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Every state has ombudsmen at both the state and local levels who are dedicated to protecting the rights of nursing home residents. An ombudsman is an official who is appointed to receive and investigate complaints on behalf of a group of people. A long-term care ombudsman is there to listen to and help resolve complaints on matters affecting residents and their families. Where one complaint might not be enough to cause significant change, an ombudsman can collect and organize information from a large number of individuals, and help direct their collective voice into action.

Because they specialize in issues surrounding nursing homes, this type of ombudsman can also be a valuable source of information if you are considering a skilled nursing facility for yourself or a loved one. They can provide tips on what to look for in order to make your search easier and more successful using their expertise. They also help promote awareness of the issues affecting residents to the general public, helping give the elderly a voice in their larger community. A long-term care ombudsman serves as a "watchdog" and an agent of change where there are problems that need to be solved.

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Your local ombudsman is not affiliated with your skilled nursing facility or insurance agency, and therefore can provide you with uncompromising, objective counsel on matters that you are concerned about. They can provide you with information free of charge, that might otherwise require consultation with a lawyer. A nursing home ombudsman also tries to come to you, to be accessible to everyone, and do the best they can to make sure the people they represent are heard and responded to.

With all the issues to consider when choosing a facility, weighing pros and cons, and then continuing to make sure the resident's needs are met over the long term, it is reassuring to know there are services out there working on your behalf. Allowing someone else to do the monitoring lets you concentrate on the more personal details of your loved one's life in the nursing home, and relax and enjoy your visits.

If you have questions or concerns about any number of issues regarding your nursing home, your rights as a nursing home resident, and more, contact your ombudsman. If they can't take care of your inquiry directly, they will be able to refer you to someone who can. Take advantage of the benefits of an ombudsman and how they can help you; they are a valuable source of information and support. It is their job to work on your behalf and for the continued quality of life for residents of nursing homes across the nation.

How can I find out if someone is in jail?

When I recently went looking for someone who I thought was in federal prison I was sure that I would have a near impossible task on my hands but I was wrong. It might have been difficult a few years ago but not anymore. Let me show you how to find someone in prison and get loads of background information about them at the same time.

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Step 1: Use the BOP Federal Inmate Lookup

The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) provides a website at bop.gov. On the site you will find the BOP federal inmate locater which is a searchable database of all federal inmates since 1982.

Type in the details of the person that you're looking for and click the button to see a list of names together with the prisons where they're being held. When I did this recently the site gave me a long list of inmates because of the common name that I was searching for so I had to find out which one, if any, of the inmates was the person that I was looking for.

Step 2: Get more background information on someone

You may find like I did, that when you've narrowed down your search by race, age and sex you're still left with more than one name and you can't be sure that any one of them is the one you're looking for. You need to get more information on this person.

The BOP site is ok, it's free and it might just tell you everything you need to know. If it doesn't then you should subscribe to a web site that will give you all the information you could ever wish for on prison inmates and anyone else you fancy looking up. These websites gather information from thousands of places all over the Internet and offline too. They are easy to search and when you find the person that you're looking for you can do a full criminal records and background check on them. When you've done this you'll be far more confident that you've found the person that you're looking for.

Historically, men have been known to settle their differences with physical altercations. From old bar fights in the Wild West to young war soldiers fighting over a girl; men and women have been fighting for what they thought was right for centuries. Today, times have changed and nobody can get into a physical fight without facing criminal consequences.

The crime of assault involves the threat of violence coupled with the ability to carry it out. If a woman tries to hit her husband in the head with a frying pan and misses she can still be charged with the crime of assault. If a man forcefully pokes another man in the chest in a manner that would be construed as violent or offensive, he can be charged with assault.

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Assault is often times confused with battery. The main difference between the two is that assault does not require that actual physical contact took place, whereas battery does. With a battery conviction, there must have been physical contact between the suspect and the victim.

Assault charges are tricky because there are always two sides to a story and there aren't always witnesses. Even men can be victimized by women with assault charges. Some men were raised to never hit a girl, yet their angry wife or girlfriend physically assaults them in a heated argument.

If the man tires of the abuse and slaps the women he might be the first suspect. The police are more accustomed to female assault victims as opposed to male. The male victim might have a more difficult time explaining that he acted in self defense, even if he truly did.

Even if you were in the right, you will need to have your own representation if you have been charged with assault. Since assault can be prosecuted as a misdemeanor or a felony, you can't afford to make the mistake of thinking that your innocence will avoid a conviction.

With many assault charges, it is your word against the other person's, which means it will be up to your criminal defense lawyer to prove your innocence. If you are ultimately convicted of assault, you could be facing steep fines, jail time and victim restitution. It is your right to have an attorney and it is your right to defend yourself when someone is physically attacking you, but you need to act fast by securing a skilled criminal defense lawyer.

In the state of Ohio, the safety of all drivers and their passengers is of the utmost concern. Unfortunately, auto accidents remain one of the leading causes of death for Americans, especially young children and young adults. Because of the sobering statistics, the state legislature has sought to deter unsafe driving habits by stiffening the penalties for traffic-related offenses.

Vehicle homicide is the criminal offense of causing the death of another human being or unborn child while operating a motor vehicle. There are varying degrees of such a crime, with aggravated vehicular homicide being the most serious offense, followed by vehicular homicide and vehicular manslaughter. With aggravated vehicular homicide, certain aggravating factors were present at the time of the accident. These factors can elevate a standard homicide or vehicular manslaughter case into aggravated vehicular homicide.

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The most common aggravating factor is alcohol. When an individual kills another person in a drunk driving accident, they will most likely be charged with aggravated homicide. Furthermore, Ohio's impaired driving laws not only encompass alcohol intoxication, but they include driving while under the influence of illegal drugs and controlled substances as well.

Such homicide is not limited to drug or alcohol use. A person can be found guilty of aggravated vehicular homicide if they were found to be driving in a reckless manner which displayed a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of other people or property. A good example would be drag racing, if a person was racing at 65 mph in a 25 mph zone and struck and killed a pedestrian, they could be charged with aggravated vehicular homicide.

In addition to driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or reckless driving, a person can be charged with aggravated vehicular homicide if they cause the death of another person while driving recklessly in a construction zone. Ohio legislature added this new aggravating factor in 2004, in order to combat unsafe and hazardous driving in the state's construction zones.

It's tragic that anyone can accidentally cause the death of another human being if they are involved in an auto accident, but it happens every day. In Ohio, a person can be criminally charged for accidentally killing another person in a motor vehicle accident, regardless of whom they are or if they don't have a prior criminal record. What this means is that even if you are a young college student with a promising career ahead of you, even if you are a medical doctor or a lawyer, or if you are a stay at home mom with kids at home, you could still be criminally convicted if you kill another person with your motor vehicle. For this reason, it is absolutely critical that you enlist the services of an experienced attorney. You don't want your future and your fate to be solely in the hands of the criminal justice system.

In Ohio, aggravated vehicular homicide when impaired is a second degree felony. Penalties for a second degree felony can include up to 8 years in prison and up to ,000 in fines. If the driver was under suspension at the time of the offense, then the offense is charged as a first degree felony which is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and ,000 in fines. If you or someone you love has been charged with aggravated vehicular homicide, it is extremely important that you enlist the services of a skilled and knowledgeable Columbus criminal defense attorney immediately. A conviction can destroy your life; therefore, you will need an aggressive and meticulous lawyer to fight on your behalf.

If you've recently been arrested and/or convicted of a DUI or drunk driving offense there are many things to consider before actually disclosing your DUI on a job application. First, if you are eligible to clear the DUI record (immediately or in the near future) it might make more sense to explore those avenues before you apply for a job that you really want.

9 times out of 10 most every employer will do a pre-employment background check on you and will uncover the DUI offense which most likely will cause them not to hire you. Most pre-employment background checks are conducted by 3rd party HR companies that are contracted by your potential employer specifically to do background checks. A lot of the big companies use the same outsourced HR company to do their checks so if you get flagged within their system that could in effect ruin your chances of ever getting hired from any company who uses them to perform pre-employment background checks.

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So it's definitely something you want to think about and clear up BEFORE you apply and agree to a background check.

But if you take the steps to clear or expunge the DUI record prior to applying for the job there is a good chance that they will never find out about it. So, by spending a little bit of time and educating yourself on what you need to do to take care of your record could pay off big time.
Not every state allows the clearing or expunging of DUI records but even in those states that won't clear your record there are remedies to minimize the damage by keeping it from showing up on background checks. You can get more information at www.duiprocess.com

Filing compensation claims under the US Department of Veterans Affairs is not as easy as it may seem, especially if you're into it for the first time in your life. Rules and regulations that govern the working of the Veterans Affairs (VA) system keep changing almost everyday. So, it's almost impossible for an individual to keep track of the extremely dynamic provisions of the VA system and make claims accordingly.

Thus, when you think about filing a VA claim, the wisest thing would be hiring the services of a reputed VA attorney who's practicing in your region. Such lawyers would be able to help you with the paper-work that's necessary for filing a VA petition and would also extend his assistance while you start gathering different evidences which are crucial in filing such claims. Now, let's look at some of the basic steps involved in filing a VA claim:

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Before you start arranging the documents required to file such petitions, you must request a copy of your official military personnel records file. You can get this by sending a document request to the National Personnel Records Center.

After you get the records file, you must start collecting other documents which include:

1. The Report of Separation (DD - 214)

2. Your healthcare provider's statement(s) which should make reference to different medical findings, treatment procedures, diagnosis, and so on.

3. Social security number for each of your family members and also that of any dependent relative who may be residing with your family. Together with these, you must also present the social security award letter (or the exact amount of payment received)

4. Marriage certificate (in case you are presently married) and the birth certificates for all your kids being claimed as immediate dependents (also includes adopted and step children).

Once you gather all these documents, your VA lawyer would use these records to make sure that the Veterans Affairs system follows their own rules and gives you the money you really deserve.

Finally, when you are done with arranging all the documents, visit the Veterans Affairs Regional Office in your area and file your claim. You must remember to follow up with the VA Regional Office to ensure that you get the money in time.

However, when in need of legal assistance for filing a claim under the US Department of Veterans Affairs...Columbus (OH) residents must seek guidance from experienced lawyers only!

A large amount of people think that court reporting is a boring job, but it can be such an exhilarating one. The reason it has a reputation for being so dull is because, a court reporter must turn out page after page of legal jargon, but what they don't consider is that the reporter is a first hand witness to some exciting and dramatic court room drama.

What Qualifications Do You Need To Be Able Offer A Court Reporting Service?

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In order to be a certified reporter, an individual has to pass the State Licensure Exams which is executed by a panel of court reporting specialists. He or she may be a member of either the National Verbatim Reporters Association (NVRA) or the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA). To become eligible to be a member of the NVRA you will have to be able to type 250 words per minute, and to qualify as a member for the NCRA the minimum requirement is 225 words a minute.

For additional improving of abilities in the reporting field, they are obligated to undergo quite a few tests like writing, transcriptions examinations, and speed tests categories like Certified Verbatim Reporter (CVR) or Real Time Verbatim Reporter (RVR).

Court reporting services

Aside from documenting and transcribing the depositions and litigation in court, a court transcriptionist ought to offer various services:

A good quality transcript or report of all the occurrences that happened in the courtroom. The stenographer should preferably write in flawless grammar with the proper spelling and punctuations. For that reason, the court reporter should have an outstanding knowledge of the spoken and written language.

A quality litigation reporter would certainly also know the fundamental facts of the case they are reporting on. This is so that they can completely understand the proceedings amongst the lawyers, Judge, Defendant, Plaintiff and the Jury, and what charges or complaint is against the accused. This can also help the reporter to keep themselves updated on all of the jargon, and they might be able to predict what could be said in future proceedings.

Through voice, electronic or stenotype reporting, the reporter may render service by transcribing every one of these into a written format that is legally recognized in court. They will have to create a transcript that can be read.

The reporting services he supplies will need to be speedy and effective, so the reporter should be be trained well enough to handle stress and pressure and sustain grace under pressure.

Court reporting services don't only involve court proceedings but also outside services. A person that is trained to do court reporting may also be able to work as a broadcast captioner or a webcaster. An individual that can transcribe live TV for disabled people can earn an excellent salary.

They could also work from a home office as a freelance reporter, or as a independent reporter. If someone decides to work in this way, they are able to have a flexible schedule, which can be much less demanding and stressful.

If you love and have a good understanding of the written and spoken English language, you will make an excellent court reporter. It is an exhilarating and challenging job. Court reporting also requires you to have remarkable documenting skills, and the ability to make good decisions. The lawyer requires all the support he can get from a certified court reporter or an official court reporter to win his case. In conclusion, the role of a court reporter is a extremely important when it comes to providing documentation for proceedings, dispositions and court litigation.

If you're interested in real estate careers, the bad economy is creating a great opportunity for you in the form of foreclosures. Here are two jobs in real estate you can work for home and expect to bring in a six-figure income.

You Can Invest In Tax Foreclosures With Only 0 In the Bank

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Think you need lots of money to invest in real estate? You couldn't be more wrong - as long as you invest in the right property, the right way. Few other jobs in real estate offer the potential to make money like foreclosure investing.

The way to accomplish this is to directly approach owners who are about to lose their property to tax sale. At this point in the game some will be willing to part with their deeds for nothing - you just offer them a few hundred dollars for their time in signing over the documents.

Others will want something for the property - you can offer them a few hundred dollars for the deed, and a percentage of whatever you are able to sell it for. Then, you just pay the taxes or sell quickly, and take your profits.

These Same Properties Create Overages - Collect Them and Make Five Figures Finder Fees

The very same owners you look to buy property from are probably owed overages (if they don't end up selling and let the property go). When a bidder bids more for the property than was owed in taxes, the excess generally goes back to the owner. But many never find out about the overage - and eventually it escheats to the government.

One of the best jobs in real estate is to help people collect these overages. You work on contingency, like a lawyer - meaning you take your payment when the money is paid out, but get paid a larger amount for not charging anything up front. This translates to 30-50% of the overage - and that's a lot of money. These overages often run well over ,000 - so you make ,000 or more, all for helping these owners get their money back.

These two jobs in real estate are where you should be looking for the foreseeable future. No other area of the real estate industry is so ripe with opportunity, and if you work hard, you could easily see a six-figure income within a year.

Columbus is the largest city and capital of Ohio, one of the states of the United States of America. It is greatly responsible for the state's economy and has a proud history whose legacy continues to be lived out by the people of the city to this day. Columbus, Ohio is no doubt one of the most interesting cities in the most powerful country in the world, attracting not only tourists but, more importantly, investors who appreciate the advantages of settling on a city that has a rich culture marked by harmonic relationship among the business, science, arts, and sports sectors.

One of the reasons why Columbus is famous is its name, which is a tribute to no less than the great explorer Christopher Columbus. It was in 1812 that the city was founded and, only four years after, it began to assume the heavy responsibilities of state capital. Centuries after, Columbus is now a recognized global city and heralded as one of the best large cities in the country to live and settle down in. The city's economy remains a wonderful mix, with education, retail, healthcare, insurance, and technology all taking the reigns. This is the reason why the quality of life in Columbus is relatively better than what most other large cities in the United States have to offer. Even with the current financial crisis the country is facing, Columbus is remains strong and fighting, thanks to its diverse economy.

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Columbus is known as the Arch City, a nickname it earned because of the number of wooden, now metal, arches that dotted an area in the metropolitan, High Street, right at the turn of the 20th century, which was a very productive year for the city. While these arches made history by becoming the means to providing electric power to streetcars and brightening the thoroughfare, they are not the only reasons for you to come to Columbus, Ohio; in fact, said arches were torn down in 1914 and only reconstructed in 2002 for the historical interest they provide. Even if you have no pending business in the city, there are plenty of other reasons for you to visit, including taking a tour and having a vacation with your family or just by yourself. There are several sights to see and things to do that await you in Columbus.

The state capital is home to different buildings that have graced history with their notable architecture, design, and purpose. These buildings include the art-deco Ohio Judicial Center, the Greek-revival State Capitol, and the Peter-Eisenman-designed Greater Columbus Convention Center and Wexner Center, to name a few. Other interesting buildings to see are the LeVeque Tower, the Rhodes State Office Tower, and the One Nationwide Plaza. The residents of Columbus don't need to look far for quality education for their children. The Jefferson Center for Learning and the Arts is made up of non-profit organizations and remains a center for publications, research, and seminars for leadership and governance in non-profit organizations. The Center is responsible for restoring and renovated at least eleven turn-of-the-century buildings and homes. Of course, Columbus also has venues for large and intimate concerts, and they include the Germain Amphitheatre, Value City Arena, Nationwide Arena, Lifestyle Communities Pavilion, Newport Music Hall, and Veterans Memorial Auditorium. Cultural events are hosted by the King Arts Complex, the historic Palace Theatre, the Southern Theatre, the Ohio Theatre, the Riffe Center, and the famed Lincoln Theatre, which used to be for African-Americans only. Indeed, Columbus, Ohio is one culturally and historically rich city.

In the latter part of nineteenth century, social theories from Ida B. Wells-Barnett were forceful blows against the mainstream White male ideologies of her time. Ida Wells was born on July 16, 1862, in Holly Springs, Mississippi. It was the second year of the Civil War and she was born into a slave family. Her mother, Lizzie Warrenton, was a cook; and her father, James, was a carpenter. Ida's parents believed that education was very important and after the War, they enrolled their children in Rust College, the local school set up by the Freedmen's Aid Society (Hine 1993). Founded in 1866, the Society established schools and colleges for recently freed slaves in the South, and it was at Rust College that Ida learned to read and write.

Everything changed for Ida the summer she turned sixteen. Both of her parents and her infant brother died during a yellow fever epidemic, and Ida was left to care for her remaining five siblings. She began teaching at a rural school for a month and, a year later, took a position in Memphis, Tennessee, in the city's segregated black schools. Upon arriving in Memphis were teaching salaries were higher than Mississippi, Wells-Barnett found out that even though there was a stronger demand for literate individuals to teach, there was a stronger need for qualified ones. According to Salley (1993), because she needed qualifications in order to teach, she enrolled into Fisk University and gained her qualification in under a year. While returning to Memphis from a teaching convention in New York, she was met with racial provocation for the first time while traveling by railway. Ida was asked by the conductor to move to the segregated car, even though she had paid for a ticket in the ladies coach car.

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She refused to leave, and bit the conductor's hand as he forcibly pushed her from the railway car. She sued the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, and was awarded 0 by a local court. Even though she won the case, the headlines read, "DARKY DAMSEL GETS DAMAGES," and the decision was appealed to the Tennessee Supreme Court and was reversed (Bolden, 1996). She was ordered to pay court frees in the amount of 0. This incident infuriated Ida and spurred her to investigate and report other incidents of racism. Outraged by the inequality of Black and White schools in Memphis and the unfairness of Jim Crow segregation, Ida became a community activist and began writing articles calling attention to the plight of African Americans. She wrote for a weekly Black newspaper called The Living Way. Wells-Barnett's teaching career ended upon her "dismissal in 1891 for protesting about the conditions in Black schools" (Salley, 1993, p.115). During her time as a school teacher, Wells-Barnett along with other Black teachers was said to have gathered and "shared writing and discussion on Friday evening, and produced a newspaper covering the week's events and gossip." (Lengermann and Niebrugge-Brantley, 1998, p.151). The newspaper was officially established and published and distributed under the name Memphis Free Speech and Headlights throughout the Back community a year after she was dismissed. It has been said that her motivation to become a social analyst was the results of her involvement with the Memphis Free Speech and Headlights both as editor and columnist under the pen name Lola and as part owner. Unfortunately, her printing press was destroyed and she was run out of town by a White mob (Sally, 1993). After getting dismissed from her teaching position, her attention then shifted from schools to the issue that would dominate her work for most of her life; lynching. Lynching was the brutal and lawless killing of Black men and women, often falsely accused of crimes, and usually perpetrated by sizable violent mobs of Whites.

It was during this Reconstruction Era, after the Civil War, that Black men made immediate civil gains such as voting, holding public office, and owning land. Yet, groups like the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) developed at the turn of the century as a response. They made it difficult for Southern Blacks to vote or live in peace, attempting to maintain White supremacy through coercion and violence, including lynching (Salzman, 2004) . Infuriated by the Memphis lynching in 1892, which involved a close friend, Ida expressed her grief in an editorial: "The city of Memphis has demonstrated that neither character nor standing avails the Negro if he dares to protect himself against the White man or become his rival. There is nothing we can do about the lynching now, as we are outnumbered and without arms. There is therefore only one thing left we can do; save our money and leave town which will neither protect our lives and property, nor give us a fair trial in the courts, when accused by White persons" (Hine, 1993).

At the same time Wells saw what lynching really was; an excuse to "keep the nigger down" and execute Blacks "who acquired wealth and property." (Duster, 1971) This sparked her investigation into the causes of lynchings. Since Whites could no longer hold Blacks as slaves they found in mob violence a different means of maintaining a system of "economic, psychological, and sexual exploitation" (Duster, 1971).

In addition, the result of her investigation and editorial sparked the Black community to retaliate and encourage all who could to leave, and those who stayed to boycott the city Railroad Company. Ida saw the success of the boycott, and asserted, "the appeal to the White man's pocket has ever been more effectual than all appeals ever made to his conscience." (Duster, 1971.)

As mentioned earlier, because of Well-Barnett's racial identity, her social theory was well shaped by the events unfolding within her community as experienced by the first generation of African-Americans after Emancipation (Lengerman and Niebrugge-Brantley, 1998). According to Lengerman and Niebrugge-Brantley (1998): "This community took as one assumption that White dominance and its accompanying doctrine of White supremacy had to be confronted. American social Darwinists were giving doctrine of White intellectual legitimacy to Whites, which at this time meant Anglo-Saxon, imperialism abroad and supremacy at home, providing dogma such as that in James K. Hosmer's"Short History of Anglo-Saxon Freedom"(p. 159). Wells-Barnett's social theory is considered to be a radical non-Marxian conflict theory with a focus on a "pathological interaction between differences and power in U.S. society. A condition they variously label as repression, domination, suppression, despotism, subordination, subjugation, tyranny, and our American conflict." (Lengerman and Niebrugge-Brantley, 1998, p.161).

Her social theory was also considered "Black Feminism Sociology," and according to Lengerman and Niebrugge-Brantley (1998), there was four presented themes within the theory: one, her object of social analysis and of a method appropriate to the project; two, her model of the social world; three, her theory of domination and four, her alternative to domination. Although those four themes were present in her theory, one could assume that the major theme above the four was the implication of a moral form of resistance against oppression, which is not farfetched seeing that oppression was the major theme in her life.

She used an amazingly straight-forward writing style to prove a very bold argument against lynching, discrediting the excuse of rape and other excuses. Wells used specific examples and sociological theories to disprove the justifications of lynching made by Southerners. Within her pamphlets, Wells portrays the views of African-Americans in the 1890s. Southerners allowed widespread lynchings while hiding behind the excuse of "defending the honor of its women."(Jones-Royster, 1997).

The charge of rape was used in many cases to lynch innocent African-American men. The victim's innocence was often proved after his death. Wells states that the raping of White women by Negro men is an outright lie. Wells supports her statements with several stories about mutual relationships between White women and Black men. White men are free to have relationships with colored women, but colored men will receive death for relationships with white women (Duster, 1971). As shown by Wells, the excuses used by Whites to torture and murder African-Americans were false. In no way can these kinds of crimes ever be truly justified because of the victim's crimes. Perhaps the most obvious reasons these crimes happened are hate and fear. Differences between groups of people have always caused fear of the unknown, which translates into hate. Whites no longer depended on African-American slave labor for their livelihood. When African Americans were slaves they were considered "property" and "obviously, it was more profitable to sell slaves than to kill them"(Jones-Royster, 1997). With all restraint of "property" and "profit" lifted, Whites during and after Reconstruction were able to freely give into their fear and hate by torturing and killing African-Americans.

Wells' investigations revealed that regardless of whether one was poor and jobless or middle-class, educated, and successful, all Blacks were vulnerable to lynching. Black women, too, were victimized by mob violence and terror. Occasionally they were lynched for alleged crimes and insults, but more often these women were left behind as survivors of those lynched. Up to this time, African-Americans had almost never been free from some form of persecution; the period of Reconstruction was particularly difficult. With the occurrences of lynching steadily increasing with no hope of relenting, their new found freedom ensured little safety. Eventually, Wells was drawn to Chicago in 1893 to protest the racism of the exclusion of African Americans from the World's Fair. With the help of Frederick Douglass, she distributed 20,000 pamphlets entitled "The Reason Why the Colored American is Not in the Columbian Exposition." On June 27, 1895, she married Ferdinand Lee Barnett, lawyer and editor of the Chicago Conservator, and continued to write while raising four children with him (Duster, 1971).

Ida believed firmly in the power of the vote to effect change for African-American men and women. She saw enfranchisement as the key to reform and equality, and she integrated the Women's Suffrage movement by marching in the 1913 Suffrage Parade in Washington, D.C., with the all White Illinois delegation (Sterling, 1979). She continued to write in her later years, and remained one of the most widely syndicated Black columnists in America. She published articles on race issues and injustices that were printed in African-American newspapers nationwide. Toward the end of her life, Ida worked to address the social and political concerns of African-Americans in Chicago. She made an unsuccessful run as an independent candidate for the Illinois State Senate in 1930, and died the next year of the kidney disease uremia (Duster, 1971). Wells-Barnett's influence was profound. When the federal government built the first low-income housing project in Chicago's "Black belt" in 1940, it was named in her honor (Sterling, 1979). Her autobiography was published posthumously by her daughter, Alfreda Duster in 1971. In Chicago, she helped to found a number of Black female and reform organizations, such as the Ida B. Wells Club, the Alpha Suffrage Club of Chicago, and the Chicago Negro Fellowship League. She also served as director of Chicago's Cook County League of Women's Clubs. These clubs were a means for Blacks to join together for support and to organize to effect change (Duster, 1971). At the national level, Wells-Barnett was a central figure in the founding of the National Association of Colored Women, a visible organization that worked for adequate child care, job training, and wage equity, as well as against lynching and transportation segregation.

Ida B. Wells-Barnett's passion for justice made her a tireless crusader for the rights of African Americans and women. She was a social reformer, a suffragist, a civil rights activist, and a philanthropist. Her writings, regardless of the risk to her safety and life, raised public awareness and involvement to address a number of social ills resulting in the oppression or murder of African Americans. Her service of time through the creation of myriad clubs and organizations improved the lives of her people. Her work in Chicago, in her final years, focused on providing for the needs of the city's African American population. Modeled after Jane Addams' Settlement House efforts, Wells created urban houses for Black men, where they could live safely and have access to recreational amusements while they searched for employment (Hines, 1993). Ida B. Wells-Barnett is sometimes referred to as the "Mother of the Civil Rights movement." She refused to be moved from the Whites only railway car eighty years before the famous Rosa Parks held her seat on an Alabama bus. She encouraged the Black community to take steps to gain political rights, using the same means that would successfully be used much later during the Civil Rights movement such as economic and transportation boycotts (Hines, 1993).

In similar fashion to Margaret Sanger (of the Birth Control movement) and Susan B. Anthony (of the Women's Suffrage movement), Wells-Barnett was a woman who dedicated her entire life to upholding her firm beliefs about social reform. She began by writing about the disparity in education and school conditions for Black children and spent much of her life working to abolish lynching through public awareness (Hines, 1993). Ida, through her example, writings, speaking, and service in various organizations, elevated the voice of women's equality and suffrage. She was a pioneering Black female journalist, and led a very public life in a time when most women, Black or White, did not actively participate in the male political realm. Ida B. Wells-Barnett was connected to many prominent leaders and reformers, male and female, during her lifetime. Among them: Jane Addams (1860-1935) was a social reformer, social worker and the founder of Chicago's Hull House, the most famous of the settlement houses. Addams and Wells-Barnett successfully worked together to block the segregation of Chicago's public schools (Sterling, 1979). She was also connected to W.E.B. DuBois (1868-1963) who was a famous Black scholar, sociologist, researcher, writer, and civil rights activist who voiced opposition to the accomodationist views of his contemporary, Booker T. Washington (1856-1915). Washington urged African Americans to focus on self-improvement through education and economic opportunity instead of pressing Whites for political rights.

Ida B. Wells outwardly disagreed with Booker T. Washington's position on industrial education and was mortified with his implication that "Blacks were illiterate and immoral, until the coming of Tuskegee." (Hine, 1993) Outraged by his remarks, she considered his rejection of a college education as a "bitter pill." (Hine, 1993). She wrote an article entitled "Booker T. Washington and His Critics" regarding industrial education. "This gospel of work is no new one for the Negro. It is the South's old slavery practice in a new dress." (Hine, 1993).

She felt that focusing only on industrial education would limit the opportunities of aspiring young Blacks and she saw Washington as no better than the Whites that justified their actions through lynching. Wells-Barnett joined DuBois in his belief that African Americans should militantly demand civil rights, and the two worked together on several occasions, most substantially as co-founders of the NAACP. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), of which Ida B. Wells-Barnett was a founding member, is still a thriving organization with thousands of members nationwide (Hines, 1993). The association continues to advocate and litigate for civil rights for African Americans.

Two of the primary issues on which Wells-Barnett worked on, anti-lynching and women's suffrage, are now defunct issues. Lynching is a federal crime and women received the vote in 1920 with the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution. For this reason, related groups that arose at the time, such as the Anti-lynching League, the Freedmen's Aid Society, and the National Association of Colored Women are no longer in existence. Yet, the League of Women Voters was created as an outgrowth of the suffragist movement, and is an organization that still educates men and women about their responsibilities as voters. Wells-Barnett's contribution to the field of sociology is so significant that her work "predates or is contemporaneous with the now canonized contributions of White male thinkers like Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, George Simmel, and George Herbert Mead, as well as the contributions of White female sociologists like Adams, Gilman, Marianne Weber, Webb, and the Chicago Women" (Lengerman and Niebrugge-Brantley, 1998, p.171). Ms. Wells-Barnett is an inspiring example of the power of the written word and the determination to succeed despite the odds. She was an African American woman, the daughter of slaves and considered the lowest of the low on the historical totem pole in American society and her tenacity, ambition, courage and desire for justice changed history. She was direct and possessed strength during a time when this was unheard of by a woman, especially a Black woman. A reformer of her time, she believed African-Americans had to organize themselves and fight for their independence against White oppression. She roused the White South to bitter defense and began the awakening of the conscience of a nation.

Through her campaign, writings, and agitation she raised crucial questions about the future of Back Americans. Today African-Americans do not rally against oppression like those that came before. Gone are the days when Blacks organized together; today Blacks live in a society that does not want to get involved as a whole. What this generation fails to realize is that although the days of Jim Crow have disappeared, it is important to realize that the fight for equality is never over. In the preface of On Lynching: Southern Horrors, A Red Record and A Mob Rule in New Orleans (a compilation of her major works), she writes, "The Afro-American is not a bestial race. If this work can contribute in any way toward proving this, and at the same time arouse the conscience of the American people to a demand for justice to every citizen, and punishment by law for the lawless, I shall feel I have done my race a service. Other considerations are of minor importance" (Wells, 1969).

What is Colossus?

Colossus is software licensed to about twenty-five insurance companies to aid in predicting the settlement value of claims. The insurance industry maintains it is a useful tool because it considers a great many factors, and the settlement values are just a range for use in any way the insurer wishes. The claimants’ attorneys, on the other hand, maintain that the software is only so good as the data input, and we never know what the adjuster has input; that it does not consider interference with normal life activities, or other valid indications of pain and suffering normally proved by lay testimony instead of medical testimony (as required by Colossus); and that it is NOT merely a beginning point, but is instead the FINAL WORD ON VALUE that the adjuster has to adhere to, or else risk unfavorable management reviews.

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How would you like to know that only a part of all you are suffering will be compensated? Unless data are input, how can a computer quantify your emotional distress, or the loss of enjoyment of life because you no longer can take long walks with your spouse, or the pain and despair you suffer each day because your work hurts you and interferes with your healing? Unless all of your circumstances are included, is it fair to quantify all you have suffered and reduce to a dollar value based upon some factors that may or may not reflect your condition?

That is the essence of the Colossus software. It is an attempt by some insurance companies to value claims with no consideration at all given to whether or not a jury might award you more than the “average” claimant. They plug in such things as damage to the vehicles and expected length of treatment and allowable cost of treatment and many other variables and then come up with a number for the value of the claim. No consideration whatsoever is given to the extent of your actual pain and suffering.

Nor is any consideration whatsoever given to the fact that you might have a job where your injuries cause continued pain, or which slows your healing (consider, for example a waitress, or a person who has to stand all shift). They do not know, nor do they care, that you cannot hold your baby because of the pain in your neck and back. There is no room in the formula for such information.

But the problem is that in our system, it is the jury that is supposed to be the basis for determining the value of a claim, and juries do tend to listen to and consider many of the factors that Colossus ignores. Juries do make a distinction based upon whether or not they think the plaintiff is believable, or has attributes we value in our society, such as the virtues of honesty, perseverance, humility, or patience, for example.

Colossus has no way to evaluate those positive traits, so if you are possessed of anything positive that is likely to bring you a larger jury verdict, it will not be included in the Colossus valuation. You will have become a magnetic image, no different in regard to your positive characteristics than the magnetic image of any other of thousands of claimants with injuries similar to yours.

The real problem with Colossus is that the adjuster for your claim is just about stuck with the results that come out of the computer. Of course the insurance company will deny this, and will tell the media and the state insurance commissioner that Colossus is nothing more than an evaluation tool. It just gives a starting point, they say, from which the adjuster can move up if the facts of the case merit it. That is not at all true.

The Colossus result is a position that is increasingly locked in, and the adjuster who wishes to vary from it because of the facts of an unusual case, had better be ready to justify it. Furthermore, how many times do you think any adjuster trying to make the cut at an insurance company is going to go to her boss and ask for permission to exceed the Colossus determination of value? Considering that her evaluation and merit pay will be based upon how “efficiently” (read that to mean cheaply, or “hard-line”) she settles her cases, do you think she will ever go to her boss to ask for more money than allowed by Colossus? Not very likely.

Colossus is a well-kept secret by the insurance companies that use it, and they will likely not tell you if they have licensed the software. It is the market leader bodily injury claims-handling software used by an increasing number of insurance companies in the world. According to Computer Sciences Corporation, the company which produces Colossus, it is used by more than 50 per cent of the nation’s claim adjusters and by more than 300 insurance companies. Out of the top 20 US Property and Casualty Insurers, 13 are using Colossus.

Most claims insurance adjusters use computer software to appraise any insurance claim that you make. CSC claims that Colossus can evaluate more than 600 type of injuries based on 10,000 different rules. This way, adjusters will obtain a figure from Colossus software and then offer it to you to settle your claim. Insurance companies claim that their adjusters are not required to settle within the suggested Colossus calculations, but that is truly nonsense, and should be investigated by the nation’s insurance commissioners.

How does it work?

Neither insurance companies nor CSC will divulge exactly how they determine the Colossus baseline value. Most of Colossus' calculation of your claim is based on insurance data to which you don't have access, and insurance companies certainly do not want former insurance adjusters to tell anything about it either, see the article from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer ([http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/93800_insurance01.shtml]).

However we do know that the value of your claim will differ greatly from one region to another and also by the baseline that your insurance company has set. For example, auto insurers using the software select a number of closed, already-settled claims from each region in which they do business to provide the "baseline" settlement value for each type of injury. For example, an insurer might pick 200 back injury cases from a particular region that previously settled for between ,000 and ,000 and enter them into the Colossus program. Based on this past settlement data, Colossus calculates a settlement range for similar claims. Therefore the baseline value will be different for each insurer.

But who is there to ensure that the closed claims selected truly represent the norm? Wouldn’t it be in the interests of the insurance industry to “pad” the research by holding back reports of high value settlements? There is no assurance whatsoever that Colossus represents anything other than what best serves the interests of the insurance industry. No one has certified that the base from which the data are drawn was fairly and objectively constructed.

By using Colossus, most insurance companies will try to lower the value of your claim, and will not take into consideration stress, or emotional trauma, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium (relationship), inability to participate in activities that you used to enjoy, or any number of other things that a jury will consider. These factors are not accounted for by the Colossus software.

What Should You Do?

The first thing to do is to determine whether or not the company you are dealing with uses Colossus for any purpose in its claims process. Here is a list obtained through the media, of companies that will admit to using Colossus for some purpose in their claims valuation process.

The following companies are known to license COLOSSUS:

Aetna Allstate (since 1997) American National Property and Casualty (since 1997 in 38 states) American Family Group of Madison (since 1996) Arrow Claims Management (since 1997) AXA Insurance (based in UK, one of the world’s largest insurance group) (2001) Bishopsgate Insurance (since 2000) Explorer Insurance Company (1997) Farmers Insurance Group of Companies (2000) Federated Mutual Insurance Company (1998) General Casualty Insurance Companies (1998) Grange Mutual Casualty Companies (1998) Great American Insurance Company (1998) Hartford Financial Services (2000) Keystone Insurance Companies of Philadelphia Metropolitan Group, Rhode Island Norwich Union Motorist Mutual –American Hardware Insurance Group (1998) Ohio Casualty Group of Insurance Companies (1998) State Auto Insurance Companies of Columbus (1996) 20th Century Industries (1997) Travelers/Aetna Property Casualty (1996) United Services Automobile Association (USAA) (1997) Utica Mutual Insurance Company (2000) Zurich Personal Insurance (1998)

Therefore, we recommend that you follow carefully our advice on this topic to avoid allowing the insurance company an upper hand in resolution of your claim. How could this valuation software allow them the upper hand? First, as documented above, this is a software program that will produce a result that is in favor of the insurance industry. It does not include factors that may cause real interference with healing, or which may result in many nights of disturbed sleep.

Be it the tortfeasor’s company or your own insurance company, if the company that you are going to deal with for a general damages award has licensed Colossus, we recommend that you consider that in your negotiations. For example, since Colossus produces only an “expected” result based upon an “average” from input verdicts and settlements, you would want to call to the attention of the adjuster any facts that put your situation outside of the norm.

Let’s say that you are a waitress and you sustained a soft tissue injury to your neck and low back. No matter how good and helpful your medical treatment or no matter how much healing you achieve from a couple of days off of work, your condition will worsen just as soon as you again start carrying those trays full of food or drinks. The weight of that tray on one side or the other will make your injuries worse, and it will be much more difficult for you to obtain healing.

Another example might be a single mother who has to pick up her 11 month old baby frequently. She will suffer continued pain from her accident injuries a lot longer than a person who does not otherwise burden healing tissue. Think of how many times a day she has to pick up that child, and what a strain that puts on her neck and back.

Now do you think there is any way that either of these—or like—situations will be covered or considered in the Colossus result? Of course there isn’t. This is the old adage of: “Garbage In—Garbage Out”. Since the computer was not queried or programmed to consider either of these circumstances, then it is your job to provide sufficient information to the adjuster to allow her to modify the result from Colossus by making another set of information inputs to the program.

What you have to do is to think about your situation and come up with some aspect of your case that may be a little different than the norm. Then you will make note of that situation in a letter to the adjuster and ask her to confirm that in her evaluation she will make allowance for your situation notwithstanding the result suggested by Colossus. A good resource to consult to get such a letter would be a website specialized in personal injury claim such as SettlementCentral.Com (http://www.settlementcentral.com)

If she does not respond, or if she does not agree to make allowance for your particular situation, we suggest you warn her that you will write to the insurance commissioner. Again, consult the SettlementCentral.Com website (http://www.settlementcentral.com) as they do provide a sample demand letter. As a next step, we suggest that you write to your state insurance commissioner and complain about the use of Colossus. Finally, we think that your state Trial Lawyers Association may have some information or suggestions on legislation to curtail the total reliance on Colossus.

Another key to working with an adjuster who is using Colossus is to make sure your medical record documents everything in a way that the software will reward. There are three key elements to this requirement, and you control only one of them: the other two are held by your doctor (who may not wish to make adequate documentation) and the adjuster (who may not cooperate to let you know what format is required for information to be understood by Colossus).

You will need the cooperation of the adjuster to tell you what format would be helpful to him in getting you full value for your claim. Ask him about the quality of your medical records. Which records were most useful, and which records were virtually useless. He should be able to tell you. This person is not an actual enemy; he has a job to do in this mission, and so do you; you need each other to ensure the case is settled fairly and amicably.

Solicit the adjuster’s cooperation to let you know the specific injuries and specific complaints used to evaluate the claim. Since each complaint and injury must be documented in a medical report to be considered by Colossus, ask him to help you by telling you which doctor needs to make a supplementary record in this case.

If you don’t have a good medical record, you will have to obtain a narrative report from your doctor, or get him to make specific findings that are translatable to input into Colossus.

Additional information such as a letter to the insurance adjuster regarding Colossus, letter to the insurance commissioner, and other Colossus references are available for free on our website at: http://www.settlementcentral.com

The overwhelming majority of criminal cases are settled by pleas of guilty to some charge - often a reduced charge or one with an agreed sentence. Does this mean that the criminal justice system is corrupt? Not at all. Nor does it mean that the criminal justice system is not just. 

In cases which go to trial, the judge does not assume that the officer is telling the truth because he or she is an officer, but because of past experience.  These people see each other at least several times per week, so there is an underlying set of relationships at work.  Just because a citizen disagrees with an officer the result is not a disbelief in the citizen's statement. 
 
Judges understand very well that everyone views every situation from a slightly different perspective, and that you may be absolutely certain of your rectitude and yet absolutely wrong, or the officer may be certain it was you who was speeding and yet have been aiming just a hair off on the radar gun and focused on another vehicle.  It is the claim that the officer is lying (rather than mistaken) which may lead to a problem.  Unless the officer has a history of lying in court, it is rarely advantageous to claim that he or she is doing so.  At my first law firm we were absolutely certain that the police in Columbus, Ohio were throwing crack at the feet of black males standing on street corners (probably as drug-ring lookouts) to justify their arrest, but were never able to get it on tape--thus we never made the charge. 
 
One need not, however, plead guilty to any criminal allegation or charge.  Most charges can be settled for a plea to some intermediate offense.  For example, an amendment from a moving violation to an equipment violation is usually possible.  I do not recall ever having pleaded a client guilty to anything other than a reduced charge.  While plea bargaining is immoral (those who are guilty should be found guilty), it is necessary as a key component of the criminal justice system. 

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See, e.g., Palermo, White, Wasserman & Hanrahan (1998), who estimate that 90-95% of all guilty pleas of persons represented by counsel are the result of plea bargains (p. 112). For more serious charges, there is a huge difference between attitudes in the various states.  I find that Ohio judges will plea bargain anything; the culture in Kentucky is that the judge will accept a plea bargain only if the facts require it--the judge will actually inquire, on the record and in open court as to why such a bargain should be accepted. 
 
Of course, even in northern states I have usually been able to demonstrate some significant infirmity in the prosecution's case, but that is largely because I work cases hard and can often find some key facts which would have been overlooked if my motivation were less.  Or perhaps I just have had a string of innocent clients.
 
Reference:
 
Palermo, G.B., White, M.A., Wasserman, L.A., and Hanrahan, W. (1998). Plea bargaining: Injustice for all?  International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology. 

Ohio is a relatively fresh, but not free from drunk drivers and drivers from driving their vehicles under the influence. Although DUI records in this state is not as high as they are in states like New York, Texas and California, does not mean that people are not unhappy with drunk drivers every day. You probably get your car destroyed in a crash or cut off from one of these drivers, and you wonder how you can build the driver arrested. You can find all the drunk driver orDUI Drivers visiting the easy capture of the Ohio Department of Public Safety for Ohio license plates.

The Ohio Department office is not only in the amount of riders, number plate and driver's license plate number searches, but it is a great place to start your search. If you do not live very far away, you can simply go to the office, pay the fee and receive the desired information in no time. However, you must beTo obtain a representative body, a lawyer, a law enforcement agency, a lawyer, a court or insurance company, access to the file plaque Ohio. Normally, those who are able to access files, but the Privacy Protection Act of drivers has unauthorized access to issues of identity theft and victimization emerge from access to such information by unauthorized persons prohibited.

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To save time, you want to spend to the Ohio Department of Public Safety, you can call the local office to see if you qualify for access to files. This is especially necessary if you live far from the office. You can reach the office by phone 614-466-4344. The office is located in Charles D. Shipley Building, 1970 Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio. Making a call in advance helps you to know, whether it's worth, not all the way o

An alternative to the use of> Ohio Department of Public Safety is the Internet. There are some private research companies register on-line and have access to public records and can give information about license plates in Ohio. These sites require only that the indicator of the driver that you want to track, and you will get this information as the name of the driver, address, telephone number and other information that may be of interest.Unfortunately though, this service is not free. You should therefore prepare to pay about or thereabout before you can get the information you require.

Paid online searches are cool because they are faster and easier and it removes the bottleneck of protocols that you will most definitely have to deal with if you visit the Department office in Ohio. The information you get from this source too will be as authentic as the one you get if you visit the office physically. This option will be helpful for those who do not meet the requirements to access the Ohio license plates records at the Department of Public Safety.

A prominent member of the brain-trauma treatment team will probably be an occupational therapist. Occupational therapists help patients improve their ability to perform, activities of living and working environments. This type of therapy focuses on enabling people who suffer from mental, physical, conditions of development, or emotionally disabling and manage activities of daily living [ADL]. ADL includes, for example, using only a computer, dressing, cooking, eating, bathing, aswork and related activities.

Occupational therapists are well trained. A master's degree or higher in occupational therapy is the minimum requirement for entry into the field. Course work in occupational therapy programs are the physical sciences, biology and behavior and the application of the theory and skills of occupational therapy. Programs also require the completion of 6 months supervised fieldwork.

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Occupational therapy does not work with people to their causeAge. In addition to traditional medical settings, occupational therapists, people can recover from brain trauma seen at birth to three early intervention programs in public schools, such as job coaches, and as part of mental health.

An occupational therapist is a doctor. After a site Ohio State University, "Occupational therapy is a healthcare profession that uses" occupation ", or activities aimed to help people with physical disabilities,Emotional or developmental disabilities lead independent, productive and fulfilling lives. "The occupational therapist assesses the capacity for self-care, work and leisure of a person and plans and tools to develop social and interpersonal activities, restoration and / or maintain the person's ability to reach the ADL. The therapist helps the motor functions base and to enhance mental capabilities, but also to compensate for permanent loss of function. The ultimate goal is to return the person toindependent living, productive and satisfying.

Treatments range from occupational therapists, physical to the spiritual. Physical exercises are used to increase strength and dexterity, while other activities may be selected visual acuity or the ability to recognize patterns to improve. For example, a person called with a brief loss of short-term memory, to do lists to help you remember, while a person might be assigned to improve co-ordination problems with the exercises for the hand-eye coordination.Occupational therapists also use computer programs to help improve decision-making, abstract-reasoning, problem-solving, and perceptual skills, as well as memory, sequencing, and coordination-all of which are important for independent living.

Other treatments can include the use of adaptive equipment, including wheelchairs, eating aids, dressing aids, design or build special equipment needed at home or at work, including computer-aided adaptive equipment. Teaching can be used on how to Use the device to improve communication and control various situations in their environment

Occupational therapy in the treatment of traumatic brain injury [TBI] during many stages of recovery and rehabilitation used. Such therapy may be involved in the provision of sensory, motor and positioning supports during periods of coma. When the patient improves and gains skills, occupational therapy facilitates the process and re-teaches the basic skills, self-care, to complex cognitive skills such asmemory and problem solving.

WHAT SHOULD I LOOK FOR IN AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST?

The following is by no means meant to be an exhaustive list of the questions or concerns you should have when choosing an occupational therapist nor is the following meant to disqualify any occupational therapist you are considering, these are meant to enable you to begin a discussion with the occupational therapist.

1. Look for licensing as, typically, such therapists must be licensed, requiring a master's degree in occupational therapy, 6 months of supervised fieldwork, and passing scores on national and State examinations.

2. Do they work full-time in their profession? More than a quarter of occupational therapists work part time.

3. How often will the therapist assess and record your activities? Progress is an important part of an occupational therapist's job. Accurate records are essential for evaluating clients, for billing, and for reporting to physicians and other health care providers.

4. Does the therapist specialize. Some occupational therapists may work exclusively with individuals in a particular age group or with a particular disability. In a school setting, a therapist may work with children individually. Some therapists provide early intervention therapy to infants and toddlers who have, or are at risk of having, developmental delays. Some occupational therapists work only with elderly patients.

5. Will the therapist make home visits? It is important, once you begin to re-establish your independence that you take into account the role TBI will play in coping with your daily life. An occupational therapist can make recommendations for adaptive equipment, training to prolong driving independence, assess homes for hazards and identify environmental factors that could contribute to further injury and injury prevention.

6. Will the therapist visit, and assess, your work environment?

* American Occupational Therapy Association, 4720 Montgomery Lane, Bethesda, MD 20824-1220. Internet: http://www.aota.org

Copyright (c) 2008 David Bressman

Q: Who are the carriers, which could probably be negotiated introduce a cell tower lease on my property?

A: In general, wireless carriers will lease directly with a cell phone tower. One of his managers wireless acquisition or ownership of the site are generally first apply the indicator level of interest. We want to make sure before you go to a cell tower lease agreement with a provider of mobile business (ATT, Sprint Nextel, U.S. safe-Mobile, Metro PCS, Clearwire, Verizon Wireless, Alltel, T-Mobile) or contract with one of the great tower of the development or the roof-management company (AAT, Crown, American Tower, SBA) to conduct your due diligence, But don 't wait too long.

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Even if you're lucky to be contacted by any of these companies, be sure to negotiate your lease or your lawyer did not even from a cell tower. Often prosecutors start scoring a single leasebillable hours. If the airlines have a lot of time back and forth, they are looking at another site who are ready to do business is to move, and then end up on the site instead of wasting it to collect rent.

Q: What do I need for my cell phone tower lease?

A: A cell tower lease executed properly, you should base your rights, protect the rights and address roofs sublet / sublease topics that many website owners often lack the time cells. TheAlso include tax and language in order to protect you from assessments. It 'also important to develop the site correctly (height of the tower and space available) to be raised for the expansion and location, revenues for the cell tower. All of the drawings shows cell tower lease should be completed by a state-licensed architectural engineering firm. I could lose a list of a dozen things that real estate lawyers regularly on cell tower leases, but then where's the funwhat?

Q: I know nothing about zoning or management of construction projects, should also build upon receipt of a construction site on my phone on the roof terrace are problems?

A: The owners will not choose your side, if it is not feasible for the development of a series of problems, prospects, particularly zoning and land use. Just enter in a cell tower lease, that the burden and cost of obtaining permits and licenses imposed against the carrier or tower company, not onOwner / landlord.

Q: What happens if cell towers become obsolete? What happens then?

A: Carriers are investing heavily in the development of the wireless network. About 70% of the U.S. population uses mobile phones. So if you hear rumors of a balloon or blimp or satellite, cellular technology that allows you to cheat, cell towers are here to stay. We no longer use the Sony Walkman, iPod, simply call it now, but people always want to have your own musicplayers, and the same holds true for personal communication devices.

Q: How long will my cell tower lease be good for?

A: When you sign a cell tower lease the lease term will be initially for 5 years with two renewal terms in most cases, and an additional ten year term after that. Since no one has a 35-year cellular tower lease as of yet, we can't say how long they can be extended for, but assume that your cell site leases will be extended for as long as you own the site and people need to speak to each other on wireless devices.

Q: How much can you get for your cell tower lease?

A: Isn't this always the big question... And our answer is that it depends how badly they need your site and where you are located. The closer to the heart of a major metro area, the greater the demand for wireless coverage and capacity will be, and the more you can get. Rooftop sites vary from ground leases. For example in Columbus, Ohio you might get ,100 per month each for three carriers on your rooftop totaling ,300 per month. While if you had a cell tower on your property in the same city you might get ,200 for the first carrier who built the tower, and to additional carriers pay rent to the first carrier to co-locate on their pole, and then each pay you 0 for ground space rights, or a total of ,000 per month.

Q: Shouldn't My Attorney Be Able To Guide Us?

A: A cell tower lease is a very intricate and specialized contract that is weighted heavily in favor of the cellular carrier. But think about it, it needs to be. Getting a cell tower built on your property is like having Donald Trump saying, "I'd like to have a small portion of your ground space, and I'm going to build a structure on your property that costs hundreds of thousands of dollars at MY expense, and it can potentially bring you -2 Million in rental income over a 25-30 year period if we can develop it properly. But I'm only going to do this if the contract protects my investment. And if you don't like it, no hard feelings, the guy next door has 2,000 square feet of space and could use the retirement money."

Now nothing against Mr. Trump, because he is an icon of success, but if you were going to sign a deal with him would you use an average attorney or get a top-gun attorney? And that's where we run into a shortage of talent in the marketplace. Those who can afford it hire a specialized cell tower lease attorney, those who can't cross their fingers and hope that they are getting a good deal.

That's why cell tower development and leasing on your own is a challenge and why property owners who can find a partner to work with are well served in both the short and long term.

Q: How can I get a cell tower lease signed for a tower on my property or antennas placed on our roof?

A: Having an uncle working in the real estate department at one of the carriers is your best bet. If that's not an option, submitting your site to the carriers directly gives you roughly a 1 in 1,000 to 1 in 10,000 chance for site selection.

Here's our insider secret to getting a cellular carrier interested in your site, revealed for the first time anywhere. First, pray to the gods of Radio Frequency. Then print up a dozen or so 18 inch x 24 inch "bandit signs" on your property that say in bold letters "I Want a Cell Tower On My Property." Your neighbors will probably steal them, but keep them posted on your property in a visible area. If a site acquisition consultant happens to be driving that way, you should get a call.

Last Question... (Extra Credit)
Q: What's the difference in signing a cell tower lease at ,000 monthly with 2% yearly increases vs. the same monthly rental amount at 3% early increases over a 25-year cell tower leasing term?

A: The difference is 2,000 over 25 years. WOW!! Are you happy or are you kicking yourself?

I was back reading the book, Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, and I can not tell you how awesome these self-help classics again!

Among other fascinating sections, says Hill, "among the ten leading causes of failure in leadership."

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"Reluctance to make this humble service" is what caught my attention and I was immediately transported back to Columbus, Ohio, where I have been training hundreds of people in customer service a large company.

Some of these peopletrue outsider, had no interest either as a customer service representative, because I really and truly despises, to help others.

This came out as we were implementing the call path for my service, which has a line in it, which is probably more effective in achieving the listeners:

"Sure, I'll gladly help you!"

"I can not say that," said some of my interns.

"Why not?"

"Why that rings false!"

"Why?" I asked, knowing full well that the line wasis shown in millions of calls to the sites of my clients'.

"Why not me, I would not say that -. That's all"

And we went around and around until I have an epiphany that I had shared with these people reluctant immediately. I said:

"The only reason it seems wrong, if you really do not want to help, if you're not happy, it would be!"

This was a great moment, because none of the trainees could dispute the fact we had a sort of foundation of truth.

Aborrow from the Hill, they could not get comfortable humble service, were so full of himself.

If you feel that way, and dealing with customers directly, not at all a favor, too: his resignation as soon as possible!

It 'impossible to satisfy more customers, if you are only required to self-service.

Patent litigation in the field of medical technology can be expected? Recent studies suggest that some features of patent applications with a greater likelihood that some patents end up in court tend to correlate. Innovation is the heart of the medical device industry. As with many industries, if you're not constantly working to bring new products and technologies on the market, there's a good chance that you will not survive. Companies that are successful, and continuessurvive to invest millions of dollars a year in research and development to create new products or better. The companies that succeed, to survive and continue to invest millions of dollars a year in research and development to create new products or better. Not only are these companies investing in the development of new technologies, but also investments in the protection of their innovations through the patent system. In fact, for the 2006 fiscal year, the U.S. Patent andTrademark Office (USPTO) presented a record of more than 440,000 patent applications, provided that more than double the number of applications a decade ago.

Provided, of course, with a record number of patent applications and the large number of patents each year would be logical to expect that the number of patent applications related complaints also increase. Recent statistics tend to justify this logic, as more and more patent holders, the courts are intended to protecttheir valuable intellectual property. For example, from 1995 to 2005 the number of patent cases filed in the United States has increased from about 1,700 to more than 2700, an increase of 58% in 10 years.

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However, the possibility of a lawsuit while 'on the basis of probability. While the number of cases of patent applications has increased steadily over the past decade, it is interesting to note that recent studies estimate that on average only 1% of U.S. patentsprocessed. However, these studies also note a number of properties, to predict whether a patent will probably tend to be processed. These features include: (1) the number of claims describing the invention, (2) the number and type of prior art citations, and (3) the "seal" the technology sector. Every feature is less, including as regards the characteristics described in the medical device industry.

Number of complaints

A patent must be at leastargued that describes with specificity what the applicant regards as his invention. The claims of the patent are often likened to the description in a deed of property, both to define the limits and scope of the property. Since the demands of the limits of the invention, the applicant is an incentive for the invention is defined by a series of large claims. But in some technical areas where there is a large amount of prior art, the applicant can establishTo avoid the invention through a series of narrow claims, the state of invalid.

And as the number of applications seem to be related to a patent, the probability that the patent will be treated in a day? Empirical studies have found that patents developed a larger number of claims processed as a non-contrast patents. In fact, one study found that about 20 patents developed arguments were, on average, compared to only 13 patent applications are not processed. The researchers quotesome reasons to help explain their findings: the perceived value of the patent and the limited range of patented technology.

The claims are simply the most important part of the patent. Therefore, there should be no surprise that purports to design and expensive to be pursued. Paying more money for a greater number of claims suggests that the patent holder believes that a patent with claims worth more probably more. However, some researchers concludethat the basic patents are processed more claims are not treated as patents, the patent holder would be useful to know the patent, provides the prospect of legal proceedings, and to help as a result of multiple complaints, drafted patent.

The field of technology protected by patents, which may also explain why patents should be treated with a rather large number of complaints. In a crowded field of technology, it is probably more competitors that are developing similarProducts. So it makes sense that patents that have a large number of complaints in this crowded areas tend to conflict with competitors.

A general idea of ​​how the number of claims for the medical device industry for the last 50 issued patents have been analyzed for endoscopes. The results show an average of 17 requests per patent. This number is somewhere in the middle of the call numbers for the patents cited treated and untreatedfirst. It seems likely, according to empirical studies, that patents are more likely processed. In addition to a greater chance handled, can these results show that the medical industry crowded values ​​its patents and anticipates litigation, with the result that patents with a higher number of credits.

Quotes of the first Art

Under U.S. patent law, the inventor and any other person who is involved in the contentin the preparation and prosecution of a request has the duty of all known information material to the patentability of the invention are known. To meet this requirement, patent applications in the control file, and as a statement of disclosure of information, which refers generally known as IDS. In IDS, the applicant lists all U.S. patents, foreign patents and patent literature, who are aware, and that is relevant to the invention. It also performs a patent USPTO examinerSearch for the state of the art and may with the prior art against the applicant, which was not previously known citation in an IDS.

When a patent is granted, the quotes of the art of records during the first charge listed in the patent at the USPTO. The researchers used this quote for information to conclude that the number of citations of art appear in a patent is a good predictor of whether a patent can be processed. One study found that processed an average of 14.2 patents citedPatents in the United States, while only 8.6 unprocessed patents cited U.S. patents. The study also showed that treatment more patents as prior art by other issued patents are cited, and that patents are processed more self-citations, ie citations to patents owned by the applicant.

How to compare patents in the field of medical devices? Even with the small sample of the endoscope cited patents as a proxy for the medical device industry, the average number of U.S.Patents, was quoted as 37 The most significant study is the discovery of 14.2 U.S. patents. This result means that patents for medical devices tend to be treated? Not necessarily. The study found that two specific categories of art earlier citations (citations received and self-citations) as significant predictors of litigation. Although the study did not mention a means of self-citations, he finds that obtaining patents is processed an average of 12.2Citations of other patents, which averages only 4.1 citations for patents were not processed. Were the average number of citations and self-citations received patents for the endoscope only 1.74 and 0.34. However, as the authors of the study suggest that the large number of famous quotations in this set small example can be found to indicate that the applicant is to be expected, the prospect of litigation and has taken measures necessary to ensure that the patent as strong as possible. Alsothe large number of citations can be attempted in the state of the art field crowded and highly competitive medical device to obtain.

The crowded field

Both properties have previously discussed patents developed the idea of ​​crowded technological fields mentioned. It may be obvious, but the term "overcrowded area" refers to an area of ​​technology in which they define many competitors and many issued patents to the technology. Sun patents issued inare crowded area, by definition, more competitive and thus more possibilities that the patent will be processed.

Under current U.S. patent classification, including more than 430 classes, eight classes, apparently, directly linked to the field of medical technology in context. Within these eight classes, there are over 2300 sub-classes, which can be classified as a medical device patent. The large number of classes and subclasses seems to suggest that the medical deviceSector as a whole would, most likely as a crowded field. In addition, most medical device manufacturers are demanding a better understanding of the value of their intellectual property. Since innovation is the lifeblood of the industry, it makes sense that the industry protects more of their inventions, which leads to more medical device patents issued. So, more patents in technology for a greater likelihood of patent litigation in bringing thisField.

At least one study shows that patents on medical devices are much more elaborate than the average of all patents. The study provides an explanation of why patents for medical devices are more likely with the finding that the medical device industry are treated as a whole, view patents as valuable assets.

Completion

Patent litigation is rising. Have conducted empirical studies in recent years, some of the identifiedProperties, strong predictors of whether a patent can be processed. , A large number of lawsuits and increase the state of the art of citations a patent on the ground the possibility of court. A crowded field of technology can also lead to a higher risk of patent litigation.

Through the crowded in a range of products in the medical sector is expected to remain highly controversial. Of course, this race to the courthouse indicator of the value that the industry as a whole placeson its innovations and thus its survival.

© 2007 Gallagher & Dawsey Co., LPA April 2007

DISCLAIMER

Please understand that we do not give accurate legal advice to all inventors in a short article on matters related to intellectual property. Consequently, there is nothing in the above determined as legal advice for any specific person. Legal assistance can be given by a qualified professional, after a careful examination of all circumstances. We ask you to informus, or another licensed professional, before you proceed.

"Have you ever heard the term" organized crime? "A reader asked in a commentary on the state of the industry." I'm Bad News Bears and the removal of the legitimate companies impartial, "another reader said, noting the prevalence of associated commercial arrangements. It 's time once again, to boost the industry for our ongoing" What we have heard " report is created in a recent survey of RESPAnews, we asked. "How is the market where you are in relation to the number of setbacksRESPA violations and see? "

Survey says ...

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"Have you ever heard the term" organized crime? "Asked a reader, in a commentary on the state sector.

"I'm Bad News Bears and the removal of the legitimate companies impartial," another reader said, noting the prevalence of associated commercial arrangements.

It 's time once again the pulse of the industry for our ongoing "What we have heard" report is created.

In a recent surveyRESPAnews.com we asked: "How's the market where you are in relation to the number of bribery and violations of RESPA you see?"

Survey says ...

Nearly 100 readers responded, with a full 60 percent said: "You are too. Corruption is rampant here."

Only 12 percent said: "You are in decline. People pay attention to the warnings of the HUD application," while 28 percent said, "You were unchanged. Some people need to do some further stimulus to the 'economy and of somenot. "

One respondent said: "I am sick and tired of the supervisory authorities do nothing to the flagrant violations of the reporting I did for the violation of the DOC for years, you have absolutely nothing, and that hurts my business ..."

Another said: "It 'a while', but it seems to get worse."

Another said: "Brokers Realtors continue to pay under the table or an offer to pay them for every referral out-of-sight, out-of-mind theory is' just you and me, e.no one else knows. Meanwhile, brokers are legitimate avoided. The biggest problem is with the lead-generators falsely advertising that wins the borrower when they apply and receive calls from four banks. The problem is that creditors are paid and therefore are not required to be competitive. Borrowers think they are for most online businesses, which are nothing more than lead generators that are selling their information to use over and over again. "

And another added: "We try toall the rules of the game and make it a level playing field for the customer and the business of dealing in a fair and equitable with the simple truth and honesty to do. "

State of the Nation

Here's what we have heard anecdotally from readers all over the country and in industrial lines.

Disclaimer: We can confirm that none of these alleged practices are in progress, nor can we guarantee that they claim violate RESPA. All reports were received from membersindustry in the state.

Arizona

"I met with the bait-and-switch, kickbacks, etc., always in Yuma, and in particular in the area of ​​Phoenix Phoenix with creditors (mainly brokers). I chalk this unpleasant situation for nothing more than greed."

California

"I was a seller in the last 10 years in two different counties in California. The districts I work in is not as competitive as the largest counties in Southern California.I have seen many companies one way or another, fines from the Department of Insurance, and I've never seen a broker that is asking for a rule receive benefits in any kind of problem ever seen. Because injuries are so one-sided? If the benefits have never been asked, he would never be a problem. "

"What is common with all the illegal kickbacks to be paid to brokers and agents for the use of escrow and title companies related to this problem must be stoppedimmediately. Consumers are turned off by higher prices paid to affiliates so they can pay illegal kickbacks to brokers and agents seized. This is also known throughout the industry, but regulators do not do something about it. I am sick and tired of competing against these illegal activities. "

Illinois

"Underwriter / Lawyer / Agent List exists only in northern Illinois. Tell HUD to make it clean. The Illinois DFI certainlydo not want to ruffle the feathers. "

Indiana

"Stocks and bonds independent of their suppliers to drive their companies to take advantage of title, mortgage company, and therefore the sales agents who carry one or two licensed surveyors. The consumer has no chance of Northwest Indiana."

Kentucky

"I was told second hand, in the city that HUD investigate rumors of bribes by a mortgage company for real estate agents in Paducah was. I do not want evil, I wouldas a level playing field so that people can play too little! Presumably for every loan closed with them, would be $ 150 for their money "advertising". I'm not, my nose into the affairs of others to stay, but it is the point at which they affect my business too. "

Ohio

"A great big AfBA closed a subscriber with the second largest real estate company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, and Realtors simply move down the road in the company following thebusiness is a sham to make money back in the hands of business illegal. Title insurance, even if a commodity is a service industry and we must return to it. Real estate agents and mortgage banks to make more gross revenue for each real estate transaction. I was not disappointed not to see AfBAs or joint venture to go on. They are bad for consumers. "

Oklahoma

"Oklahoma is all the way up to the provincial capital of damaged and no one seems to be interestedleads to a halt. At least a dozen questionable LLC is made solely between Tulsa real estate agents, builders, title insurance, closing companies and lenders. The state insurance commissioner and the Office of the Attorney General known for years, but always turn a blind eye when the Realtors to stop fund their reelection campaigns. Oklahoma will be defrauded of millions of dollars every year, but we can not do. HUD really needs to crack down against the majorInsurance companies, so that these practices continue. "

"Sham AfBAs run in every state. In Oklahoma, they are constantly competing with my own subscribers. The insurance national title is about the whole business in a State in virtue and we feel powerless to do anything about it."

"I cried about it for three years and nobody listens. The agents are in conflict about whether to get the best deal for the customer, or more cashown pockets. There are too many of these illegal AfBAs across the country, but how can it be stopped? The realtors and builders have found a large unregulated field and ignore all aspects of RESPA, and everything is blessed by the underwriters and our insurance commissioner spineless. I ended up with the degree of corruption. The public has no idea what happened and the bad guys and their lawyers are exploiting the ignorance of winning the war and we continueHundreds of thousands of dollars every year for taking bribes illegal. "

Pennsylvania

"My business was AfBAs abundantly evident, not one that will damage the work's title, not to mention play" services under core. "Unfortunately it is difficult in a small town and turning in the offending parties."

Massachusetts

"Bribery of lawyers for the banks in Massachusetts is $ 100 per share -. In general, this is not the kickbacks closing share legal fees to lenders?experts in addition, in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut is unknown. This is not the creditor gets exam fees, without a license? We see no end to the practice. "

Michigan

"Michigan is out of control!"

Nevada

"Many companies in Las Vegas real estate market are links to mortgage companies. This is not so new, but if Werber, taxes are so low that I'm concerned that subsidize the cost ofbroker commissions on real estate market by side with mortgage fees. This for me would have an impact on consumers, even if they state that did not receive compensation from the asset side. The consumer recognizes that compensation may do so inadvertently or managed by the agent in a way that is not for the consumer and are actually paying more, the cost of borrowing for the agent or broker management overheads of the business. A finance company was advertising 125Percentage of commission on the sale, if tied to a mortgage company. New owners do this all the time with their lenders incentives only through the in-house lender. My thought is that if this practice is acceptable that we should do the same to remain competitive in the market, even if I do not think that this is in the best interest of consumers, and would be the fiduciary responsibility of the agent and the injury brokers. "

Texas

"RESPA violationsare abundant in the Dallas-Ft. Worth it, does not reveal so many real estate agents do not get anything, and some mortgage banks receive gifts of experts, most of their operations which are not disclosed by both parties. "

Virginia

"One problem is that I keep seeing our market Crespa (Consumer Real Estate Settlement Protection Act) -. authorized the company to see comparison markup fees, experts usually increases the $ 100 + tax with the HUD-line" surveySam Surveyor / XYZ Settlement Services ... $ 400. "After the request of the surveyor, have been confirmed in the position that its accounting charge $ 300. The same thing goes for the fees of the abstractor is. Fees for the preparation of the form to pay R-5 (which form a Virginia contract needs if the seller is moving out-of-state or out-of-state resident), even if outside seller was a resident of Virginia and does not move. The most disturbing thing I see is the mark-up the title insurance ratesfound on regular prices in Virginia. What I encounter are not a company or store only a minimal solution, or closing costs, and then write down the title premiums $ 250 - $ 300 We also have a situation where a particular security agency, whose main shareholders are a number of local banks . Loan officers are paid bonuses for each loan that the bank is insured by the bank holding company. Borrowers have a choice of very half-hearted title companies in competition, and, occasionally, a loan is grantedapproved by an unwritten agreement that the borrower of the bank-affiliated companies to use the title. Title companies, links with local estate agents is a constant problem. Distributors are under high pressure for the broker-based title agency. The current situation makes it increasingly difficult to compete for us. I never complained about the competition, but it is not the same playing field. My choice to stay competitive is to break the rules. I have no desire to support thisCancer, the destruction of our industry. "

Put here your status

Do you know of suspicious things going on in your local market, you would like to see investigated?

Expected to report a violation of RESPA, HUD sent a written complaint description of the practice that you think of RESPA. The complaint must contain the names, addresses and telephone numbers of the alleged violation. HUD would prefer to enter your name and phone number if youInvestigator wants to ask more questions. You may request confidentiality. Send your complaint:

U.S. Department of HUD

Office of RESPA and Interstate Land

451 7th Street, SW, Room 9154

Washington, DC 20 410

You can also reach HUD RESPA Division by phone at (202) 708-0502 or e-mail to hsg-respa@hud.gov

You can also file a complaint with the state and other federal agencies that are responsible for regulating the settlement providers to sendengaged in the practice of reference. To our knowledge, there is no way of knowing if a company has already been reported, because agencies will not release the information until after the investigation was completed.