texts: If the defendant declines the plaintiff's counsel's request to give evidence, then how did the latter err?

texts:
Source: pp 182-183, The Art of the Advocate (1993) by Richard Du Cann QC.

   Less fortunate was a Mr Barker in 1896, who suddenly found
  that all his furniture had been sold by a man named Shalless
  through a firm of auctioneers. Counsel for Mr Barker was con-
  fident he could prove his case against both Shalless and the
  auctioneers for 'converting' the furniture (selling it against his
  will and keeping the proceeds) by cross-examining Shalless. Mr
  Shalless was of the same opinion, and although present in court
  during the hearing, he declined to give evidence on his own behalf. Determined not to be foiled by  this  ruse[,] counsel then
  applied to the Judge for leave to call Shalless himself. [1.] The Judge
  pointed out that if he had wanted to call Shalless he should have
  done so as part of his own case. He went on:

    ... in granting the Plaintiff's application ... I should be making a
    precedent which would, if established, lead to an improper amount of
    laxity in the conduct of the plaintiff's case. [End of 1.]

    This is a convoluted way of saying that the advocate must
  make up his mind before the case begins how he is going to
  conduct it: that he cannot wait until he sees which way the wind
  is blowing and then call extra evidence. The basis of the rule is
  more fundamental. A defendant, whether in criminal or civil
  courts, is entitled to know the whole of the evidence proving the
  case against him before he is obliged to answer it. That is the
  principle. Practice demands its enforcement if only because trials
  last quite long enough already. If purely confirmatory evidence
  in rebuttal were allowed, it would be difficult to prevent evidence
  in surrebuttal (evidence called by a defendant in rebuttal of
  rebuttal evidence) being called with equal frequency, and it
  would be difficult to see the end of any trial.

I do not understand 1. Mr Barker's counsel had already asked Shalless to give evidence, but Shalless declined. So why did the Judge still blame  Mr Barker's counsel?


texts:
Am I allowed to lowercase an ALL CAPS section in a license?

Example:

  The MIT License (MIT)

  Copyright (c) 2015 Andrej Karpathy

  Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining
  a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the
  "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including
  without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish,
  distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to
  permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to
  the following conditions:

  The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be
  included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.

  THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
  EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF
  MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT.
  IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY
  CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT,
  TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE
  SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.*

I want to lowercase the last paragraph when I redistribute it:

  The MIT License (MIT)

  Copyright (c) 2015 Andrej Karpathy

  Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining
  a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the
  "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including
  without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish,
  distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to
  permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to
  the following conditions:

  The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be
  included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.

  The software is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind,
  express or implied, including but not limited to the warranties of
  merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and noninfringement.
  In no event shall the authors or copyright holders be liable for any
  claim, damages or other liability, whether in an action of contract,
  tort or otherwise, arising from, out of or in connection with the
  software or the use or other dealings in the software.*


texts: Are traffic signs on private property legally enforceable in Upstate NY?

texts:
Upstate NY here. You see them everywhere: private property parking lots (mall parking lots, Lowes/Target/Walmart parking lots, etc.) that have stop signs, handicap parking spaces, double yellow lines...all the same signs/markers you see out on the open/public road.

So my question is: are these signs legally enforceable, seeing that they are on private property? For instance, if I fail to come to a stop at a stop sign located in a Walmart parking lot, can I get a ticket for that? If so, then how?? I couldn't put a stop sign in the middle of my back yard and then have police officers hand out tickets if someone drove across my lawn and didn't obey it.

And if they're not enforceable, then what's the point of them?!?


texts: Under English law is it permissable to be arrested for one thing but charged with another?

texts:
I saw a high-profile case where this happened today and wondered about it.
I understand there probably will (and probably should) be some leeway in this, but if one was arrested for breach of the peace, which under English common law does not require an arrest warrant, could that then be dropped and replaced with another charge that would've required an arrest warrant?
Or, if there is some leeway to do this, can it be challenged? It seems to be, shall we say, convenient that the police are using a power that is given for situations of immediate need in a way that could be said to circumvent the system somewhat.
I've had another look through the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) and through the codes of practice for PACE but haven't found anything referring to this.


texts:
I Have received an NDA I need to sign, it seems straight forward enough although there is one part i'm unsure of, on the last page there is the section where your witness signs, and you sign, but above that there is another section that looks like this.

(Company Who sent the NDAs name is above)

FakeCompany LTD

Per:_______________

Name:______________

Title:_____________

I've looked around online and have found some different suggestions although I couldn't find anything specific to this being on an NDA.

I think, it's for when you are signing on behalf of someone else but I'm not 100% sure so figured I would ask here.


texts: Slot Machine Uses Fake Money Still Illegal?

texts:
So I have a friend who wants to build a slot-machine or similar device for an event operating in Connecticut. According to them it will only be operable with a certain type of fake currency (like Monopoly money). I understand that slot machines are illegal for the average citizen to own in CT, but I haven't seen anything that would tell me if this money changes the legality.

Some clarifications:
The fake currency does have a flexible real-world value to allow people who want to purchase goods such as food (NOT gamble) to do so at events regardless of if they have any in-game currency. I have never seen or heard of anyone exchanging this coin for real money or vice versa. The coins are printed by players for the game. They are 'backed' by a typically goods based service provided by players, such as prop creation or art commissions. There isn't an official value assessment attached to these associations, it is based mostly on reputation and presence.

Any advice would be appreciated.


texts: Does NY State have a cap of seven casinos?

texts:
According to Ars Technica's quote of the NY Constitution, it states in part:

  [E]xcept as hereinafter provided, no lottery or the sale of lottery tickets, pool-selling, book-making, or any other kind of gambling, except lotteries operated by the state..., except pari-mutuel betting on horse races..., and except casino gambling at no more than seven facilities..., shall hereafter be authorized or allowed within this state; and the legislature shall pass appropriate laws to prevent offenses against any of the provisions of this section.

However, I could not find the italicized text, nor even the word 'casino,' in the New York State Constitution as posted on the NY Department of State, "As Amended and in Force Since January 1, 2014."  Is Ars Technica getting a constitutional quote wrong*, or is there basis for it?

(*): Other than, possibly, the quoted spelling of parimutuel, which may be an error in the constitution.  Even within the constitution as linked to, the title and text disagrees with the table of contents, so there seems to be at least one spelling error in there.


texts: I have legal status but don't reside in US, can I trade stocks?

texts:
I secured a B2 visa for my brother's commencement ceremony, and attended it.
Being an Indian citizen, I have been living in India since then.
Brokerages allow people with legal status in US to open accounts.
Can I now open a trading account with brokerage and trade from India?


texts: Is there precedent for getting sued for deleting someone's data?

texts:
I know this precedent exists in Japan but I'm curious if it exists in the USA in particular. Can you be sued for willfully deleting or destroying someone else's data?

Note: By "sued" I mean is there legal precedent for someone winning a case where they sued for damages for deleted or destroyed data and won.

The example I saw in Japan was walking up to someone's computer and shutting it off while they were using it, say an angry partner yanking the power-cord. That would be a sueable offence willfully destroying someone else's property. In this case the work they had not yet saved. If you destroy the computer itself (or the hard drive) you could be sued not just for the hardware but also for the value of its contents. You could imagine now-a-days with bitcoin wallets etc could be expensive although even in the past that could include photos, videos, digital art, etc that might be irreplaceable.


texts: Should all gdpr related documents be translated to all official EU languages?

texts: I wrote application localized in Ukrainian language , which is not one of the official European Union languages. Since I reside in the EU territory I need to comply with gdpr. This application is targeted only to people who know Ukrainian language. This brings me to a question in order to comply with General data protection regulation I need to provide users with human understandable privacy policy. Can this privacy policy the only in Ukrainian language?


texts: Using Qt with LPGL license for a revenue generating, non-distributed private project

texts:
I am planning on porting my Python based TradingBot to C++ due to Python's GIL limitation. I have looked up a few c++ libraries like boost and Qt. I'm more inclined to use Qt because of its excellent documentation.

Can the Qt library be used with LGPL license? I'm not distributing the application to anyone; it's only used for personal purposes. Also the TradingBot will generate revenue.


texts: Are there any limits on the crimes a corporation can be convicted of?

texts:
In the United States, a corporation can be convicted of criminal offenses (example). Can corporations be charged with any criminal offense, or are there some that cannot apply to anything except a human being? I'm interested in formal limits established by statute, caselaw saying a corporation can't satisfy the elements of certain crimes, and/or practical considerations making it essentially impossible to convict them of some kind of crime.

While I'm especially interested in the US, I'd also be interested in other countries.


texts: Shopkeeper obligation to show taxed price

texts: I have recently take a lunch in a pub (in France) and when i have buy a sandwich there was a 15% tax because i choose the "on the spot" formula. This tax wasn't indicated anywhere in the pub. Is this legal or not ?


texts: Serial sexual harassment from disabled person on UC campus

texts:
Recently, a post on Facebook from people at a University of California about a man, let's call him Joe, who is allegedly a serial sexual harasser has blown up. Here are the facts about the case:

There are hundreds of female students who have said that Joe has done one or more of the following to them: asked them for a kiss, followed them when asked to leave, tried to touch them, touched them, grabbed them and prevented them from leaving
Joe is in a wheelchair and claims to have cerebral palsy
Students (including myself) have contacted UCPD about Joe, and the UCPD are currently building a case about Joe, soliciting reports from anyone who has them. Additionally, a similar post happened on Facebook about a year ago, and Joe was also reported to UCPD then.
Joe tells a different backstory to each student that usually goes like "My friend/teacher/family member just died. Will you be my friend?"
Apparently, this has been going on for over five years.
Joe looks to be about 30 years old or so
Joe is not a student at the university

My question is, assuming Joe actually has cerebral palsy and is disabled, what can the UCPD do about it? Can they ban Joe from campus? If so, how would they enforce it?


texts: Can I edit a (copyrighted) logo to use for my website?

texts:
I've made a website that notifies users when an item on another site (lets call it source site) is on special (the source site does have this feature, but it doesn't work well).
For the logo for my site I was planning on using the source site's logo with a red 'sale' printed over it (as if someone had stamped the word sale over the source site's logo). My naïve understanding of copyright law is that if I make substantial changes to the logo of the source site then I'm ok to use it, however another thought has occurred:
Any user of my site will recognise the source logo under the 'sale' stamp - so although I feel like I've substantially changed the image the original image is undoubtedly still recognisable. Does this mean I risk infringing copyright?
I considered this question regarding trademark, and I'm confident that my website makes it clear that it isn't associated with the source site (and therefore shouldn't confuse the trademark of the source). I'm based in the UK, the source site is based in the US.


texts: Are there any circumstances under which a federal court order may be lawfully ignored?

texts: Question is in the title. Another formulation: Are there any circumstances under which a defendant may lawfully decline to comply with a federal court order? A sort of mini-appeal process, if you will?


texts: Use of "a" vs "any" in contracts; does plural vs non-plural matter?

texts:
In contracts what is the difference from saying "a" instead of "any". For example
"if a payment is late, $100 may be charged" vs
"if any payment is late, $100 may be charged"

Another example "if a provision is found to be invalid, it won't affect other provisions" vs "if any provision is found to be invalid, it won't affect other provisions". Could one argue that if more than one provision was breached, then since the "a" is singular, this clause no longer holds?


texts: Does the ( Fruit of A Poison Vine ) Apply if police find a gun when pulled over for speeding but not ticketed?

texts:
My husband and I got pulled over. Officer said it was for speeding. My husband has past felonies,so they searched the car and found a gun (not loaded). So they charged him with possession of hand gun ( bond is 5,000 cash )  but did not give ticket for speeding which was reason he said he pulled us over.
 Would the Fruit of A Poison Vine apply here??


texts:
Due to the coronavirus outbreak, my university has tentatively canceled all live forms of live education, including exams. Instead, they have decided to hold exams through an online proctoring software (third-party), which requires access to the computer webcam, microphone, screen, and browsing history to work.
This is the first time the university is doing an examination in this manner, and there are no official guidelines for how these exams are to be conducted.
I am concerned about my data privacy in the context of these exams, and am wondering what my rights are and how I can exercise them. Specifically, I am wondering whether I can refuse the collection of my personal data through the online proctoring software, and whether the university may reprimand me for doing so. If both are the case, how can I truly say that I 'consent' to data collection and processing when I am coerced, so to speak, by the threat of failing my courses if I do not use this novel software?


texts: Creating a social network account without consent

texts:
One of my colleague that does not want to be on any social network was a bit harassed by another colleague that treat him of paranoid.

So this other college start to create a Facebook account with lot's of personal information of my first colleague, name, work, photo etc...
And he start to add some friends that he knows they know each other, well you see the point.

My colleague does not want to be on Facebook but does not even have the password of the account. What can he do? Is that impersonation?


texts: What are the legal implications of manipulating Bitcoin if you could “forge” transactions?

texts:
Imagine I have recently been abducted by highly advanced and strangely opinionated aliens who provide me with unfathomably advanced technology on the condition that I undermine Bitcoin (the aliens are worried Elon Musk will discover their secret interstellar resort on Mars and also are quite fond of polar bears, to whom they bear an uncanny resemblance). Armed with this technology, which allows me to trivially break ECDSA and quickly calculate SHA-256 hashes, I now possess the capability of forging any otherwise valid transaction and could thus generate a transaction that shifts bitcoins from any arbitrary account to a different one. What would be my personal legal consequences if I generated a transaction sending Alice’s bitcoins to a third party, Bob? I haven’t signed any contracts, nor have I induced anyone to transfer me anything of value. I have simply announced to the world that Alice should pay Bob x bitcoins, and surprisingly the world has agreed despite her protestations. Am I criminally liable for theft or fraud? Does Alice have a civil cause against me? What about other network participants, whose investments will be devalued if people cease transacting in bitcoins because some intergalactically conspiring arriviste keeps creating cryptographically valid but unsolicited impromptu giveaways of their hard-earned e-dough.
Less floridly, what crimes, if any, have I committed if I cause third parties to follow their plainly stated rules in such a way as to either directly transfer or reduce the value of assets held by someone else without their consent? What about if I have the consent of the person whose assets I’m transferring (say, in a double-spend attack) and merely move the assets between my own accounts but intend to collapse faith in Bitcoin? Does decentralizing operations really decentralize liability to the point of unenforceability? I’m particularly interested in the answer for legal systems in small tropical islands that would fight extradition in exchange for a sizable bribe (next up after possible bitcoin misappropriation is definite bank misappropriation - in for a penny, in for a pound!), but would nevertheless appreciate answers based in US, UK, or other common law-based legal systems (European and Louisianan law is confusing to me and I try to limit my illegalities in civil law jurisdictions to Bourbon Street and its environs only).


texts: In Australia is it illegal for a company to sell substandard security?

texts:
In Victoria (Australia), is it illegal for a company to sell substandard security?

Physical security (locks, access devices, keypasses, etc.)
Digital security (data encryption, login credentials, etc.)

Two ways it could happen:

At the time of sale they said it was fit for purpose but it had known published security vulnerabilities
There were no known published security vulnerabilities but the security system was installed incorrectly leading to potentially easy breaches

There are two scenarios I can think of:

The vulnerability was discovered due to a breach
No known security breaches; a security review discovered the vulnerability

Do any of these variations change the legality?


texts: Pedestrian Hit because Stopped in Crosswalk

texts: There was a Reddit discussion about this gif, which shows an accident involving a man stopped at a crosswalk who is basically invisible from a distance due to a bright light. Some are saying the pedestrian always has right of way, while others are saying the pedestrian shouldn't have stopped in the crosswalk in the first place. Who's at fault?


texts: When signing something, why is the person often asked to write the date?

texts: I noticed a lot of things that a person signs to make legally binding, have them write the date too. Why is it important to know the date a document is signed? Does it some how help prove something?


texts: Warranty issues on car transmission replacement

texts:
I had the transmission in my car replaced by my garage 3 years ago with a 3 year warranty of the transmission seller. In February of this year the engine light turned on and I took the car back to the garage.

They contacted the seller, who advised him to turn off the engine light to see if the problem re-occurred. The engine light came back on a few months later. The seller now advised to replace the shift solenoids, which my garage did.

Now my transmission is failing and the warranty expired in September. The seller is willing to provide a new transmission, but is refusing to take care of the costs of replacing it, saying the warranty has expired.

However, they we told my garage to keep trying things until the warranty ran out. Can they argue the warranty expired, even though the problems started well inside the warranty period?

I'm located in WA, USA.


texts: For a politician, is a lunch outing with Warren Buffet considered a $650,000 gift?

texts:
There is a story in the news about Nikki Haley (now former US ambassador to the UN) taking trips in a friend's (and political supporter's) private jet.

See story: Watchdog wants investigation of Nikki Haley’s private jet flights to SC

According to the article, Haley declared these trips, but rather than declaring the true market value of a private plane ride from New York to South Carolina (~$24,000), she declared the value to be that of a first class flight on a commercial airline (~$3200).

This actually makes perfect sense to me. She didn't receive $24,000 of value. She can't sell the flight she got on eBay. All she got was a free trip, which saved her about $3200. So it seems reasonable to argue that the value of what she got was indeed about $3200.

So if we start valuing things in the way this watchdog group is demanding, then what happens if a politician meets Warren Buffet? The market value for eating lunch with Warren Buffet is $650,000. If Buffet would have invited Halley out for lunch, would Halley have to declare a $650,000 gift?


texts: Breaking Laws in Different Jurisdictions

texts:
I am a citizen of the United States of America. As such, it is illegal for me to--to take an extreme example--murder. However, say I am going on vacation to a little nation where it is not illegal to murder--if you decapitate someone for stealing your oranges, the only thing that you'll have to worry about is the cleanliness of your machete.

So I am in this country when another adult cuts me in line for the roller coaster. Naturally taking this personally and as an insult, I take out my machete and swing at my adversary; after realizing that I missed the cutter altogether, I pull out my revolver and shoot my opponent, and he dies.

I have just murdered a man; however, because murder is not illegal in this country, I have done nothing (from the law's perspective) wrong.

Upon returning to the US, of which I am a citizen, can I be tried for murder even though I did not do it in the US's jurisdiction?

Does this apply to all actions that are unlawful in one jurisdiction but not another?

Thanks a lot in advance for any responses. All are greatly appreciated!


texts:
A couple of months ago my car got hit while parked, causing a small dent.  I got the other person's insurance information but didn't file the claim until last week. The other person's insurance accepted full liability, but I haven't fixed the small dent.

Today a lady hit me on the same side and caused further damage.  What happens now?


texts: Is it legal for a supermarket to refuse to sell an adult beer if an adult with them doesn’t have their ID?

texts:
Today I went with my dad grocery shopping at a supermarket in New York (ShopRite) and he put a six-pack of beer in the cart.

They then wouldn’t let him buy the beer because they couldn’t ID me (21, but I dress for work so I look more like 25). Even when I left the store to wait in the car they made him check out at a different register.

Is this legal? I wasn’t buying anything; I was just helping him load stuff onto the conveyor belt.


texts: openssl and libsodium export restrictions

texts:
When going on the openssl it clearly states that openssl is subject to export restriction because it uses strong encryption.

Looking at the libsodium page I cannot find anything like this.

Why? Are the restriction different for libsodium or did they just not mention it?


texts: Are healthcare service employees required to notify anybody (in general or particular) of a HIPAA violation?

texts:
I was notified by one of our patients that they received a "Summary of Today's Visit" in the mail, however, it wasn't their own "Summary of Today's Visit", it was that of another patient.

Knowing that this is a HIPAA violation, am I required to notify the patient whom's information was sent to the wrong person?


texts: Can you request your personal data from a government agency under GDPR?

texts:
Can you address a request to a government agency (let's say for example the French "Ministry of education") to access the data they store about you under GDPR ?

Does GDPR requirements apply to states or is it only regulating personal data usage of private companies ?


texts: Is it illegal to sell tobacco online without a license, and can you grow it on your balcony legally?

texts: Wanted to know if it is illegal to sell products that contain tobacco online in the state of Maryland, USA. Let’s say I was starting up a cigar shop. I’m growing tobacco out on my balcony, and decide that my tobacco is fine enough to sell. Since I don’t have the money to pay rent/electricity at a shop, I open up the shop online. Is it illegal to sell tobacco without a license?


texts: Ability to Assist an Injured Officer (USA)?

texts:
Related

Suppose Bob is walking down the street, and finds an injured LEO, who is attempting to shoot a third person, let's call him Charlie. The officer is too injured to complete this action (can't aim, too weak to squeeze trigger, etc), so Bob takes the gun from the officer and shoots Charlie. Bob then calls 911.

Let me make it explicitly clear: Bob had no evidence Charlie committed a crime, was about to commit a crime, or was responsible for the officer's injury. Bob did not see if Charlie had a weapon. The only reason he shot Charlie was because it was obvious to him the officer wanted to shoot Charlie.

What can/will happen to Bob now? Especially if Charlie was actually totally innocent?

The root of this question is essentially this: How far can a normal citizen go to assist the police?


texts: How do I calculate damages for educational misconduct?

texts:
I have an issue with my university.
After 3 years of PhD research, I have presented to my examiners a out-of-format interdisciplinary research, as agreed with my supervisor. Unfortunately, my supervisor said "yes, yes, no problem", but after that he has never looked at my submission (I guess he was hoping my secondary supervisor was working for him), even though I had started to provide him with chapters of my thesis 5 months before submitting.

I had notified my University 10 days before submitting, and got told by the Dean of my Department: "I guess the best way to proceed is to submit by your deadline. Maybe your examiners will like it".
Generally, from the reports of my examiners and the internal investigation, it looks like I was put on the wrong trail since the very beginning of my Ph.D., working on a wrong format but getting almost no advice and supervision along my journey.

I got an R&R, but half of my research has been cancelled, and so my interdisciplinary research. This creates numerous problems, as for example: 1) I cannot apply anymore for some job positions in a field I was looking for; 2) I cannot apply anymore for some postdoctoral opportunities; 3) I have now complained heavily against my supervisor, so I don't feel anymore like trusting him for a reference, which is often mandatory for jobs in academia; 4) I have to do 1 more year without fellowship.

How can I calculate damages? Is there any resource in which I can find examples, or techniques to understand them? Unfortunately, I have no money at this uncertain stage to have a consultation with a lawyer, so I have to find a way to calculate them myself.


texts: Is it legal to sell suspected or proven counterfeit US currency?

texts:
If someone ends up with suspected counterfeit US currency, what can they do with it?   Obviously tendering it for goods or services would be illegal.

Handing it in for analysis and eventual destruction by the issuing authority would be the "right" thing to do but the acceptor will have lost that value.

The acceptor has been the victim and is unlikely to see restitution.  Can the holder of the fake notes on-sell them legally to recoup some of their lost money?

Inspired by https://travel.stackexchange.com/questions/153780/how-can-i-tell-if-old-us-currency-is-usable and related to Is it permissible to collect counterfeit currency?


texts: How can I inquire about some one else's border crossing history in Canada?

texts:
Googling about accessing information about traveling and border crossing history in Canada, I could only find information about how can one, access the information about SELF history of border crossings.
What I want is to know IF a criminal individual is or is not in Canada.
His country of origin in which he has been proven guilty and has escaped from is Iran.

Thanks in advance.


texts: When does a trademark become enforceable?

texts:
From reading on the USPTO website, a trademark seems to go through a standard series of stages: filing, examination, publication, registration.

At what point can the individual who filed the trademark sue someone for infringing it; the filing date? The final registration date?

If a hypothetical company was infringing this trademark for a period of time after the filing date, but before the final registration date they ceased completely, could this company be sued?


texts:
I was reading Territorial evolution of the United States. There it says

  The northeastern region of New York, known as the New Hampshire
  Grants, declared independence as New Connecticut.

  New Connecticut was renamed Vermont.

  Vermont, which had been considered part of New York despite acting
  independently since 1777, was admitted as the fourteenth state.

Can this legally happen today? Can any portion of an american state declare independence from its state and create a new state?


texts: Is there a "lemon law" that applies to product lines?

texts:
I have a gadget that I purchased ($150), and it's in warranty. I like the item's concept, but it's defective (occasional electronics failure). After doing some research I realized it's a widespread problem due to a move in manufacturing to China. (I don't really have a major issue with items made in China, as long as they work).

My options are:

Get a warranty replacement and hope that I get one without the issue.
Return it to the place I purchased it, and don't get a replacement (they most likely have a replacement from the same unstable batch).

I'm considering #1 since I'd like to give the product another chance. However if I go #1, route #2 will soon be out of the picture since the standard return period will expire.

My concern has to do with whether they will replace it with another defective item. I'm willing to send it in once, maybe twice, but that's about it.

Is there any consumer protection against the manufacturer repeatedly replacing items with known or high defect rates until the warranty period expires? Something like a lemon law for a product line rather than a specific item?

I'm in Texas, if that makes any difference.


texts: Disclosing prior inventions to company before starting work

texts:
I know some companies want on boarding employees to disclose to them any invention or innovation they have made. If you do not do this, can the company claim the invention or innovation as their own? What exactly counts, for example if I have some open source projects on Github (or have a pet project of any kind) should this be disclosed?

  Disclosure of Prior Innovations. I have identified on Exhibit A
  attached hereto all Innovations  applicable to the business of
  ExampleInc or relating in any way to ExampleInc’s business or
  demonstrably anticipated research and development or business, which
  were conceived, reduced to practice, created, derived, developed, or
  made by me prior to my employment with ExampleInc, whether solely or
  jointly with others and I represent that such list is complete. I
  represent that I have no rights in any Innovations specified in
  Exhibit A. If there is no such list on Exhibit A, I represent that I
  have neither conceived, reduced to practice, created, derived,
  developed or made any Innovations at the time of signing this
  Agreement.

I'm in Canada but the governing law is the US.


texts: What is my relationship with a service company contracted by my insurance company?

texts:
I am wondering about the legal terminologies that define a relationship that I have with a service company. Some maintenance work was needed for several appliances at my home, so I contacted my warranty company. My home warranty company dispatched a technician from a service company to take care of it. I paid my warranty company a service fee, which I think of as a deductible in an insurance policy.

Since I didn't pay the service company directly, legally am I still a client of the service company? I was told by them that I do not have a client relationship with them as the warranty company was the client in this transaction. Is that correct? I am curious what legal terms/concepts are applicable in this situation and if I have a legal relationship with a service company which provides service on properties I own but is not paid by me.


texts:
A contractor that we do a lot of work for has recently told all subcontractors that if an employee of any subcontractor gets COVID and gives it to any other worker on the job site they will be sued.
Is this legal? If so, under which laws?  How would this work for breakthru cases in which an employee has been vaccinated and still contracts COVID?


texts: caused accident in company car - do I need a lawyer?

texts:
While driving a rental car provided by my company, I hit another car.
The rental car (the one I was driving) was insured by my company.

I just learned that the driver of the car I hit has started a lawsuit with the company and myself as defendants.
Should I get a lawyer in this case?

In case it is relevant, the other car had minor damage (bumper, visible dent),
and the driver and a passenger (a minor)  were able to drive away and did not go to the hospital that morning. The car I was driving was declared totaled by the rental company.
It was a new car, designed to crumple on impact, whereas the car I hit was older and stronger build.
I expect that they are suing on the basis of long term neck pain or something, but do not know yet.

Thank you.


texts:
Completing taxes, they're asking a question:

  Was you [Province or State] resident on December 31?

What does exactly it mean?

If I was abroad at this day, I'm still a resident? Or not?


texts: Can doctor's offices withhold test results for some length of time?

texts:
Massachusetts/USA here. I had a EMG a few days ago and scheduled a followup with my doctor for later in the month (about 3 weeks from now). I am very anxious to hear the results.

I just called and the nurse/assistant was able to confirm that the results are ready, but she said that she isn't allowed to read them to me, and that I will have to wait until my scheduled appointment (again, 3 weeks from now) with the doctor.

I call bologna! Can they do this? I would think some provision in HIPAA or otherwise would entitle me to immediate readings of the results. What are my options here?


texts: What is the meaning of consensual principle for the basis of making law of contract?

texts: What is the meaning of the consensual principle for the basis of making the law of contract?


texts: Do all the roommates have to be on a rental lease in Virginia, USA?

texts: I'm looking to rent a property with my partner, but their credit is not great (lower than 650). Do they need to be on the lease too or can I rent the apartment and allow them to live with me?


texts: What crime is killing a foetus without the mother's consent?

texts:
According to US law, when a person approaches a woman who is pregnant in the third trimester, usee a knife and "takes the life of the unborn child" while the woman survives, is this crime a murder or a personal injury to the pregnant woman, or both?

Does anything change depending on the month that the pregnancy had reached?


texts: Legality of putting ads on an academic studying tool that contains user-generated content?

texts:
I made a web app that helps users generate interactive study notes, which facilitates their studying. The nature of this kind of user-generated content is that it will inevitably contain copyrighted material from textbooks and other studying material. This situation is very similar to that of studying tools like Quizlet.

My question comes in 2 parts:

Is it legal to put ads in my web app if it contains user-generated material that may contain copyrighted material?
If I don’t put any ads, is it considered fair use to operate a web app like this?


texts: If I put a presentation together and want to add my personal pictures from an office party does that violate any copyright laws?


texts: Is it advsable to "blow the whistle" on illegal tax exemption?

texts:
I've been working for a company for under a year and I have many responsibilities all related to technology. Recently, I was tasked with buying new tech equipment for employees.

We had a major delay in shipment from our normal supplier so I was told to do research on competitors. After the quote arrived I realized that our previous supplier didn't charge retail tax, but this one did. I mentioned it to my boss (the company owner) and he said something along the lines of "yeah, they think we resell the equipment instead of using it internally. If we ever get audited we're in trouble."

My job is to just get the quotes, do research on the equipment, and make a request for purchase. Is it possible I will also be in legal trouble? Should I report this to my state's revenue department?

This isn't the first time that I have seen unscrupulous business practices. As an example we almost threw away large batteries in the dumpster, but it was prevented.


texts: Why do some people argue that contingency fees increase lawsuits?

texts:
I've seen this argument from a number of people, such as this New York Times article.

Most countries do not allow contingent fees ... Allowing contingent fees increases the number of suits.

I have trouble following the logic. Shouldn't the use of contingent fees reduce the incentive to start lawsuits that one is likely not going to win? Shouldn't that reduce pointless lawsuits?


texts: Does a property owner have liability for signs others post in her yard?

texts:
Someone has a house with a yard that is close to a high-traffic street. People often post signs on the corner of this person's yard to advertise yard sales, political campaigns, and more. This is done without the owner's consent. The owner generally will leave signs alone for several days before removing them. But she tends to act faster on signs she disagrees with.
If someone else posted a sign in her yard that had a message that is found to be defamation, would her selectiveness in removing signs make her a party to that defamation? Or what defenses may be accepted for such a case?


texts: If it can be proven that someone profiting from spreading conspiracy theories doesn't believe in them are they guilty of fraud?

texts:
There are a number of people and websites that make money by spreading conspiracy theories and other 'fake news'.  I think InfoWars is probably the most notorious, but it's only one of a multitude of similar sites and people out there.
Let's say for now we have definitive proof that the person hosting a site that spreads conspiracy theories does not believe their theories are true, say they are recorded making fun of their watchers for believing the nonsense they say, including explicitly saying they make it up because people will pay to hear it.
If this person benefits only from advertising from people watching their site, are they in any way guilty of fraud by telling people something they didn't believe to get ad revenue?
In another example let's say they had a close relationship with a group that profited more directly from the conspiracy theory.  Say they are spreading the dinar revaluation theory (the claim that the US is going to, somehow, try to repair Iraq's dinar currency by elevating it from its near-worthless current state back to what it was worth prior to 9/11, for some reason.  Thus, supposedly, one should buy up dinar now before the US suddenly increases its value to 100 times its current value).  Say after the person preaches about how much it makes sense for the dinar to be raised by the government they then point everyone to a website that sells dinar, at a huge markup, and in exchange the person receives some kickbacks or other benefits for recommending the site.
Would the person be guilty of fraud for spreading a conspiracy theory that encouraged people to make a bad financial investment they would benefit from?


texts: Income tax: Developer working from home office for foreign company

texts: Where should an income be taxed if a developer (programmer) works from his home office in the Czech Republic for a company incorporated in Malta? The company sells a global service worldwide.


texts: Is it legal to save a copy of software in public cloud?

texts:
So I live in Taiwan and most time I'll be facing when I tell my student to download some software they'll need to wait for it to download.

So I'm wondering can I store a copy of the software (for example Arduino IDE) in my Google Cloud Storage which got its data center in Taiwan. Is it legal to do this? For saving a copy of the copyrighted software and share in public (students).


texts: Can an legal means for someone who's visa expired to stay in the country or leave the country and come back

texts:
I was talking to my Neighbors "Wife" who is not actually his wife at all. Apparently she was here on a working Visa, she got pregnant, and never renewed because they fired her when they learned she was pregnant. He decided not to marry her and now they have two kids together. She is in a predicament because her mother is very sick, but if she goes back to her country, she won't be allowed back here. While yes I know she is "illegal" this seems like a really shitty situation. Is their anything she can do that won't result in deportation or being separated from her children?

It's a pretty shitty situation, and I feel like he holds all of the cards but does not want to marry her because then she will be entitled to part of his money or something like that.


texts: Are Glassdoor reviews considered protected concerted activity under the NLRA?

texts:
The National Labor Relations Board has recently upheld that posts on social media can be considered protected concerted activity. (Recent Cases, 34-CA-012576)

A negative company review on Glassdoor is discussing working conditions with an attempt to improve them (see "Advice to Management").  So long as there are no false claims in the review, and there are other active employees engaging in providing reviews for the company, would this be considered protected concerted activity as well?


texts: Is the current Israel/Gaza conflict "war" or "law enforcement"?

texts:
My understanding is that Israel justifies its actions on the West Bank as enforcing Israeli Military Orders, which they claim are based on international law.

Do they claim that these still apply to Gaza?

If not, is the conflict "war" according to international law?


texts:
Under the copyright law of the United States (unless this has changed since I learned this) you can forfeit a copyright if you distribute your copyrighted work to the public with no copyright notice. So there's the question of what counts as distributing it to the public. If you post a photograph on Facebook, only your friends see it, but then they can share it, and others can then share it, and so on, so it can go viral.

And if you include a copyright notice in the comments, others may share it without that; the only way to prevent that is to put the notice across the face of the picture itself, and even then people can crop the photograph.

At what point is it considered public distribution?


texts: Concrete example of difference between "clear and present danger" and "imminent lawless action"

texts:
I was reading about the U.S. Supreme Court cases Schenck v. United States and Brandenburg v. Ohio, and I came upon two different legal standards for whether a particular act of speech was banned hate speech- whether it posed a "clear and present danger" of bringing about lawless action in the former, or whether it was "directed to inciting or producing imminent lawless action".
I recognize that this is an important distinction as far as that the second is a distinctly more restrictive test for determining what is and what is not banned hate speech. However, I have not come up with any concrete example of speech that would be banned under the first test but acceptable under the second. Brandenburg's undeniably bigoted and vile speech litigated in Brandenburg actually seems to me acceptable under Schenck, as it seems to me less aimed at incitement and more just at rhetoric, but I might be wrong there- I've never seen the whole speech.
Any appropriate example of such speech banned under the Schenck test but acceptable under the Brandenburg test (or refutation of my refutation of a potential Brandenburg example) would be greatly appreciated!


texts: Is this scenario illegal or just immoral?

texts:
Imagine a sociopath (let's call him A) and has his fun by playing with depressive people, especially B.
One day, B asks A if he can obtain potassium cyanide capsules for commiting suicide. A replies that yes, indeed he can get those, and a few days later he gives him crushed tictacs inside a digestible capsule. B goes into the basement of the place where A and B met, and takes the pill in good faith of dying from it.
Meanwhile, A and some friends of A are upstairs and are laughing, while B sits in the basement and waits hours until the pill works.
The pill was delivered freely, without any money or other goods or services or anything like that involved.
This is morally reprehensible of course, but is this illegal in any way? I'd be interested especially in Germanys law, but laws of other countries would be interesting too.
This is neither murder nor manslaughter as A does not kill B (or even really harm him), and also (at least in Germany) suicididal tendencies are not illegal.
How would this be prosecuted?


texts: Is it trespassing if you unlock a door to which you found the key?

texts: I'm not looking for legal advice. I live in a shared house. Each bedroom has a lock on the door. I keep finding keys in communal areas, for example keys in the bottom of a cupboards. The keys look like they're for the locks on the doors. I tested some keys on the door to my room and am wondering would it be legal to try to unlock other doors with the keys I found? I would like to know if the landlord is leaving keys to tenants rooms around the house because I wouldn't feel safe assuming he didn't leave a key to my room lying around. Normally I would ask but several rooms are vacant right now and others are on vacation etc.


texts: Is it legal to display third-party logos as part of “As featured in” on sites/printed ads without their consent?

texts:
More companies have been including media outlets' logos under their site/printed marketing material as part of "As featured in" to provide more social proof.

Is it legal to include the logos without the companies' consent? (especially for printed material)


texts: Why is threatening to sue not considered extortion?

texts:
I'm reading about extortion and it says:

  Most states define extortion as the gaining of property or money by almost any kind of force or threat of [...], harm to reputation, or unfavorable government action.
  It is not necessary for a threat to involve physical injury. It may be sufficient to threaten to accuse another person of a crime.

However, I understand lawyers (and I guess non-lawyers) routinely send mail that amounts to a threat to involve government action (e.g. file a lawsuit) unless some settlement is reached.

How does that itself not constitute extortion? Are there exceptions to the threats that can be made? What are they generally?


texts: Unilaterally changing house from "joint tenants" to "tenants in common"

texts:
I need to unilaterally change a house's ownership from "joint tenants" to "tenants in common" without the involvement of the other owners. I don't trust the other owners anymore! (In New Jersey, if it matters.)

From my research, I believe I should write a deed to transfer my share to myself. But I'm reading some contradictory info:

Question #1: Some sites say I can definitely do this "unilaterally and without the knowledge or consent of the co-tenant(s)" (link), but others say "all current owners should sign the deed" (link -- click on question mark next to "Choose one"). Which is it?

Question #2: Some say "use a quitclaim deed to...change the way owners hold title to the property" (link), but others either say don't use quit claim deeds (link, link) or say "we generally recommend the Warranty Deed when transferring property to yourself, your trust, or your own company; because we want to make sure that the Title Policy and all of its benefits transfer to the Grantee of your deed" (link).

Question #3: If I should never use the "Nolo" link 2 to do this change, then is there any do-it-yourself form/method that I can use? (I cannot afford a lawyer for this task.)

UPDATE: Note to respondents that attempt to claim this isn't legal in the USA:
It's definitely legal in New York at least. See NY Code - Section 240-C: Joint tenancy severance: "1. In addition to any other means by which a joint tenancy with right of survivorship may be severed, a joint tenant may unilaterally sever a joint tenancy in real property without consent of any non-severing joint tenant or tenants by: ... (b) Execution of a written instrument that evidences the intent to sever the joint tenancy, including a deed that names the severing tenant as the direct grantee of the severing tenant's interest."

Thus, if you claim this isn't allowed in the USA, then you are incorrect. If you claim this isn't allowed in New Jersey specifically, then please provide some evidence if you have it (e.g. court cases deciding against this type of action), instead of making an unsupported claim. Thanks.


texts: Distribution Category UC42 Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited?

texts:
I have a document from Science.gov and i wish to copy a graph of it  in a commercial document. The document is described as:

Distribution Category UC-42

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.

Does that mean that there is no copyright protection the document?

It's at the top of the third page:
http://www.osti.gov/scitech/servlets/purl/1130326/

here is another document with a copyright statement on line 10, i don't understand it.
http://prod.sandia.gov/techlib/access-control.cgi/2007/076781.pdf


texts: Do women have the upper-hand in harassment or other "woman vs man" cases?

texts:
Story 1: A man own a house. His girlfriend had recently moved in and he wanted her out. She refused and called the police, claiming that the man committed violence against her. Also he reported that the woman was actually harassing him, the man was still immediately removed from the house and he had to pay a huge amount of lawyer fee before moving his ex-girlfriend out. The woman did not even provide actual evidence on the "violence".
Story 2: In a formal organizational event, everyone dressed formally, except one woman.
Man: "I am not sure if you are dressing like in a night-club."
The woman reported it as "sexual harassment" to the supervisor and the man is seriously punished.
But if a woman said something similar to a man and the man reported it to the supervisor, it would be usually ignored as "not a big deal", to my limited knowledge.

Thanks for the comments! From the legal document of John Doe v.s. Rhodes College 2019, it is clear that the college's administrators took the words from female witnesses (including the victim) but not from the male witnesses, at least in this case:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWa3XroMv5M&list=PL9cOEC1M44Dw65Td2FMCLheiUWS-iQnHO&index=2&t=0s

I hear similar stories every once a while.
So, is the woman privileged (legally or statistically) in a conflict between a man and a woman, either inside an organization or in the court?


texts: Can some clauses of a contract be enforced when there is a breach of contract (caused by non-payment)?

texts:
My company, based in the U.K., had a software development contract with another company, also based in the U.K.

The contract was mostly standard, as far as I could tell when comparing it to other contracts I have worked with.

I would work for a daily rate of £n/day, invoiced monthly and then paid within 30 days of invoice. There would also be some other clauses relating to such things as, for example, after termination, my company cannot provide services to any major competitor of the other company for a period of 6 months, poach existing employees, or share confidential information.

Unfortunately, after submitting an invoice in April for works in February and March, the other company failed to make payment after giving multiple assurances that it would be paid, then suddenly raising issues at the end of June for works in March, and making demands and other unfortunate behaviours.

After minor legal action, all invoices owed have now been paid, a total of 80 days after the initial invoice was submitted (50 days overdue).

My question is: can the other company enforce any other clauses, such as restrictions for 6 months after termination to work for other companies, not approaching company employees for other work, etc as outlined in the initial contract? Does non-payment and the legal action so far constitute a breach of contract that makes the rest unenforceable?

I appreciate the answer may be "it depends" and is not legal advice, but comments would be useful. Thanks.


texts: How can one try to leave a home rental lease

texts:
Person A cosigns a lease for Person B. The lease is for a house. The lease period is for one year.

The landlord agrees to allow the lease to be amended for another person, person C to be on the lease. Person B negotiated this with the landlord without consent of person A.

I understand each person to be separately liable for the lease payments each month.

If Person A wants out of the lease, is the only option to just try to negotiate a way out of their portion of the lease with the landlord, presumably by payment or other means? It's not likely that landlord would be agreeable to this, since Person B and Person C do not have the financial means to pay.

If person A does negotiate a release from the lien, it's likely that Person B and C will be required to move and so they will not agree to the modification.

What rights do Person B and C have if Person A does stop paying? I'm assuming they'd have to move.


texts: Can Windows 10 be used for commercial purposes?

texts:
I have an activated copy of  Windows 10 Home. I am from Turkey and I work as freelancer at my home (developing and selling web templates).
Is using it for commercial purposes like this legal?


texts: Company changes its legal name but not that on its staff handbook. Can I ignore the staff handbook?

texts:
In UK employment law, the staff handbook often forms part of the contract.

I work for Company XYZ. This is clearly stated in my contract. The handbook is for Company ABC, which is my employer's old name before I joined.

Let's say that I don't like the probation period section of the Company ABC handbook. Am I contractually obligated to follow that old handbook?


texts: Is there a legal principle regarding laws that cannot reasonably be complied with?

texts:
Is there any concept in the legal world that covers laws that are too difficult or impractical to comply with?

Here's an example; suppose an American moves to the UK and buys a house. The mortgage is for £300,000, which is equivalent to $300,000 at the time of purchase. However by the time the house is sold, 20 years later, the house is worth £900,000 and is equivalent to $1,200,000. The owner must now calculate exactly how much money he earned - taking into account the GBP/USD exchange rate every time there was a mortgage payment. This would require many dozens or possibly hundreds of hours to do, at massive cost (if performed by a tax professional).

In the example above, should the owner not properly follow these rules, and perhaps just make some rough estimate, could he be held criminally responsible for filing an incorrect tax return?

Or does there exist some kind of defense that complying with the law would simply have been completely unreasonable or impractical?


texts: What impact does prior art discovered after (US) patent awarding have on enforceability and even validity of that patent?

texts: If I were  to be awarded a utility patent, certificate in the mail and all, and it was later discovered by me or someone else that prior art existed before the time of the initial patent application submission, what impact would that have on the enforceability and indeed even the validity of that patent?


texts: A lawyer ignored key evidence. Reasonable for me to complain to the Law Society of Ontario?

texts:
I don't want to be identified or give out too many details. Thus let's assume the facts of this case. Mine is pretty similar.

  He bought a used car on 5-30-2011 for $10K from a Toyota dealership in ON. A month after, the car exhibited  mechanical issues. He paid the dealership's repair shop to repair them multiple times, but the issues kept recurring, and in 2013 he sold it back to the dealership for $3K.
  I obtained the Carfax report  that lists several accidents and repairs. I perused the Contract of Sale that didn't disclose them. He confirmed to me that the saleswoman never disclosed them or showed him Carfax.

I called Pro Bono Ontario. The telephone responder said I can claim for damages for misrepresentation, and I ought to read Redgrave v Hurd (1881) 20 Ch D 1.

I don't have a lawyer.  I want to solve this outside Small Claims Court – don't want litigation stress! I read Limitations Act 2002.

I complained to an ON gov't agency and attached a Car Proof report. They rejected my complaint. This legal counsel works just for the ON gov't agency – not the car dealer.

  She wrote – You have provided no objective evidence of the car's previous accidents and damage.

  I replied – Why haven't you brought up my Car Proof Report, not even once? It is undoubtedly "objective evidence of the used car's accidents and damage".

  Her –  We closed your file and have nothing to add.

  Me –  Aren't you ignoring my Car Proof Report that is "objective evidence of the used car's accidents and damage"? It is unjust to ignore key evidence.

  Her –  This will serve as our final answer. There will be no need to contact us again about your case. We will not correspond further.

This lawyer is fibbing! She did ignore my Car Proof Report!

Did she breach the rules beneath from the LSO's Rules of Professional Conduct?

5.1-1.

  [Commentary] [6] When opposing interests are not represented, for example, in without notice or uncontested matters or in other situations in which the full proof and argument inherent in the adversarial system cannot be achieved, the lawyer must take particular care to be accurate, candid and comprehensive in presenting the client's case so as to ensure that the tribunal is not misled.

  5.1-2 When acting as an advocate, a lawyer shall not . . .

  (e) knowingly attempt to deceive a tribunal or influence the course of justice by offering false evidence, misstating facts or law, presenting or relying upon a false or deceptive affidavit, suppressing what ought to be disclosed, or otherwise assisting in any fraud, crime, or illegal conduct,

  (f) knowingly misstate the contents of a document, the testimony of a witness, the substance of an argument, or the provisions of a statute or like authority,

  (g) knowingly assert as true a fact when its truth cannot reasonably be supported by the evidence or as a matter of which notice may be taken by the tribunal,

  7.2-1 A lawyer shall be courteous, civil, and act in good faith with all persons with whom the lawyer has dealings in the course of their practice.


texts: Does publishing code under open-source license remove property rights?

texts:
I have done substantial work on some software that I plan to continue to develop and improve during the course of my next employment. The contract has something to the effect of

  All code created and developed by you prior to and during your employment shall vest and remain the property of the firm

This is paraphrasing, but captures the essential point as I understand it, i.e. code that is relevant to the business and that is continued to be used at the firm will become property of the firm. My question is about protecting work that I have already done. Is open sourcing a software project a valid strategy to prevent a firm from acquiring sole ownership of previous works done by you. To clarify, I understand:

Work done during the period I am employed by the firm will be owned by the firm
Extensions to a project done at the firm will be owned by the firm

My main issue is related to the firm seizing sole ownership of works done prior to joining the company.


texts: What would happen after service given but can't agree on payment method

texts:
What happens after someone gets a service and then is charged but cannot pay using any of the provided methods?

I came up with the question because I used a shipping company and it would seem they expect me to type out all my credit card information and send it to them in an email, which I don't think is very secure. Any suggestions? I was considering giving it to them over the phone as then I could be certain who I'm talking with.


texts: What if the code found in github with MIT license was stolen by someone and uploaded there?

texts: What would happen if a piece of code from a proprietary source was uploaded by someone without permission to github with the MIT license and thousands of people have used it. Even if the company who owns the code requests github to drop the repository, what would prevent the endless spread of the code by users believing it to have MIT license. What should the owner do in such cases to prevent it from happening?


texts: Is the extradition of a person a discretional choice of a state?

texts:
So, say someone commits murder in state A, then flees to state B. State A requests the extradition of the murderer.

Does state B, in lack of any treaties governing the subject, by the power of customary international law owe any obligation to state A to extradite the murderer? Can they deny it? Can they just omit the extradition and not do anything?


texts: Is there any judicial precedent regarding US governors' power (or lack thereof) to limit church attendance in an emergency?

texts:
A federal judge in Kansas ruled it might be unconstitutional:

A federal judge signaled that he believes there's a good chance that Kansas is violating religious freedom and free speech rights with a coronavirus-inspired 10-person limit on in-person attendance at religious services or activities and he blocked its enforcement against two churches that sued over it.
The ruling Saturday from U.S. District Judge John Broomes in Wichita prevents the enforcement of an order issued by Gov. Laura Kelly against a church in Dodge City in western Kansas and one in Junction City in northeast Kansas. The judge's decision will remain in effect until May 2; he has a hearing scheduled Thursday in the lawsuit filed against Kelly by the two churches and their pastors, on whether he should issue a longer-term or broader injunction.
Kelly continued to defend her order in a statement: "This is not about religion. This is about a public health crisis.” [...]
Broomes directed the churches to abide by recommendations for social distancing that people stay 6 feet apart and to continue following other practices the lawsuit said they had imposed, such as not using collection plates. [...]
Top Republican legislative leaders moved last week to revoke Kelly’s order on church gatherings themselves, only to see the Democratic governor thwart their efforts by contesting their action before the Kansas Supreme Court. The state’s highest court let her order stand on technical grounds, without deciding whether it violated freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. or Kansas constitutions.

The details in this case seem to matter, i.e. the judge seems to have had no objection against some of the physical distancing parts of the governors' order (e.g. 6-feet distance), which probably implicitly limit attendance numbers in closed spaces, but otherwise seems to have objected to an arbitrary ceiling to the number of people  gathered.
Since the US went through a pandemic before, in 1918-1919, in which also some gatherings were banned or at least cancelled, I'm curious if there have been any judicial precedents for this kind of case, i.e. whether limiting the number of attendants to an arbitrary figure was in question.


texts: Are contracts correct/legal with a wrong Postcode and City?

texts:
Last week I signed a contract for a gym membership with the wrong location. I'm not really aware of how contract signing is handled in other countries, but here in Germany it always is a part of it. Out of sheer habit I wrote the postcode and name of my hometown instead of the location where I signed the contract. The other party, and me, did not notice at that point. I just noticed while filing it at home.

Is such a contract correct/legal? Should I get a new contract and/or tell the other party about my mistake? The contract itself is totally fine, it's not like I gave a wrong address or something. Just the location of signition is wrong.


texts: Using Pokémon names and Images on Pokémon GO Map websites

texts:
Everyone who plays Pokémon GO has come across websites like these

https://phillypokemap.com/

They're live Pokémon GO maps which shows the location of the Pokémon in the game. But I'm wondering, is it legal to use the images and names from Pokémon? And if it isn't, what's the difference between a website like this and a site like http://www.ign.com/wikis/pokemon-go ? The income of both sites is advertisements only.


texts: Is modifying an academic transcript illegal?

texts:
On my University of Washington unofficial transcript, it says

  ANY ALTERATION OR MODIFICATION OF THIS RECORD OR ANY COPY THEREOF MAY CONSTITUTE A FELONY AND/OR LEAD TO STUDENT DISCIPLINARY SANCTIONS.

Finding the bit about "student disciplinary sanctions" was quite easy. Finding the bit about "felony" is quite hard.

What "felony" - if any - is this referring to? The closest I've read about are articles relating to fraud. Is that what this is referencing to? I'm starting to believe this is just a scare tactic.

I'm narrowing this question down to exclude scenarios (and scenarios similar to) where you're hired somewhere because of falsified transcripts and cause the company damage. I'm looking for a federal law that specifically prohibits transcript modification and only that.


texts: Protect against an wrongful violation strike at apartment

texts:
My apartment complex(GA, USA) has a 3 strike violation policy.

Today I received a strike. Very vague description, just the reason being: "disturbance".

I left work early to speak with staff in person to ask what the violation was about. So a week ago, the building which my unit resides in received information about complaints over the smell of weed.

7 days ahead, my violation strike is apparently the complex saying it's me.

I was not answered on if any other units were also hit with a strike. I asked if an inspection was done, or any form of action to verify - because it's not me or my wife. We can smell the odor as well from time to time, so we do know someone in building is smoking it - but I was told, no, no verification or inspection was done to verify who it was.

So I asked what made them send a violation to my unit - they replied that the complaints said it was coming from one of the back units most likely a terrace unit.

My unit is not the only terrace unit - so I asked again what specifically made them suspect us and just slap us with a violation strike.

No concrete answer was given - just a spiel over the legality of weed in GA - my question was dodged essentially.

I ran through again making sure that I got it right that they essentially read  complaints, and without going to the units, even if they cannot just waltz into one, but without even coming out to the building and checking around, that they just slapped it on us in particular.

I sent them a pdf of a document I wrote trailing my interactions, emails, and conversations with them today to inform them that I took note of everything.

If I had to take this to court over my stay here, and/or potential fines associated with this strike - would I have a reasonable defense against the unverified claims?

Now, I moved in during the middle of august, I'm a black male with dreadlocks. I do not smoke. I also wouldn't want to assume the selection of striking my unit was due to profiling. But I do find it weird that without warning or any looking into it, that it was us that was just slapped with said strike.

(this is my first post here - I've looked at other questions and checked around first, but if I've still didn't provide something needed, or incorrectly formatted something, apologies - please point out - and I'll try to rectify. Thank you)


texts: Buying in-game currency but not receiving what you pay for with the in-game currency

texts:
I am in a somewhat debate with a friend regarding in-game currency.

TLDR: I told him I could have a case if the game I bought in-game currency for would provide the in-game currency, but when I buy a product with the in-game currency, I do not get what I 'paid' for.

Complete story:

Me and my friend used to play a video game in which you could buy in-game currency with real money.

Last time when I checked however, I found out the game had a couple of issues regarding the in-game currency. Think of: You buying a product with a time-limit usage to get exclusive content (if you would use the product in a certain amount of time), only to experience down-time etc. and preventing you from using the product to the fullest extend. The game does explicitly say you will not 'own' any goods, but rather will 'unlock' the goods.

Could you either demand a compensation or demand a chargeback? (think of either receiving your real money or the in-game currency again).

My friend his point of view was: You have nothing to back yourself up with, because you got the in-game currency when you paid money and that is considered the product you 'paid' for.

I found this article on here Charging someone with theft of virtual currency but it didn't make me much wiser.

I am talking about general US law.


texts: What does "monitor the behavior of individuals in the EU" mean?

texts:
https://www.truevault.com/blog/do-i-need-to-be-gdpr-compliant.html

GDPR was created by the European Union to protect its citizens, and so it only affects organizations with some kind of relationship with the EU or its people. That said, it does not only apply to companies based in an EU country. According to Article 3, you will be affected if you are a data controller or data processor and any of the following apply:

you are established in the EU (or somewhere else subject to EU law), or
you offer goods or services to individuals in the EU, or
you monitor the behavior of individuals in the EU.

What does the last point here, "monitor behaviour of individuals in the EU", mean?
Let's say, for basic functionality of a website, some rudimentary use of cookies is required to make the UI function as expected. Would that amount to "monitoring behaviour", because some UI state information might be saved in cookies?


texts: Who owns the rights to the questions on Stack Exchange?

texts:
I asked a question here a year ago and this was removed. Who owns the rights to the question, and can it be republished?
On what grounds could it have been removed?


texts:
Homebrew is collecting anonymous GA analytics by default. User have this information during installation of this package manager. To opt-out you need go to the web page and choise a way to opt-out (set an envrionment variable or run a command).

Opting-out will prevent analytics to be sent. I don't know if analytics would be collected anyway and sent collected afterwards you opt-in collecting analytics again.

Is this behavior is GDPR-compliant or not?


texts: Suppose someone kills more people than they intended. Did they murder the extra people?

texts:
If a person sets a bomb in a music festival. Based on previous attendance numbers, they expected 60,000 people to show up. 120,000 people showed up and were killed by their bomb. Legally, did they murder 60,000 people, or all 120,000?
Also, suppose they set up the bomb just to kill the production crew, and they end up killing the attendees. Did they still commit 120,000 murders?


texts: In New York, how long does a 16-year-old have to get new working papers?

texts:
Say a worker is approaching his 16th birthday. Is there a grace period to get the required new working papers?  If not, is it possible to get the new working papers while the person is still 15?  How close to their birthday does it have to be?

The only thing I found is:

  When you turn 16, you will need to go from your 14-15 year old working papers (blue) and get your 16-17 year old working papers (green)

However, that doesn't cover grace periods, or information about updating papers when school isn't in session.


texts: Temporary theft, or, removing someones property to deliver it to their home or office

texts:
If I take somebody's property without consent, with the intent of keeping it, it is theft.
If I take somebody's property without consent, but return it to them immediately, what law am I violating?  Assume I return the property in perfect state, completely undamaged.
For example:

The Ministry Of Defence (MOD) has placed No Trespassing signs near a military base.  I remove the signs and return them to the headquarters of the MOD¹.
Someone has attached a trail camera in the forest.  I take it down and bring it back to the owner.
The local authority has put a sign indicating through-traffic through my street.  I remove the sign and deliver it to the local authority offices.
Scientists have installed measurement equipment to monitor something.  I remove the equipment and return it to the institute owning it.

I'm a nuisance in any case, but what law am I violating, if not theft?

¹

I heard about it in a sort of cat-and-mouse game between British peace activists and the police:

1. A group of peace activists walked past a "No trespassing" sign near a military base, in order to document (and perhaps disrupt) activities.  They are arrested for walking past a "No trespassing" sign.

2. A group of peace activists remove the "No trespassing" signs.  Others walk past the location of the sign.  They say that they have not seen the "No trespassing" sign, and can apparently not be arrested for violating it when the owner has not clearly indicated "No trespassing".  However, they are arrested for theft (or conspiring to steal) Ministry of Defence property (the signs).

3. A group of peace activists remove the "No trespassing" signs obtained at a military base, drive to the headquarters of the Ministry of Defence, and deliver the signs at the reception.  Meanwhile, others walk past the location of the sign.  Police are not sure what to arrest them for, for they have not stolen the signs and the "No trespassing" is apparently not valid when not clearly stated.


texts: Reusing copyrighted content (science/EU)

texts:
This question is similar to

Can taking notes violate copyright?
Is taking notes copyright infringement?

However, I seek an answer in the context of the laws of the European Union (not, necessarily, any specific country) and, also, specifically in the science context. To make my question even more distinct, I will provide a specific use case that is, hopefully, sufficiently different from the use cases in the aforementioned questions.
Suppose, a person P would like to create "lecture notes" based on a science textbook. The notes are meant to be used for private study and non-commercial research use only. A significant part of the content of the textbook expresses reasonably well-known ideas (i.e. other books that express similar ideas seem to exist) and P would not be copying the content word-for-word. Nonetheless, it is likely that there will be very significant overlap and resemblance in terms of the structure and content of the textbook and P's notes.
I would like to understand whether P recording such notes would be legal. What about their distribution to third parties (again, under the premise of non-commercial research/study use only)?
It seems likely that my use case would fall under "Fair use" in the US. However, I find it difficult to interpret the European legalese.
I would also like to understand what laws are actually applicable in this case. The laws of the country of the copyright holder/publisher? The laws of the country where P resides? The laws of the country where the content is hosted? The laws of the country/countries where the content is available?


texts: Why doesn't the FBI crack down on websites allowing cartoon child pornography?

texts:
I was inspired to make this based off of a previous post. In the United States, visual depictions (such as drawings) of child abuse images is illegal provided they are ruled as obscene. This would make things like lolicon/shotacon (a type of cartoon child pornography) illegal in the United States (provided they are considered obscene), yet there are plenty of websites hosted in the United States that permit it to be posted in their website explicitly in their rules (4chan comes to mind), or just simply forbid real child pornography and say nothing about obscene cartoons. Yet, the FBI has never seized the servers of these sites, nor collected and disseminated to other countries IP addresses of those accessing such content, to arrest them like in Operation Avalanche. Why is that? The Dept of Homeland Security has even worked alongside 4chan before and described having a "working relationship" with them.
There will surely be a lot of content that could be ruled as obscene in a court of law -- couldn't search warrants for the servers be granted and prosecutions made to those who downloaded/viewed the obscene content? There's surely a legal recourse to actually do this. I understand Section 230 is a thing, but surely the websites have to comply with US law, so if they permit material that could be ruled obscene that wouldn't be the case, surely?
Not only that, but some countries outright consider, obscene or not, cartoon child pornography illegal. What's stopping them from asking the US's assistance in raiding the servers like the US literally did in the case of shutting down Megaupload?
Is it a matter of "this is possible but will not be considered worth the effort and taxpayer money"? Do you think that will ever change?


texts: Is it legal to discriminate due to the medicine used to treat a medical condition?

texts:
I will present two different scenarios. Lets say Bob has PTSD from his time in the military. He wants to become an FBI agent. Here are the following requirements from the FBI to qualify;

- Must be a U.S. citizen.
- Must be able to obtain a Top Secret clearance.
- Must complete form FD-887, Request for Access to Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI).
- Must pass an FBI polygraph examination.
- Must pass an FBI-administered urinalysis drug test.
- Must be in compliance with the FBI Employment Drug Policy:
    - No use of marijuana within the last three years.
    - No use of any other illegal drug in the past 10 years.
    - No selling, distributing, manufacturing or transporting of any illegal drugs.
    - No use of a prescription drug or a legally obtainable substance in a manner for which it was not intended within the last three years.

- Must never have been convicted of a felony.
- Must not be in default on a student loan insured by the U.S. government.
- Must be registered with the Selective Service System (males only, exceptions apply)

Scenario 1) Bob is prescribed a controlled narcotic for his PTSD condition.

Scenario 2) Bob is prescribed medical marijuana for his PTSD condition.

Is it legal to discriminate employment based off prescribed medicine in either situation?
If the employer wasn't the FBI, does it change the right to discriminate?


texts: Ex wife moving out the country with my daughters

texts:
My ex-wife is planning to move out of the country (to France) next year with my daughters (12 and 10 years old respectively). We have shared custody. I pay alimony (been paying for 7 years, 3 more to go) and child support. We have a good relationship in general.

My questions:

What can I do legally to prevent her from moving indefinitely to France? She says it will only be for 2 years but I do not believe it. I believe she's saying so just to not find opposition from my side. I might be OK with her moving for up to 2 years but not more than that.
What are the implications in terms of Alimony if she moves out of the country for such a long period of time? What about implications to Child Support?
I do not believe she will be living in France with a work permit. I believe she will be working on some kind of informal business. If I am right, and she won't be working "Legally" in France, what can I do here in the US to prevent her from taking my daughters considering the fact that she won't potentially have a better standard of living than the one she has here and the fact that she won't have a work permit to work in France? Can I take her to court and demand that she provides proof of a work permit and job contract?

In general, what are my legal options, if any?

Note: We live in New Jersey


texts: In Florida, can a 24 year old have relationship with a 17 year old if their relationship started a year earlier?

texts:
In Florida, the age of consent is 18, but there is an exception that allows for people up to the age of 23 to have a relationship with someone 16 years and older.

  (1) A person 24 years of age or older who engages in sexual activity
  with a person 16 or 17 years of age commits a felony of the second
  degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s.
  775.084. As used in this section, “sexual activity” means oral, anal, or vaginal penetration by, or union with, the sexual organ of another;
  however, sexual activity does not include an act done for a bona fide
  medical purpose. (2) The provisions of this section do not apply to a
  person 16 or 17 years of age who has had the disabilities of nonage
  removed under chapter 743.

See the law here

What happens if during such a legal relationship, one of the parties turns 24. For example, a 23 year old dating a 16 year old. When the 23 year old turns 24, do they suddenly by law have to break up an existing relationship?

If that is the case, this would be a very strange law.


texts: Are encryption apps (iOS) exempt from US Export Regulations if released to the US App Store only?

texts:
Note: The original question in iTunes Connect regarding exemptions has since been changed to reflect recent changes made to their FAQ as follows:

  Does your app meet any of the following: (a) Qualifies for one or more
  exemptions provided under category 5 part 2, (b) Use of encryption is
  limited to encryption within the operating system (iOS or macOS), (c)
  Only makes call(s) over HTTPS, (d) App is made available only in the
  U.S. and/or Canada.

TL;DR - In short, the answer to my original question per Apple Export Compliance is yes, "(under option d), encryption apps are now exempt from Export Regulations if sold in the U.S. and Canada app stores exclusively."

I have an iOS app built and ready to ship which allows the user to perform symmetric encryption using arbitrary length keys (i.e. > 56 bits).
 I've been reading up on US export regulations and am looking to extend my research here as well.

Question: If I have an iOS app that performs "strong" encryption but I only make it available to select territories (i.e. US), can I answer "Yes" to the following question?

  Does your app qualify for any of the exemptions provided in Category
  5, Part 2 of the U.S. Export Administration Regulations?

  Make sure
  that your app meets the criteria of the exemption listed here. You are
  responsible for the proper classification of your product. Incorrectly
  classifying your app may lead to you being in violation of U.S. export
  laws and could make you subject to penalties, including your app being
  removed from the App Store. Read the FAQ thoroughly before answering
  the questions.

  You can select Yes for question #2 if the encryption of your app is:

  (a) Specially designed for medical end-use
  (b) Limited to intellectual
  property and copyright protection
  (c) Limited to authentication,
  digital signature, or the decryption of data or files
  (d) Specially
  designed and limited for banking use or "money transactions"; or
  (e)
  Limited to "fixed" data compression or coding techniques

  You can also select Yes if your app meets the descriptions provided in
  Note 4 for Category 5, Part 2 of the U.S. Export Administration
  Regulations.

I should also point out that it's quite possible (and perhaps easy) to VPN into the US to download an app only being sold within the US and I guess this is where my main question lies - is this considered "exporting" and thus subject to US Export regulations as well?


texts: Is abuse during custodial interrogation grounds for suppression?

texts:
I assume that a custodial interrogation that involved the use of "torture" would be suppressed by any U.S. court.

But I can't find a law that clearly defines custodial practices that would constitute torture, beyond the "Torture Act."

In researching this I have found frequent references to "cruel, inhumane, or degrading treatment." Is there precedent for suppression of interrogation conducted under conditions in which a detainee has been subject to "cruel, inhumane, or degrading treatment?"

One condition that is enumerated, at least by the DoD, is hypothermia.  Another I imagine to be more common would be sleep deprivation, if for no other reason than that it impairs an individual's ability to assert one's Miranda rights.


texts: US magazine demanding a call to cancel subscription

texts:
I have a subscription that I want to cancel before it is renewed. I emailed customer service that received my email and replied that they cannot cancel my subscription unless I call their number.
Is this legal? I communicated that I want to cancel, they received my communication, why do I have to waste time calling, being on hold, and possibly have a representative trying to keep me on the phone to convince me to keep my subscription? Is it legal to require cancellation only through a particular mean of communication or can I argue that since they received my communication (and acknowledged it through their reply) they cannot refuse cancellation?

This is in the US.


texts: EU Cookie Law can I use cookies before users' consent?

texts:
I am trying to get my website to be EU Cookie compliant and I have encountered some plugins which have something called "implied consent" in other words a popup appears on the website saying something like

  Cookies help us deliver our services. By using our services, you agree to our use of cookies.

along with two buttons: "Read more" and "Got it". So my question is: Can I use cookies before the user has clicked on any of the buttons?


texts: Is it against the law to forge identity documents if relevant information is accurate?

texts:
Organisations are required to "use all reasonable measures to verify the identity of a data subject who requests access".  This has been implemented in some cases by requiring the data subject to provide images of "your valid passport or driving licence and an original bank statement or utility bill".  These documents are likely to contain much richer information than most organisations would hold, in particular a recent facial photograph and details of financial transactions. It is therefore reasonable to not want to distribute this information.  It would be relatively easy to make images that contained the information required to identify the individual to the data controller but other information changed, such as the photograph and actual transactions.  This could be done either by editing an image of the real document (eg. put someone else's photograph over mine on an image of my driving licence) or an image from the web (eg. put my address on this).
Clearly to do this to obtain someone else's data would be wrong (fraud?).  If I did this to access my data, and the changes were purely to protect my PII would I be committing any crime?


texts: What is the legal term for coerced indecent acts (not including rape)?

texts: Say that a person were coerced into performing indecent acts of a sexual nature, such as nudity, masturbation, oral sex, etc. If intercourse occurs, that would be classified as "rape". What would the legal term be for these other coerced acts?


texts: When did U.S. tax code limit the personal Capital Loss Deduction to $3000?

texts:
Beginning in the late 1970s, after capital losses offset capital gains dollar for dollar, the allowable deduction on the IRS 1040 form for capital losses coming from Schedule D was $3000. The same is still true today.
When did the limit on capital losses become $3000?
The second part of the originally posed question has been re-posted on the Politics SE where some had iterated it is better suited:
https://politics.stackexchange.com/questions/61274/more-than-40-years-later-1040-capital-losses-are-still-capped-at-3000-politi


texts: Legal Justification for China not following decision in Philippines v. China

texts:
An award was given by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the case The Republic of the Philippines v. The People’s Republic of China. However, as I knowledge tells me, except internet domain name disputes, all arbitration requires both parties to be agree on the dispute to be resolved by the arbitration tribunal. Therefore, my question comes:

Are China not legally required to follow that decision as China did not agreed to put this case in the court? Or are there any conventions force China to follow that decision?

**I am not really familiar with Public International Law, so please tell me if I have made any mistakes in my question.


texts: Merchant Marine Time Act of 1920 and Puerto Rico - logistical question?

texts:
This questions concerns shipping logistics under the Merchanat Marine Act of 1920 as it applies to the territory of Puerto Rico.

As a hypothetical consider a manufacturing (possibly agricultural processing) plant in Honduras. Suppose the plant is American owned and suppose further the goods being made are owned or being processed for an American company. For simplicity call the company American CO. Quick question

  Can American CO ship directly from a Honduran port to Puerto
      Rico port on any American owned and operated merchant marine ship?

By direct I mean that the American owned and operated ship does not have to traverse back to a continental US port before anchoring into Puerto Rico.


texts: Would it be legal for a US State to ban exports of a natural resource?

texts:
I am interested in whether a US state constitution could be legally amended to ban exports of specific natural resources (such as coal, lithium or copper) outside it's own state borders.

If such a ban were successful, there would presumably be a fusillade of federal lawsuits from entities that had already invested in the mining of export-restricted resources in the state. What damages if succesful, could the state be liable for? Would the state have a defense against such lawsuits such as force majure? I am particularly interested in contract termination damages if a miner had force majure clauses in their contracts with customers.


texts: Do online work in the US if you're not a permanent resident

texts:
Is doing online work (making websites, programming, graphics, writing etc) in the US illegal if you're not a permanent resident and you are on a tourist visa?

Could you do it and get paid on a non-US bank account or PayPal without getting caught? What would be the consequences if caught?

Edit: as a user pointed out in a comment, I didn't specify whether the worker is a contractor or employee and whether the employer is a US person or entity or not. If you could please answer telling about both cases it'd be great.


texts: My employer moved me onto a new payroll. Do I need a new employment contract?

texts:
My boss has moved me onto the payroll for one of his other companies and I am trying to find out if I need a new employment contract.

I was employed for a new start-up of his which did not work out and he has since moved me to the payroll for one of his other companies that I had been doing some work for and am now full time.

I am in the process of looking for a new flat and have been told I may need to provide a copy of my employment contract so I am trying to pre-empt and get documents together, however, my original contract does not match my current payslips.

Secondly, if I do require a new contract. My original contract has the following clause - should I ensure that this clause states that my previous employment counts towards this employment?

  1.2. No employment with a previous employer counts as part of your period of continuous employment with the Company.


texts: Downloading free software directly from my website

texts: is it legal to have free softwares like VLC and Chrome to be download directly from my website? where the user would click o the icon for VLC for example and get the installer download without having to go the website for it.


texts: The use of "otherwise" in law or treaty context

texts:
The word "otherwise" is often seen in some law or treaty provisions.  I am not sure about the use of otherwise and how it is actually used in these contexts. I am not a native speaker of English, and the use of "otherwise" seems different in law or treaty provisions than the use in casual occasions. Can someone explain if it is indeed different and how can I rephrase the "otherwise" to help understand it?

An example from a US tax treaty is like this:

  This article is excepted from the "saving clause" of paragraph 2 of
  the Protocol, so its benefits are available to persons who otherwise
  qualify even if they become U.S. residents.

"Saving clause" is commonly seen in tax treaties. My understanding is that with the "even if" coming later, it basically means the same thing even if without the "otherwise". Am I correct or wrong in this context?