Questions tagged [united-states]
For questions specific to the United States as a whole, or that span multiple state jurisdictions. If your question is related to a specific state then you should use that state's tag instead (or as well).
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What would happen if someone sued every judge in the country?
What would happen if someone put together a list of every judge in the US and filed a lawsuit naming all of them as defendants? Obviously, it would be a frivolous lawsuit, but who can dismiss it ...
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Can someone be convicted of possessing illegal images if no evidence can be found on the suspect’s computer?
Perhaps it might technically be possible, but can someone be convicted of possession of illegal images if nothing can be found on his or her computer? For instance, suppose a website hosting normal ...
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How does 911 legally record calls?
From my understanding, all calls to 911 in the United States are recorded. How does 911 legally record calls in states where consent to record is required?
From Reporter's Recording Guide:
I know ...
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Hospital billed me for services that I explicitly refused. Are there any legal ramifications for hospital?
(well, my wife). Background - we lost a pregnancy early this year. Got pregnant again. Wife had some spotting during first trimester, became panicky, and rushed off to a hospital. The main thing ...
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Why 12 Jurors, why not 11, 10, 9, 1?
The question might seem basic, but why do juries in the United States consist of 12 members?
Was there an experimental determination of this number?
Would the addition or removal of a juror ...
- 513
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Can you plead the fifth to avoid revealing the identity of someone you were accused of being?
This is a question for the sake of a story, I'm not seeking legal advice to use in court, just fact checking general laws. Any elaboration on interesting facets that may be useful for story writing ...
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Can I surprise the prosecution with an alibi defense at trial?
Let's say I've been accused of a murder. Throughout the investigation I've plead the Fifth as to where I was when the crime happened. Eventually I'm put on trial, still pleading the fifth as to my ...
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Do you need to obey an obstructed traffic sign?
If a traffic sign is obstructed (for example, due to being overgrown by kudzu or because a telephone pole was placed in front of it) to the point of unreadability, do you still need to obey it?
What ...
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How much "more" needs to be added to an abstract idea in order to pass the subject matter eligibility test for a patent?
In Mayo v. Prometheous 566 U. S. ____ (2012), the Supreme Court said (regarding 35 U.S.C. §101 subject matter eligibility):
a process that focuses upon the use of a natural law [must] also
...
user248
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Does handing keys to police under duress constitute consent to search?
Suppose a police officer demands, through a closed window, to search your car or dwelling. Knowing your rights you say, "I do not consent to a search." The officer then declares, "I don't care ...
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Does an illegal mode of creation or fixation remove a work from copyrightability?
Does an illegal mode of creation or fixation (such as vandalism by graffiti) mean that the work is not the subject of copyright?
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Could Executive Order 9066 be repeated with other groups today?
In World War II, Executive Order 9066 suspended basic rights of Japanese Americans - even people whose loyalty to the United States was never questioned, though the government feared the group as a ...
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Is it Illegal for me to refuse to hire a white child actor because the already selected parent is black and the child isn't adopted?
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 reads:
"It shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer—(1) to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise ...
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Challenging jurors for cause based on beliefs in jury nullification
In the United States, is belief in jury nullification generally a valid reason to challenge a jury for cause?
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Why do cops make up funny stories when detaining people?
In case cops are decent human beings, and these answers are true and the nature of their stop just does not allow them to truthfully tell their victims the reason for the stop, why do they make up ...
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Are "slavish copies" of public domain work in the public domain?
I had previously been under the impression that the photographed reproductions of public domain artwork were copyrighted - further research has made me question whether this is always the case. I ...
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Does Double Jeopardy prohibit prosecution, for the same event, in both Federal and State court?
The common understanding of the 5th Amendment's prohibition on being tried twice for the same offense is that no trial can be held which would put a person in a risk of loss of liberty if they have ...
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What are the implications of reselling food?
What are the implications of reselling food? Is it legal?
What would happen, for example, if in the US I buy Little Caesar's pizzas (with no delivery service) and sell them on another place? What are ...
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In the United States, what is the threshold for "originality" in order to have copyright protection?
In the United States, what is the threshold for "originality" in order to have copyright protection?
17 U.S.C. § 102 says that copyright protection subsists "in original works of ...
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Is it illegal to take home a lost phone?
I experienced a common scenario today: I was walking along and found someone's lost phone on the ground. It was out of battery, so what I wanted to do was take it home, charge it, and then see if we ...
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Is it true that at one stage a husband could not rape his wife?
Is it really true that up until relatively recently in the US a man could not rape his wife, because apparently at one point in time a married couple was considered one legal entity and a person ...
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Are U.S. employers subject to Canadian employment law if they hire a Canadian to work remotely?
Hypothetical Facts
U.S. company ("A") hires Canadian worker ("B") to work as an unpaid intern.
B never physically leaves Canada and does all her work by telephone, computer and internet.
A has a ...
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Are there situations where it is legal to threaten someone with a gun but not legal to fire the gun?
One of the essential rules of firearm safety is to never point a gun at anything or anyone you do not intend to shoot. It also seems to be a consensus that whenever it wouldn't be lawful to shoot ...
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What are the laws regulating practical polygamy in US?
I can understand that polygamy is illegal. However, some people think that it's simply illegal in a sense that government doesn't recognize it.
It's like Sarah can marry anyone she wish but she can't ...
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Can a jury always convict on a lesser included charge?
There is a question on movie stack exchange regarding the Few good men movie (spoilers) regarding why some people were not found guilty of first degree murder but only of a factually fully different ...
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What considerations determine copyright infringement?
In copyright case law, what roles do process versus output play in determining infringement via creation of a similar work. By process I mean, "How much access did the creator of the new work have to ...
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657
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Who can give the police consent to search my property?
If the police want to obtain consent to perform a search of a property, who do they have to obtain it from?
Can my friend who doesn't legally own the house, or pay rent, but is just staying with me ...
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Can fiction "fail" to be defamatory if it is "less bad" than the actual facts?
In the year 2000, Fox TV produced a rather embarrassing show called "Who Wants to Marry a Multimillionaire." Insiders know who did what within the show, but suppose someone produced a fictionalized ...
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How is "defamation" defined?
I have a recollection that late in the 20th century in the United States, A called B a "bastard." B sued A for defamation.
The court ruled in favor of the defendant. Its first observation was that (...
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When can "exact change" policies be enforced?
In general, "exact change" policies are legal.
The Department of Treasury provides this helpful explanation:
The Coinage Act of 1965, specifically Section 31 U.S.C. 5103, entitled
"Legal tender,"...
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Could Congress "bribe" the President to sign a bill by including a presidential pay raise?
If Congress wanted to pass a law that they expected the President to be reluctant to sign, could they legally "bribe" the President to sign the bill by including a Presidential pay raise in ...
- 13.9k
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Could the President abolish the Supreme Court?
Article II, Section 2, of the US Constitution states:
[The President] shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and ...
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Printing copyrighted logos on t-shirts/jackets/apparel without permission: in which situations is it legal?
If I were to order custom t-shirts from a t-shirt printing company with some copyrighted brand on them, (when) would it be legally OK for me to do so without the copyright owner's permission?
Is it ...
- 1,306
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488
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Can a platform become a publisher through it's actions?
Platforms such as social media sites are protected under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, this allows platforms to avoid liability for most content posted by its users.
Publishers, on ...
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Is a lawyer allowed to stop representing his client?
Imagine a person accused of committing a crime hires a lawyer. After a while something happens and the lawyer decides he or she doesn't want to represent the client any more.
For example:
Ethical ...
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Force person on stand to only say, yes or no, legal?
I've searched and have been unable to find the answer to this. It's a pretty basic question and something you see a lot in USA crime/law dramas. A person takes the stand under oath, under examination ...
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When is it okay as a retail store owner to refuse service to a customer?
I was reading about the bakery that has been fined for refusing to provide a cake for a lesbian couple:
http://jezebel.com/bakery-that-refused-to-bake-cake-for-lesbian-couple-mus-1715747809
... and ...
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Is it possible for non-EU companies to avoid GDPR regulatory issues through filters and firewalls?
Background
Most internet feeds are unfiltered. Everyone who has ever rented or set up a server knows malicious traffic comes in from all over the world, including the European Union (but mostly from ...
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Is taking screenshots and printing pages out considered fair use, in most cases?
Making a copy of anything could be considered copyright infringement, but what if it is for personal use rather than for distribution? Suppose I print out or take a screenshot of a webpage or a ...
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Are emojis acceptable in contracts?
If I ✍️ a 📄 using emojis instead of words, does that affect the validity of the 📄?
Example:
Mary will only use the 🔑 to open the front 🚪 of John's 🏡 in order to feed his 🐈. Mary will feed the 🐈...
- 13.9k
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Avoiding agreeing to, or amending, digital contracts
Say you are presented with a digital checkbox or a pin pad, a contract with some terms you do not genuinely consent to, and a business process of the counterparty that cannot proceed unless the box is ...
- 1,695
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Can Rand Paul be sued for negligent transmission of COVID-19?
Note: I am not wanting to make this political. Please do not attempt to address political aspects of this situation or rail one way or the other. My question would be exactly the same if the facts ...
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Hypothetically walking the line between pornography and prostitution
Throughout this question I will reference the Texas Penal Code for concrete examples as Texas is my home state.
The Texas Penal Code clarifies explicitly what is considered prostitution in the state ...
5
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Trademark "un-revivable"?
I've encountered a trademark in the USPTO database which is listed as:
CONTINUED USE NOT FILED WITHIN GRACE PERIOD, UN-REVIVABLE
What does this mean and what rights might the trademark registrant ...
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Does out-of-state tuition violate the US Constitution?
Many colleges and universities charge more to students from out of state. Doesn't this violate the US Constitution, particularly the full faith and credit clause? Has this ever gone to the supreme ...
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Can customers be kicked out because a store employee personally dislikes them?
An ex-friend works at a store. I know she has a way of manipulating situations in her favor. If I go into the store to purchase items without causing any trouble, could they kick me out of the store ...
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Dashcam video contradicts officer's testimony in municipal traffic court, what are the consequences? How do you charge for perjury?
During a traffic court trial, a police officer's testimony contradicts dashcam video and leads to a guilty verdict.
Can the officer be charged with perjury? Who charges the officer with perjury? How ...
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Can a railroad bar a property owner from access to their property?
A 90+ acre tract of land has CSX railroad on it.
The property owner in this rural area hunts on the property. In fact the back half of the tract of land is bounded on three sides by the rail main ...
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Could a prosecutor hint the jury about past dismissed cases?
In Can you present a clear record if you do Driver Safety Course in Texas?, it was determined that after taking a Driving Safety Course, a record of such action is placed upon one's driving record.
...
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Why do the accused rarely plead guilty?
I notice that in the United States it seems like the accused rarely plead guilty in the case of a serious crime, even if the evidence is overwhelming. Not infrequently I will see cases in which the ...
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