If you move into an apartment or a home and you sign a lease, some people might think that they are stuck with that lease even if they discover that the property has a substantial mold problem. This is not true.

No matter who you are renting from or what kind of property, it is the landlords responsibility to provide you with a healthy place to live. If you or your children become sick due to the mold located in the home, apartment, or business you are leasing, your landlord can be held responsible.

The only thing that you have to do first is prove that mold exists in your rented space. That burden or proof is on you because in most leases, mold testing, inspections, and removal are not covered by the landlord. Landlords do not pay for these; you do. If there is a problem, you have to prove it.

If the rental property is infested with mold, the landlord might be liable for the damage to the tenants health, the medical bills associated with mold, loss of income due to sickness, and for the damage to clothing and other possessions.

Other possible liabilities include the expense it takes to move to a mold-free environment, the difference between the rent at the mold-infested rental and the new, habitable rental, and for any mold inspections, testing, and remediation of the rental that were paid for by the tenant before moving out.

You should mail a notice to your landlord via certified mail that there is a mold problem first and foremost and provide proof within the envelope. An analysis and identification of the mold sample you collected using a mold test kit signed by a mold laboratory is a good way to prove that mold exists in the property.

Even better than this is to have a written report signed by a certified mold inspector along with the above mentioned laboratory report. If notice is ignored by your landlord, you can choose to send a second notice stating that due to the failure to have the mold removed from the property, you are withholding your rent.

Lastly, if that is ignored by your landlord, you should send another notice via certified mail that you are vacating the premises and that legal action is going to be taken, especially if you have suffered health complications due to the mold.

You should not need a lawyer to draw up these notices for you, as long as you are clear and to the point that mold exists on the landlords property that you are renting and you want it removed and if you are suffering any health complications, these should be stated very clearly and with proof, as well. Most landlords will respond promptly.

Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
flood and water damage cleanup and
water damage restoration> companies across the united states.

We all wish that our lives should go smooth without any hassles. We pray god for having a happy life with no sadness but then, it never happens. Whatever the reason is, one or the other way, you face troubles in life and some of them are so unfortunate that you end up with legal issues. Furthermore, if the case is criminal, it is extremely difficult to tackle without any professional help. If you live in Houston, you should seek Houston criminal lawyer.

Houston criminal attorney is a person who can help you getting out of criminal cases. You can find Houston DWI attorney across the city who master on tackling such kinds of cases. They can normalize your life and save you from penalty and imprisonment. You certainly require Houston DWI lawyer to prevent a permanent stain on your record that otherwise will affect your job profile, education or any social and personal affairs.

It does not matter whether the case is on adult or juvenile client, Houston criminal defense attorney serves you with best service required. For a criminal case, it is always better to seek some professional help rather than ignoring it that can end up in some really danger. Houston criminal attorney can help you out of the accused case of a misdemeanor or a felony. Right from the police investigation to all the legal documents and preparing strong case, criminal lawyers in Houston are always ready to assist you.

The sole purpose of Houston Law Group’s Houston criminal attorneys is to do best to protect you and to dismiss all the charges. Your life can be brought on the track and you can restore a complete clean record to live happily.

Houston DWI lawyers are qualified and master on tackling criminal cases. They hold registration certificate that shows their association and affiliation with local law board. You can find solution to your criminal case in Houston by hiring an expert. All you need to do is get Houston criminal lawyer, fix an appointment and then discuss the case thoroughly. The thing you should keep in mind is you should disclose every minute information regarding the case to help Houston DWI lawyer solving the charges on you.

We all wish that there will not be any criminal case in our lives –if this happens, we are the happiest but then in case, if you get stuck, there is always a great helping hand in the form of Houston criminal attorney.

When Internet users search online for information, they use search engines like Yahoo, Google, and MSN. Because some page owners have paid for some of its links to the search engine websites and the links come up whenever the website owners results appear as a search result, there have recently been conflicts between the owners of trademarks and some third parties. Efforts are being made to clamp down and contain the unauthorized utilization and misappropriation of trademarks and other intellectual property items when it comes to Internet search related issues.

In one such trademark conflict, J.S. Wentworth complained that Peachtree Settlement Funding infringed the trademarks JG WENTWORTH and J.G.WENTWORTH. The Defendant had used these trademarks as keywords and had paid to have links appear to its own website immediately proximate to the link to Plaintiff’s website on the search-results screen each time a user of the Internet searched the Google engine for J.G. Wentworth or JG Wentworth.

Because Peachtree Settlement Funding and J.G. Wentworth are competitors in the field of structured settlements, Plaintiff claimed that Defendant had stolen potential customers and diluted the effectiveness of its various trademarks, and that this caused a subtantial profit loss for the plaintiff. Defendant Peachtree moved to have the complaint dismissed.

The court acknowledged two important operative issues:
1. Whether Defendant used the trademark as keywords in the Google AdWords advertising program under the Trademark Acts use in commerce. Owner of a trademark establishes rights through the use of the trademark in public marketplace.
2. Whether the use of the Plaintiff’s trademark infringed trademark rights provided for in the Act because it had a good chance of confusing the consumer.

On whether the trademark was used in commerce, Defendant argued that the trademarks use was not for the public to see, and was not meant to be associated to Peachtree Settlement Funding, only an analog to the users personal response to a trademark. Defendant claimed it was not used in commerce in connection with the sale of goods or services to confuse consumers. Disagreeing, the court decided that Defendants use of the trademarks as keywords in their Google AdWords links, designed to draw internet users, constituted use in commerce under the Act.

Regarding infringement, however, Defendant argued that using the J.G. WENTWORTH trademarks as keywords was not likely to confuse the consumer. Here the court agreed, and stated [a]t no point are potential consumers taken by a search engine to defendants website…the links to defendants website always appear as independent and distinct links on the search result pages. There was also no accusation that the Defendants ads and links that used the Plaintiffs were in any way discernable to [I]nternet users and potential customers, and that [d]ue to the separate and distinct nature of the links created on any of the search results pages in question, potential customers have no opportunity to confuse defendants services, goods, advertisements, links or websites for those of plaintiff. The court then decided that the use of Plaintiffs trademarks was not trademark infringement under the Trademark Act and the court dismissed the complaint.

The J.G. Wentworth v. Settlement Funding case confirms that it is not copyright infringement to use other companies trademarks in their online advertising keywords, in the opinion of this Pennsilvania court. Similar decisions have been made by other courts as well, including California, New York, and Virginia, and the Second Court of Appeals.

However, its important also that online advertisers such as Google AdWords and the trademark owners be aware that the issues of trademark infringement on these ads has not been resolved nationwide. Some courts have decided that purchase of a keyword does constitute use in commerce, and some have not reached a conclusion regarding the question of likelihood of consumer confusion. Other courts, such as New Jersey, California, Georgia, Minnesota, and the ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, have focused on the facts at trials instead of addressing the issues of use in commerce.

In general, however, the courts seem to side with the advertisers who use the keywords rather than the owners of trademarks, although it may be a while before the issue is fully resolved.

Robert Masud, Esq. is the principal of Masud & Company LLC, a law firm for the world of business, finance and the internet.
Find out how our lawyers can help you at http://www.masudco.com.

When the need for a lawyer arises, it is important to be able to find a good lawyer who is knowledgeable in the area that is required and has a good reputation. Many people would prefer to find a local lawyer whether it is a Maryland lawyer, a New York lawyer or a Kentucky lawyer. A lawyer search can be an overwhelming and often frightening task for anyone who has never needed a lawyer before. Personal, business and criminal problems can arise for almost anyone at any time. From finding a Maryland lawyer to finding a Californian lawyer, there are some different ways a person can find a lawyer that will best suit their needs

When looking for a lawyer in any state, it is necessary to determine what kind of lawyer will be needed. There are a number of different types of law that lawyers specialize in including family law, real estate law, estate law, family law, criminal law and many other types of law. Sometimes it might be difficult to begin a lawyer search when the issue doesn’t clearly fall into a particular category. It is a good idea to make a few calls to see what type of attorney would handle that specific case before continuing with a lawyer search.

Once the type of lawyer that is needed is clear, it is time to make a list of the lawyers that are in the area who deal with a particular matter from a local phone book. Once the list is compiled, ask friends, family and professionals if they have had any experience with a particular lawyer and if it was a favorable one. If that particular attorney is on the lawyer search list, he or she might be one of the first ones that are contacted. Next, if the local search is not going very well, there are a number of search web sites on the Internet that a person can use to find an attorney that will suit his or her needs. Sometimes individual states have their own lawyer search web sites. Maryland, for instance, has a web site available for anyone who needs the services of a Maryland lawyer.

The Maryland lawyer search is much like the kind of searches available for other states. A Maryland lawyer can be found when searching by city name, county name, zip code, a particular lawyer’s name, by law school and by legal specialty. If all else fails, a person can find a Maryland lawyer or a lawyer in another state by contacting the Bar Association.

Once a lawyer search has narrowed down choices to just a few names, it is a good idea to schedule either a phone or personal interview with the attorney. Important questions that can be posed during an interview should include how much experience a lawyer has in the particular area that is needed, how long they have been in practice, what are the fees and what do they include and how successful they feel that they could tackle any particular issue. Once these questions have been answered, it is up to each individual to assess their choices and hire the attorney they feel that will represent them the best.

There are a variety of reasons why launching their own law firm can be an attractive proposition for qualified lawyers: greater flexibility and the ability to determine their own career path, family needs and lifestyle choices, having the opportunity to handle complex cases which would be taken on by senior personnel of a bigger organization, develop a distinctive and individual professional persona, avoid the uncertainties and vagaries that are usual in employer-employee dealings, bypass the office politics that are usual in any large organization, develop direct and solid client relationships, and enjoy the satisfaction of building their own practice. If you are entrepreneurial minded and are about to embark on launching your own law firm, here are a few pointers to keep in mind.

Ascertain if you are ready to launch your own law firm

. Before venturing out on your own, it is vital that you have business sources. If you are new in the field, or a geographical location, you must take into serious consideration whether you have enough contacts in the business to be able to begin your practice straightaway. In case you already are practicing as an attorney and are thinking of utilizing the business contacts of your current firm, you need to be cognizant of the ethical rules of your state that indicate what you are allowed to do or not, and regulate your actions accordingly.

. Assess the expenses involved in starting up on your own, and make certain that you have the financial wherewithal to cover for them.

. Consider the amount of time you will need to commit to your new practice, and determine if this is really the right thing for you, your finances, your lifestyle, and of course your family. In case you take on shareholders or partners, ensure that everybody makes the same kind of commitment of time to the practice, specifying the commitment in a shareholder, partnership or PLLC (professional limited liability company) agreement.

. One of the best ways to get your business up and running is by identifying yourself as an authority in your field of expertise. You can do this by speaking in public fora or publishing articles in journals, both online and in the print media. If you have not specialized yet in any area of practice, you need to determine whether concentrating in specific areas will mean future growth.

. You could discuss with other lawyers who have begun their own law practices, particularly those dealing in your area of specialty. This will help you to avoid the pitfalls and teething problems that they may have experienced.

Choose the structure of your organization

Before beginning your practice, or launching an advertisement about it, you need to determine a specific structure for your organization such as being a sole practitioner, getting into a general partnership, becoming a professional corporation, or a PLLC. Get the advice of a professional accountant to help you to ascertain which kind of organizational structure will be the most suitable for you.

Abide by the government registration, filing and deposit requirements

As an employer, a functioning business, or a corporation, you need to comply with various filing stipulations set by the government related to taxes and startups. Reconciling your tax records is essential in order to prevent the IRS making inquiries. If you hire staff, you also need to file the appropriate documents related to new employees.

Get insurance

The various kinds of insurance that you should think about buying for your practice are: malpractice, property, business, life, health, liability, vehicle, and disability. In fact, you should buy malpractice insurance right away.

Create a reliable system of accounting

In order to verify your business profitability, to keep a control on costs, to determine your fees, and to file tax and employment returns, an accurate and dependable accounting system is essential.

Open trust and bank accounts

One of the most important tasks when beginning a practice is to open trust and bank accounts that your firm will need to use.

Furnish your office

You will have to choose the space for your office and equip it with office equipment, furniture and supplies. You will also have to set up a library for all those bulky tomes associated with law.

Market your new practice

It is essential to devise a strategy of marketing your firm in order to attract business.

Set up your methods of billing and establish fee arrangements

Generally, charging fees on an hourly basis for the time spent on dealing with a case is the usual method of billing. However, lawyers use many other methods of billing as tools for marketing their business or according to their client requirements.

Set up a docket control system

Many malpractice insurance application forms have a stipulation that require attorneys to give details about the docket control system of their firm. This is required because an inefficient docket control system has the potential of resulting in missed dates and exposure to liability.

Establish standardized office procedures

The more systematic the procedures are in your office, the smoother will it function. Hence, it is important to devise standardized routines in the office for all the regular tasks that need to be carried out. This will help to cut down on the time spent on performing repetitive jobs.

Hire staff

When it is economically feasible, hire staff with the best qualifications possible at salaries that are the most reasonable.

Check for client conflicts

Lawyers are ethically obliged to prevent the occurrence of client conflicts.

Create a policy for document retention

All law firms, big, small and solo, are also ethically obliged to have a plan or policy for document retention.

Keep fine-tuning your practice

Once your law firm starts functioning profitably and smoothly, continue devising ways of improving the service quality you provide your clients. The better the quality of service, the higher the chances of success.

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