Once again, New Year’s Day brought us more than resolutions, football games and hangovers: on January 1st, works first published in 1927 that were previously protected by copyright entered the public domain. Once a work becomes part of the public domain, anyone can reproduce it or create derivative works based on it, and then sell those reproductions or derivative works. [...]
Employers and employees alike should be aware of a number of new laws relating to employment. Federal Laws The Speak Out Act prohibits enforcement of nondisclosure and nondisparagement agreements related to sexual harassment or sexual assault that are signed prior to an actual dispute. The Act took effect on December 7, 2022. If you haven’t done so already, don’t forget [...]
Happy Holidays from all of us here at The DuBoff Law Group!
Businesses are understandably upset when they discover that someone is posting negative online reviews or other disparaging comments about their products, services or operations on social media. Some companies have tried to protect themselves against negative reviews by adding clauses to their terms of service and other contracts that prohibit customers from making disparaging comments. Other companies take a different [...]
Although the estate and gift tax exemption for 2022 is $12.06 million per person, meaning a married couple can pass $24.12 million tax-free, this is only temporary. The exemption will automatically revert to $5 million (adjusted for inflation) in 2026 if Congress doesn’t make any changes before then. While there’s no way to know now what revisions (if any) will [...]
When reading documents from your lawyer, you may find a number of legal terms that you don't recognize. Some of the legal terms you're most likely to encounter when involved in a legal dispute are: Mediation, Arbitration, and Trial Mediation is an attempt to settle a legal dispute with the help of an impartial mediator (or referee), who tries to [...]
This year we are truly thankful for our incredible staff who have worked diligently to serve our clients’ needs in this extraordinarily difficult year. We are also grateful for the vaccines that are saving lives throughout the world. While we are still facing many difficulties we are hopeful that the future will be brighter. The celebration of Thanksgiving by this [...]
- Earlier this month, the FTC announced that Vonage will be required to pay $100 million in refunds to consumers harmed by its use of “dark patterns,” make its cancellation process simple and transparent, and stop charging consumers without their consent. close up image of part of the American flag - BenShot, LLC (“BenShot”) and Lucky Shot USA LLC (“Lucky”) [...]
Businesses often want to have a slogan that describes what they’re selling, but in order to be protectable as a trademark, the slogan has to be “distinctive.” That is, it must be used to identify the source of the product or service. If it does not, the slogan “fails to function” as a mark. The Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure [...]
If you or your business hire someone to create work for you, for example, to write a blog post, take some photos, compose a jingle, or design a logo, who owns the copyright in that work? The answer depends upon several factors. Generally, the person who creates a work is considered to be the author of that work under the [...]
