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1500 questions
13
votes
1 answer
What award can an unpaid independent contractor expect? What are the legal incentives to pay contractors?
I (Washington State, USA) worked, under contract, for an LLC (Los Angeles, California, USA) and never received payment. I was considered an independent contractor; contract specifies Californian jurisdiction. I have limited legal counsel and…
user2206636
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13
votes
4 answers
A witness (former gov't agent) knows top secret USA information. Can a court compel them to reveal the informaton?
A former US federal government employee knows information that was classified as top secret by the federal government. This information is relevant to a case. They were called to testify before the court. This person is not a defendant.
I believe…
Mindwin Remember Monica
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13
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1 answer
What standard of evidence is used for a subpoena of documents in a criminal case? How does it compare to probable cause?
A Website I use received subpoenas from the US Department of Justice for data related to certain specified usernames. What standard of evidence must that subpoena have met and how does it compare to the probable cause required for a search warrant?
moonman239
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13
votes
1 answer
What is the idea behind German courts having both professional judges and lay judges?
In this wiki, it is mentioned that in trial courts there are both professional judges and lay judges involved. What is the basis behind this set up?
tryst with freedom
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13
votes
2 answers
What options are there for executor when no close family member is available?
What alternatives exist for finding and appointing an executor for one's will/estate for a person with no close family or qualified friend? Are there pros and cons?
AA040371
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13
votes
8 answers
Why do blatant copyright infringements not get prosecuted?
I feel like everywhere you go you'll see copyright infringement. When I open social media, people post copyrighted videos and photos all the time. I suppose I'm assuming they've not got permission - but what 30 follower account is able to get…
AnotherUser
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13
votes
3 answers
Are there potential legal considerations in the U.S. when two people work from the same home and use the same internet connection?
Consider the following scenario:
Person A is employed by a large company and has the usual "everything you do while employed by us is owned by us" in their employment contract.
Person B is self-employed and creates intellectual property (here let's…
confused-by-it-all
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13
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1 answer
Fired (seemingly) for finding paycheck inconsistencies. What kind of legal recourse might exist?
Not me, but a friend.
They found some paycheck inconsistencies for them and a bunch of other employees, and asked about it. The response from management was "oh, oops. We'll fix it"
A few days later she came in to fill a shift for someone, but was…
Seph Reed
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13
votes
1 answer
Under what circumstance is it a crime if a car owner allows someone other than themself to drive their car?
In a New Hampshire "driving law test" that I have, there is a question "Under what circumstance is it a crime if a car owner allows someone other than themself to drive their car?" What is the relevant statute if any?
Cicero
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13
votes
1 answer
Why are trials on "Law & Order" in the New York Supreme Court?
On the TV show "Law & Order", when they cut to the trial it's usually accompanied by a chiron (along with the trademark "dun-dun" sound) saying something like "New York State Supreme Court, Part 7". Is this an accurate representation of where trials…
Barmar
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13
votes
1 answer
Can a witness lodge an objection in response to a question?
Suppose that a lawyer asks a question that may breach some court protocol. Is it acceptable for a witness to turn to the judge and say "Objection!" and possibly go on to explain the nature of the objection, whereupon the judge makes a ruling?
chasly - supports Monica
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13
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3 answers
Employee acting illegally on direction from management
I thought of this when reading the Meta case regarding negative testing.
Say a state has a law regarding data-retention of log files for banks.
A manager instructs an employee to wipe drive of logs. The employee is knowledgeable enough to know that…
paulj
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13
votes
2 answers
How exactly does civil asset forfeiture work in the United States?
Civil asset forfeiture is a concept that frequently crops up in the news, e.g. the recent Washington Post article "Drug cops took a college kid’s savings and now 13 police departments want a cut".
Usually, the laws underlying the process are not…
user516
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3 answers
Does a tenured professor whose salary was set to 0 have a case for constructive dismissal?
See https://www.ams.org/journals/notices/202302/rnoti-p196.pdf?adat=February%202023
The head of the Purdue math department set a tenured professor’s salary to 0. This seems very strange to me and I have two questions.
First, does this violate…
user48703
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13
votes
4 answers
Someone gave me an elephant. Isn’t this illegal?
Hypothetical:
Someone gave me an elephant and told me not to give it away or sell it.
I don’t have the capability to take care of this thing. Heck, I don’t have any license or permit for elephants. I’m not a zookeeper or anything.
Isn’t it illegal…
moonman239
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