Legal

There are too many situations in which an accident injury can happen. Whether outside or at home, even if you are a careful person, the rest of the world is not as perfect. The only thing you can really do is to protect yourself from the painful consequences of personal injuries and, if anything happens to you, all you can do is claim for personal injury compensation.

All injuries, particularly the severe ones, have more or less traumatic experiences and they can seriously affect both your personal life and work. Such situations can make you a victim in two ways: first by the injury itself as damage to your health and second by the moral, social and material losses following the accident.

You can’t turn back the flow of time and avoid what has already happened but a compensationsecrets.co.uk/personal-injury-compensation.html personal injury claim can compensate you for the rest of your problems.

Bad Experiences?

In the past, many companies offered their services to injured people using harassing and not very honest methods. They intruded accident victims at home, pushed ill people into court cases and sucked their wallets dry regardless of the final verdicts.

Even if a person won their injury claim, they would get only a small piece of the compensation, because these companies took most of their money for their fees and other costs.

They didn’t care about the well being of their clients - only about ‘the profit’. People were bitter and they felt conned by their advisors - and any advisor should be a trustworthy person.

This situation changed with putting the ‘No Win No Fee’ policy into practice. What was even better, the policy evolved into ‘Win Or No Win No Fee’ rule. The new methods for solicitors had changed the form of injury compensation claims and made them what they should be from the very beginning: the help and relief for people suffering from personal injury.

What Does ‘No Win - No Fee’ Policy Really Mean?

Each personal injury compensation claim needs money. The injury has to be assessed and the medical report must be prepared. The court fees and other payments must be paid, too. And finally, the no win no fee solicitor should earn something as well.

But does it mean all these costs ought to be paid by you? Absolutely not! After all, the aftermath of an injury itself is expensive and troublesome enough and you need every penny from your compensation. More than just need: you deserve it!

The deal is simple. First of all: you choose a personal injury solicitor and contact them, not inversely.

If you employ them, the solicitor pays all the fees and bills along the way to your injury claim settlement. They take care of everything. These costs are paid by the solicitor whether you win or lose your compensation claim. They put their money, not your, into the case and they take all the risk. If they lose your claim, you don′t lose a penny - why would you, if they didn′t help you?

If you win, you get 100% of your injury compensation money and the solicitor receives all payments, fees and bills from the losers or their insurance company. This kind of deal is absolutely safe for you and - what is quite logical - it assures you that the personal injury solicitor will do their best to win. As you can see, the ‘No Win No Fee′ method is simple and honest - no hidden costs, no small print, no strings attached.

Any personal injury is a big problem itself. Serious injuries can drastically change your life. But with the right solicitor’s help and later, with the money from successful personal injury compensation claim, you can easily return to the normality.

The health problems, any psychological damage, costs of medical treatment, loss of income, job issues and many others losses may be compensated thanks to a personal injury claim.

It’s easy to claim for compensationsecrets.co.uk/personal-injury-compensation.html personal injury compensation, if you know how. Learn the new injury claim culture at compensationsecrets.co.uk/personal-injury-compensation.html compensationsecrets.co.uk/personal-injury-compensation.html and get a free assessment.

It seems like you can hardly watch the TV news or read the daily newspaper anymore without seeing a report of identity theft or seeing the topic of identity theft coming up as a very hot topic. Although identity theft is not a well-known type of crime, it is one of the fastest growing and insidious crimes in the world today.

Let’s look at a typical case of what happens with identity theft. Very simply, someone opens an account, like a Visa or MasterCard, or perhaps at a major department store, using YOUR name, YOUR social security number, YOUR date of birth. This is all information that supposedly, YOU would be the only one that would know, so it appears legitimate. The address is frequently not your address, but with the frequency that people move these days, a different address seldom throws up a red flag. Since you have good credit, the new account is approved, and the new credit card is mailed to “you” at the address provided on the application.

Now what happens? The thief may repeat the process and open 2-3 or even a dozen or more new accounts. Having the cards in hand, the thief goes out and charges those cards to the hilt, purchasing things like a plasma TV, a high-end computer system, top of the line digital camera, even a late model used car, and much more.

A couple of months down the road, you get a call from the collections department with American Express, Citibank Visa, your local department store, and sometimes even ALL of these. They want to know if there is a problem with your new account, since you have not made any payments to date. Huh? In the vast majority of cases, this is your first indication that you have been a victim of identity theft.

It is not a pretty picture. The lender is going to assume that you are just trying to fabricate a story so you can enjoy all the new toys you bought without having to pay for them. And most of those creditors will get fairly hostile with you, and in the meantime, they are more than happy to start reporting your huge delinquency to the credit bureaus so that your previously sterling credit rating starts going to the dogs in a hurry.

The good news is that the error can be resolved … eventually. But it is going to take months and even years to get your credit rating restored to where it was before, as well as a significant amount of your time and possibly even legal fees. You see, those lenders who approved “your” new account don’t want to take responsibility for merchandise that was purchased and will probably never be found again. The ONLY thing they have to allow them to track it down is your social security number and date of birth, so since that is the only thing they have, they hound you like a pit bull. Unfortunately, they also take the attitude of you being guilty until being presented with irrefutable proof that you are innocent and a victim of identity theft.

Do not take a lax attitude about identity theft because it can happen to you, and I can guarantee that it is significantly less fun than a root canal. There are many steps you can take that will help guard you against identity theft, and you are highly encouraged to take those steps as soon as possible.

Jon is a computer engineer who maintains web sites on a variety of topics based on his knowledge and experience. You can read more about identity theft and preventing identity theft at his web site at identity-theft-info.com/ identity-theft-info.com/

Unfortunately, the incidence of identity theft has skyrocketed in recent years, even with all the attention being given to the situation. While most people know the problem exists, and agree that one should be vigilant in protecting their identity, they tend to think it only happens to other people. The truth of the matter is that identity theft happens about once every minute - so it can happen to anybody.

The sad thing is that there are some very basic steps that could cut down the incidence of identity theft appreciably, if everyone would take them. Here are five tips to help you prevent identity theft from happening to you:

1. Shred any personal documents that you discard, including those credit card offers that seem to flood everybody’s mailbox. While the image most people have of identity thieves is that they perpetrate their crimes while sitting comfortably at a computer, many are not above a little good old dumpster diving in the hopes of ferreting out somebody’s personal info.

2. You can give yourself one less type of document to shred by requesting that those pre-approved credit offers stop being mailed to you. Just call the toll-free number 888-5OPTOUT (888-567-8688).

3. Protect your Social Security number. Don’t give it out unless it’s absolutely necessary. Never give it out over the phone unless you′ve initiated the call, and don’t carry your Social Security card in a wallet or purse. A fire resistant safe at home or a safe deposit box at your bank are the best places for it.

4. Monitor your credit reports and verify that all the information, such as your name and address, employment, open and closed accounts, account activity and inquiries, is correct. You can get one free report per year from each of the three credit reporting agencies- TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian. Request one from a different agency every four months. Go to www.annualcreditreport.com to request your free report.

5. Take care when using the Internet. Create passwords that cannot easily be discovered. Don’t use any words that appear in the dictionary. Be sure that any e-commerce sites you utilize are secure. Look for the closed padlock in the browser, and try to stick to well-known, major sites. Be careful when downloading free programs or files, and be absolutely sure to always have a firewall and anti-spyware program running. An antivirus program is mandatory for many reasons besides identity theft, so have one of those too.

Of course, there’s no way to be absolutely sure one has prevented identity theft. In today’s society, our personal information is recorded in many places, such as government, employment, medical and other records, that we have little to no control over. However, taking the five steps listed above will go a long way towards helping you put the odds in favor of your never having to deal with the scourge of identity theft.

Joe Serpico is webmaster and publisher of the identity-theft-prevention-site.com identity
theft prevention site. For more information on how to deal with and prevent
identity-theft-prevention-site.com/Main-Menu/prevent-identity-theft.php identity theft, please
visit identity-theft-prevention-site.com www.identity-theft-prevention-site.com

1. TOO LATE TO START FILING US AND INTERNATIONAL PATENT
APPLICATIONS.

Unfortunately, for many good technology companies, it may be too late to file for patent protection. The current U.S. rule generally provides applicants with a 1-year grace period during which a patent application must be filed after certain public or private disclosure of the invention. Such disclosure may arise, for example, from a mere “offer for sale” of the technology, even if the product has not yet been built or prototyped. In comparison, the foreign rule, which applies to many industrialized jurisdictions, such as Japan and various European countries, do not give applicants the benefit of any grace period after a public disclosure has occurred. Thus, it is legally compelling for applicants to consider filing for patent protection sooner than later. Although in some situations, there may be some special exception, which still allows for late filings it is not advisable for applicants to count on those exceptions.

2. TOO NARROW LEGAL SCOPE OF CLAIMING PATENTABLE INVENTIONS.

Many issued patents are not commercially valuable because the scope of their submitted claims are particularly narrow, and can be relatively easily avoided by determined competitors. Thus when submitting new patent claim language, applicants should broadly define novel concepts that include potential design-around by other parties. Although this legal blocking strategy sounds easy enough to state as an objective, in fact, the serious exercise of analyzing future competitive and industry directions can be an extremely difficult task, particularly because the analysis often requires sophisticated market understanding, as well as technical and engineering vision.

3. INTERNALLY MISMANAGED PATENT INFRINGEMENT “WILLFULNESS”
EXPOSURE.

Under U.S. patent law, one’s awareness or willful state-of-mind about the existence and infringement of a competitor’s issued patent may significantly affect subsequent legal liability. Thus if a party is proven to be a willful infringer of a known patent, then for punitive policy reasons, economic damages may be awarded to the patent owner up to three times normal recovery amount. This treble-damage exposure is so substantial, that company management should be careful to avoid creating evidence of internal communications such as emails that may be construed later to indicate such willfulness state-of-mind. Additionally in many cases, it may be appropriate for companies as a matter of policy to discourage looking at issued patents owned by other entities. And when a suspect patent is already known, management must take careful steps to refer the matter to competent patent counsel for appropriate analysis and opinion.

4. RELYING SOLELY ON COPYRIGHTS FOR SOFTWARE PROTECTION.

Copyright protection in the U.S. and many other countries arises instantly and at virtually no cost to protect software technologies, such as computer programs, electronic databases, and graphical display screens and related media. In fact, copyright protection is often quite a suitable means to secure much digital media such as video and audio creative works, often even without compliance with copyright registration and notice requirements. Copyright protection, however, is legally vulnerable to reverse engineering efforts by competitors, during which no copyright infringement may arise when the reverse engineering results does not result in literal copying of the original code, but merely an understanding of the underlying ideas and functions. In this vulnerable scenario, perhaps patent protection may be more appropriate to secure any novel algorithm, methods, and computing apparatus.

5. INADVERTENTLY TAINTING I.P.R. WITH 3RD-PARTY CO-OWNERSHIP
RIGHTS.

During the course typically of joint-development engineering projects, ideas may originate from many sources, such as advisors, consultant, employees, and even customers. This collaborative scenario sets the stage for creating intellectual property rights that may be co-owned by multiple parties. And unless the rights of such joint owners are specified up-front, for example by contract terms, then there is a problematic possibility that certain parties later may assert not just their partial ownership interest, but
actually endeavor to offer licensing rights to other 3rd parties or even competitors.

6. IGNORING THE IMPACT OF NEW “FESTO” U.S. SUPREME COURT RULING
RE PATENT AMENDMENTS.

On May 28, 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court (Festo Corp. v. Shoketsu Kinzoku Kogyo Kabushiki Co., Ltd) substantially changed the legal effect of amending patent claims, particularly upon the effective scope of amended claims. This judicial change cannot be ignored without possibly impairing commercial value of many issued U.S. patents, especially where applicants introduce explicit argument that distinguish various prior-art cited by the Patent Examiner. Without getting into the subtle legal and policy complexities associated with the so-called “Doctrine of Equivalents,” the Festo decision and related subsequent federal cases clearly narrow many patent claims scope whenever applicants propose routine amendments to distinguish the claimed invention against cited
prior-art references.

7. UNDERESTIMATING THE IMPORTANCE OF TRADE SECRETS AND
CONFIDENTIALITY.

Since patent protection may not arise for many years until after filing patent applications, and copyright protection may not be applicable to protect functional aspects of various technologies, trade secret protection may serve realistically as a solid backstop against competitive piracy or other misappropriation of company know-how. Thus the importance of diligent use of Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA) and in-house policies and systems to secure confidential and proprietary information rises to a more significant level of management priority. Additionally early disclosures, for example through customer marketing presentations, may irreparably hurt company rights to file domestic or international patent applications.

8. OVERLOOKING LEGITIMATE OPPORTUNITY TO SET-UP OFFSHORE
LICENSING TAX SHELTERS.

Often neglected by early-stage startup companies and entrepreneurs are offshore strategies for mitigating federal tax exposure. Such international tax strategies are especially relevant when foreign licensees of intellectual property rights are contemplated
possibly in the company business plan. In many cases in fact, it is particularly beneficial to deploy one or more corporate entities offshore much sooner, rather than after licensees are identified, in order to minimize certain taxable valuation exposure associated with transferring such licensed rights.

9. RESPONDING SLOWLY TO U.S.P.T.O. OFFICE ACTIONS.

Because the U.S. patent rules now provide 20 years of enforcement patent protection, after the U.S. filing date, it is important to expedite the claim amendment and application prosecution process otherwise applicant’s enforcement period is effectively eroded by unnecessary delays in the process. Accordingly, applicants should endeavor to respond in timely fashion, expediting all office action responses and facilitating, communications with patent counsel whenever possible. Additionally, the new patent rules actually apply a time penalty to deduct enforcement period against issued U.S. patents in certain situations where applicants contribute to delays during patent
prosecution.

10. OVER/UNDER-SPENDING ON LEGAL FEES TO PROSECUTE PATENT
APPLICATIONS.

In the realistic context of the current economic recession especially in Silicon Valley, startup companies and entrepreneurs who are strapped for cash may negotiate for substantial fee discounts from patent counsel to prepare and file patent applications. However, patent applicants should be careful to ensure that most qualified legal counsel in terms of technical and business experience are selected and engaged to work on critical
company inventions, perhaps with bottom-line pricing being just one of a number of significant factors to consider.

Dennis has over twenty-years experience in Silicon Valley and High-Tech Industry, as a patent prosecutor and intellectual property litigator, a venture capitalist, and an engineering manager. He specializes in developing offensive and defensive patent strategies for start-up electronics, software and biotech companies and their investors.

Dennis serves as strategic advisor to leading venture capital firms. He is also on the Editorial Board of the Nanotechnology Law & Business Journal, the Board of Directors of the Association of Patent Law Firms, and the Science and Technology Advisory Council. Previously Dennis served on a consultancy with the United Nations Development Program on Asian economic development.

Dennis is also an inventor of several U.S. and international patents in the areas of digital television, sensor networks, and bioinformatics. He has an Electrical Engineering degree from Northwestern University, a law degree from Suffolk University Law School , and is a Registered U.S. Patent Attorney.

A recent white paper released by McAfee entitled “Identity Theft” shows that there has been a dramatic increase in the cases of computer-based identity theft.

In particular, there has been a dramatic rise in the number of keyloggers used to extract information from unwitting victims. The keylogger is a piece of software which, when on your computer, will log every key stroke that you make including your personal user names, ID’s, pin numbers and passwords. This of course means that should you be a victim, criminals can take your personal data and identity and use it for their own purposes, which usually means extorting money from your financial accounts or taking out credit using your identity on their own behalf.

Additionally, the Anti-Phishing Working Group has had a huge number of increased reports of Phishing Alerts between 2004 and 2006. Sadly many phishing attacks are successful and it only takes a very small percentage of criminal success in order for significant monetary sums to be extorted.

Luckily, all is not lost and the White Paper (which can be found at

The production and selling of substandard and defective products is one of the causes of various personal injuries in the United States. However, the personal injury law provisions which govern these cases are somehow more simple and undemanding than any other injury statute. This further allows the injury victims to easily obtain monetary damages from the product manufacturer or seller. Furthermore, the “Product Liability law” affirmed that the product manufacturers, distributors, retailers and manufacturers of product components may have the liability in handing over dangerous goods which brought about injuries to the consumers. Hence, the product producers and distributors should meet the regular expectations of their customers regarding their products.

On the other hand, the liability theory states that the victims who are filing their product liability claims must prove to the court that they have indeed bought a defective product which caused them injuries. The following are the types of defects which can impose sanctions to the product manufacturers and sellers:

• Design defects – these flaws are considered as inherent to the product before it was assembled or produced. This has something to do about the product design which make it unsafe for public use or consumption. This is why the manufacturers should see to it that the product design should be well-planned and structured.

• Manufacturing defects – these defects come along with the product assembly. Any imperfections and misalignment, therefore, in following the designer or manufacturer’s product specifications and standards can be utilized by the victims to prove the guilt of the company. Usually, the victims should prove to the court that they should not have their injury if not for the negligence of the manufacturer or if the “strict liability rule” is applicable they just have to prove that the product is indeed defective.

• Marketing defects – these flaws resulted to the improper way of selling the products. These further include product mislabeling and the failure to make such warning about the possible risk in utilizing their products.

But then again, like in any other legal case in which the defendants are given their time to explain their sides, the product manufacturers or distributors may point out that the victims’ alteration of the product really caused it to malfunction or inflict harm to them.

In this sense, the victims may decide on seeking legal advice from a professional product liability lawyer to evaluate their cases and teach them how to answer questions which might be raise by the manufacturers. With the sufficient understanding of the existing laws on product liability and techniques on how to go along with the opponents’ defense strategies, an expert legal can easily provide justice to their clients’ claim cases. This will entitle the victims to acquire monetary compensation from the liable product manufacturers.

Our personalinjurylawyerinc.com/ Los Angeles Personal Injury Lawyers very competent in handling personalinjurylawyerinc.com/Product-Liability-Claims.html Product liability claims.

1. You’re alive.

Some victims of malpractice don’t survive and die as a result of injuries inflicted on them.

2. You can walk.

Some malpractice victims lose the ability to walk. Having this freedom is something we all take for granted each day.

3. You can talk.

The ability to speak and communicate is priceless. Those people who have had brain tumors or neurological injuries are speech impaired. They struggle every day to make their wishes known.

4. You can tie your shoes.

Believe it or not, this simple act becomes impossible when our muscle and nerve groups are disabled. We teach our young kids how to tie their own shoes, and it gives them a sense of independence. When we can no longer tie our own shoes because of malpractice, our daily lives have been affected.

5. You can eat.

Being able to eat independently is incredible. Many elderly folks can no longer eat by themselves and need help. Then again, some malpractice victims cannot eat on their own and need a feeding tube, or assitance with getting the proper nutrition.

6. You can see.

Our sight is another sensory device we all take for granted. Some people lose their sight from causes unrelated to malpractice. However, there are a number of cases where I have seen malpractice victims lose their sight directly due to malpractice. Having sight and then losing it is much worse than never having it at all.

7. You can recognize your family.

Some malpractice victims lose the ability to recognize their friends and family- just like alzheimer victims. They live in a shell where they no longer have the ability to understand who is familiar and who is not.

We should all be thankful for what we can do and accomplish each day of our lives. When we look at malpractice victims and their serious injuries, we are able to point out what part of their life has been taken from them- not what they have left, but what’s been taken from them. That’s the true measure of damages.

Attorney Oginski has been in practice for 17 years as a trial lawyer practicing exclusively in the State of New York. Having his own law firm, he is able to provide the utmost in personalized, individualized attention to each and every client. In our office, a client is not a file number. Client’s are always treated with the respect they deserve and expect from a professional. Mr. Oginski is always aware of every aspect of a client’s case from start to finish.

Gerry represents injured people in injury cases and medical malpractice matters in Brooklyn, Queens, New York City, the Bronx, Staten Island, Nassau and Suffolk Counties. You can reach him at oginski-law.com oginski-law.com, or 516-487-8207. All inquiries are free and totally confidential.

To many involved in criminal dense, cyber crime is the bane of the 21st Century. It accounts for millions in ill-gotten earnings each year. Vast criminal networks spanning the global are now actively involved in cyber crimes of one sort or another. The potential for future earnings is almost unlimited and the relatively safety that the Internet provider cyber criminals means that it is extremely hard to catch. Victims mount up. However, things were not always this way.

In the early days of cyber crime the world of cyber crime was seen as a rather harmless prank by computer geeks showing off how much they knew about the working of computer networks. It was tantamount to a dare, you say it cannot be done and we will show you how it can. Relatively little harm was intended and criminal defense lawyers did not have their work cut-out showing this. Indeed, few if any specific criminal laws were on the statutes that regulated cyber crimes in the early days and most of the criminal defenses were bog-standard.

As times changed, so did the nature of the cyber crime. More technological advances and cheaper access to hardware and software meant that the Internet became a domain anyone could access. More sinister fraud came to the attention of the authorities. Child related crimes, such as child pornography, became known widely. With the escalation of the criminal element of the cyber crime, new laws were needed and specialist criminal defense lawyers were required.

However, even only as recently as the last five years cyber crime was still controllable. Cyber crime was not a major revenue earner for criminal gangs in the late 20th Century. It has only been since the millennium that things have changed.

Nonetheless, without globally implement criminal sanctions in place against the actions of cyber criminals, the ultimate criminal defense still exists, namely jurisdiction. Unlike a crime committed in the real world, it is physically possible for a criminal to be in two places at once when it comes to cyber crimes. You can commit a crime in the US while you sit comfortably in your apartment in Russia. Consequently, universal laws will be needed if a criminal defense mechanism is going to be put in place to combat these growing problems.

Fortunately for the cyber criminal another perfect criminal defense still remains, the apathy of government to unite to combat this growing problem.

Review more research articles by Emily GABLE at criminallawyergroup.com/ Criminal Lawyer Group with criminallawyergroup.com/criminal-background-check/ Free Criminal Background Check Service She is assistant secretary of Criminal Lawyer Group (CLG) an online organization consisting of submitted lawyers who are also volunteered writers about dealing with criminal defense, sex crimes, felony, juvenile, misdemeanor, theft, murder, burglary, drug crimes.

Advertising is a relatively recent development in the legal profession, and not all law firms engage in it today. Nonetheless, it is advisable for every law firm to take note of the important resource the internet has become to consumers seeking products and services. Computers are a household standard, and the internet provides information on every profession, in formats from simple ‘yellow page’ listings to proprietary web pages with audio and video presentations. Even among lawyers and firms that chose not to advertise, the importance of the internet as a consumer resource should not be overlooked.

There is a large assortment of online listing vehicles for attorneys. A lawyer seeking to be included in commercial online attorney listings could pay to have his or her name inserted in such sites as findlaw.com, lawinfo.com, lawyers.com, or the many ‘yellow pages′ services now online. There are at least four national listing services for personal injury attorneys, and others for family law, criminal law and so forth. Association membership is a vehicle for specialty listings: the Consumer Attorneys Association, the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, The Council of Parent Attorneys, etc.

Then there are the localized ecommerce service listings for regions that are just as aggressive in seeking exposure on the search engines. In short, an attorney could make a significant investment in listing services alone. However, a simple listing is a hit-and-miss proposition: there is nothing in a mere listing that invites interest from the shopper. A personalized web site for an attorney or a law firm is the highest and best use of the internet.

A law firm with its own hosted website can accomplish a number of things. Most people who are conducting a random search for an attorney are probably somewhat frightened, not certain of the law regarding their problem, and concerned about cost. Moreover, there exists today a widespread skepticism about attorneys, especially among the uninitiated. A hosted website can ease some of those uncertainties, and thus invite contact from the potential client.

The website can describe the firm’s areas of legal focus. It can act as an educational tool, explaining the basics of selected areas of law and suggesting some initial steps for the potential client. Eventually the client will end up in a lawyer’s office somewhere, so providing some initial online education will give the law firm a benign and positive first impression.

A hosted website can provide and email template for an initial inquiry or invite a telephone call, ‘no strings attached’. The website can suggest a few online sources that provide detailed explanations of various legal specialties. Finally, the law firm’s web site can address the issue of payment and explain any options that might be available in that area.

As with other forms of media, defense and personal injury attorneys are the most likely to be found using the web as an advertising service. Most law firms with other sorts of specialties that use hosted websites tend to be a little more subtle, stressing the firm’s longevity or stability, its successes and perhaps providing biographies of the firm’s principal members.

A hosted web site can be an effective introductory tool for an attorney or a law firm. It can provide an initial level of comfort with the firm before any personal inquiries need be made. It can establish the firm’s credentials in its chosen areas of legal specialization and it can make the process of initial contact a comfortable one by explaining how and when fee structures are applied.

Connecting a potential client with a hosted web site can, in part, be a function of the site through the use of keyword optimization. But it is probably more practical to assume that the initial reference will come from some other, more common source such as a former client or the local bar association. At that point, the hosted attorney’s website becomes an effective outreach tool, minimizing the intimidating effect of a simple telephone number and a downtown address.

Madison Lockwood is a customer relations associate for ApolloHosting.com. She brings years of experience as a small business consultant to helping prospective clients understand the ways in which a website may benefit them both personally and professionally. Apollo Hosting provides apollohosting.com website hosting, apollohosting.com/e-commerce ecommerce hosting, apollohosting.com/virtualprivateservers vps hosting, and web design services to a wide range of customers. Established in 1999, Apollo prides itself on the highest levels of customer support.

Unless you’ve been on vacation all summer, the brawl between Google and Microsoft should be old news. New developments, however, have occurred with publication of the non-compete agreement signed by Kai-Fu Lee.

Google v. Microsoft

Earlier this year, Kai-Fu Lee quit Microsoft to go work for Google. In doing so, Lee allegedly violated a non-compete agreement he had signed with Microsoft. Predictably, Microsoft sued Lee to prevent the move and the brawl began. Microsoft landed the first punch by getting a temporary restraining order preventing Lee from working for Google until the case is resolved.

Non-Compete Language

As matters have moved forward, the language in the non-compete agreement has become public knowledge. Generally, Lee agreed not to work for a major competitor of Microsoft if he left the company for a period of one year. The specifics of the language, however, are grossly entertaining

In signing the non-compete agreement, Lee agreed:

1. “…not to accept employment or engage in activities competitive with products, services or projects…of Microsoft…I worked on or …learned confidential or proprietary information or trade secrets while employed.”

2. All litigation arising from the non-compete agreement would occur in the State of Washington.

Mr. Lee and Google have a serious problem. California courts rarely enforce non-compete agreements, while Washington courts do. Since Microsoft sued first and Lee specifically agreed to Washington jurisdiction, this case should remain in Washington. Google is trying to move jurisdiction to California, but Microsoft beat it to the punch. Google’s attorneys simply blew it.

Prediction

Predictions in legal disputes are iffy at best, but Mr. Lee and Google have really fallen on their face in this one. Why they didn’t sue Microsoft in California court before Microsoft could react is mind boggling. The deck is now stacked heavily in favor of Microsoft and you can expect an outright victory for Microsoft or a settlement on terms set by the company.

Richard A. Chapo is a San Diego business lawyer with sandiegobusinesslawfirm.com sandiegobusinesslawfirm.com - providing legal services and legal advice to businesses in San Diego, California.