Emotional or therapy animals are not protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act. According to the US DOJ, emotional or therapy animals are not service animals and are not protected. Businesses have the right to question owners of such animals and to request that they leave if they fail to establish entitlement to having a service animal with them.

Businesses should not inquire about the actual disability, but rather the nature of the work the animal is trained to do that the persons disability prevents them from doing. This is often times a "thin ice" proposition, but one that can be traversed. For more information about such animals, please feel free to call us for a free consultation.

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Age discrimination is one of those things that is often difficult to prove decisively. As employees age, many feel that they aren't valued as highly by their employers. In some cases, those feelings are brought about by subtle shifts in attitude; in other cases, however, more obvious evidence exists.

In the recent firing of Sandra Rawline, an escrow officer and branch manager for Capital Title of Texas, Rawline alleges that after refusing to dye her gray hair and make other changes to achieve a younger appearance, she was replaced by a woman who is ten years younger than her.

Continue reading "Was Age Discrimination to blame in the firing of Woman with Gray Hair?" »

An acrimonious divorce proceeding recently exhausted Georgia’s lower court’s jurisdiction. Appeals in the case were subsequently heard by the Supreme Court of Georgia. Avren v. Garten, S11A0064 (2011), the issues under dispute included financial obligations and matters related to child custody.

The noteworthy issue related to child custody dealt with the final decision-making power of the father. The court had awarded him the right to be the last authority on all issues regarding the minor child’s health and all related medical considerations. This decision was presumably based on the father’s employment as a physician. Due to his medical degree, it stood to reason that he would understand medical issues.

Continue reading "Divorce Decree and Child Custody Dispute lands Mother in Contempt" »

Wow the jury got it wrong! Can the State get a do over? That is now the big question in the Casey Anthony case. The answer is no.

Our Bill of Rights says a person prosecuted for any crime can only be tried once. This is referred to the law against Double Jeopardy. Most people have only heard this term from a popular game show. It specifically prohibits the government from repeatedly bringing a citizen to trial on the same or similar charges. This means the government has but one chance to put their best case forward.

No dry runs or practice trials are allowed. Further, if the Government loses, they do not have a right to appeal. This prevents retrials after a not guilty verdict as well. Why then does a guilty person have a right to appeal? Our founding Fathers were very sensitive to the abuses of government power from English courts. They wanted to make sure that history would not repeat itself in our new country.

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For all you Fox News fans, Rupert Murdoch and company are at it again. This time his British “News of the World” publication is under fire for hacking the cell phones of celebrities, murder victims and other crime victims to gather voice mail, text and e-mail messages all to gain a leg up on the competition.

When Murdoch and his son, James Murdoch, first became aware of the situation, they ignored it. Only after the British government threatened to become involved did the publication admit fault and close down. The “news” paper is Britain’s most widely read tabloid and it is believed to have hacked over four thousand (that’s right) victims. Apparently, this seems to be standard operating procedure in England.

Continue reading "Scandal shuts down News of the World after 168 yrs " »

A recent article on Bankrate.com, "Help! I'm a victim of ID theft -- by my wife", highlighted an interesting scenario. A reader under the name "shocked", posed the following question to the Debt Adviser: Dear Debt Adviser,

I just checked my credit report and found my wife opened an account using my name and information. I have never used this account. I didn't apply for this credit. Now the account is delinquent. In your opinion, what is the best way to go about fixing my credit? Author, Steve Buscemi, gave a very detailed answer to the reader in regards to his marriage.

This question made me think about the implications regarding a person going through a bankruptcy or thinking about divorce. I sought answers from Florida Bankruptcy Attorney Audra Simovitch and Palm Beach County Divorce Attorney, Joseph R. Fields.

Continue reading "Unsecured Debt dispute with ex-spouse" »

Not since the O.J. Simpson verdict has a court case grabbed such world wide attention as that of Casey Anthony. The verdict is in, "Not Guilty on Murder Charges" and everyone has an opinion. Hollywood talking heads and "the beautiful people" are Tweeting about the gross miscarriage of justice.

The media and pundits had her convicted before jury selection had even started. Now that they are wrong, they blame the legal system and the jurors themselves. "How could this happen? A little girl is dead! How could this be?"

Well folks it happened. And it happened because the State couldn't prove it's case "beyond a reasonable doubt", the legal standard in THIS country. The jury sat through this case and heard all the evidence. Not Nancy Grace, not Aston Kutcher and certainly not Kim Kardashian!

Twelve civilians from our community were sworn to follow the law and they did just that. The
State proved the Defendant was a liar and the jury convicted her of those charges. There simply was no evidence to connect her to the tragic death of Caylee, not enough to prove the Defendant guilty "beyond a reasonable doubt".

Surely something bad happened but by whom? The Mom? The Dad? The Brother? The Defendant? Someone else? Who knows and we will never know and therein lies the reasonable doubt.

Like it or not, the system worked. As a former Supreme Court Justice once said, "better to free 100 guilty men, than convict one innocent one".

That is the way our legal system works. It was created by a group of our founding fathers who, by all accounts, were much smarter than we are.

Now that I have swept up the remnants of the firecrackers, sparklers and smoke bombs, the crepe paper to decorate the kids’ bikes for the parade have been put away, I reflect on the meaning of July 4th, as an American. Nearly 250 years ago a group of very smart, brave men hatched this wonderful idea now known as democracy. And through great personal sacrifice, put that plan into action.

Our Independence was gained from an oppressive government 235 years ago. And today, the notion of freedom rings loud and clear from our streets to our mountain tops. This thing known as democracy is not an easy thing-it takes hard work, tolerance and sacrifice. How difficult is it for any true red blooded American to stand by and watch our flag get burned in the name of free speech? How tough is it for us to watch our friends and loved ones go to war to protect those very freedoms that many of us take for granted?

Our country is facing some of its biggest challenges now and will for some time to come. But we, as Americans, will and surely must persevere. It is our nature, in the very fiber of our souls, to be free and fight to stay that way. So, while I finish cleaning up the festivities from the celebration of our Independence; I tip my hat, say a prayer and shed a tear for all of those currently and before me that have sacrificed so much. Many gave the ultimate sacrifice, for our freedom that we have; and often take for granted. Lasting memories and cherished freedom that can be passed on to our children and future generations to come.