Courtroom Climate: Sunny days can cause their own share of trouble
By Kevin Williams
POSTED: May 21, 2012
Tags: Courtroom Climate
As many celebrated the arrival of spring with warm, sunny days, I am reminded that even clear days can sometimes lead to transportation accidents and the need to retain a forensic meteorologist. I am talking about sun glare. Sun glare refers to the contrast lowering effects of stray light on a visual scene. This stray [...]
Commentary: Vermont takes symbolic stand with first fracking ban
By John Stodder Jr.
POSTED: May 21, 2012
Tags: Commentary, fracking ban, Vermont
If the much-hyped dream of U.S. energy independence must involve hydraulic fracturing (also known as fracking) to extract natural gas from shale deposits deep underneath the surface of the earth, the State of Vermont wants no part of it. Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin signed a law May 16 banning fracking, a practice that involves injecting [...]
Civil Litigation: Restaurants, hotels beware – Labor Dept. is watching
By Steven G. Carling
POSTED: May 21, 2012
Tags: Civil Litigation
The U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, is significantly stepping up its scrutiny in Western New York to ensure that restaurants and hotels are obeying the Fair Labor Standards Act. The efforts involve surprise visits with increased focus on tipped employees, misclassifying employees as exempt from minimum wage and overtime, and off-the-books cash [...]
Legal Currents: Proposed cyberbullying law is unnecessary
By Nicole Black
POSTED: May 21, 2012
Tags: Legal Currents
Recently, Monroe County Legislators Mike Barker and Carmen Gumina proposed legislation that would make cyberbullying a crime. Under the bill, cyberbullying directed toward a minor would constitute a Class A misdemeanor in Monroe County, punishable by up to a year in jail. The crime of cyberbullying would occur where the defendant engaged in the following [...]
Commentary: Public speaking is anything but natural for most 
By Ambrose Clancy
POSTED: May 21, 2012
Tags: Commentary, public speaking
Kathy Easterson started stressing the night before her ordeal was scheduled. The tech support expert for a told several people what she was attempting so she wouldn’t bail and let them down. Attractive, personable and intelligent, Easterson sat in a back row at the EZ Speakers Toastmasters Club, a once-a-week midday meeting at the H. [...]
Managing Risk: Advice to help win the battle of the forms
By Louis B. Cristo
POSTED: May 17, 2012
Tags: Managing Risk
Every day, merchants exchange work orders, purchase orders, confirmations, shipping documents and invoices. Typically, sophisticated business people have boilerplate terms and conditions inserted within those various documents. More often than not, these terms and conditions are contained on the reverse side of an order form or invoice. The terms and conditions may impose additional delivery [...]
Keeping Your Balance: How to effectively tax plan in an election year
By Kristina Stamatis
POSTED: May 17, 2012
Tags: Keeping Your Balance
The Bush Era tax cuts are set to expire at the end of 2012 and there is not a hint of change in sight. A chance of an agreement between Democrats and Republicans before the November elections seems highly improbable. Many are predicting last minute changes that will delay the 2013 filing season. Given the [...]
Advocate’s View: No employment at-will exception for compliance officer
By Paul L. Leclair
POSTED: May 16, 2012
Tags: Advocate's View
The employment at-will doctrine withstood another challenge. Last week on May 8, the New York Court of Appeals affirmed the First Department and rendered a decision refusing to create an employment at-will exception for a corporate compliance officer who complained of security trade irregularities to the security firm’s principal, Sullivan v. Harnisch, 2012 NY Lexis [...]
Worth Considering: Getting going on investing with asset allocation
By David Peartree
POSTED: May 16, 2012
Tags: Worth Considering
Asset allocation is the workhorse of investing. The allocation among and within asset classes may be the single most significant driver of investment results (see “The 90 percent investment solution,” The Daily Record, April 19). The optimal allocation or even an allocation that is “good enough” can vary for each investor, but there are some [...]
Commentary: Could your practice be a virtual success?
By Edward Poll
POSTED: May 15, 2012
Tags: Commentary
The Internet has created a revolution in the way that lawyers and clients interact. The most familiar form of the online revolution’s impact on small and solo law firms is the use of the Internet for everything from websites and blogs to client updates and webinars. Social networking allows lawyers to access literally a world [...]
Paralegal Perspectives: PAR seminar a success; more plans for 2012
By Stefanie Medina
POSTED: May 15, 2012
Tags: Paralegal Perspectives
The Board of Paralegal Association of Rochester is always trying to think outside the box for interesting topics to present to both our members and, as always, any potential new members. This spring, PAR hosted a seminar on cyberbullying, which we thought would be a very timely topic. Perhaps not surprisingly, the turnout was very [...]
Money Management: Divide and conquer with your portfolio
By David A. D'Ambrosio
POSTED: May 15, 2012
Tags: Money Management
There’s no way around it. Being an investor means learning to live with a certain amount of uncertainty. Everyone wants to ensure that their investments will produce the returns necessary to achieve their goals. However, investment results are dependent on factors that cannot be predicted or controlled, such as the direction of interest rates, the [...]
