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If you have had an accident at work then you will face the difficult task of finding a solicitor that can represent you well. On top of that, you need to try to find someone who can represent you on the basis of No Win No Fee because this will allow you to really pursue whoever you are claiming against. This is very important, because if you choose to pay for your representation up front, you may run into thousands of pounds worth of solicitors fees. This can be particularly problematic in some cases because a lot of claims against large companies can drag on for an awful long time. The problem being is that these large companies will think nothing of delaying the case, asking for reviews and things of this nature. They will do anything to prolong the case if they know that you are paying for your legal fees, because they know that you could potentially run out of funds. If you have a no win no fee solicitor working on your behalf, then the company you are suing won’t try to delay because they will know that you can use your solicitor for as long as it takes without being charged a penny.

Injury lawyers who operate on this basis normally get their fees from the defendant anyway, so once the case is over, you are likely to be entitled to all of the compensation from the case. Just remember to find a great Personal Injury Lawyer when making your Injury Claim.

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What is a Source Code?

In simple terms, the source code is the computerized language that operates a device.   It provides the device with a set of commands on how to analyze data and even when to turn “on” or turn “off.”  Source codes are used to operate your computer, your microwave, or your cell phone.  They are also used to operate devices used in DWI cases to determine blood alcohol content.

What is the issue?

As anyone who has used a computer knows, coding errors can occur.  Source codes are not infallible.  They are subject to human error, mechanical failures and even malicious coding. Treating them as infallible in court when it comes to testing blood alcohol in the breath, violates due process of a defendant when that defendant is unable to seek independent testing of the code used.

The Legal Issue?

In 2006, defendant’s in a DWI case in Florida sought the computerized source code for the breath testing device used in DWI offenses, a version of the Intoxilyzer 5000.  The source code, it was argued, was necessary for testing to determine if proper programming was included in the device so that it was accurately assessing blood alcohol concentrations.

The issue with the request that occurred was that the manufacturer of the Intoxilyzer device, CMI, Inc., of Kentucky, considered its source code a trade secret and, as a result, refused to release it to the state to be turned over as discovery to the defendant.  Ultimately, the Florida Court refused to require the state to provide the defendant, Todd Moe, the source code.

Similar challenges began to spring up in many states.  In Minnesota, two Dakota county cases raised the issue.  In those cases, State v. Underdahl, and State v. Brunner, the lower trial courts ruled that the source code was discoverable and had to be turned over to the defense.   When the company, CMI, Inc., refused to part with its source code, the breath test results were suppressed.  The cases were appealed, finally making their way to the Minnesota Supreme Court for review.

On April 30, 2009, the Minnesota Supreme Court issued its ruling on the two combined cases.

It decided that computer source code for the intoxilyzer 5000 machine is within the control of the state and that it must be turned over to defense counsel when the defense makes a showing that the under the Minnesota Criminal Rules of Procedure Rule 9.01, subd. 1, provided, however, a showing is made that the information may relate to the guilt or innocence of the defendant or negate guilt or reduce the culpability of the defendant as to the offense charged.

The end result is that the Minnesota opinion provides defense attorneys a template by which they may seek  the source code in cases where computerized analysis of breath samples occurs.  It does require, however, that the defense, provide a reasonable basis as to why the code is relevant to the guilt of innocence of the individual in more than general terms.  In most instances expert testimony related to the nature of the source code and how errors may occur would be necessary coupled with any indicia that errors have occurred historically. Ultimately, if CMI, Inc. continues in its refusal to provide the source code to the state, challenges to the admissibility of breath test results in DWI cases will continue to increase and provide defense attorney’s a much needed tool in combating the reliability of the Intoxilyzer 5000

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When an employee or consultant obtains works without a license and they are used within a business (such as photographs or software), they will infringe copyright. In the ordinary course, employers are vicariously liable for the acts of employees during the course of their employment and for the acts of independent contractors. A copyright owner is likely to have several courses of recovery for the infringement against:

the employee or consultant for authorising the infringement by the employer;

the employer on the basis of vicarious liability;

a person responsible for a place of public entertainment, for allowing or permitting to be used for performance of a literary, dramatic or musical work;

a person providing the means by which to reproduce the work.

Obviously, the employer is the most likely target for a claim to damages, as they are seen to be 1. a stable enterprise with a vested interest in avoiding litigation followed by a damages payment; and 2. the employee is more than likely not going to be in a position to satisfy a judgment and the legal fees incurred in the conduct of a claim.

The Measure of Compensation

Damages are said to be at large in copyright cases, as they are not fixed to any particular measure. Damage caused by infringement of copyright is quantified by the value by which the copyright is diminished as a chose in action.

The measure of pecuniary damage likely to be ordered in an action for copyright infringement is that of its commercial value. The commercial value of a work in the circumstances of infringement is reached by one of two methods. Firstly, where the infringing works are sold (by the defendant), the commercial value is represented by the loss of profit to the owner, as the owner has been deprived of the opportunity to sell licenses for the work. The alternate means applies where the work is simply used by the defendant, and not resold by them.

Sales of Goods and Diversion of Customers

When a copyright work is copied and sold, the owner of copyright is entitled to recover their loss of profit caused by the diversion of trade to the defendant. Thus, in a case where the claimant was in the business of producing Christmas cards and offering them for sale to the public, the claimant was awarded the profits that the claimant was deprived by the actions of the defendant.

This is not to say that the claimant would be entitled to recover for all of the sales made by the defendants, as the claimant may not have sold as many as the infringer; whether the claimant will be entitled to recover for all of the infringing sales of the defendant depends on the circumstances of the case at hand. In the events that the particular copyright work is sold at reduced prices serves aggravate the damage suffered by the claimant.

The owner is also entitled to recover for the loss to the reputation of the original copyright work. A loss of reputation will take place where the works are sold at a reduced price, at a reduced quality or in a vulgar or distasteful fashion, such the claimants’ own sales in the future would be prejudiced.

Reproductions without Sale

Where the defendant does not trade in the goods copied, such as using photographs on a website, or uses infringing software, the method of calculation described above (which accounts for loss of profits for diversion of trade) is not the appropriate measure for calculating damages. The proper measure in these circumstances is a reasonable license fee that the copyright owner would reasonably charge for a license to use the photographs in the particular circumstances. The award of damages will be that of a willing copyright owner and a person in the position of the notional licensee, being the defendant.

Conclusion

Simply because a copyright owner seeks to recover from business, does not prevent the business seeking recovery from the employee or consultant who was responsible for, that is, authorized the infringement by obtaining the copyright work unlawfully and making it available to the business for use.

Despite frequent claims of excessive damage by owners, they are not in a position to enforce a claim for a sum of compensation greater than the loss that they are able to prove with reasonable certainty. This process takes in a process of ascertaining on the particular facts what the copyright owner would in fact be entitled to recover at law.

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The County District Attorneys are in a contest to see how many convictions they can total per year.  Some 20 percent of young defendants are convicted by plea bargains offered after they have spent 6 months in the county jail or more waiting for a trial.  This will also cut down on the jail population both in County Jail and State Correction Jails.  The public can’t defend themselves from the system that relies on a homeowner trying to implement State Laws and the CCIOA Act to protect himself in County or District Court.

Judge

Judges control the income of lawyers and it can be vicious.  Judges award the winner as who he likes over the other lawyer in the trial.  Judges are not protected from criticism by the public.  Judges can not serve as Officer of the County Bar Association.  Judges don’t care about Ethics; they have to protect their fellow lawyers against the public.  A Civil judge can’t rule on a felony in his court.  That means the judge and lawyers have a dirty secret you can lie in Civil Court and nothing will happen.  In Colorado a Judge can be prejudice in his court and in his court decisions.  There is no law against prejudice judges in Colorado courts.  In Colorado if you believe the judge is prejudice you have to file with that judge to recuse himself.  Of course the Judge being charged will not recuse himself and God Help the lawyer who filed the charges.  Lawyers will not recuse a judge for fear he will be black balled by all judges and lose his income.  That judge will spread the word and that lawyer will never win a case in any Colorado courts.  Justice exists so long as the client doesn’t require his lawyer to over come a prejudice Judge.  This fact proves in Colorado law a defendant or plaintiff will never be represented by a lawyer beyond challenging a prejudice judge or one that needs to be recused.  Lawyers and judges are a higher level citizen than we the peasants (public).  Our purpose for existing is to be the source of income for lawyers and judges.  We the taxpayer pay for everything courthouses, judges salary and pensions, court costs and lawyers exorbitant legal fees.   What this really means is justice is blunted by a lawyer being restricted from making demands of a judge or an apposing lawyer in a court trial.  Further this means a litigate in court will not get justice if any action on the part of a lawyer would be considered intrusive to the judge’s powers.   Judges have immunity from being sued for their rulings in court and thus they believe they are untouchable and immune from criticism by anyone in their State.  That includes criticism from one judge to another.  So when a judge feels he has been criticized he becomes extremely angry and will strike out at anyone who inferred he was wrong or his decision was not fair or outside of the law.

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            Yesterday your client had a life.  That may change as a result of today’s indictment. 

            Yesterday your client was a businessman, an owner.  He was a husband and a father.  Today he faces the possibility of losing everything, his family, his freedom, his future, his dreams, and his reputation.  His life may be changed forever.

            Yesterday your client told people what to do.  His demands were met.  Starting today your client is in the grips of the government and he will be told what to do.

Yesterday your client was known for his power, his prestige, and his philanthropy.  As of today his name will be preceded by the title “the defendant.”

Your client is going to be making certain critical decisions that will have an overwhelming impact on his future.  He will have to make these decisions at a time when he will be ill equipped to make them.  He will be suffering from massive stress and his family will be thrown into turmoil and fear.  His normal resources may be cut off and he is going to have to put his faith in others.  Even though he doesn’t want to trust anyone, he is going to have to trust you.

            He can trust you.  You are the criminal defense expert.  This is your business and this is what you do.  You are the lawyer.  You know the law.  All of your knowledge, training, experience, and resources are devoted to obtaining a successful outcome for your client.  So what’s the problem?

The problem can be summarized in a simple number, a statistic – 93%.  Approximately 93% of all people indicted by the US Attorney’s Office are convicted.  And most of those spend time in federal prison. 

            Your numbers are better than that.  That is one of the reasons why you have the reputation and stature that you do.  Despite these well known and overwhelming odds, you are still able to win.  That is all your client wants.  Boy does he want you to win.

            So your job, your focus, is to navigate the time period between your client’s indictment and when he is sentenced.  Even in those rare instances where there is a trial, you’re essentially done when he is sentenced.  Great.  On to the next case.

But not so fast.  A few things have happened to your client in the meantime.  Chances are he is now a felon.  Chances are he is facing a prison sentence.  Chances are he is scared to death.  And chances are things happened between the indictment and sentencing that will affect how much of his sentence he has to serve, where he has to go, and what he will do when he gets there. 

Your white-collar client expects, as he always has, to have expert advice available to him to answer the questions that are consuming him and his family: 

“Where am I going to go?”  We don’t know.  The judge made a recommendation but we don’t think the BOP is required to follow it.  “What?!”

“What is it like in prison?”  We don’t know because we’ve never been.  “What!?”

“What can I bring?”  Check the BOP web site.  “I did and it didn’t help.”

“What kind of people are there?”  “What will I do all day?”  “Is it violent?”  “Is there any way to get out early?”  “Can I bring my medicine?”  “Can I see my wife?”  “Can I see my doctor?”  We don’t know.  Check the internet.  Maybe there are some books. 

I was indicted.  I was represented by fantastic lawyers and they did an amazing job.  And, as most are, I was also convicted.  Fortunately my lawyers really shined when it came to sentencing.  But, and this is a big “but” for someone in my position, my lawyers could only help up to a point.  I had all of the questions your clients ask, and so many others.  But no matter where I looked I couldn’t get answers.  Consequently, I walked into federal prison apprehensive and anxious.

Truthfully, even if your client and his family are relentless with their questions, you can’t be expected to know everything.  And unless, heaven forbid, you actually go through this experience yourself, you can’t really know how to answer certain types of questions.  You can’t be expected to provide answers for things you don’t know, but your client doesn’t know who else to ask.  And your client doesn’t even know what to ask.

However, you didn’t get to where you are in your profession by being satisfied with what you don’t know.  If you don’t know something, you want to at least know where to go for answers.  You go to the experts for the advice you need.  But what are you supposed to do here? 

Let me tell you from my experience that your client will want to talk with someone who has been there, someone like him, a white collar professional who had been put in an untenable situation with no knowledge of how to navigate the ordeal.  And I know that he should talk to that person early enough in the process to make a difference. 

For example, the first serious thing that will happen to your client happens early, and it is a major event.  It won’t seem like much.  It didn’t seem like much to me.  And given the casual way this event was handled by my lawyers and everyone else, I had no clue of the significance of this brief meeting.  I’m talking about the meeting with the probation officer that leads to the PSR/PSI.  You may know how important that document is during the sentencing process.  I now know, because I’ve been through the system, that the report is very important for other reasons too.  The PSI report turns out to be the first thing read by each member of the BOP staff each time they come in contact with a new inmate.  They rely on the content of that report, to one extent or another, for every decision they make while someone is in prison.  The content of that report is used to make decisions as wide ranging as bunk assignments, medical care, and qualification for sentence reduction programs.  Yes, having the right advice at the commencement of the sentencing process can help your client ease his stay and, most importantly, help him to reduce his time in prison.  Not having that advice early enough is like leaving the handcuffs on.

Dealing with the BOP is not always intuitive.  In one case, a former lawyer who was represented by a prominent attorney appeared at a sentencing hearing with a negotiated prison term.  During the hearing, this highly respected criminal defense lawyer successfully argued for a three month reduction in the pre-agreed length of the sentence.  Although this sounds like a wonderful result, a result that would confirm the value of that defense lawyer, it was not.  Neither the client, who had been a lawyer, nor his criminal defense attorney, realized their mistake.  As a result of the three-month reduction in the sentence, the client was no longer eligible for a BOP program that would have reduced the defendant’s sentence by 15 more months!  Yes, due to the rules governing programs available to prisoners, the 3-month reduction in the sentence meant the defendant was no longer eligible for a much larger reduction in his sentence. 

 Are you responsible to know all about the mechanics of BOP operations and   prison life?  The answer is no.  These are not legal questions and this is not legal advice.  But how much of your time has been consumed away from the “legal” side of your cases over the years by these same questions?  If an expert had been available to your client, someone who could answer these questions, then you could have spent more of your time on his case.  After all, you have someone prepare trial graphics, you use jury consultants, economists, and other experts.  This is another way to provide your client with better service and free up your time to do what you do best.

You know that there is critical information that can provide valuable advantages to your client. Given the likelihood that someone who is indicted will be incarcerated, your client should be referred to an expert on these matters from the very beginning of the case.  Once in the system, everything you know about getting what you want or need, and how to get it will have changed.  Sometimes doing the right thing can be wrong.  This is a bureaucratic system and the people and their tactics must be understood by anyone who wants to safely navigate through the prison experience.

White collar defendants are best served by an expert who was also a white collar defendant.  I am one of these experts.  I am a former attorney who was indicted and became a federal prisoner.   I vividly recall all of the questions I had.  I vividly recall my own concerns and fears and those of my family.  But most importantly, I was the clerk at Lompoc, where I was responsible for resolving the day-to-day problems of 600 prisoners.  It was my job to introduce all of these men to prison and to act as their unofficial ombudsman with the staff and administration.  I use all of those experiences when I consult with those who are indicted and who are going through this process.  I know that my time spent with these people and their families is going to make their experience more bearable – the time before prison, the transition to prison, and their stay as a “guest of the government.” 

I pay particular attention to those things that can make sentences as bearable and as brief as possible.  I also know that, because clients are not distracting their lawyers with questions that I can answer, their entire legal team functions more smoothly.

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