimmigrant who entered the US under the Visa Waiver Program without having been given a paper I-94 form would be required by INA section 264, encoded at 8 USC 1304, to carry the passport containing the admission stamp.)
More information:
I have just re-read Immigration Law and the Myth of Comprehensive Registration by Nancy Morawetz and Natasha J. Fernandez-Silber, which notes in a footnote that there was formerly a federal regulation relating to the "carry requirement" that said

Carrying and possession of proof of alien registration.
The provisions of section 264(e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act shall be applicable to every receipt card, certificate, or other document or paper referred to in this section as constituting evidence of alien registration.

That regulation obviously connects items defined as "evidence of registration" to the statutory requirement to carry any "certificate of registration," but it was repealed in 1960.


texts: What documents can I carry to prove that I'm a US citizen, other than my passport and birth certificate?

texts:
I am a US citizen by birth and I live in the US. I was born and raised in Michigan, where I still live. I do not have status in any other country - no other citizenships, green cards, work or study visas, etc.

Let's say an ICE, CBP, or other law enforcement official stops me and takes me into custody as an illegal alien. Because I live near the border (the Canadian border), CBP officials are allowed to patrol the area; we are much less than 100 miles inland.

Once in custody, I would not be allowed to contact anyone who could provide documentation, nor would I be able to contact a lawyer who could talk to my family and get the appropriate documentation.

So what documentation can I carry on my person, every time I leave my house, to prove to the law enforcement officials that I am a US citizen and not an illegal immigrant?

I would prefer not to carry my passport because I don't want it to get lost or stolen, also it's too big to fit in my pocket and I don't want to always carry a bag, and apparently birth certificates aren't sufficient to prove citizenship (because children of diplomats, and people who have taken other citizenships and lost their US citizenship, will still have US birth certificates).


texts:
In a comment to this question, the user @Agent_L argued that

  That's not an opinion, there is nothing to disagree here. From a legal point of view, a contract doesn't need a written form. It's hard to prove the existence of such contract, but it's still there

Is this true, legally? If, for example, a person A offers a job to a person B orally, and person B accepts it orally, and person A records this conversation. Can person A later use this recording to sue person B if later person B doesn't want to work there?


texts: If I can prove that my drawing/illustration was constructed from various image references, can't I be prosecuted?

texts:
Background:

For my design work, I sometimes create portraits to illustrate campaigns and other media. In an effort to avoid mis-appropriating someone's likeness, I tend to draw from a collection of unrelated found portraits and previous life-drawings to construct a "unique" portrait. I've always been anxious about accidentally appropriating the likeness of someone without realizing it. I'm currently living in Ireland. I'm aware that in the field of photography, any persons featured in a photo to be used commercially must sign a model release form in accordance with Copyright and Related Rights Act (Ireland), 2000 and Data Protection Act (Ireland), 1988.

My Question:

If I can prove that my drawing/illustration was "constructed" from a mishmash of various image references, surely I'm not a criminal? :P

P.S. I haven't posted on the Law stack before so apologies if I haven't provided enough background!


texts: Can someone get married for the sole purpose of invoking spousal immunity?

texts:
Edit: the question wasn't worded as well as it could be.  I should clarify that I'm aware sham marriages are illegal. For the purposes of this question, let's assume law enforcement doesn't realize or can't prove it's a sham.

Note: I was in here a month or two ago asking about a similar topic, but to re-iterate, I'm a writer trying to do some research and figure out logistics for a story I'm working on, so this all may sound crazy.

Say we have two characters, John and Lisa, and they work together. Lisa does something illegal, and John was a witness. John's testimony is really the only thing law enforcement has to go on at this point, but circumstances are such that both characters could suffer if John testified (maybe he was also doing something questionably legal that his testimony would bring to light). If the characters hear rumors that the police will ask John to testify, but he hasn't officially been asked yet, can he marry Lisa, invoke spousal privilege, and avoid being compelled to testify? Or would that not count since the event he would have been testifying about occurred before the marriage?

Side note: John and Lisa are in love so marriage in general wouldn't come as any huge surprise to anyone who knows them, but the suddenness might seem odd.

This is a really simplified version of the whole scenario, but I'm hoping it'll still be enough to help me figure out whether the idea I have in mind would even be reasonable. Granted, this story is set in a fictional universe so I have some room to maneuver, but many of their other laws have Earth/real-life origins so I'm trying to at least base the general ideas on real things.


texts: Can the Federal Protective Service make arrests without identification or in unmarked cars?

texts:
This week, a protestor who was part of the George Floyd protests in Portland, Oregon was arrested by federal agents who were without identification, and  who put him into an unmarked van.  Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a statement that these were CBP agents that were deputized as officers of the Federal Protective Service (FPS) and were arresting the protestor on suspicion that he attacked federal property or federal employees.
This made me curious about two things.  First of all, do FPS officers have the authority to make arrests without having uniforms that identify themselves as being FPS officers?  Second of all, when they do make arrests do they have the authority to put the arrested persons into unmarked cars?
Do either the US Code or the Code of Federal Regulations discuss this issue?


texts: Legal implications of selling language learning lessons plans based on copyrighted popular songs?

texts:
I'm considering starting a company that would create and sell pre-made lesson plans for language teachers based on copyrighted popular songs.

I am not a lawyer or legally inclined, but I imagine this type of thing would have a lot of legal red tape all around it. I don't know where to start. Since the songs are potentially produced in any country around the world, there might also be international law implications, or at least different local limitations depending on a per-song basis.

So that the product is reliable, I would prefer to have the songs stored on my app server, instead of asking teachers to "find" their own copy. This is especially true since the exercises would involve playing short sections of the songs so that students can answer questions about them.

So my first questions are very general: Is it even possible to pay some sort of fee for the use of the audio and lyrics in this type of context?
Would the copyright payments on this type of business model be prohibitively high (assuming that the cost to teachers is low enough that educational establishments of varying sorts could afford them)?

What can anyone here offer me in terms of what they know about how this would work? And where can I go to learn more about the legal implications of this idea?

Thanks in advance,

Ben


texts: Hypothetical code leak frame up - how to defend?

texts:
I imagined the following scenario, where how to mount a defence for the lowest cost (without settlement, in order to clear one's name) wasn't clear to me:

The hypothetical case

Vocal code critic Frank Bloggs (popularity similar to Linus Torvalds) has been shown code by academic James Coda. Frank has written a publicly scathing review, with very minimal snippets of code utilised under fair use (criticism) to demo. Frank is the only other person to have seen James' code. It's kept confidential, as it's academic research, although Frank is not aware of this fact. By showing the code to Frank, it's implicit that he would publicly comment (as he does with any other code he's given). Assume James has the means to prove Frank was the only other person to have seen the code.

James gets bad press. James is furious, decides to frame Frank for leaking the entirety of his code and then sue. James goes to code site A (akin to GitHub), registers account 'fbloggs' with a disposable email, then posts the same code Frank would have seen. Frank doesn't become aware of the page until after he receives a legal notice from James.

Frank tries to contact the site, asking them to reveal the email address/IP, to try to prove his innocence, but they refuse (assume it's too costly for Frank to sue. They would rather close down like LavaBit). Sleuthing the password reset, Frank gets f****.bl****@somemail.com. Frank's typical email (hidden from the usually angry public) is frank.bloggs2@normalmail.com. Somemail.com refuse to help; but James used a proxy, and Frank's details can be found publicly, so the account is plausibly forged.

James's argument

Frank is the only other person to proveably have seen his code
The URL where the entire source code is leaked contains 'fbloggs'
The website contains the same code he gave to Frank
Frank has proveably seen the code based on his web review containing snippets
James omits the plausibility of the email account (he knows he isn't supposed to know it's private details), but if Frank were to bring it up, then James would claim it's plausibly Frank's
James omits the part where he states he didn't leak it (overly specific denial), but if accused he would mention.

Ergo, James accuses Frank of leaking his confidential code.

Judge character flaw

The case is put before a tech unsavvy judge (who would believe because the URL contains 'fbloggs' it must be likely Frank Bloggs' page), a flaw that isn't found out until after trial proceeds (EG judge can no longer be vetoed). Similarly, Frank Bloggs arguing 'it could be anyone with fbloggs as their name!' won't pass muster with this particular judge.

How does Frank successfully defend himself for the lowest cost whilst maintaining his reputation?

Looking for responses for US, and also UK law.


texts: How are damages calculated for intentional torts of assault and outrage?

texts:
Intentional torts like assault and outrage (a.k.a. infliction of emotional distress), or for that matter, dignitary torts (e.g., invasion of privacy, or alienation of affection) don't have readily measurable damages.  (Except perhaps what a defendant can contrive as the costs of therapy and medication to address the psychological damage inflicted.)

Are there any broad conventions or theories on how damages should be assessed for such torts?  Do precedents weigh heavily, or do damages awarded always come down to what a jury can be convinced is appropriate?  Or, if brought in small-claims court (as would be more likely except for the most wealthy or sympathetic plaintiffs), do any jurisdictions have guidelines or precedents that apply?

(How are emotional distress damages quantified? turned up a report on how that particular tort was been compensated in various contexts.  I'm interested in whether there is any broad custom or case law that applies across jurisdictions, or if any jurisdiction has more clear guidelines for assessing damages.)


texts:
I'll start with some background info for my question.

I'm a photojournalist based in Michigan.
I was on (what appeared to be) a public sidewalk.
I was taking photos of the Oakland County Jail for a story I was working on.

I was outside the OCSO jail getting some photo and video for a story when several LEOs approached me. One addressed herself as a lieutenant. She told me I was in a "secure jail area" and had to stop taking photos. My argument was that I was on a public sidewalk, exercising my 1st amendment rights. She responded, telling me that if I didn't leave, I'd be arrested for trespassing. Another officer said I could take photos if I went to the other side of a sign. I complied, and continued my work. He ordered that I go to the other side of a sign that was farther away.

Were they right?


texts: Where can I find a comprehensive document of computer laws?

texts:
I am interested in computers and want to pursue this interest further by getting my education in programming and security. I've only just started so I'm scared that I might break some law that was not obvious to me and get into some trouble. It is not my intention to break the law like so many juvenile computer hackers intend on doing for kicks, or what have you.

The question is, where can I find the laws on computer/internet use for the U.S.A.?


texts: Question about corporations established through legislation in Canada

texts:
PART I of BILL C-93 from February 1997 described the establishment of a corporation and some definitions related to it. The concept of a corporation being established in legislation is new to me, so I do not feel completely confident in knowing how the legislation works.
For example, one of the first definitions provided on that page (linked above) is the legislation's definition of "eligible", where it defines what types of institutions would be "eligible" to work with the newly established corporation, and lists hospitals, universities, colleges, and non-profit organizations under the definition of "eligible" recipients. What if the corporation were to one day decide that hospitals are no longer eligible, would the corporation be breaking the law? What recourse would hospitals have in this case?


texts: What does "declare under penalty of perjury" mean within a federal civil case?

texts:
I was reading a document filed by a member of the SEC in a civil case. (1:15-mc-91258-RGS in District of Massachusetts)

At the beginning, it said this:

  I, <name>, declare under penalty of perjury pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §1746, that the following is true and correct:

What penalties does this invoke if he's lying?
Does "declare under penalty of perjury" have any legal meaning outside of a filing in a court?


texts: Which law regulates child labor for a teen that has dual citizenship?

texts:
A teen with dual citizenship (Taiwan and U.S.) is seeking to work during his summer vacation. He's 14 right now (8th grade), which allows him to work by U.S. FLSA, but he is prohibited to work by Taiwan's child labor law which states that he  must have graduated from 9th grade.

He's currently applying to a U.S.-based international company for a remote job. Is he allowed by law to work for a U.S.-based company? He is living in Taiwan.


texts: What happens when a legally binding document is accidentally filled out wrong?

texts:
A friend of mine was hired by a company that has a lengthy onboarding process that has lots of paper work. One document he had to sign contained

  The following are Developments not covered by Paragraph 5,
  in which I have any right, title, or interest, and which were
  previously conceived or written either wholly or in part by me, but
  neither published nor filed in any Patent Office:

  Description of Documents (if applicable):...... Title on Document.......Date on
  Document....Name of Witness on Document

  Signed:

  Date:

After they filled it out and sent it to head office they believed they filled it out wrong. Under the description they put “personal projects”, as well as writing “none” on another line. Since the instructions say not to do this and “personal projects” probably isn’t what they were looking for, this contract was filled out wrong.

This is just an example but in general what happens when something legally binding is filled out wrong? Does it invalidate the whole thing?


texts: What would happen if undocumented immigrants vote in the United States?

texts:
Asking this as a factual question. No political agenda intended.
In the current US election dispute team Trump have repeatedly made the allegation that there was mass voting by undocumented immigrants. (They use the term "illegals")
If that is true at all, would their votes actually be disqualified? Or are they lawfully entitled to vote while they are living in the USA?
Just inform me about the law, please. No arguing about whether the law as it stands it is right or wrong, or whether the claim is true or not, or whether it would change the result.


texts: Calling for the suspension of due process by a president

texts: Would calling for the seizure of guns from unnamed citizens and the suspension of due process in doing so constitute treason?


texts: Social network websites limitations based on USA sanctions

texts:
I live in a country that has been blacklisted under United States sanction regulation. I've got free membership in DeviantArt.Com (A community website for sharing artworks [Photographs, painting, drawings, writings and etc. Something kind of similar to Instagram] around the world.) After the last USA presidential election, DeviantArt.Com (Abbrv. as D.A.) blocked my country's IPs to access their accounts. To be specific, my account is still there & my membership is not cancelled but I can view website's contents as a guest, only. No sign in/up is allowed & D.A. assistansts, in response to my complaining email, wrote that its due to United States Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control sanction regulations.

I understand what they say but what I do not understand is that why similar websites & networks (e.g. Instagram, Facebook, Google Photos, Flickr, Pinterest and etc.) can give free membership-based services without any sanction limitations but this certain D.A. website cannot do the same?


texts:
Why is the entertainment industry exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act?
I have no idea how to research this question.
edit: I mean, I thought the constitution specifies that laws shall be equally enforced.


texts: Is it legal include an image from Wikipedia into a lead-generating e-book?

texts:
I'm writing an e-book, which is supposed to generate leads in the following way:

People visit my landing page.
There, they see a text like "Enter your e-mail address and get this e-book for free".
Those, who entered and confirmed their membership, receive the e-book.
As long as they haven't unsubscribed, they also receive several e-mails in the following weeks with information related to the e-book and the product I'll sell to them. The purpose of those e-mails is to make the subscriber to contact me and tell me what he or she liked/disliked about my offering (sort of market research).
Based on the responses from the list members, I create and sell products.

Even though the e-book is free, it's a for-profit thing.

In that e-book I have this passage:

  There used to be a Russian management guru, Georgii Petrovich Shchedrovitski, who
  argued that there are two fundamentally different kinds of knowledge work:

  1) Science, which looks for sameness.

  2) Activity, which looks for differences.

Thereafter follows a detailed explanation of his theory.

Is it legal (under US laws) to include a picture of G. P. Shchedrovitski from Wikipedia in this e-book?


texts: What does it mean to have a case vacated?

texts:
What does it mean, and what are the implications of having a trial vacated?

Importantly, I would like to know whether this means that the current case is ditched and the prosecution has to lay down charges to the court again from scratch?


texts: Can the federal government tell San Francisco that they cannot allow non-citizen immigrants to vote

texts:
San Francisco passed a law allowing non-citizens to vote in school board elections. Representative Jeff Duncan introduced a bill that would strip all federal funds from any locality that allows non-citizens to vote. From his webpage,

The Eliminating Foreign Intervention in Elections Act has two key components:

Empowers the U.S. Census Bureau to collect and publish information on which States or localities have noncitizen voting policies in place.

Defunds localities that allow noncitizens to vote in elections for State or local office.

Is this constitutionally allowed?

My research
The constitution has several prohibitions against denying certain people the right to vote. For example the fifteenth amendment "prohibits the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's 'race, color, or previous condition of servitude'." wiki
However I can't find any positive statements of who gets the right to vote, or any mention of who decides that. I assume that because the tenth amendment gives the powers not delegated to the federal government to the states or the people, that this is up to the states to decide.
Technically, Duncan's bill doesn't actually prohibit San Francisco from making this law, it just imposes very coercive penalties for doing so. The case of South Dakota v. Dole lays out five criteria for considering if withdrawal of federal funds is unconstitutionally coercive. The last criteria is "The condition must not be coercive." The debate around this fifth criteria seems to center on how much money is being withdrawn. This question might hinge on whether San Francisco gets enough money to count as "irresistable pressure."
I have a somewhat tenuous chain of logic laid out here. Any one of the links could be flat out wrong, or I could be just completely missing the point.


texts: Do changing social norms change the definition of "defamation?"

texts:
One hundred years ago, if you said that "Miss X is not a virgin," when in fact she was, that would be grounds for a defamation suit. The reason is that because 80%+ of unmarried American adult women were, in fact, such (before the advent of the "Pill" in the 1960s).
Someone made the observation, "today, you would more likely be sued for defamation if you alleged (wrongly) that Ms. X IS a virgin," implying that she is sexually inexperienced. The issue is that 90%+ of unmarried adult women are not virgins today.
One way of interpreting the above is that a statement that "Ms. X is a virgin" would not be "highly offensive to a reasonable person." That is, you are praising Ms. X for her "chastity."
But another way of looking at it is that you are alleging, in 2021, that Ms. X is deviating from the prevailing norm by being a virgin, whereas in 1921, NOT being a virgin would represent a deviation from the norm.
Would alleging that someone was "out of line" with prevailing norms in the above fashion be grounds for defamation even though these norms have changed over time?


texts: Falsely admitting to breaking a civil injunction

texts:
So say somebody asked Bob if he'd broken a civil injunction, which Bob hadn't, but Bob admitted to having broken that injunction. Bob was taken to court, but it quickly became apparent Bob could not have committed the crime, because he had an undisputable alibi.

(Bob is any person.)

Is these a feasible situation? Could Bob be charged with wasting someone's time or something? I'm interested in this in the UK.

(Apologies if the style of this question is innapropriate, I'm not really sure how things work round here:) )


texts: Ex employer has a server with their website and archive on it. I bought that server and have receipts. Employer claims they need time to wipe their info from my server. It's been a month already, and employer is still asking for more time. How should I go about getting the server back? USA, DC.


texts: Does my Personal Web App need to comply to GDPR?

texts:
I am building an app where I have some concerns about GDPR and user data.

First of all this is a personal app, no company behind.

What the app does:

Allows a user to authenticate via e.g. Facebook and stores some basic data (optional)
Allows a user to upload a GPX file (a route or some other activity)
Stores the above file to Google's database
Allows the user to analyze that file.

I do know what needs to be done if the app was not a personal app, but I am not sure if I really need to do all the actions (consent, deletion, takeout data) in my case where this is just a personal website/app and nothing more.


texts: How are Trump's recently imposed customs duties on China legal? According to WTO regulations, aren't you supposed to treat all your trading partners equally?


texts: Are sentences on websites subject to copyright?

texts: Does using snippet sentence from sites like Wikipedia, BBC, Times, Science Daily, etc. for use in a dictionary that will be published online violate copyright?


texts: Without a lease, how to establish Maryland residency for driver's license?

texts:
I have worked/rented in Maryland for 18mo, but the coworker I rent a room from won't give me a lease (and I do not wish to create any problems with him by insisting).

Can I get my driver's license with no lease?


texts: Copyright issues with sharing music and videos on social media

texts: What are the copyright issues with sharing music and videos that I find on social media? Not ones that I upload, but ones that I find besides my own. Like when I hit "share" on Facebook. Have I violated copyright law by doing so?


texts: I bought a bottle of peas in a supermarket in Germany. When I went home, I found a moth that had been soaked for a long time. How should I protect my legal rights?I have the receipt. A lot of thanks!


texts: If I'm the CEO and largest shareholder of a public company, would taking anything from my office be considered as a theft?

texts:
To summarize it, I'll give an example:
I'm Bill Gates. I own Microsoft. On a desk, there's a Microsoft Surface that is branded by my company. I decide to take it home and never bring it back, although I didn't buy it personally, and the company's budget was spent on it.
Would that be a theft?


texts: Is signing a document useless if no one checks the signature?

texts:
I understand that signing something creates legal binding between parties as the signature should somehow match the person.

What if the person decide the sign with his left hand and just draw a line across the place where he suppose to sign (intentionally creating a questionable signature). Later on there is a dispute and he claim that he did not sign the document as that was not his signature. Assuming that there is no other evidence indicating that he signed the document or agreed to any term (No email, phone call evidence...etc), does that mean that person will be able to get away by saying he did not sign that document.

Please don't respond with something like...it is not the signature that matter, it is whether or not the person signed it. Though I totally agree with this, this does not answer the question.

The question is...Is getting people to sign something without verifying his signature kind of useless as in that case, that signature will just be one piece of evidence that is not really an evidence (if the person intentionally sign it with something other than his signature such as a dash)


texts: Is the manufacturer responsible for replacing my faulty purchase after 28 days?

texts:
I bought electronic goods from an online retailer. A fault appeared after a month-a-half that prevented the goods from working at all.

The way I understand the Sales of Goods Act is that the onus is on the retailer to prove the fault or repair/replace the item.

The retailer have referred me to the manufacturer because the fault developed outside of 28 days of purchase.

1) Is this correct/legal?

2) If I sent it to the manufacturer for repair/replacement, how would that affect my rights?


texts: UK Leasehold Sublet: New freeholder requesting retrospective sublet fee

texts:
I own a leasehold flat.

In December 2014 I let out the flat under a 6 month AST, reverting to a rolling 1 month contract thereafter. Prior to the tenants moving in, I requested permission from the then freeholder to sublet, and permission was granted, in writing, with no fee.  The same tenants are still living in the flat, under the same contract.

A new freeholder took over towards the end of 2015.

In 2017 the new freeholder wrote to me requesting:

A filled out 'Sublet Application' form, including the property details and tenants details
A fee of £140

They've since offered a lower fee of £80, and then most recently requested a fee of £48 for a sublet renewal fee (i.e., a different request).

Regarding underletting, the lease says:

  Not to underlet the whole of the Apartment except upon terms that the
  undertenant is liable to pay a rent not less than the aggregate of the
  rents reserved by this lease and the Tenant's Share of the Expenses
  and to give notice of such underletting to the Landlord and to pay
  their fee (being not less than £60 plus VAT).

Questions

Is the new freeholder entitled to ask for a fee?  If so, what fee, and with what frequency must it be paid?
What does 'to give notice' actually mean?  Is the freeholder actually entitled to ask me to fill out forms, giving information such as tenant details?  Am I even legally permitted to give them tenant details?

If you know the answers, please let me know how you know (e.g., which legislation your knowledge is based on).  This is really important.

Any other help would be appreciated.


texts: I made the mistake of buying an essay online, due to having surgery and no time to write it. Now the website is trying to get more money from me threatening to call the university and the Board to show the paper and my name and the conversation we had because they claim I have to pay for copyright, not just the price for writing the essay. They say they did not know about this, as I asked why did they not tell me about this additional cost before, so I should know the essay is just for me to read, and not submit it to the University, as I stated clearly what I am going to be using it for. Please, could you help me clarify this? Thank you.


texts: Business not honoring promotional credits despite extensive efforts to work with them

texts:
Overview:
I purchased three new smartphones from a large, well-known, phone company on 11/27/2015. Each phone qualified to receive $300.00 in promotional credits after trading in a separate smartphone in good working condition. In this case, I'd receive $900.00 in credits after all was said and done.

I've spent the past 6-7+ months trying to get these credits. I've talked with literally 50+ different respresentatives over 30+ separate days. My family and I have spent dozens of hours trying to work with the store, the phone reps, in chat, etc. and I'm burnt on putting more effort into this. This is a very cut-down synopsis of the chronology:

The first month was solely trying to receive the promotional codes after the phones were activated. Repeatedly calling/driving to the store to check on this and being told to wait. Eventually the codes had to be manually created since they agreed the codes were not actually processing.
The second/third month was various attempts to bring in phones to redeem the credits with. Multiple stores over multiple days couldn't get the codes to go through. Dozens of hours into calling to try and resolve this. Eventually, after the two months they agreed the codes were defective and that they'd manually credit the promotion to me after taking my three trade-in phones.
The fourth/fifth month was waiting out the billing cycles and keeping ahead of checking on my status. Nothing went through and I was even told they didn't have a record of where the phones I brought in were due to no tracking number.
The sixth month has been my ongoing attempt to voice my complains over how long this has taken. I've wrote a formal letter to their correspondence team and called multiple times to try and come to some kind of settlement before considering legal options. It's been two weeks and I haven't received any formal response to my letter or calls.

Questions:

What, if any, legal boundary have they crossed by not having this resolved in a timely manner; or by having such issues with the entire process (still ongoing)?
Would punitive charges/compensation be possible if I brought this to small claims court? If not, would it be better to arbitrate/mediate to try for compensation?

I hope these questions aren't too broad and that I was clear enough in my information. I'm ultimately trying to find the best way to move forward and recover. I've missed enough work over fighting this that even the $900.00 I'm trying to resolve doesn't cover the lost wages.

Update: (06/03/2016)
I ended up calling and explaining the urgency on how I wanted to speak with someone about resolving this. I was told that the two weeks I waited wasn't a guarantee and I could send another letter directly addressing a specific team if I wanted a formal and quicker response.

Update: (06/09/2016)
After days of back-and-forth of trying to get in touch with their Executive Relations Team, they offered the $900.00 in promotional credits and a mere $100.00 credit as compensation for the, now, 40+ hours of time I've put in. I'm planning to go through arbitration to take advantage of their arbitration clause— if the arbitrator deems compensation higher than what was offered, the value is raised to a minimum of $5,000.


texts: GDPR - Do I have to log user's IP after consent for a cookie?

texts:
Do I really have to log a user's IP address and a timestamp after they consent to a cookie?

Log example: 20.05.2018 18:56:32 - 127.0.0.1 - Cookie accepted

I don't even need (I'm not using it in any way) personal data like IP address in my website.


texts:
Without going into too much detail as to the why's and wherefore's of the question (I'll put it at the bottom, question first), I am curious about the copyright laws regarding whistling copyrighted music in a youtube video. It wouldn't be the focus of the video, but it would be a passing part of the video. I'm wondering about the ability to monetize such content.

As for why I'm curious about this, I've recently been thinking about starting a youtube channel. I have no delusions of grandeur, and I don't want to be presumptuous, but it serves to be prepared. I tend to whistle, and without trying to sound cocky, I'm quite good at whistling music. The channel would be man-cave workshop type content, among other things, and I would like to include bits where you can hear me whistling or singing along with the music that I'm listening to (the video music would be non-copyrighted, but I would quiet it to hear the whistling or singing). It would be short snippets, no more than 5 or 10 seconds, and you wouldn't hear the music that I'm hearing because I use headphones. If I ever got to a point where I could monetize my channel, would this prevent me from doing that?


texts: University and Intellectual Property: What does it means for my university to own my final year project?

texts:
Note: I have absolutely 0 experience in this type of thing.
Problem summary: I am a final year student doing my final year project. I created an innovative product (a software) as part of my research. However, I was actually planning to start up a company using the idea. I wanted to protect my work and my supervisor said that the university's research management department will be able to apply for Intellectual Property... thing. However after reading through their documents, it was stated that my university will own the rights to my product (as I am a student). However, I will be paid the equity (which I will own around 90%) if my product is successfully commercialized by the university.
Therefore, my questions are:

Does this mean that I won't have any rights to call it my product after applying for the IP rights?
I won't be able to start a company using the product anymore, right?
If it is successfully commercialized, who will improve on the product (updates, etc.) after I am no longer a student? What if I work with the university after graduating?

Extras: I was not paid by the university (I am the one paying for tuition fees so it doesn't seem right to me for them to 'steal' my work).


texts: Is it legal for Blizzard to demand a copy of my government id before deleting my account?

texts:
I am trying to delete my Blizzard account, however they demand a copy of my government id before doing so.

I've seen a somewhat related question about Twitter at How can I get Twitter to delete my account?, however I do have full access to my own account and the connected email.
The relevant quote at GDPR 12(6) says

  Without prejudice to Article 11, where the controller has reasonable doubts concerning the identity of the natural person making the request referred to in Articles 15 to 21, the controller may request the provision of additional information necessary to confirm the identity of the data subject.

Which is a fair point in the linked question, but since I do have full access and there is no reason to doubt that, can they actually legally demand a copy of my  government id?

Note I would be totally fine with waiting for a few days to verify I have not been hacked. But I am not comfortable giving out my government id to a large company, let alone one with questionable ethics.


texts: Are date ranges in contracts inclusive or exclusive?

texts:
I was recently in a dispute over whether a date range in a lease was inclusive or exclusive of the start and end dates.

The wording was:

The lease starts on 14/1/2016
The lease ends on 13/1/2017

So is the lease for 363d (exclusive of both), 364d (where the start and end is on a specific time on each date), or 365d (inclusive of both)? Why? There was no other context on the lease.

Note: This applies globally of course, but my case was in Australia, where rent is charged in weeks (and 364d is 52 weeks). The magistrate, who was acting as a mediator at the time, did not immediately know, and spent 5-10 min discussing it with me without coming to a view concrete enough to voice.


texts:
This scenario takes place in the USA.

Suppose I have someone close to me who has a very serious drinking problem. This could be someone physically (living) close to me or someone emotionally close to me. For example, a sibling, an ex-spouse, a relative (cousin/aunt/uncle) living with me, my neighbor next door, or my co-worker or even my boss whom I have known for a very long time and the relationship is friendlier than a strict professional relationship.

This person drinks a lot. Sometimes they are sober but most days and most nights they are drunk. They also drive whenever they want to, regardless of their condition, regardless of others (including me) trying to stop them. This person is of age, has a valid license/insurance/etc. But I don't want them to endanger themselves and worse, I don't want them to take out a family of four in a horrendous car accident or disable an innocent person for life.

I understand that driving is a privilege and not a right. My question is, is there anything I can do so that the authorities investigate and revoke his privilege of driving a car? This person has never been caught driving drunk so far. And there is no way they are willing to give up alcohol or be counseled/treated. If yes, then which agency and how do I proceed? Is it as simple as just visiting my local DMV? Can I remain anonymous? What kind of consequences will it have for the person reported? Will it result in criminal charges or something? What kind of evidence will I have to provide or why would the authorities take my word pointing to someone claiming "he is drunk all the time so don't let him drive".

In case there are 50 different answers for this, I am interested in the state of California and New Mexico.


texts:
I noticed a lot of different questions about the subject MP3 in the legal website (https://law.stackexchange.com/search?q=mp3). But none of them answer my question really.

First of all, I'm thinking about including features in a technical service that should be compatible with MP3 files. This means I would like to know if it is legal for me decode and use a user-uploaded MP3 file. For example; converting it into another audio format. Or make an image of the frequency waves within that MP3 file. Is it I allowed to work with the MP3 format without paying a license fees?

Secondly, is it also allowed to encode an audio file into the MP3 format. For example a text-to-speech tool that outputs the audio in an MP3 encoded file.

So shortly; Can I legally use (read/encode to/decode from) the MP3 format without paying a license fee?


texts: Is user consent needed to display a Google Map on a website?

texts:
I would like to display a Google Map in a website project of mine.

This requires loading the JavaScript api from Google:

https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/javascript/tutorial?hl=en#Loading_the_Maps_API

By loading this JavaScript api, every user which is opening my page is sending a request to Google, and thus "shares" their ip-address with Google.

According to my lawyer, the ip-address is personal data, since it might allow identifying the user (provided the user is not behind a proxy or connecting to the internet through a shared address, like e.g. from mobile networks)

Do I need to get consent from the user to force him/her into sending his/her ip-address to Google my accessing my site?


texts: UK: What are my rights if i'm woken by construction work, or roadworks at night?

texts:
A while back I was woken by some workmen repairing metal railings on the side the road next to my house.

This occurred at around 1:30 am, I brashly asked the workmen to stop. To which they complied.

If a similar incident occurs in the future, what are my rights when asking them to stop?


texts: If one modifies and distributes intellectual property based on a Creative Commons licensed work, do they have any claim to their modification?

texts:
Suppose someone named Alice makes a free-to-play game called "Tubbytown" and releases it under the creative commons license "Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike," which from the Creative Commons website says

  This license lets others remix, adapt, and build upon your work non-commercially, as long as they credit you and license their new creations under the identical terms.

Now suppose the game is a big hit, and everyone is loving it, especially Bob, who loves it so much that he starts to develop expansions and enhancements to Tubbytown, all for free of course and in full compliance with the original license.

But Alice has been developing her own enhancements, and they're pretty similar to Bob's. They both identified similar painpoints in the game, and they both patched them, but Bob released his patch first. Does Bob have any claim over his enhancements, even though he isn't allowed to sell them? Would Alice be prevented from coming up with enhancements to her own game if other people could prove they thought of and released the idea first?

Now, I'd like to take this one step further. Let's imagine that Bob came up with some very cool and unique enhancements to Alice's game that she had not thought of, and he releases them for free because he is restricted from selling them. Could Alice outright claim Bob's "Adapted Material" because he developed it on her original work?

I hope this is clear enough.


texts: Under FERPA, can a teaching assistant confirm the absence of an interaction with a student?

texts:
Some time after graduating, a student publicly alleged that a professor wrongly accused and failed him for academic dishonesty. I was a teaching assistant (TA) for this class one semester before the student took it and noticed various discrepancies between this student's story and factual information I gained as a TA regarding the academic dishonesty process.
As the basis for his allegation, the student claims that he received reasonable help from a TA for the class and that this TA confirmed the help was reasonable.  If I were to ask each TA for the class at the time if they were the TA whom this public allegation refers to, could they confirm/deny without violating FERPA? Am I allowed to share this information publicly? (e.g. "I asked each TA if they were the TA this message refers to. All TAs denied it. / [name] confirmed and agreed to speak to the professor.")
Are there other actions I can take to determine the truth of this student's allegation and publicly share this information?


texts:
Somewhat "hypothetical" question:

I priced something for a customer, a total of 500 pcs, each individually listed, on an invoice for $100.00 each, for a total of $50k.

This customer then sends me a purchase order, which I sign for a price of $50K. This purchase order shows the total amount of the order, but not he amount of pieces.

Since then, he has placed 5 orders of 50 pieces each (250 pcs total).

Now, he never sent payment or placed an order for those 500 pcs. He's called everytime, given me payment for 50 pcs and placed the order for 50 pcs.

Obviously, the price is different for 50 pcs, because it takes longer to make 50 pcs then 100 pcs (time per pc) and material prices have increased (we are now 10 months after his original order / purchase order). So for every piece in these orders, he has paid $55.00 per pc.

Its one thing if I quote a service for something and I myself delay manufacturing or installation, so then I have to deal with the increase in costs, but we never got paid for the original scope, so we never purchased that material, for example.

He now calls me saying that we have overcharged him in every order. I've explained to him that he ordered in small batches, not a bundle as quoted (actually invoiced) and that the material cost has increased. He believes that because I signed the Purchase Order we are bind to sell him these items for those prices.

My questions are:

1 - Do we have to sell for those prices? The Purchase order was for 500 pcs, so was the original invoice (which he never paid, instead placed small orders). Since he sent a PO for 500 pcs, that means technically he should have placed an order for 500 pcs correct? So these small orders technically do not match his original PO, and could be considered different orders, correct? (if he wants to get technical).

3 - I am myself not overly worried about this, I can take the easy way out with less headache and just make the remainder of the pieces for less money to have the final price be the same $50k. I'm not gonna lose that much in what the cost of the material is for me, but it is gonna cost me more in labor and reduce the profit on the material. I can see how I should've protected myself better, by perhaps not pricing by item, by writing "priced as a bundle", but ultimately, who is right and who is wrong?

Just to give an example, these are custom made items. Things that don't lose value as new, lets say like a metal chair. You can purchase the same chair today for $50, but next year, the same model, made later on, costs $60 because of the increase in costs.

If it also makes a difference, this took place in MA.

If I can clarify things better, let me know and I'll edit the question.

Please don't be harsh, I'm not a lawyer, I'm trying to learn to be able to back myself up better in the future.


texts:
I came across this question today https://interpersonal.stackexchange.com/questions/23296/i-was-mistakenly-identified-as-a-criminal-and-this-has-caused-rumors-how-can-i and I think OP is taking the issue way too lightly.

What kind of recourse can OP pursue to swiftly clear their name? Do they have a strong case for egregious defamation?

Full story below in case the IPS link goes bad in the future:

  A while ago, I was at a popular, busy local nightclub (this is in the Unites States) and ran into a friend of a friend. Let's call her Anne. After a bit of conversation with Anne, and mutual name-dropping of our overlapping social networks, a bouncer approached me and said that he was asked to escort me off the premises. I had no idea why, and the bouncer said he did not know either, only that I had to leave immediately. I know enough not to argue when the door staff have made up their mind, so I agreed to leave without complaint.

  I assumed it was because maybe I looked a little intoxicated-- I wasn't really, I had 2.5 drinks over 2 hours-- and thought nothing more of it.

  A week later, a different friend contacted me and informed me that I had been 86'd from the club because I am a "known sex offender." After I had been escorted out, the bouncer had told Anne this. Anne, by the way, volunteers as a rape counselor and is a strong and feminist advocate for social justice. Over the past week she had defriended me on social networks and starting contacting our mutual friends to inform them of this "fact" out of concern. Because I am defriended I cannot see what she is saying about me nor can I respond. I only heard about this from a friend of a friend of a friend.

  This is a clear case of mistaken identity. I hadn't been in that club in more than five years, so there was no way I was a person that would have been known to them. I have done a search of the local sex offenders registry and I am not in it. I have never been arrested, let alone indicted of a crime.

  I am obviously devastated by this and very depressed. I am not sure what to do about it. My friend suggested I go back to the club and confront the manager, but my feeling is that in a situation like that the manager has to side with their employees.

  I considered reaching out directly to Anne, but my gut tells me, given the situation, that she would interpret this as a form of intimidation and it would simply make things worse.

  What can I do to fix this situation? My goal is to quash the rumors and cleanse my reputation in my social circle.


texts: Is anonymous analytics data subject to GDPR?

texts:
I am reading the definition of "personal data" here https://gdpr-info.eu/issues/personal-data/. My understanding is that GDPR comes into play when information is about personal data.

Let's say there is an app similar to clicky.com. It saves three things about visitors: IP, browser and OS information. The app does not have emails, real names, addresses or other info about the visitors.

If the app is anonymizing IP addresses before saving data, it means that browser and OS info can no longer be assigned to a real person.

In other words, there is no way we can say that this information belong to that particular real "person".

Does it mean that the app is GDPR compliant for this particular purpose?


texts: Mentioning research results when copyrighting software

texts:
Scenario: Some computer science results are published at a major conference. Someone different than the authors of those results then creates a software program that uses those results / techniques to provide a service. NONE of the software in that program is based on software written by the researchers who published results at the original conference. Rather, the software in question simply uses general techniques presented in the research.

Question: Does the person who wrote the software need to mention the research results when copyrighting the software? In other words, does the creator of the software have to say that the software is "based" on the research results?


texts:
Can you legaly share a course (without asking the writer) if you always quote who wrote it?

I said "always" because I'm talking about a large scale, not a private conversation on Facebook for example.

Does it have something to do with money? I understand selling someone's work is not ok, but what about money generated by discret publicity?

What about public domain knowledge? How do you make a legal difference between sharing Thales Theorem and sharing a formula found by one of your teachers? Between sharing a quote from a famous person with a not famous person? Is it related to 'is the person alive'?


texts: Can someone who primarily lives abroad vote in America if they happen to be a citizen?

texts:
An acquintance of mine is in an interesting situation.  This person is a student in America, but their primary residence, personal upbringing, and national identity belong to another country.  However, they happen to be an American citizen because they were physically born here.

Assuming I have my facts straight, this means that a lot of complications that normally surround immigration to America are not relevant to this person.  Does this include voting?  Can this person register to vote (and then do so) with no more stringent a process than full-time Americans would go through?  If this person were to  leave America after they graduate (but maintain their citizenship), from which address could they maintain voter registration?


texts: Selective Enforcement vs. Equal Protection

texts:
Does Selective Enforcement contradict Equal Protection?

Obviously,

  it may be impractical for police officers to issue traffic tickets to every driver they observe exceeding the speed limit, so they may have no choice but to limit action to the most flagrant examples of reckless driving

On the other hand

  No State shall ... deny to any person ... the equal protection of the laws

so, technically, the argument that "the officer ticketed me but not this other guy driving next to me at the same speed" should cause the ticket to be thrown out (or this other guy to be immediately ticketed right then and there).

Of course the judge will laugh and dismiss this argument (otherwise everyone would use it to get out of a ticket), but on what logic?

Would the officer saying something like "he was also driving dangerously but I did not write him the 'reckless driving' ticket because I am nice, but I will now if that would make him happy" be a sufficient explanation for the judge?

Can the defense in a criminal case point out to numerous similar un-prosecuted cases and have its own case dismissed based on the 14th amendment? Has it ever happen? E.g., Mr.X is being prosecuted for jaywalking.

Defense: here is a video of Ms.A jaywalking and an officer watching and doing nothing
Prosecution: we don't prosecute women for jaywalking because "a valid argument"
D: here a video of Mr.B jaywalking and an officer watching and doing nothing
P: Mr.B is 7 feet tall and we don't prosecute tall people for jaywalking because "a valid argument"
D: here a video of Mr.C jaywalking (and he is the same height as the defendant Mr.X) and an officer watching and doing nothing
P: Mr.C is wearing a blue suite and we don't prosecute blue suites for jaywalking because "a valid argument"
D: here a video of Mr.D jaywalking (and he is the same height as the defendant Mr.X and is wearing a similar jacket to Mr.X's) and an officer watching and doing nothing
P: Mr.D is smiling and we don't prosecute smiling people for jaywalking because "a valid argument"
D: here a video of Mr.E jaywalking (and he is the same height as the defendant Mr.X and is wearing a similar jacket to Mr.X's, and is not smiling) and an officer watching and doing nothing
P: Mr.E is wearing glasses and we don't prosecute people with glasses for jaywalking because "a valid argument"

Wayte v. United States 470 U.S. 598 (1985)

  In our criminal justice system, the Government retains "broad discretion" as to whom to prosecute. [...] This broad discretion rests largely on the recognition that the decision to prosecute is particularly ill-suited to judicial review. Such factors as the strength of the case, the prosecution's general deterrence value, the Government's enforcement priorities, and the case's relationship to the Government's overall enforcement plan are not readily susceptible to the kind of analysis the courts are competent to undertake.

Does this mean that the courts can/will never challenge "decision to prosecute"?

(Again, I am interested in theory and logic more than practicality).


texts: Has punishment for precedent-setting decisions ever been recognized as retroactive enforcement of a new law?

texts:
When a court sets a precedent, it is effectively creating a law (case law).  This means that the law (or a newly clear interpretation that can only now be relied on) did not exist prior to the courts opinion being handed down.
If that is the case, it is trivially obvious that the person found guilty in such a "test case" could not possibly have broken the law, since the law is created at the moment of the decision.
Given that it is also clearly improper to hold someone responsible for laws that don't yet exist (violation of the "due process" clause), shouldn't those involved in test cases be protected from punishment?  Are there any jurisdictions, or has there ever been a time, where "test case" defendants (and/or litigants in civil actions) are protected from punishment if a precedent is set from the decision? If not for the "due process reasons" but to encourage test cases that can improve the law—vs. the current approach which acts to prevent test cases because they are so risky. Has there ever been an attempt to implement such immunity, and if so, why/how was it defeated? Has a prosecutor and/or judge ever used their discretion to decrease or prevent punishment in a precedent-setting case?


texts: For California divorce default what should the declaration about cohabitation state?

texts:
California family law.

Request to enter default is rejected, with the statement of

  If both parties are still residing in the same residence then each
  party must submit a declaration penalty of perjury they are still
  living in the same residence

I found a number of how a declaration penalty of perjury should look like, but I'm somewhat of a loss as to what the statement itself should say. I can't find any examples of such either.

I understand should say something to the tune of "I declare that I still live together with my spouse at XXX, CA", but the courts are probably expecting some specific language in such a statement, which is what I'm looking for help with here.


texts: Implications of and necessity (or lack thereof) for a contract clause that requires the user to back up data frequently

texts:
One clause of the Windows Insider Program Agreement strikes me as potentially burdensome because it mandates activity which does not appear to directly benefit Microsoft (emphasis original):

  By participating, you agree to frequently backup your data.

Considering that liability for data loss due to failure to back up data could simply be disclaimed in the contract, why would it be necessary to mandate that the participant back up data frequently?

Would such a disclaimer actually be sufficient to absolve Microsoft of all liability due to the user's failure to back up data? If not, under what circumstances would the participant's failure to back up data result in Microsoft becoming liable for damages?
Would failure to back up data in and of itself (e.g. no data loss events, etc.) be a cause of action that allows Microsoft to sue the participant for breach of contract? If not, what purpose does this clause serve? (Perhaps it would deter participants who fail to back up data from suing or otherwise pursuing a claim against Microsoft over the Insider Program for an unrelated reason?)


texts: Can I legally sell a software add-on package I have developed?

texts:
I live in the US, and have been developing an add-on suite (at work) for a large CAD software suite we use (developed by, I believe, a US based company). It is, or has elements that, I feel are pretty valuable.

What I really want to do is to re-develop it in my off time (one to make it better, my current version is rather hack-ish, and two, I know I cannot legally remove the actual data files from my company) and sell it in some form or another. Is there any specific legal reason I could not do this?

The CAD suite this addon is for is designed with macros and addons in mind. Would this maybe be specific to the developer?


texts: At what stage of production is marijuana illegal?

texts:
We are in New Jersey, USA.  We have a client who has some abandoned warehouse space.  I suggested re-purposing it as a giant greenhouse.  Our choice of plant for maximum profit is obvious.  Legalized marijuana for medical, recreational, and hemp products is the next economic boon sweeping the country and we want to be ready to cash in as soon as it becomes legal in our state.

As we plan the groundwork, we need to know how far along in the process we can be before we cross the present threshold of legality in our state, and federally.  Can we procure the seeds, plant the seeds, how mature can they be grown, can they be harvested but not sold, etc?


texts: Roommates aren't paying utilities, can I take them to small claims court?

texts:
There were 4 of us living in a condo, all 4 of us were on the lease and we paid rent separately to the landlord. The landlord covers the water bill and nothing else for utilities per our lease. The electricity bill and internet bills are under my name and I pay them in full each month with the expectation that everyone will pay their share of utilities (1/4th) to me.

All 3 roommates owe me for at least a few months of utilities each, with the total amount coming to about $1500 for everyone. This is a considerable amount of money for me, and while I do make enough and have enough in savings to continue to pay my bills I would much rather get the money back if possible. So I'm considering taking my roommates to small claims court as most/all have made it clear they won't give me anything (besides excuses and empty promises).

The problem is that there is no written agreement between us that we would split the bills evenly. When it comes to proof of payment; roommates 1 and 2 never paid me anything for the few months they lived here, and roommate 3 only ever paid me in cash and I have no proof of their payment as I never wrote a receipt. The only documents I have are the physical bills sent to me and my bank account statements showing I paid utilities in full every month.

With no written agreement and no proof of their payment (or lack thereof), do I have a case against them in small claims court? Even if I don't have a case, how do I prevent this from happening again with future roommates?

This is in Wisconsin, USA. And if it matters; 2 roommates have been evicted for missing rent, and roommate #3 is close to eviction too. My landlord is taking legal action against at least 2 of them for the money they owe him. I don't know if that could help my case or not.


texts: Does an insurance agent have a "Duty of Care"?

texts:
An insurance agent recommended a property insurance policy to a client in Washington State that later turned out to be grossly inadequate (coverage limits too small), and significantly outside of industry norms.

Does an agent have a "Duty of Care" / "Duty to Advise" that would seem to be breached in this situation?What sort of recourse could the client expect?What kind of defense would the insurance agent likely offer?

I found info on this site that seems to indicate such a Duty likely does exist and was not met.   But it does not really address what to expect after that:  Reasonable outcomes or possible defenses, etc.


texts: Why is it often said in contracts that they renew automatically every year, instead of just saying that the contract is for an unlimited time duration?


texts: When a contractor develops a program based on clients specifications, who owns the rights?

texts:
I was hired to create a computer program. The client gave me directions on what it should do and how the UI should look like (complete with pictures). No formal contract was ever made, and I realize now this was a mistake. My question is, in the absence of everything else, am I allowed to post the code on sites like Github and give it an open source license? This might upset the client as they may be intending to sell the program.
My friend pointed out, an idea is automatically copyrighted when someone comes up with it. So the client would own the program because they came up with the need for it and its functionality. Is this correct? If I'm not their employee but a contractor, how might this affect it? This in Canada.

The program is relatively simple and doesn't contain any trade secrets or proprietary business logic (it's more of a productivity tool for the average PC user).

TL;DR would it be breaking the law if the contractor made the source code available to the public even if the client didn't want them to (if no contracts were agreed)?


texts: What if a spacecraft lands on my property?

texts: In December 2020 Hayabusa2, a Japanese space mission, returned samples from an asteroid to Earth, landing them in the Australian outback. Now, imagine a scenario where the samples accidentally land on someone's private property. Is that person legally obligated to give back the samples?


texts:
I'm looking to make a product that utilizes the products of other people. For example, if I was to build a car (to sell as a business), would I legally be able to buy and use a patented motor in the vehicle?
Thank you.


texts: Termination of the appointment of a non-executive Director

texts:
The majority of shareholders of a company incorporated in Cyprus, during an AGM, has elected a new non-executive Director to the Board.
He then receives a letter of appointment materializing service and compensation. Such letter of appointment contains a clause allowing the Company to terminate the agreement unilaterally (without any factual reason), and consequently forcing the Director to resign from the Board*.
Why is such clause presumably applicable? I see such clause as contrary to the corporate governance of the company:

It allows the Company to supersede the vote of its shareholders: the shareholders voted for the Board, but the Company can immediately terminate the Board's appointment letters and hence dismiss the Directors from the Board.

It makes the Board at the mercy of the CEO, as the latter has the power to terminate their appointment letters and hence dismiss them.

(*) Clause seen in many different samples of LOA, such as ICSA


texts: Would Trump's debt reduction strategy be constitutional?

texts:
US Presidential Candidate Donald Trump has announced a plan intended to reduce the national debt: Convince bondholders to accept less than they are contractually owed.  (NY Times article on it here.)

In order for such an offer to be at all attractive to bondholders, there must be an implicit threat that the bondholders may not be paid (at least not in full) if they do not accept an offer for less than the original contract.

Yet, section IV of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution says "The validity of the public debt of the United States... shall not be questioned."  The last paragraph of Article II, Section 1, states that any President must take an oath swearing that he‡ "will to the best of [his] ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

As a candidate, Trump says his opponent "wants to abolish the 2nd Amendment." How does his own debt-reduction plan fit in with the 14th?

‡ Gendered language original, not meant to imply anything.

Here's a related question, with a focus on the debt ceiling rather than proposed actions of a businessman-president.


texts: Does reporting reckless drivers do anything?

texts:
Unfortunately, in my neighborhood (in California) a lot of drivers roll through stop signs and red lights, while turning right, sometimes almost hitting the pedestrians.

Do the pedestrians have any recourse at all (if they weren't hurt)? Does calling the cops do anything, if the cops weren't there to witness the reckless driving themselves?