As the title says, am I allowed to use other web applications from my own one (to generate data or to convert files), even though they don't provide an API (which I had to build myself), as long as their terms don't explicitly forbid such behavior?

I know it is a short description, but the question really is that simple.
I could not find the answer elsewhere.

Thank you in advance.

Using web apps from my web app


Most news sites and tech blogs provide only a summary in their rss feeds. If I write a script that scrapes their website and extracts some useful data, can I share the script as open source. Does it depend on each and every website and needs prior permission? If scraping is not allowed without permission, who is guilty, the person who wrote the script or the one who used them?

Note 1: I am not redistributing website's content, just sharing the script that helps to read the content in different form. I am specifically interested in Indian and US Law.

Note 2: The script may be specific to particular website and may access data that is accessible only with user's login credentials.

Note 3: script means a program or software application

E.g nytimes offer subscription offer at $3.5 a week for web+smartphone access. But for tablet access, it is $5.00 a week. Can I sell an app for tablet that parses the page from the web interface and converts it to tablet friendly format. The app will use login credentials from the user to login using a virtual browser to download the content and format it such that it is better readable in tablet? Do I have to get permission from nytimes to sell the app? I don't care about this special case but in general can the provider legally restrict how the content is consumed by the end user.

Is it legal to share a script that scrapes a website and presents in a different format?


Lot of companies in the world use Java including the company I work for. AFAIK there is no licensing deal and we use most of the Java packages for which Oracle sued Google. So can Oracle sue any company which is using Java and making profit? If not, then why only Google is being targeted?

Oracle vs Google: Can Oracle sue any company who is using Java and making profit?


[![Windows 10 Setup 1909 Legal Agreement](https://i.stack.imgur.com/a2KGk.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/a2KGk.png)

The Windows 10 1909 November setup license agreement has a provision which seems to suggest Microsoft must provide Canadians with the ability to entirely disable updates. Is there such a law?

Does Canada Have A Law Against Automatic Software Updates?


I am unable to pick up my final paycheck from my employer immediately. How long do I have under federal law to retrieve my paycheck before my employer is no longer bound to honor it?

How long must an employer hold a paycheck?


I was fired for not showing up to work as ordered. This is after explaining to my boss over the phone that I have [Typhoid](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typhoid_fever), and working with food would endanger the guests to the restaurant/arcade at which I work.

Do I have any recourse at all in this situation? As it stands, I should've just went to work anyway. This is a followup to this question: [*May I legally work in a restaurant with typhoid if the employer knows?*](https://law.stackexchange.com/q/32298/2414)

I was fired for refusing to work with Typhoid, do I have any recourse?


I am curious as to whether there is any precedent in the U.S. regarding the level of scrutiny applied to 14th amendment claims against statutes that hinder a person's ability to engage in scientific research. In particular, whether the courts have deemed the right to engage in science as "inherent in the concept of ordered liberty" or "deeply rooted in our country's history and tradition." It seems plausible to me that a case could be made for this, which would raise the level of scrutiny above rational basis.

Is the right to engage in scientific inquiry a fundamental right?


Say someone applies for a loan and they get the loan. Afterwards the lender wants to see proof of income, but the lendee denies and refuses to provide any proof after the fact. Given that it's after and not before, is there any difference in legal routes? If one refuses to provide proof of income before receiving any money, it's obvious that the lender can just not give it and not care -- but what about after the loan was given? Can they legally demand you provide proof after they give money?

Are you required by law to do so then? If you refuse, would they cancel your account and make this a civil/term based account termination -- or is this actually an entire criminal suit to unfold?

Because it's very easy to say no and avoid giving proof, but saying no isn't proof of being guilty yet.

Realistically, how far could this turn serious if the lender demanded and the lendee refused?

Is it illegal to refuse to provide proof of income after receiving a loan/credit?


I'm planning to sell my house. I have a pool table that is too heavy and old . . . so I want to leave it as a bonus.

However, now that I think about it, I'm concerned. What if this table breaks, and somebody gets injured. It never broke on me, but still this is not a part of the house. So just in case , when i sell the house . . .what if this table falls apart and the new owners get injury , will that be my problem?

Should I ask the buyers sign a liability waiver? Do I have any responsibility for what happens after I sell the house. I also have an outdoor shed. Also a bonus . . .

Will I have any responsibility for what happens in my house after I sell it?


I have been in alot of trouble with police lately doing illegal actions to catch criminals. I was thinking of trying something else but I want to make sure that it is legal to do this stuff and what I need to avoid.

I've been watching alot of YouTube videos of people catching pedophiles in person through online communication. I want to do similar but stay on the right side of the law.

So is it legal to pretend to be an age you are not on websites that require you to be a certain age. Although this may breech their terms and conditions will it be enough to get me in trouble with the police.

Also when looking for pedophiles what do I need to be aware of. When does it go too far and what should I avoid doing to not get myself into trouble but to gather as much evidence against a person

*Living in the UK BTW*

Is it legal to pretend to be under a certain age to catch pedophiles


I filled out a w4 upon hire and employer never took taxes out of my check. Is it legal for them to have a w4 on file and not take taxes out your paycheck?

---

ETA: Exempt was not specified on the W-4 and no taxes were taken out of the paychecks at all.

W-4 filled out, no taxes take out of paycheck?


Imagine hiring an artist to view a series of photographs of a famous celebrity or corporate executive - John doe, for example - then create an original drawing - not a **derivative**, but a unique work of art that's legal.

Now imagine selling some of your artwork on a website. Maybe you have a separate web page with the heading "Pictures of John Doe," featuring half a dozen pictures the artist created for you.

Again, each individual image is legal; you can personally use them on your website or in a book. I assume it would also be legal to allow others to use them free of charge; you could put them in the public domain or license them under Creative Commons, for example.

But can you legally charge a fee for such pictures?

Selling pictures of famous people


is it legal for employers to ask for social media handles in job application or pre-employment forms? If it is unrelated to the job?

I understand for jobs like marketing, modeling etc. where a large social media following increases the cash flow, in that case it makes sense to ask for the handles as the person will be a face of the company. Hence the request and assessment could be written under job requirement.

But for a position completely unrelated to one's social media presence, is it legal?

Looking at North America and Europe ; Canada, USA, Germany

Is it legal for employers to ask for social media handles?


I was wondering if manufacturers of any country are legally bound to print the true origin of the product while exporting to other country? If yes, who makes sure they are printing the real origin of the product?

What stops Chinese companies from printing “Made in US” on their products?


I am involved in a nasty domestic dispute with a family member.
This domestic dispute involves my knowledge of criminal activity by persons X, Y and Z. I reported this criminal activity to my local police department.

One of my family members is married to person X and became very upset when told that I had reported this information to the police. My family member sent me the following text message:

>
> You are messing with the wrong people. Person X is going to come after you bad. You have made a lot of people very angry. I would watch my back if I were you.
>
>
>

Is this remark a criminal threat against me?

Should I report it to the police?

Is this a criminal threat?


I read on the internet that one can sell, **online**, less than 25 troy ounces of gold Maple Leaf coins without reporting the sale to the IRS. Is this true? Is this over a calendar year?

Capital gains from bullion sales


I am writing a mobile app, and at the heart of it, I need to be able to leverage a large amount of food recipes. If I just scrape the internet and grab all of the recipes that I come across, is this legal? I've seen some different things with regards to whether or not a recipe can be copyrighted, but I'm still not totally clear on that. From what I've gathered, it seems like if a recipe is just a list of ingredients, then it cannot be copyrighted. However, if a recipe contains some sort of proprietary or new technique, then that particular technique could be copyrighted.

I just want to ensure that the method I use to get the recipes is totally legal.

Are recipes public domain?


[§ 5 of the Telemediengesetz (German)](http://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/tmg/__5.html) lists what, for instance, website providers have to include in the typically called [*Impressum*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impressum#Webpages) of the website.

The second sentence of (1) is:

>
> Angaben, die eine schnelle elektronische Kontaktaufnahme und unmittelbare Kommunikation mit ihnen ermöglichen, einschließlich der Adresse der elektronischen Post,
>
>
>

Which [according to cgerli.org](http://www.cgerli.org/index.php?id=50&tx_vmdocumentsearch_pi2%5BdocID%5D=1438) ([PDF](http://www.cgerli.org/fileadmin/user_upload/interne_Dokumente/Legislation/Telemedia_Act__TMA_.pdf)) translates to:

>
> details which permit rapid electronic contact and direct communication with them, including the electronic mail address,
>
>
>

**Does the term *elektronische Post* (which translates to *electronic mail*) necessarily mean email (via SMTP)?**

Of course one would immediately think of email (and some might use this term as synonym for "E-Mail", but it’s not really idiomatic), but then why doesn’t it say "E-Mail" or "SMTP"?

Because it doesn’t explicitly say so, my assumption is that it doesn’t *have* to be an email address, but just some address that allows to communicate electronically. Like a term for a category of communication protocols (i.e., protocols which allow to send messages in electronic form) instead of refering to the specific [SMTP](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simple_Mail_Transfer_Protocol). (Which would make sense, because email might lose popularity, and then the law wouldn’t have to be updated.)

So, *must* it be an email address ([RFC 6068](https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc6068)) or *may* it be an address for a different protocol that allows to send/receive messages in the Internet?

Is "elektronische Post" (§ 5 Telemediengesetz) necessarily email?


According to the answers to [Are county clerks exempt from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964?](https://law.stackexchange.com/questions/3455/are-county-clerks-exempt-from-title-vii-of-the-civil-rights-act-of-1964), elected officials of pretty much any sort are exempted from the protections offered citizens under Title VII. But it seems that without this protection, municipalities could enact laws such as "no Muslim or person with a physical or mental disability may hold an elected position."

Something clearly protects this from happening. Yes, it is a violation of the constitution, but from my understanding laws are what establish protections against constitutional violations.

If elected officials are exempt from CRA Title VII, what protects their civil rights?


I do know that in the US, bank-account interests are taxable as passive incomes, but what I don't understand is the point of filing tax returns on bank account interests, since the government (or the IRS), or whatever, has access to bank accounts and can directly deduct taxes (not seizing, I'm not talking about unpaid taxes or fraud istances), without henceforth requiring a tax return filing, since they could deduct the money themselves.

Filing US tax returns over bank account-related interests


Can you read, not aloud, copyrighted material eg. Books, scientific papers in public eg bus, airplane, cafe, where other people can potentially read it/take picture?

Reading books in public, copyright


I submitted a conference talk based in a movie, with the title being a spin-off of the movie title (applied to a technical domain). I have since discovered that there is already a talk form last year with a very similar title, but even though there is this similarity my abstract and the other author's are completely different (and the topics are not quite the same, even though the domain is similar).

In result of this I got a cease and desist letter from a lawyer over copyright infringement that seems a bit preposterous. Could an accusation like this have any legal grounds?

Is a cease and desist because of a conference talk valid?


Firstly, I apologize for any brevity in my question and description. I'm under a NDA and can't really give out specifics.

A company in the Netherlands is saying that it would not be lawful for them to locate their primary data storage (specifically, supplier and part information) internationally in the United States, underneath a parent company. From all of my research I have not been able to find any evidence that this would be illegal.

Would anybody be able to give any advice on this?

Restrictions on international data storage?


The Question:
-------------

In many legal documents, there is a section for you to sign where you declare that the document is correct to the best of your knowledge. If something small or relatively unimportant is incorrect in the document, would you sign it?

Some Context:
-------------

I'm completing a loan application where both I and my wife are joint applicants. Included in the document is a table showing our current debts, which is mostly our mortgage. The table also has a mark on each row indicating if the debt belongs to the primary applicant (me) or the "other" applicant (my wife) and then a "total", which is the sum of all the debts. For some reason, the table lists the mortgage for me, and then again for my wife, so the total is about 2x what it should be (a large sum). I informed the loan officer that this was incorrect and did not reflect the actual debt that we carry. They indicated that they cannot change it because the table is auto-populated using data pulled from our credit report and the mortgage is listed twice because both of our names are on the mortgage. Instead they countered that many people sign this and that it isn't all that important because I'm just disclosing my debt. So I offered to not sign that portion since it was so unimportant. They obviously would not allow that.

I understand that the purpose of this section was to say "hey, here's all my debts, I'm not stretching myself too thin." So if my reported debt is high and the bank is willing to give me a loan anyway, then this section of the document shouldn't matter to me. However, I don't feel comfortable signing a legal document saying "this is all correct" when I know it isn't correct. Am I being unrealistic?

How strict should I be with "to the best of my knowledge"?


Can anyone use this law to sue the US for killing people in Iraq for example?

JASTA law, Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act. What's next?


I don't understand the bold text in the [OATPA 1861](http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Vict/24-25/100/contents).

1. How is s. 18 "in at least one respect, broader than section 20"?
2. Are there more respects than just "one respect"? How many exactly? What are they?

Herring, [*Criminal Law: Text, Cases, and Materials* (8 edn, 2018)](https://global.oup.com/academic/product/criminal-law-9780198811817?cc=ca&lang=en&). p. 372.

>
> offence under section 47 because it may not be easy to demonstrate that there was a battery
>  or an assault?251
>  Although the Law Commission252 and many commentators are convinced by these
>  arguments there are a few commentators who are willing to stand up for the Offences
>  Against the Person Act 1861. One of the strongest defences of the Act is provided by John
>  Gardner. In the following extract, he replies to some of the objections mentioned previously.
>  He starts by challenging the claim that the Act is irrational:
>
>
> ### J. Gardner, ‘Rationality and the Rule of Law in Offences against the Person’ (1994) 53 *Cambridge Law Journal* 502 at 503–11
>
>
>
> >
> > The rationality argument figures less prominently in the Law Commission’s latest report
> >  than it does in the consultation paper which preceded it. One can only speculate as to the
> >  causes of its demotion, but its spirit certainly lives on in the draft Bill. The spirit of the argument
> >  is captured in the Commission’s comment that ‘sections 18, 20 and 47 of the 1861
> >  Act . . . were not drafted with a view to setting out the various offences with which they deal
> >  in a logical or graded manner’. The assumption is that the three offences can, in substance,
> >  be graded, and that this would be the logical way to define and organise them. Between
> >  them they deal with matters which would most naturally be dealt with in a hierarchy of more
> >  and less serious offences all conforming to a standard definitional pattern. The irrationality
> >  of the 1861 Act lies in its failure to take this natural path, its failure to carry the underlying
> >  hierarchy of seriousness over into the actual definition and organisation of the offences.
> >  Thus, section 18 should be regarded, in substance, as an aggravated version of section 20;
> >  and yet there are miscellaneous differences between the two sections which do not appear
> >  to bear any rational relation to the aggravation. Likewise, section 20 should be regarded, in
> >  substance, as the more serious cousin of section 47; and yet the two offences are drafted
> >  in quite different terms, so that the essential difference in point of seriousness is obscured
> >  by a mass of other, utterly irrelevant differences. If the sections were properly graded in
> >  definition as they are in substance, then section 18 would surely cover a narrower class of
> >  cases than section 20 which would cover a narrower class of cases than section 47; and
> >  **yet section 47 is, in at least one respect, the narrowest offence of the three, while section
> >  18 is, in at least one respect, broader than section 20**. That is surely irrational. The law on
> >  such matters should be thoroughly governed, in the Law Commission’s words, ‘by clear
> >  distinctions . . . between serious and less serious cases’.
> >  That a section 18 offence should be regarded, in substance, as a more serious version of
> >  a section 20 offence is easy enough to understand. Section 20 covers malicious wounding
> >  and the malicious infliction of grievous bodily harm. Section 18 covers malicious wounding
> >  and maliciously causing grievous bodily harm, when these things are done with intention to
> >  do grievous bodily harm or to prevent or resist arrest. The extra element of intention required
> >  for a section 18 offence obviously accounts for the difference between the sentencing
> >  maxima (five years’ imprisonment under section 20 and life under section 18), and marks a
> >  difference in point of seriousness (or potential seriousness) which the Law Commission is
> >  rightly anxious to retain in its hierarchy of replacement offences. The Commission has not
> >  even felt the need to explain its decision, however, to eliminate the difference in the causal
> >  elements of sections 18 and 20. Section 20 requires that grievous bodily harm be inflicted,
> >
> >
> >
>
>
> 251 In fact, in the light of *DPP v K* [1990] 1 All ER 331 there is likely to be a battery.
>
>  252 Law Commission (2014).
>
>
>

Offences Against the Person Act 1861 — How is Section 18 , in at least one respect broader than Section 20?


I work for an international organization that is organizing a conference that will have around 3,000 people in attendance. To illustrate certain points in our presentation, we wanted to include trailers for certain movies. However, the studios told us that we weren't allowed to use them. Thus, we would like to show the official poster of the movie on our powerpoint presentation. This is a non-commercial conference about work safety and prevention.

Would we get into trouble for using the movie posters?

Thank you

Copyright infringement for using a movie poster at a non-commercial conference?


The two seem very similar in purpose. Here is an example of one each:

<https://www.lawinsider.com/clause/no-strict-construction>

>
> No Strict Construction. The language used in this Agreement will be
>  deemed to be the language chosen by the parties to express their
>  mutual intent, and no rules of strict construction will be applied
>  against any party.
>
>
>

<https://www.lawinsider.com/clause/contra-proferentem>

>
> Contra Proferentem. Each provision of this Deed will be interpreted
>  without disadvantage to the party who (or whose representative)
>  drafted that provision.
>
>
>

Does "strict construction" usually mean "don't consider context as much as you usually would when interpreting this document"?

What's the difference between "no strict construction" and "contra proferentem" clauses in contracts?


Was watching John Oliver last night and he had a whole feature on the Equal Rights Amendment. What is the point? Are there any current statutes that could be affect by this amendment, anywhere? We have seen what has happened in the past, like with that stupid right to bear arms, and how that has been misapplied.

Will the equal rights amendment actually have an effect on any existing statute?


I am a student just doing some freelance work over my summer break. I call myself a web "designer" as people in my country are more used to that term when they want a website created. I develop websites according to my client's needs using free GNU licensed themes. I let my clients know that I use free templates and do not charge very much. In my website, I want to show the work I have done in my portfolio (somewhat claiming that I designed the websites). However, I did not design any of the themes I use. Is this illegal? Will it still be illegal if I state that I did not design any of those websites myself but I'm merely a developer using themes? Thanks!

Web Developer Portflolio Using Themes


I am hoping to find a list of companies that aggressively sue or have sued over copyright infringement. For example, a quick Google search shows a number of lawsuits by Disney.

Does anyone know where to find such a list?

Where can I find a list of companies that aggressively sue over copyright infringement?


**B** has a contract with **C** that states:

1. **B** will design a building for **C**; and
2. **C** will indemnify **B** in respect of losses resulting from negligence in design.

**B** proceeds to design the building.

Roof tiles used, were not compliant with **B**'s design. **B** has warned this to C's client who insisted to use heavier tiles.
Is it a breach of contract by **C** -not using the tiles as designed by **B** or **B**'s contract with **C** has been discharged by performing the design?

Contractual liabilities - breach - discharge of contract


Say I apply at McDonald's and give the conditions that I wish to work under:

1.No income is withheld from me -- **thus I am self-employed**.

2.I work like every other worker, **but get paid a fixed amount agreed upon**.

3.I am responsible for taxes myself.

4.I ask specifically for **no benefits other than money**.

5.It could be contract-based, but doesn't exactly have to be.

Could an employer legally do this?

Is it legal to hire an employee, but pay them as a free agent?


I am designing a poster for my school competition but I am concern about the legality regarding the usage of online pictures. Most of them are under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 and I know what each term roughly means.

However I am still very new to all these and will like to confirm that using them for my poster design competition is considered sharing and not commercial.

In addition, under attribution (BY), do I need to give credit to the pictures on my poster? I think it will look really unglamorous to include the source for each of these pictures on my poster and wondering whether I can get away legally without including them.

What kinds of pictures can I used for my poster without violating copyright laws?


I made a mod for this free online indie web-browser game. A snapshot of the website 2 weeks ago on waybackmachine.com shows no copyright logo or Terms of Service anywhere on the page saying it's copyrighted. The developer of the game found out about my mod and tweeted that he would get it shut down. The developer has since put up a Terms of Service on the game's website that says all works are copyrighted and modifying the game is illegal. He then contacted google and got my mod taken down and I received a copyright strike on the chrome extensions store.

I don't really care about the mod anymore but can I get into legal trouble for this?

Edit: I should also add that the mod I made was free and the game is also free to play.

Can someone claim copyright infringement after-the-fact?


This may sound trivial at first, but if I want to cite something online or want to reference it in any other way, I sometimes find that the authors leave a "cite as" part under the content which may or may not have a certain order of fields such as "author", "title", "date" or a certain typesetting.

My question is whether I have to reproduce these patterns or whether it is enough to give the fields for example in the order "author", "date", "title".

Are "cite as" sections obligatory?


If a developer creates Android and IOS applications that use YouTube API, what limits are legally applicable?. Suppose the applications will get videos from YouTube, then will manipulate these videos, accelerating, slowing down, playing only certain interval, etc.

1. If the apps have ads, is there any copyright problem with the video owners or YouTube company.
2. Is it a copyright violation or other legal problem to excerpt the videos on YouTube? For example, the apps play only the first minute of the videos? Can the app add extra sounds on these videos?
3. Is it allowed to play videos on the background? I mean, can the app play only audios of the videos?
4. Is there any legal way of playing the YouTube videos without YouTube ads in such apps?

Manipulating YouTube videos in mobile application


I am a software developer working on software that allows users to resell tourism products (tours, accommodation, car rentals etc.) The reseller can be either local, in a different state or a foreign reseller.

In understand well enough how U.S/Canadian sales taxes work when the supplier is selling services directly. The tax percentage is added to the invoice before the customer pays. The same applies when the supplier sells his services to the reseller, the sales tax is added to the discounted price for the reseller.

However I am not sure how to handle taxes on the invoice from the reseller to the end customer.

* Local resellers
	+ Do I add the local resellers sales tax to the final price to the customer?
* Resellers in other states
	+ Does the reseller need to apply the sales tax from the state where the services are rendered, or do they apply their local states sales tax?
* Foreign resellers
	+ Should the final sale to the customer apply sales tax from the supplier?

i.e. Should the reseller apply the local sales tax where the service is delivered to the final price to the customer?

Sales tax on tourism services resold abroad


In the US, does a parent have any heightened duty of care to a grown child than that of an adult stranger to another adult?

Does a parent have any heightened duty of care to a grown child?


So in October a game publisher sent out a beta over Steam to which people who preordered the game could play. This beta had a fraction of the features that the full game had but a couple of clever people managed to alter the one line of code restricting people with the beta access to the full game. These people know have the full game and are posting screenshots from it but these screenshots keep on getting requested to be deleted saying that publisher will send a dmca for copyright. Is this correct?

Can posted pictures of parts of a game that were not intended to be released count as breaking Copyright law of the producer?


Take a search engine (e.g. Google), where user A can make searches without logging in with their account. The search engine collects, processes and stores, over time, a number of data about the user A, such as cookies identifiers, IP address, browsers fingerprint, and the search strings. I think all these are "Personal Data" according to GDPR (right?).
How could user A exercise his right of access to these data? In particular:

* how could user A compile such a SAR, given that the search engine has no identifiable information other than the cookie ID (something like "please supply the personal data you hold about me, identified by cookie ID X"?)
* how could user A demonstrate he is the real owner of those data (and not someone else using the same device/connection)

Subject Access Request (SAR) of data relating to cookies?


GDPR defines "personal data" as any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person.

>
> ‘personal data’ means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (‘data subject’); an identifiable natural person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person;
>
>
>

By that definition, it sounds like *anything* a user writes on a website that requires registration (even if with only an email and a password) is to be considered personal data, even if that data is meant to be public like in the case of internet forum posts, even if the post content is just a simple opinion, thought, or story. Is this correct? Or are there any specific cases where forum posts might not be treated as personal data?

Are internet forum posts considered personal data under GDPR?


I know an Ambassador who committed a crime and fled abroad on diplomatic immunity. Will he be able to return to his native country in the future under statute barred or statute of limitations rules? He would have been jailed for five years if he wasn't a Diplomat.

Diplomatic Immunity and Statute Law


By "passenger services" I mean planes, cruise ships, trains, etc. – any company that transports paying passengers. I ask because a few years ago a friend of mine had a sister who became very ill on a cruise ship, and wanted to get in direct contact with her (she lost her phone) and narrowed down the few possible ships she would be on to get confirmation of her health status.

He intended on contacting the cruise line and cross-referencing his sister's name with the cruise ship identifier (which would designate the cruise ship itself). He never did this since she called, but it does bring up an important question: are passenger services obligated to provide the names of ALL passengers on board in certain circumstances, or is this information private and it can't be given?

Everyone who boards a plane, ship, etc. has their name known by the company.

Are passenger services legally obligated to provide the names of passengers?


[*O'Sullivan & Hilliard's The Law of Contract*](https://www.amazon.co.uk/OSullivan-Hilliards-Law-Contract-Janet/dp/0198807821/ref=dp_ob_title_bk) (2018 8 ed). p. 376.

>
> 15.54 Acceptance of a repudiatory breach must be clear and unequivocal, but need not be by
>  express words. As the court said in *Heyman v Darwins* (1942):
>
>
>
> >
> > The other party may … ’accept the repudiation’ by so acting as to make it plain that,
> >  in view of the wrongful action of the party who has repudiated, he claims to treat the
> >  contract as at an end, in which case he can sue at once for damages.
> >
> >
> >
>
>
> This acceptance must generally be communicated to the other party (described as a
>  ‘basic and well known principle’ by the Privy Council in *Sookraj v Samaroo* (2004)) or
>  at least ‘overtly evinced’ to him, but can the innocent party accept the repudiation by
>  mere failure to perform its future obligations? In *State Trading Corpn [not a typo] of India* (1989), the Court of Appeal suggested not, since **‘such conduct would be equivocal and equally
>  consistent with a decision not to exercise the right to treat the contract as repudiated’**.
>
>
>

How's the emboldened phrase true?

Suppose a promisee contracted to do/not do something. If he then doesn't/does it, can't the promisor infer that the promisee's mere failure to perform future obligations consists with the promisee's decision to repudiate the contract?

---

[Westlaw has *The State Trading Corporation of India Limited v M. Golodetz Limited*](https://login.westlaw.co.uk/maf/wluk/app/document?&suppsrguid=i0ad6ada60000016a7ad33ea68ec13a33&docguid=I6EFA25B14A5111E2AFC5ADE6B0249198&hitguid=I6EFA25B04A5111E2AFC5ADE6B0249198&rank=1&spos=1&epos=1&td=2225&crumb-action=append&context=12&resolvein=true):

>
> This brings me to what I would respectfully regard as a red herring in the argument on behalf of STC which the learned judge considered at p. 188 of his judgment. STC sought to counter the arbitrators' finding that on 23rd December the sellers had brought the contract to an end (in the popular sense) by submitting that STC's silence or continuing unwillingness to open the letter of credit between 19th and 23rd December might in itself be regarded as an acceptance of the sellers' assumed breach of condition. In my view this is not a tenable proposition. What is commonly referred to as an acceptance of a repudiation must be communicated to the party in breach or at least overtly evinced: see e.g. Chitty on Contracts, 25th ed. vol. 1 para. 1598, *[Heyman v. Darwins (1942) AC 356 at p. 361](https://login.westlaw.co.uk/maf/wluk/app/document?src=doc&linktype=ref&context=13&crumb-action=replace&docguid=IBFF78C61E42711DA8FC2A0F0355337E9)* and The Mihalis Angelos (1971) 1 QB 164 explicitly at p. 204 E per Megaw LJ. The decision of the High Court of Australia in Holland v. Wiltshire (1954) 90 CLR 409 shows that an unequivocal overt act which is inconsistent with the subsistence of the contract may be sufficient, without any concurrent manifestation of intent directed to the other party. But saying and doing nothing at all, other than a continuing failure to perform, cannot constitute an acceptance of a repudiation even if the grounds for such an acceptance then exist. **Such conduct would be equivocal and equally consistent with a decision not to exercise the right to treat the contract as repudiated**.
>
>
> It follows that I cannot accept that STC's silence and inactivity between 18th and 23rd December can be regarded as having had any legal consequences. No doubt they were reluctant, if not unwilling, to pay a large sum in U.S. dollars against documents for a cargo lying at the bottom of the sea, perhaps in particular since it was insured in India and therefore not necessarily in some external currency. Such a reaction would be commercially understandable although legally incorrect.
>
>
>

How's a "mere failure to perform future obligations" equivocal and equally consistent with not exercising the right to repudiate the contract?


This question is about a company that is a Delaware corporation but which does business in California (has offices there, and sells to customers there).

If that company wanted to use a DBA, would the DBA need to be registered in Delaware, California, or both?

Also, in which county/counties in each state should the DBA be registered?

Where to register a DBA (company Doing Business As) name?


I purchased [this board](https://www.st.com/en/evaluation-tools/nucleo-f767zi.html) from [Digi-Key](https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/stmicroelectronics/NUCLEO-F767ZI/497-16525-ND/6004740) for $27.97.

Later, I noticed on the ST website that there is a [license agreement](https://www.st.com/resource/en/license_agreement/evaluationproductlicenseagreement.pdf) for the board. (To be clear, I did not agree to the license when I purchased the board from Digi-Key, not even in a click-through fashion.)

What disturbs me about the license is that it seems to apply not only to the software/firmware, but to the physical board itself. And it states that:

>
> STMicroelectronics (“ST”) grants You the right to use the enclosed Evaluation Board offering limited features only to evaluate
>  and test ST products solely for Your evaluation and testing purposes in a research and development setting.
>
>
>

It's not clear that my use would be "evaluation and testing," since I intend to actually do something useful/practical with it. (i. e. I am a [maker](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maker_culture) and intend to incorporate it into a project I'm building.)

Furthermore, the license says that the board may not be resold. Although I'm not really intending to resell it, I would generally consider something I bought to be fair game to eBay when I'm done with it and don't need it anymore. How does this restriction fit with the Doctrine of First Sale?

I intend to use [open source software](https://os.mbed.com/) on the board, to the extent possible. Though there are possibly some bits of the firmware (maybe the bootloader, for example) which are closed-source and cannot be replaced. Does the existence of this firmware on the board mean that ST Microelectronics can control what the board as a whole is used for?

As a hypothetical, could the manufacturer of a washing machine include a "license agreement" which prohibits selling the washing machine to someone else when you don't need it anymore? (And if the answer is "no", what makes it different than my situation?)

Can a license agreement apply to a physical object?


If I'm looking to build an app or write a book and I wish to use statistics, am I allowed to basically use their numbers as long as I cite where it is coming from? If I do make a profit from it, do I owe any royalties to the original scientists/surveyers? Must I ask them for permission?

Currently, the poll data in question is from this website but I'd like to know what's within bounds. The data is from various major media outlets like FOX.

<http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/us/2016_republican_presidential_nomination-3823.html>

My intuition pulls me towards thinking that I see books reference hundreds of studies all the time and public polls should be open information to everyone, but on the other hand commercial interests may be legally entangling.

I'm not experienced at all in law, so I'd like to hear what you think. Thanks

US Can public survey or experimental data be used in profit content if cited?


What are the necessary steps to protect a product name for a subscription based cloud application?

Primarly I want to target the EU-market, though theoretically the product could be used worldwide.
Outside of the EU, I specifically plan to target Russia, and the Russian speaking countries as well.

What I did so far:

* I own the domain name which corresponds to the product name
* I have started a trademark protection application (EUTM) with the European Union Intellectual property office. This includes the product name, product service category and a product logo.

In case the EUTM registration completes and confirms my trademark ownership, can I feel safe and market the product?

Guidelines for product name protection


Pair programming is a practice in which two or more people get in front of a computer and collaborate on writing program. Usually, one person is "driving" by typing the actual program, while the other person offers tips or direction. Suppose that two people pair program for a while, and only one of those people ever touches the keyboard. Does the person who never touched the keyboard hold any copyright over the produced work? What happens if the person who never touched the keyboard works for a large tech company, which claims copyright over the works of all of its employees?

Copyright and pair programming


Let's say, I want to make a computer video game that is based on some book.

As far as I am concerned, to make such game a reality, I need to acquire the rights.

How can I achieve that goal? Should I contact for such issue book publisher by email?
Or there's some government entity which processes such inquiries?

I'm interested in specific case, when author of the book died long ago.

I understand that I probably didn't do enough research on that topic, but I really like to have any advice, at least where should I start my search.

How to find a rightholder?


Some Background:

My wife utilized a personal training service from a fitness/gym company in Michigan. She signed up for a year contract knowing that she would have to move approximately 9 month into the contract. That contract expired last month, and (to nobodies surprise), we got billed again this month. Digging though my records, I have a signed contract stating that the service is for 1 year, and then goes month-to-month. I have placed 2 phone calls giving the requisite 40 days notice that I wished to cancel, the first time I was informed that I must make an in-person visit to cancel (a 3 hour drive one way for me), the second time I was assured it would not be renewed as month-to-month. Fast forward to this month, I get a bill where I don't expect one.

Question:

I contested the last charge, which was outside the scope of the original year-long contract. I also had my bank re-issue my credit card so they cannot bill me further. What can this fitness company try to do to keep taking my money, and what can I do to either head them off, or prevent them from charging us for a service we don't use, and have no intention of using, and is also not under contract anymore?

Location:

Michigan, USA

UPDATE: A phone call to corporate seems to have resolved the issue. I still ended up getting a new CC number, and contesting the last charge. Will update again if anything ugly happens.

Gym Membership Cancellation - Michigan, USA


I went to my local UPS store to send a package to a place in North Carolina that buys dishes, crystal, and flatware. I handed the UPS store the address and the clerk printed out the ticket because of the nature of the item being shipped, I opted for insurance.

A week later, I see that the package made it from California to North Carolina, but said it was on its way back. I call the recipient and they told me that UPS will not deliver to them because there is a lawsuit between the recipient and UPS. The company (recipient) did not refuse my package, they never got my package. I call UPS consumer service and was told that the recipient should have told me not to use UPS and refused to give me a refund.

Can UPS take my money and business, if they had no intention of fulfilling their side of the transaction?

Is UPS allowed to take my money and business without intention to fulfill its side of the transaction?


In France, you can pay a yearly fee to an organisation called ["SACEM"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soci%C3%A9t%C3%A9_des_auteurs,_compositeurs_et_%C3%A9diteurs_de_musique) and use copyrighted works to make profit in various ways.

Is there an equivalent in the USA?

Equivalent of the French SACEM in the USA?


I am planning to start targeting small businesses owned by veterans, and apply for jobs while wearing a hidden recorder.

I plan to bait them by stating during my request to apply for a job, "soldiers are nothing more than hired killers and deserve contempt."

If they terminate the interview at that point I will then sue them for discrimination based on my political beliefs, which is illegal in my state (california).

Rinse, repeat.

I know that recording a private conversation is illegal and won't be admitted in court, but I plan to get around that by doing this in a public area of their business where other people are around. This will also help keep me from being physically assaulted by stating my belief.

Can this tactic of inciting a strong emotional reaction that betrays someone into admitting an illegal discrimination be used to destroy veteran businesses?

Thanks for any help you can give. I'm very excited by this plan and looking to tighten down the loose ends. Murderers don't deserve to have the economic power to run businesses.

Secretly recording job applications to incite the manager into EEOC violation


I'm a software developer that (finally) has a working prototype of an app that I've been moonlighting with. I'm about 4 months out from having it 'market ready' and would like to form a 'barebones LLC' for a number of reasons:

* I need to start reaching out to prospective clients to see if I can use them to trial a "soft release" of the app and incorporate their feedback into the final v1 product launch
* I'd like to associate some intellectual property with a business, not myself personally
* Soon I'll need to start signing contracts and would like the protection of an LLC

**Now I fully understand that using a lawyer or a legal service is highly advised here. Duly noted! *But*, I think I'm *more* than capable of handling this initial barebones formation (which consists of just myself, no partners/members, etc.).** If you disagree, please give me the reasons! Otherwise, my question is written from the perspective of someone who wishes to execute the LLC formation by himself/herself ("*himerself*").

From what I can tell, formation in NYS (not NY City or any of the 5 boroughs) is as simple as:

* Writing an *Articles of Organization*, which I can bum from free/open source online templates and tweak as needed; then
* Filing these Articles with NYS Department of Corporations, and pay the $200 fee; then
* Announce the formation in 2 newspaper publications in the county of formation

Here are my concerns:

* How do I determine which newspapers qualify as publications (and hence satisfy that criterium)? Does the DoC maintain a list somewhere?
* Any other important *formation* steps I'm missing? For instance, do I need to file financial statements with the NYS Dept of Taxation/Finance and/or IRS as soon as the LLC is formed? How about obtaining a FEIN? Etc.

Exact minimal steps to forming an LLC in NYS?


I had this idea of developing a mobile app that allows users to download videos from twitter and youtube to be able to access them offline.. is this considered illegal? (sorry if my question is in the wrong place)

Twitter/Youtube video downloader app


If a Canadian citizen commits a crime against another Canadian in the USA and Canada, can that person be arrested and prosecuted in both Canada and the USA?

Can a Canadian committing a crime against a Canadian in both the USA & Canada be prosecuted in both countries?


In Canada, format shifting is explicitly allowed under the new [copyright modernization act](http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/annualstatutes/2012_20/FullText.html). I have a program and hardware that allow me to convert VHS tapes to digital copies.

From what I understand about owning movies, is that you buy a new movie, what you are actually purchasing is a license to view that movie on your own home, you never own the movie itself, because of the copyright.

I could take the time to convert all my VHS, but there's no guarantee it would be the same quality as when I first purchased it.

If you can only own a license to watch a movie in your home, and format shifting is not an infringement of copyright, then is it legal for someone to download digital copies of movies that they have already purchased a license to view in their homes in another format?

Is downloading videos you already own illegal?


In the past, copyright terms have been repeatedly extended, and some people have called for extensions that would effectively make copyright eternal, such as terms of 10.000 years or "forever minus one day".

If a law were passed today in the United States extending copyright from its current term of "life of the author + 70 years" to "life of the author + 10.000 years", what exactly would happen? In particular:

* Would, say, Shakespeare's works (published before the introduction of copyright) leave the public domain?
* Would works previously under copyright whose original copyright term had already expired gain renewed copyright?
* If the answer to the second question is yes, what would happen to derivative works of those works?

What would happen if copyright were extended (almost) indefinitely?


There seem to be reasons that a court might find the Stormy Daniels NDA to be non-enforceable. I am listing some and would like to know if there are examples that support a court rejecting such NDA agreements. Payment was made to conceal something that the public has a right to know for national security reasons. Payment was made in a criminal manner or to conceal a crime. A person agrees to something that they have a constitutional right to do, such as get married, or in this case speak about their rulers. I have this sense that our founders wanted the first amendment to protect us from abusive rulers and dictators, and I can even envision a place where Donald Trump says he paid everyone in the USA ( via a $1 rebate on their 1040) to never speak against him.

Is the Stormy Daniels NDA enforceable?


Let's say an internet provider (ex: Comcast, At&t, Verizon) says to their users: Hey we have this new free internet access, however, by using it the end ad content will be changed to our liking -for example they can change Ad Units to show their ads or inject ads into content.

What are the legal repercussions here? If the end user's agree, can sites that serve ads (ex: Google Adsense) sue you for replacing their content?

Also wondering about any other issues that can arise from such action.

Can an internet provider replace content of websites if the end user is aware of it?


A convenience store clerk refused to sell me tobacco when I declined her request to scan my ID. I did allow her to inspect my picture ID which clearly showed my age to be 63 (as if she couldn't tell by my degenerative condition). She stated it was now state law that everyone gets scanned in California. I can find no such law. No store has requested my ID since.
My question is:
Do I have the right to demand proof of a law which I believe to be non-existent or interpreted wrong?

If a retailer refuses to sell an item citing a state law are they required to prove the legitimacy of the law?


Can a person violate copyright by taking notes? For example if I am reading a book and want to copy a full paragraph, word for word, into my notes and don't cite it, is that copyright violation? What if the notes are online (Google Drive) and I want to add a picture, and I copy and paste a picture of McDonald's or a famous piece of artwork into it. Technically, would that be breaking copyright?

My understanding is that fair use has nothing to do here as fair use applies to something (sort of) new.

Can taking notes violate copyright?


I have stumbled across a few websites:

* <https://www.truepeoplesearch.com/>
* <https://www.familytreenow.com>
* <https://www.fastpeoplesearch.com>
* www.truthfinder.com

that contain a lot of detailed information about me:

* my age,
* and all the places I have lived in the U.S.
* possible names
* people I hang out with
* email
* phone numbers

I know that I have never put my addresses anywhere online. In addition, they do share information about my associates (people I hang out with). I understand that you can see who hangs out with whom on Facebook, however, that information in principle can be hidden from public and Facebook shouldn't share it(or whatever)

Is there a way to report websites like this? Can they legally share my information with the public like that? They do allow removal of the information, but I don't want to hunt down all websites and try to remove it manually.

Can I report these websites to U.S. regulators?

Can 3rd party websites share my personal information without my consent or knowledge?


China is about to roll out a new encryption law that will require the Chinese government "to seize all communications, data, and other information stored in electronic form that belong to foreign companies." ([reference](https://www.theepochtimes.com/chinas-new-encryption-law-poses-threat-to-us-companies-experts-warn_3178810.html)) The article referenced goes on to mention that VPNs will no longer be private, if even allowed, and even private servers may be prohibited. My question is how this new law will affect devices produced in China and exported to the US. For example, will OnePlus devices receive an OTA update that will contain a backdoor? What about Oppo, Lenovo, Huawei, and others?

Will China's new encryption laws affect electronics exported to the USA?


Article 1 section 9 part 8 says:

>
> No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no
>  Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall,
>  without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument,
>  Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or
>  foreign State.
>
>
>

I would argue, logically, that when congress exempts itself from laws and taxes that all other citizens and legal residents of the US are required to comply with, based solely on their position of authority in the government this is a defacto title of nobility.

The problem that the founders sought to counter with the prohibition on granting titles of nobility was not the honorific, but rather the special rights and benefits that would be conferred to those people that set them apart from, and make them above the laws that every one else is required to follow.

Can a valid arguement be made in court that is in fact a violation of the Constitutional ban on awarding titles of nobility? Has this ever been tried before?

Does congress exempting themselves violate Article 1 Section 9(8) of the Constitution?


Let's say I want to assess how comfortable a candidate is with casual conversation, and if he would fit into our business culture. If I ask a question like "What kind of music do you like?", is that legal? The question is definitely not relevant to essential job functions, but based on how he answers I can assess how well he would fit in our company culture.

Are all interview questions that don't apply to essential functions illegal?


For example, I do some work for my employer in the 2016-2017 tax year, but they take a while to pay me and I only actually get paid in the 2017-2018 tax year.

**In which tax year should that income be included - the year when the work was done, or the year it was paid for?**

Is income tax due when the work is done, or when it is paid?


Company A signs a contract with company B, a scrap metal vendor, to buy all of company A’s scrap metal produced. Company A sells out to new owners and changes names. Company B continues to purchase scrap metal from the new company A under the contract terms. New company A wants to change scrap vendorswhen the contact expired, but there is a 1 year auto renewal clause if Company A does not give 30 days written notice from the expiration of the contract. Since Company B did not sign any type of Novation to the new Company A’s name is the contract null and void?

Break Contract after company sells to new owners and changes names


So Kickstarter allows non-adults to start a fundraising campaign with parents agreement. But how about the taxes after they (teens) received their funds? What type of taxes does Kickstarter's funds count as. Do teens have to pay taxes for their fund (like maybe as income)?

Do teens have to pay tax for the funds they get from crowdfunding?


I have just resigned from my current company and I briefly mentioned I have unused annual leave left to take.

They have told me, it is company policy to pay leaving employees for unused annual leave, and thus their preferred option is that I do not take my remaining annual leave.

Is this enforceable in the United Kingdom by law?

My employment contract doesn't specifically say that.

Can a company disallow taking annual leave during a notice period?


Question: How can an advocate lend his exertions to all, while lending himself to none: this appears a logical contradiction? Lending exertions to all logically, implies 'lending something of oneself to all'.

Secondary Source: p. 96 Top, [*Is Killing People Right?*](https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/is-killing-people-right/BFEF1D0B685077D498DE902A67A0AB50) (2016) by Allan C. Hutchinson.

>
> Indeed, the mantra of the defence bar is that they 'lend their exertions to all, and themselves to none.'
>
>
>

Primary Source:

>
> Brennan J considered the proper role of counsel in an adversarial context in *Giannarelli v Wraith* (1988) 165 CLR 543 at 578-79:
>
>
>
> >
> > Counsel (whether barrister or solicitor) may appear to represent the adversaries, but counsel’s duty is to assist the court in the doing of justice according to law. A client - and perhaps the public - may sometimes think that the primary duty of counsel in adversary proceedings is to secure a judgment in favour of the client. Not so. The true position was stated by Lord Eldon in *Ex parte Lloyd* (5 November 1822, reported as a note in *Ex parte Elsee* (1830) Mont. 69, at p. 70n., at p. 72):
> >
> >
> >
> > >
> > > **He lends his exertions to all, himself to none. [Bold mine]** The result of the cause is to him a matter of indifference. It is for the court to decide. It is for him to argue. He is, however he may be represented by those who understand not his true situation, merely an officer assisting in the administration of justice, and acting under the impression, that truth is best discovered by powerful statements on both sides of the question.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> >
>
>
>

How is this not a logical contradiction: 'He lends his exertions to all, himself to none.'?


The question is very simple, does the trademarking of a name, mean that they own that trademark in every language?

For instance, ***Windows*** is a trademarked product that has their namesake trademarked to protect against unauthorized usage. Could I then trademark the name sake ***Fenestrae***? For those less versed in classical languages, *"Fenestrae"* is the Latin word for *"Windows"*.

What laws or consequences might I face from doing such a thing? Would I even be able to trademark the namesake?

Do trademarks span multiple languages?


A year ago I started working at a well known company and it turned out to be a lot worse than expected, so I'd like to leave ASAP since I already made plans for the future. As part of employment I was also given some money for relocation and other expenses.

For it, there is a sentence in my contract (last part shortened):

>
> In the event that you choose to leave the company within 12 months of the start of your job responsibilities (start date for new hires or internal transfer date), all relocation cash allowances and money ... must be paid back.
>
>
>

My question (it might be more of an English than law related), but does within 12 months mean if:

1. The date when I stop working (my last work day) is within those 12 months,
2. I make a decision within first 12 months (officially give my resignation in first 12 months, even if then by notice period obligation I still work 13th month),
3. Something else :)?

Thanks!

Paying back relocation money and resignation


I am working on a device which is in the prototyping stages. We may at some point decide that we have proven the concept of the device, and then we would need to sort out intellectual property. I am trying to determine who or what owns this device, and whether I would receive any part of future royalties.

I was studying X as part of my PhD thesis work. I showed X to a visiting colleague and he suggested that X could be turned into a device with a specific and useful purpose. I am a graduate student at a university. We sent a proposal to a government institution requesting funding to prototype this device. The proposal was shot down, but they did provide useful feedback regarding what they would like to see proven to verify that the device would work.

I am now working as an intern at another government institution which has good facilities and people for building devices. We are building a prototype of the device in order to test the concerns the previous government institution had. The place I am working is providing some funding for materials.

Assuming the tests go correctly, we will apply for a large grant from a 3rd government institution.

So I finally mentioned all parties, and I am would like to know who will own the intellectual property of this device (or will it be split). Will it by my school? The colleague who proposed the device? The first, second, or third government institution? My Adviser? Anyone and everyone who contributed in some part? Or finally, can I get a piece of the action myself?

All of this took place in the United States

Who owns the Intellectual Property of this Device?


I have had a Limited company UK contract, with an Agency and worked at their end-client.
After working for a few months, my role was suddenly terminated by the client (i.e. the end client, no reason given in writing). But she told (in writing ) that - they will be paying for the full notice.

It seems that - my agency signed me for 1 month (both way) on my contract but under the hood they seems to have signed 1/2 month with the client. And now agency is saying they are unable to pay for the difference as client’s only gonna pay for - what they want to pay— Since client is the supreme authority.

What can we do about it? Will I be able to dispute with the agency on hidden shorter notice period which wasn’t disclosed to me?

Cheers

Notice period fraud


Is a dislocated shoulder or broken arm bone more severe?

My argument is that a dislocated shoulder has potential for repeat dislocation and therefore is a more aggravated lasting injury. Which is considered more severe, a broken arm bone or dislocated shoulder?

Which is more severe in an aggravated assault case?


How does one write no AirBNB into a rental contract that AirBNB or the like is forbidden? Is this merely a form of subleasing? Assume a venue of Florida.

What is the label associated with AirBNB?


Let's say there is a copyrighted book which is published illegally by someone. Is it also illegal for the people who have received the book to read it?

Is reading an illegally copied book illegal on its own?


I have several different versions of the same software (written in .Net/WPF) that interact with different brands of hardware. I decided to discontinue one of the platforms. The company that sells the hardware for that platform approached me about purchasing the software source code from me so they can continue to sell the software to their customers.

So, I would rework the UI and rebrand it so it doesn't look exactly like the other versions of the software, and they could claim it as their own. My question is, is there a way for me to sell and give them the source, without putting myself in legal danger since 50% of the source code is still in use with the other versions of the program I will continue selling?

The client is fully aware of the situation, and is not interested in exclusive rights to the code. They just want to be able to take it over (and modify it if need be) so they can continue to sell it.

Can I sell computer source code that I reuse in other applications that I still sell?


Say that I read on the internet a funny story with a punch line at the end saying: "Don't buy it if the experts publish studies about it."

I liked it and I drew a comic on a bit different topic including the same phrase. What if I were about to sell it?

Would it be possible to succesfully sue me in the USA?

Is joke an intellectual property?


When publishing an app in the Google Play store, I would like to use the ® symbol for the name of a product that is not registered as a trademark in the USA, but it has been registered as such in the Benelux. Is it fine to use the ® symbol there?

Can I use the ® symbol in the play store for a trademark registered in the Benelux?


[![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/RJY7J.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/RJY7J.jpg)

I wanna know if this is correct or not, if someone can help please!


If I have a game or some other online service I host in which:

* It is forbidden for a subscriber to hold more than one account, OR
* Even if it is not forbidden, to detect one person on multiple accounts for abuse prevention (such as enforcing a ban from the service)

does the GDPR prevent me from using any of the following data *for the express and singular purpose* of accomplishing this goal?

* IP Address
* Email address
* Password hash
* Payment info (hashed, not raw)
* Screen resolution
* Video card model and driver version (via regular graphics API)
* Running process list (as used by anticheat)
* Hardware hash
* Typing/clicking cadence
* Friends lists
* Other on-service behavior (menus accessed, access patterns, etc)

I'm aware of a [paper (Greidanus, 2017)](http://arno.uvt.nl/show.cgi?fid=142935) that covers the legality of using various methods of client side cheat detection software that uses some of this data, but as the purpose would be different in this case, I assume the conclusion may not necessarily be the same.

GDPR: Detecting duplicate accounts in online services with customer data


I've been researching user-readable software licenses, and it strikes me that even as they get simpler and cut words, they always start with a wordy passive-voice construction:

MIT: `Permission is hereby granted ... to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software")`

ISC: `Permission ... is hereby granted`

BSD: `Redistribution ... are permitted`

Zlib: `Permission is granted to anyone`

Why do the licenses use this same sort of wording even as they simplify in other places? Is there a legal advantage to using it in favor of the more obvious *you may*?

Why do software licenses use passive voice?


I plan on starting my second company as a corporation and filing as an S-Corp. Would my new business name still be

>
> Business Name Corporation
>
>
>

or is a different form used?

Do S-Corps and C-Corps both end their business names in "Corp"?


Hosting copyrighted material without permission is illegal in most countries. However, what happens if two independent websites host seemingly random data, which combined (by XOR-ing) form a stream of copyrighted material?

The idea is rather simple, someone has digital copyrighted material, the digital form might be 011001 (CR). He then creates a random string of binary digits, for example 010111 (XOR1) and XORs the copyrighted material with the original, resulting in 001110 (XOR2). Both XOR1 and XOR2 seem random and unrelated to CR, but when XOR-ed, they form CR.

Now this person anonymously uploads XOR1 and XOR2 to independent hosts, and publishes links to both on a third independent forum.

I would assume the anonymous person violates the copyright, but do any of the three hosts do so as well? Can the copyright holder force the removal of XOR1 or XOR2, since for neither XOR1 nor XOR2 it is provable that it is derived from CR and independently both look random.

Moreover, is the post on the forum illegal, as it describes how to get the copyrighted material, but doesn't host it itself?

I am curious about this w.r.t. either Dutch or US law.

Hosting One time pad of copyrighted material


If I have developed an application on my own time and using my own resources, and that application could be highly valuable in performing my job, can I use it to get my work done without endangering my rights to my own intellectual property?

For example, say I have developed software that allows me to mark up PDF documents with great ease. This was done on my own time, using my own tools and equipment. If part of my job changes and I actually need to mark up PDFs for work, and I use my own custom tool to do it, am I opening the door to my employer having any rights to my software? Could they say that since I am using it for work, they have some claim to it?

Thanks!

Use of custom designed software at work?


In looking at Texas stalking laws, especially since 2015, in Section 42.072, it appears that even the following actions are illegal:

Person A and Person B are in an online but intimate and romantic relationship. Both live in Texas.
From time to time one of them gets upset at the other and blocks the other from their social media page. But at some point they make up and resume the relationship.

Person A blocks Person B. This time for a month.

Person B thinks something is wrong so Person B attempts to contact Person A using email, social media, phone, texts, etc. Person B attempts for a month to make contact.
Person B sends several gifts to Person A's house. At no point does Person A respond in any way.

None of the messages Person B sends threatens violence in any way, nor is intended to annoy, harass or embarrass. (words used in the new Texas law)

Person B drove by Person A's house at one time, but didn't knock or attempt contact.

These attempts went on for about 2 months. Person B then gives up.

Person A then files stalking charges against Person B.

From looking at Texas law, it appears that Person B has unwittingly committed several violations of the law if Person A feels annoyed in any way.

Is this true? Or does there have to be intent? If so, how hard is intent to prove?

How broad are Texas' stalking laws now?


I am unsure where I heard of this, but the basic premise is that if an individual in says "Sorry" either to law-enforcement or to another party, they are in effect, assuming fault for a given action.

i.e. car accident: two cars, one rear-ends the other. The presumably at-fault driver says "Sorry" and this is documented. Insurance companies would utilize such a statement as an admission of guilt.

To what degree is this claim true? Should a person in all potentially legal-situation remain silent and not communicate at all?

Is saying "Sorry" assuming fault?


I have several old records and casettes of pop music albums some of which are damaged. While I am the legal owner of the recorded media, I do not own the copyright. I understand this.

Does purchasing the record or casette give me the right to listen to the music, and if so, could I legally download and listen to songs that were on my damaged casette or record?

Or do I have to buy the CD of the recording?

Can I legally download an MP3 version of songs on a record or casette that I purchased but is now damaged?


Suppose Party A and Party B sign a letter of intent wherein Part A is selling its assets to Party B. Over time, they are working together to nail down all the details of the agreement in a full contract. But the letter of intent already defines everything both parties see as important at the time that letter is signed.

Because everyone knows that the sale is in progress, Part A is severely hampered in many ways; its employees start leaving, other potential buyers disappear. Since Party B wants to be purchasing an intact business, it starts supplying some staff to work at Party A's offices while the details of the contract are worked out.

Before long, Party A becomes completely dependent on Party B's offer. It is no longer in a condition where it could find another buyer for remotely the original price if Party B backed out.

At this point, Party B adds an extreme demand which was not contemplated in the letter of intent, which is very deleterious to Party A's interests. It won't back down; it demands this new stipulation or it will back out of the sale.

It seems to me that this situation is extremely abusive, and that it should be possible to successfully sue Party B for severely damaging the prospects for a satisfactory sale of Party A's assets. Party B seems to be operating in an extremely manipulative manner which shows bad faith.

Is there any case law that supports this view (or supports the opposite view)? Is there a specific legal principle in play here which has a name?

Contract: one party changes the terms after the other has become dependent on deal


If a President-elect was proven to have colluded with Foreign operatives to interfere with our presidential election, could he or she be charged with treason?

What we know:

>
> **TREASON**. Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war
>  against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort
>  within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall
>  suffer death, or shall be imprisoned not less than five years and
>  fined under this title but not less than $10,000; and shall be
>  incapable of holding any office under the United States.
>
>  (*June 25,
>  1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 807; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII,
>  § 330016(2)(J), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2148.*)
>
>
>

**ENEMY OF THE STATE**: According to *50 USCS § 2204 [Title 50. War and National Defense; Chapter 39. Spoils of War]*, "enemy of the United States" means:

>
> any country, government, group, or person that has been engaged in
>  hostilities, whether or not lawfully authorized, with the United
>  States; (3) the term "person" means (A) any natural person; (B) any
>  corporation, partnership, or other legal entity; and (C) any
>  organization, association, or group.
>
>
>

But what is the legal definition of hostilities? Must it include a declaration of war? Much could be parsed and debated but I'm not at all sure he could actually be charged, even if it's proven he colluded.

What say ye??

If proven, would collusion with Russia to interfere with election meet criteria for charge of treason?


**Question** (short version):

My probation has been transferred to my home state via Interstate Compact. Can the sending state still compel me to resubmit a new DNA sample?

---

**Background:**

* I was convicted of a crime in New York State (New York City), but I live in New Jersey.
* As part of my plea agreement, I received probation.
* Once convicted, I submitted the mandatory DNA swab (pursuant to NY State law and the conditions of my probation).
* I reside in New Jersey, so my probation was immediately transferred to NJ via Interstate Compact. (As far I know, this means that I have no further legal connection to NY.)
* I still travel to NY regularly, and stay overnight, as I have family there. Before each overnight trip, I request (and am granted) a travel permit from my NJ probation officer.
* 4 months after my conviction and subsequent transfer to NJ, my former *NYC* Probation Officer contacted me, stating that the initial DNA sample that she'd taken was unable to be processed by their lab, and that I should come in (to NYC) ASAP to submit a new sample. She also sent a letter to my NJ Probation Officer, making the same request.

---

**Question** (detailed version):

**Am I obligated to return to NY for another DNA collection? Does NY have any jurisdiction over me now that I've been transferred to NJ?**

I acknowledge that I was required to submit the sample initially, which I did. Did my obligation end there, or am I required to resubmit until NY State is satisfied (bearing in mind that I neither reside in or am supervised by NY State)?

Thank you!

---

Update in response to questions: Let me state that (1) I've already discussed this with my NJ PO (she asked me to go to NY and submit a new sample, though I'm not sure whether she really cares whether I do), and (2) I'm looking for legal facts about my situation (e.g. what I'm legally *required or not required* to do), not advice on what I *should* do.

Do I have to submit DNA again after first sample failed?


I disputed with my roommate regarding the noise issue. During a dispute, I said "If you keep making noise in the future, I will 1. contact the leasing office for feasible solutions 2. report this case to your professor(advisor) 3. cut off the in-room Internet". He said it was illegal verbal threat and wanted to sue me. May I ask if what I said regarded as an illegal verbal threat? Does "2.report this case to your professor/advisor" commits coercion in the second degree in NY? We are in NYC.

Weather my comments committed coercion in the second degree in NY?


[*O'Sullivan & Hilliard's The Law of Contract*](https://www.amazon.co.uk/OSullivan-Hilliards-Law-Contract-Janet/dp/0198807821/ref=dp_ob_title_bk) (2018 8 ed). p. 90.

>
> 5.5 Better still, keep in mind some common examples of consideration in practice:
>
>
> •  Simultaneous contract and performance, like sale of goods at a supermarket:
>  you get the goods and provide, by way of consideration, the price in return; the
>  supermarket gets the price and provides, by way of consideration, the goods in
>  return. Contrast this with a gift of goods—the person making the gitf gets nothing
>  in return and therefore the gift ‘transaction’ has no consideration and is not regarded as a binding contract. Of course, the relevance of the distinction between
>  a binding contract and a purely gratuitous exchange is more significant where
>  there is a gap in time between the formation of the contract and the date it is to be
>  performed, as in the next category.
>
>
> •  Bilateral contract made before it is due to be performed, as where A and B make a
>  contract in January for the purchase/supply of grain in August: A’s promise to pay
>  the price is made in exchange for B’s promise to supply the grain—the law regards
>  A’s promise as the consideration for B’s and vice versa. So there is a binding contract in January even though nothing is to be physically handed over until August.
>  (Notice there is no external logic to this principle—A’s promise is only good consideration for B’s because the law regards **it** as enforceable and therefore of value,
>  and **it** is only regarded as enforceable because it is supported by **consideration**.
>  But **it** is only supported by consideration if B’s promise is enforceable and so it
>  goes on *ad infinitum*! Despite this, it is a hugely important commercial principle.)
>
>
>

1. What does "it" refer to here?
2. What 'consideration' is being referred by **consideration**?

What's the antecedent of "it"? "A’s promise is only good consideration for B’s because the law regards it as enforceable and therefore of value"


There is an examination which contains multiple choice test questions.

These test questions aren't published anywhere (only the official test company has access to them). We have a licence from this official company to publish their practice questions, but **only** the ones they give us.

The official authority also has the official website with the same questions (but they don't include the ones in the official exam).

Basically the official questions and the practice questions are 2 different sets. I can see that since the practice ones are published on their website, we need a licence from them (which we do have). But what about the exam questions that aren't published? Can we add them to our website and say that "we came up with them ourselves?" Also, what if we advertise them as real test questions?

Copyright Law, are the exam questions (that aren't published) protected by Copyright?


I'm developing a web site for an artist, and I need to do a demo: can I use famous old paintings (from around 1400)?

Does the owner of the original painting (like a museum) also own the copyright to a work of art?

Can I use famous old artworks on my web site?


I thought about postingthis in the Politics SE but this is a legal question. In [**this article**](https://www.adn.com/politics/2017/07/26/trump-administration-signals-that-murkowskis-health-care-vote-could-have-energy-repercussions-for-alaska/) it appears that US Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke has explicitly told two legislators from Alaska that the way they cast their votes in the Senate have put federally funded projects planned for Alaska "in jeopardy". There are a lot of different ways this could be done, but ultimately it boils down to how the Secretary will/won't allocate funds for these projects.

The duty of the Legislative branch is to **faithfully represent** the people of their district/state when creating laws.

The duty of the Executive branch is to **faithfully execute** the laws that the Legislature creates when implementing programs.

The Founders designed it so that the Legislative branch would control the "Power of the Purse" as one of its *checks & balances* versus the Executive branch, yet here it seems that an Executive branch department is saying *it* will control the purse unless Legislature does what the Executive wants.

This seems to me to be a violation of the Separations of Powers at the very least but it also sounds like extortion or bribery for congressional votes. Another issue is that this kind of financial/political arm twisting essentially tries to force the legislators into representing the interests of the Executive *over* the interests of their constituents.

I do realize that political backroom deals for pork barrel spending and earmarked projects are also subject to the same arguments, but in those cases the process is much more visible and the entire Congress has a final voice in approving the specific allocations.

Is it legal for a US Secretary to fund/defund projects based on political payback?


I posted a video on Facebook and a page asked if they could use the video. I said as long as I get credit. That video now has almost 10 million views on their page and countless other pages and sites have used my video. Am I entitled to any of the money they make off of advertisements? Are pages legally allowed to use that video if I did not give them license?

What entitlements do I have if someone uses my video on Facebook and gets millions of views?


Say I live in country A and work from home for a company which resides in country B. Both A and B are members of EU. Where do I pay my income tax?

Income tax: Working for a foreign company from home


I read this slightly [bizarre article](http://www.abc17news.com/news/two-convicted-felons-charged-after-touching-gun-in-gun-store/653184772) that says two convicted felons were charged after touching guns in a gun store.

Although the article is unclear on the meaning of touching, I'm going to assume the men had physically held the gun in hand. That of course is clearly a violation broken, nothing to see here, move along type deal. They also had a third person essentially buy a gun for them. I guess they get an A for effort on trying to be smooth.

It is not a smart idea of them to be in a place that sells weapons to begin with, but it made me wonder about a few things. Is it illegal for a convicted felon to enter a gun store, a gun show, or have some proximity restriction involving guns that they are knowingly aware of? My only real guess is some may be given strict rules based on their probation, being released on bond, constraints of their conviction, etc.

If a felon did touch a gun, say with their pointer finger, is that enough to be considered in possession of a gun, or having control of the gun?

For the record, I'm by no means questioning what the police did in this case. The article is worded very poorly, and simply produced a few possible "grey area" questions.

Convicted Felon - Touching a gun?


I understand in this age that there are several uses for vpns.

As such I did some research and decided to use nord as they seemed popular and claimed to not log.

However when I connect to certain servers in Europe and google what is my isp it brings back a company called M247 ltd. which appears to be based out of the UK.

Now my questions is this:

How can nord (or any other big provider) possibly claim a no log policy if they are simply renting the servers and since m247 is based in the U.K. Could they be forced to log turn over information even without consent of nord because the company is based in the U.K. even if the physical server is somewhere else like Switzerland for instance?

I get nothing is completely 100% and there has to be some level of trust but they claim no logs so surely they must have some controls over the logging of the servers they rent from m247 (or others who provide servers to them).

This seems like it would be a problem for any vpn provider who rented servers (which is a lot of big providers).

So what exactly is going on? Are they renting the servers and then nord install something to secure the servers from logging or is all traffic anonymised by the vpn before it even reaches the server? Or maybe they have a policy with the owner of the server to not log?

Hopefully it is clear what I am asking.

Thank you.

Should I be concerned my vpn server provider is based in the U.K.?


Amazon.com sometimes refuses to sell me audiobooks. The message is as follows:

[![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/8SQAS.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/8SQAS.png)

I don't understand how a copyright can be enforced in *other countries*. Surely copyright holds for a specific country where it is registered, and has no enforceable jurisdiction in others. Is this type of copyright restriction valid? Under what law?

I can buy the digital text, so this issue is with the copyright for the audio only.

Copyright restriction in other countries


I am curious how I would go about contesting how I was compensated as an independent contractor to the IRS for tax purposes. Is there an official channel for this or do I have to go some sort of court, small claims court.

This question is specific to CA, USA.

Long story short, I am doing my taxes for lyft and how the payments work as I understand it is: Either the rider pays me 'the driver or independent contractor' the ride total and I pay lyft their 25% the for using their services OR the rider pays lyft and they pay me AFTER they have taken out the fee/expense per ride.

Now, I am curious because they list my AGI (adjusted gross income) as 25% more. As in I am payed by the rider and give them their cut, yet the amount I am payed does not include that when I am payed at the end of the week. So it seems they take the money from the passenger, deduct their cut and pay me.

So why am I paying income tax on money I didn't receive?

How to contest compensation as an independent contractor


Today I was leaving a large commercial building (~15 stories) and walked straight into the glass surrounding a revolving door, thinking that the opening was not so narrow.

I went to the security desk and asked to use the bathroom to clean myself up. The person I talked to gave me some bandages and let me use the bathroom to clean the blood off my face. Another security guard then took down my phone number, email, name, and asked for an ID. Why did they take this info down? Are they going to contact me?

I hit my head leaving a large commercial building and the security guards asked for my ID, phone number, and email - why?


a friends company is using Slack for communication between the team members. Slack is basically like Skype.

Recently a few people got fired as the employer read the conversations they were having and deemed it as inappropriate for the work place.

My question is, what legal background does the employer have in reading the messages. Are they legally allowed to do this?

Thanks for all your help

Can employer read message sent via Skype / Slack etc


I remember long ago I was watching one of those judge Judy type shows and an interesting case came up. Two roommates came to court because they had a valid rent agreement but the one housemate was smoking marijuana. The other one left the house and refused to pay his part of the rent for which he got sued.

The jist of the ruling was that if the judge enforced this valid rent agreement, he would force the defendant to be an accomplice to drug usage. If he would then fail a drug test his chance at gainful employment would be greatly diminished which would also be unfair to him.

It was a loophole and he found it. The judge remarking that if you want your roommate to pay his rent, don't do drugs. I would love to know what that legal principle is called.

What is the concept of by enforcing the law a person cannot be forced to break the law called?


The short: my company have been paid to develop a software system for a client. There are (sort of) similar systems on the market already, there is currently a lot of demand for it, I want to redistribute something similar if I am within my rights to do so.

I am not employed by the client, nor has anything formal been agreed (in terms of ownership) - but I have developed a system for them according to their design and requirements. I have not sold them this product as an off-the-shelf option, it is entirely bespoke.

There are some features of this system that are arguably too bespoke, and technical approaches I have taken due to their own constraints, so if I were to aim to package it up for redistribution/sale to other customers, it would most definitely be different enough to the original, in many ways.

My questions (with regard to my rights to sell it elsewhere as a product):

---

Does 'different enough' matter? I am assuming it does, but I do not know the law as to whether the intellectual property is theirs until the product varies from what they paid for? Am I concerned with the right thing here? How different must my product be? Is this quantified anywhere in law?

Should I be concerned at all since nothing was in writing? Or are legal implications already made as a result of them paying the invoices I send them?

What else am I not considering here? I have no clue about the legals with regards to this, but I am sure it must be well covered. I've signed contracts in the past (with other clients, in totally different industries) stating that I may not work for a competitor etc. within 6 months after project completion, but nothing has been formalised here.

**EDIT: Apologies, I should clarify - I am based in the UK, so UK law is what I'm concerned with.**

Redistribution of system similar to the one commissioned (privately) by a client


Let's suppose that a person, who has no longer anything to lose and willing to drag an innocent along with him, sends money to an innocent via bank, calls the innocent person by telling them "I sent you the money for [such and such illegal act]" and hangs out immediately and blocks the innocent's number.
The innocent of course, a per title, did nothing and every mean of comunication or electronic mean of the actual perpetrator is tracked, from bank accounts to phone number and social media, and the perpetrator does know this and by this is willing to involve this innocent person, and by the proper investigations, it is found that the perpetrator had contact with the innocent poor guy- What's the legal ruling on the innocent on this case? Can the innocent individual be dragged in court for messages and money he didn't ask for and for communications interactions not depending on him?

Hypothetical scenario in which an innocent person is involved and dragged in


My mate was buying a car from AutoTrader UK and heavily relying on reviews in their website. When I mentioned it to a relative of mine who owns a car supermarket he said that to post a review in AutoTrader you need to contact the dealer and ask them for a link. This obviously means only good reviews would go online unless someone is shameless and determined to post a negative review.

Slightly related to [this question](https://law.stackexchange.com/questions/7688/is-it-legal-to-publish-a-review-of-a-travel-service-without-letting-the-service), but still different- is it OK for a website to only post positive reviews for their sellers?

Can a website only publish good reviews?


Buyer contracts to buy an item, such as a house, subject to the condition that feature X (perhaps the swimming pool), is in working order (it's clear in the contract that this is an essential condition). After the signing, but before the transfer of funds, it is found that X is not in working condition, thereby violating this essential condition.

It costs $10,000 to bring X into working condition. The seller doesn't have the $10,000. The buyer wants out, and says "no repairs, no deal." The seller counters by saying, "Please give me $10,000 so that I can make the repairs, and deliver the house, in promised condition," or even "I will lower the net purchase price by the cost of the repairs so that the gross purchase price to you is the same." In essence, the seller is asking the buyer to "front" the repair cost.

Can the seller's counteroffer bring about the operation of the original contract? Or was the original contract's intent violated so that a new contract needs to be negotiated and signed?

What is the status of the following contract?


Is there a legal term or definition to use in an appeal when a lower court judge has set an impossible standard of evidence in his decision? In a property tax appeal,a judge has ignored higher court precedents and extrapolated other decisions to effectively eliminate the possibility of proving a non uniform tax assessment rate. I would think that such a decision would be invalid on its face.

What Remedy When a judge sets an impossible standard of evidence?


I'm looking at a document and I am confused if the contract is valid. Hopefully my over simplified example will help.

One page one of the document it has The Amendment of Operating Agreement ("Amendedment") is dated \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_, 2012.

The section with \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ is not filled out.

The contract is then signed and dated by three parties.

Mr Party One
6/1/2012

Mr Party Two
6/1/2012

Mr Party Three
6/1/

That's correct Mr Party three did not place a year. So I'm confused as to how this contract could be be valid based on no clear starting date with the three parties that's needed.

How does a Contract work with Effective Date not filled in but has document signed and dated but not by all parties


I had this idea to make a network where people can get paid to let other people use their computer for computing purposes. Let's say they got permission to use Person B's computer under terms and conditions, basically saying:

"I will not do anything illegal using this computer."

And they agreed upon the terms. But Person A used Person B's computer to do something illegal like, let's say, distributing paid music for free (without permission) using that computer as a server, so they are violating copyright law. But how can one say "Person B is innocent!" in a valid way, before they have to even leave for court.

Oh, and Person A and Person B both have **unlimited liability**.

If Person A gets permission to use Person B's computer, but uses it for illegal activities, who is held liable?


We just moved into an apartment in a great (but somewhat expensive) building. Upon move-in we found several dead centipedes on the floor. Following that, we saw several live ones, and a cockroach in the stove.

Exterminators came and sprayed, and it seems that while that roach was errant (there were no signs of others having been there, and neighbors haven't seen any), the centipedes remain. I haven't seen a lot of them, but we'll see one crawling on a wall at night occasionally.

This isn't a big deal to me, but my wife has a phobia-level aversion to the critters. She can't even kill them with her shoe; she just runs. We talked to the apartment manager about this issue, and she escalated it to the management company. Turns out they'll waive the 6-month apartment transfer requirement, but still make us pay the $500 fee.

The only thing in the contract about bugs relates to bedbugs. There is something about transferring to a different apartment in the contract, but it just says "a fee" - no amount is stated.

Is my only feasible solution here to pay?

Oops, our new apartment has bugs!