Copyright Law Basics Even though you may not know the definition of a copyright, you probably understand the basic concept of a copyright: the author of a creative work holds certain rights to that work, such as restricting the copying or profiting of that work without the author’s permission. According to the United States Copyright …Read More
Attorneys Fees and the American Rule When litigating in the United States, the general rule is that each party pays for its own attorney’s fees. This is called the American Rule. This means that the losing party does not pay for the winning party’s attorney’s fees. The reasoning behind this rule is that individuals or …Read More
“Battle of the Forms” Under traditional contract common law, in order for a legal contract to exist, there must be an offer of terms and an acceptance of the exact same terms (referred to as the “mirror image rule”). However, in certain situations, a contract can exist even though the contractual terms made by the …Read More
Trademarks and Trade Dress Trade dress refers to the visual appearance of a product or its packaging that convey the source of the product to consumers. Trade dress protection is intended to protect consumers from packaging or appearance of products designed to imitate other products, to prevent consumers from buying one product under the mistaken …Read More
The Difference Between Copyright Assignments And Licenses There are two ways that a copyright owner can transfer some or all of his or her copyright rights: through a license or an assignment. In an assignment of copyright rights, the owner sells his or her ownership rights to another party and has no control over how …Read More
Written Copyright Assignments Required From Independent Contractors To obtain copyright assignments from independent contractors who perform work for you (including photographers, web or graphics designers, copyrighters, etc.) this copyright assignment must be in writing to comply with federal copyright law. If you do not obtain a writing from the copyright owner assigning you the copyright, …Read More
Property Recording Statute Priorities in Michigan and North Carolina You just bought some real estate from John Smith and paid fair market value for it. Before purchasing the property from John Smith, you do not do a title search. Upon trying to record your deed at the recorder of deeds several days after the closing, …Read More
Statute of Frauds Requirements in Real Estate Transfers Any contract for the sale or transfer of real estate must be in writing in order for it to be enforceable. This is the law in Michigan and most, if not all, other states. Leases lasting longer than one year must also be in writing. This is …Read More
Non-Compete Agreement Basics Simply stated, a non-compete agreement is an agreement where one party agrees not to compete with another party within a certain business or industry. A non-compete agreement is usually found within employment contracts where the employee agrees that she or he will not start a business to compete with the employer or …Read More
Use Estate Planning and Avoid Probate When a person dies, his or her assets are disbursed in accordance to his or her will or in accordance with the state’s intestate succession laws. Either process can occur through probate, which is essentially the legal process by which a decedent’s (person who has died) assets and debts …Read More
