Nowadays, if a person says “I am going to kill you.” This person can go to jail for a criminal act. Thus, knowing what you can say and can’t say now is vital to protect your self from the law. If you tell someone “I am going to kill you”, you are committing what is known as a “communicating threat.” Likewise, if you threaten or claim to plan an act of harm against the President or other state officials, you are subject to arrest.

Since terrorist attacks and threats have increased markedly, Congress has passed new laws that require the arrest of anyone making threats against another person. The “Part II, Article 2, Section 211.3” is laid out under the “Model Penal Code” and states that anyone who “threatens to commit any crime of violence with purpose to terrorize another person” is subject to arrest under federal laws. Of course, the laws continue further; however, the topics are not touching base with common threats made by civilians.

This is a very important question asked, since it is a common statement made by millions, “I am going to kill you,” when the person is only making a statement that is not intended to harm another–and is sometimes even in jest. I brought this point out, since again it is a common statement made by millions; therefore, if you are accustomed to making such statements, you may want to watch out as to who you are talking to.

Thus, laws are constantly changing; therefore, keeping up with the laws can save you heartache down the road. For more information on freedom of speech, you may want to check your local and state penal codes. Not knowing your laws can make it possible for you to be thrown in jail or sued for making a joke.

Entrapment is either an illegal or a legal procedure that can lead to mistrials, overturning of verdicts, and so forth. Officers are notorious for setting up traps to lure alleged criminals into confessing or making mistakes that lead to their arrest.

For example, in a small town, a drug task force is setup where undercover officers frequent bars to monitor the crowd while acting like a customer in the establishment. What the officers are really doing is gathering information, witnesses, and other evidence that will lead to the arrest of a local drug dealer. Officers also use entrapment procedures to lure in pedophiles over the Internet.

When does entrapment become illegal? This is one of the main questions asked pertaining to entrapment–and the answer is surprisingly simple. If an officer lures an ordinary citizen into committing a crime that this person would not have otherwise committed, then this is a legal act of entrapment, which transfers the blame to the officer, who has committed the act of “manufacturing a crime where none would otherwise exist.”

Then what is legal entrapment? Legal entrapment must include that the perpetrator has prior record
of committing the same or similar crimes that will lead the officer to believe that the suspect has shown probable cause of the crime in action. The perpetrator must have a history of committing similar/same or else relevant crimes of nature. Thus, the suspect must show probable cause that he/she is mentally capable of committing and is probably contemplating or acting out the crime in question.

As you can see, entrapment is a tricky legal situation, which is why it is important to know what your rights are if you have been tricked into committing a crime that you normally would not have normally be involved in.

If you are a victim of identity theft, you will definitely need legal advice. Everyday millions of people are affected by identity theft–from credit cards to social security numbers–which is precisely why identity theft legal advice is in higher demand than ever.

The first step to take if you are an identity theft victim is to file a report with the police. Once you have filed a report, immediately call and notify your bank, notify and close credit card accounts and other related sources that the thief would be able to access.

Next, you will need to file a report with the appropriate government authorities and identity theft experts, including reporting lost Social Security Number to the Social Security Administration office. You will also need to contact the three major credit unions--TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian--to report theft, and request a freeze on your account, rather than a fraud alert.

The best identity theft legal advice to follow these steps have been taken is to continue battling charges added to your credit reports. Keep updated copies of the reports and save all documentation that you receive that you do not feel belong to you. You will also need to contact creditors regarding any suspicious bills sent to your address and dispute the charges, alerting them that you are an identity theft victim. There may come a time you will need the assistance of an attorney, but for the most part, you should prepare to fight ongoing without a break.

Unfortunately, identity theft is one of the leading crimes in America and around the world today. When you become a victim of identity theft, legal advice is ongoing, since in most instances, the problems continue and the perpetrator is rarely caught. If you do not seek the proper identity theft legal advice, you may end up with piles of bills and no real means of proving you didn’t spend themoney yourself.

If you have been charged with a crime, there is something you should know about the most commonly asked legal question by people who have been accused of committing a crime: “Should I plead guilty or not guilty?” While many people debate the pros and cons of pleading guilty or innocent, through my experience in Criminal Justice, I have learned that if you have committed a crime, it is always wise to plea innocent, regardless of the case.

In a courtroom, evidence is required; and this evidence must show beyond a shadow of a doubt thatyou committed the crime. While it depends on the crime–and there are some exceptions--pleading innocent to the crime can stall the procedures, as well as force the legal representatives to show proof of the crime for which you are accused.

In previous courtrooms, thousands of persons have accepted plea bargains or else committed guilty of crimes. Few of these people felt that they had no choice but to plea guilty or else accept a plea. The fact is, many of these people were accused of a crime; and the courtrooms convicted these people on circumstantial evidence that was inconclusive. Thus, after the penalty was set, and the person was fined or put in jail, the courts later found that the prosecuted was in fact innocent.

Thus, no matter what your case happens to be, the best legal advice you can get is to plea not guilty and force the courts to prove beyond a shadow of doubt that you are in fact guilty under law.

If you have been convicted of a lesser crime, you should still adhere to this advice. It may help you to avoid paying hefty fines for parking and traffic violations by forcing the prosecution to procure evidence.

Most people when the think of the word lemon, they think the sour, tangy and yellow fruit. What some people don’t know is that the word "lemon" also has a slang meaning that has become very popular over the years, especially in the automotive industry. This slang is commonly known as "Lemon Law"

Even though the term lemon is more commonly used to describe a cheap and junky car, it can be used for just about any merchandise that is faulty, poorly made, or broken. For example; someone is walking home one day and sees a flashy watch on sale. They try the watch on, checking over to make sure nothing was wrong with it and decide to buy it. When they get home it stops working and it appears broken. They call their friend and tell them "I bought this watch today, it looked like such a good deal, but when I got it home, it turned out to be a lemon!" This is only an example and one must realize that "lemons" exist in nearly all forums of products and services.

Using the word lemon this way has most likely become increasingly popular due to the many companies and crooked car sales men selling faulty products. In fact there is even a "Lemon Law" that obligates manufacturers or sellers to repair, replace, or refund the price of a motor vehicle if it proves to be defective. It is a good idea to become familiar with this law so that if you happen to purchase a lemon from a reputable manufacture, you can probably sue them for your money back.

If you are about to file a lemon lawsuit, you will undoubtedly need a lemon lawyer. Lemon lawyers are usually available for a fair price; however, you need to watch out so that you don’t hire yourself a lemon to fight a lemon!

When you are selecting a lawyer, you need to carefully consider some options before you make your selections. Selecting a lawyer can be a tedious and painful task, but when done correctly will make all the difference for the out come of your legal situation.

Before hiring a lawyer, you should get a specialist in the field to help you out. They can provide you with a list of competent lawyers in your area that specialize in your needs and are in a suitable price range. You should also talk to friends who have dealt with lawyers in the past who can refer you to someone who did good work for them in the past. Remember that lawyers are always looking for the highest pay available to them because that is how they make their living. Watch to make sure that you are not being overcharged only for the well being of your legal friend. You should also have other good, reliable lawyers lined up in case your lawyer doesn’t follow through. You should never rely on one lawyer for everything, and if they are not completing their assigned tasks, you should fire them.

To avoid being overcharged by your lawyer, you shouldn’t allow them to do all the work themselves. There are some legal processes that you can complete yourself and have your lawyer look over after to avoid paying maximum dollar. There are many resources on the internet that can help you in this process. Finally, you should hire a lawyer that you know is smart and is going to work hard to finish efficiently and effectively. You also need to make sure the lawyer you hire is someone you are going to get along with. There is nothing worse than dealing with a stressful legal matter while going through it with a lawyer you can’t stand.

Step #8: Educate your audience with written information and advice. Write your marketing message in a form that you can send to anyone who calls your office. Then, by offering to send copies without charge, you attract calls from genuine prospects. When prospects call, they give you their names and addresses (or e-mail addresses). Then you add these prospective clients to your in-house mailing list.

Important Note: The longer your materials, the better. The longer you keep your prospect's attention -- and the more facts you provide -- the more likely your prospect is to hire your services. Fortunately, prospects will read long materials, provided they are well written and relevant to their problem. The fact kit I used for 15 years varied from 40 to 50 pages in length. And many lawyers (my prospective clients) told me they read every word. I have now included all this information on my web site and in the article packet I send by e-mail, so I no longer use a printed fact kit.

Step #9: Define the geographical area from which you want to draw clients. Geographics identify individual prospects by where they live, where they work, and where you can find the prospective clients you want. Geographics identify companies by where they are based, where they have facilities and where they do business.

Step #10: Compile a media list of newspapers, magazines, newsletters and other media you want to receive your news releases and query letters. Your articles will appear in national, regional and local publications in all the states where you hope to serve clients. You can usually find current media lists online and at the library reference desk.

Step #11: Launch an aggressive publicity campaign by sending news releases, feature articles and query letters to your entire media list. If you send articles 4 or 5 times each year, you could have an ongoing flow of articles appearing in various parts of the country.

Step #12: Contact high-profile publications and interview shows on an individual and exclusive basis to gain the highest level of nationwide publicity. Offer to write ongoing columns for publications, and appear as a periodic guest on interview shows. You might offer to host your own legal, news-talk or interview show.

Step #13: Compile a list of trade associations that serve the prospects you want to attract. Keep these trade groups on your mailing list. Offer to present seminars that are sponsored or co-sponsored by these trade associations, in hopes that they will mail seminar invitations to all of their members.

Step #14: Compile a list of referral sources in the states you serve. Send them your packet of information so they understand what you do. Invite their referrals and offer referral fees, if appropriate. Keep these referral sources on your mailing list.

Step #15: Compile a list of past clients. Send them a letter announcing your regional or national practice and a copy of your information packet. Most people have friends and colleagues in other states. Keep these past clients on your mailing list.

Step #16: In all of your marketing materials, make sure you tell prospects the geographical area from which you accept clients. You might say something like: "Serving clients in the United States and Canada". Or, "I welcome inquiries from clients in (name the states)." If you don't mention the area you serve, prospects could easily conclude that you limit your services to your city or county. So be sure to tell prospects where you practice and put this information throughout your marketing materials.

Step #17: Establish a web site. The easiest way to reach prospects in different states is to establish an Internet site. This puts your materials at everyone's fingertips 24 hours a day, whenever they want it. The more information you provide, the more likely you are to win a new client. So be generous with the information you post.

Step #18: Market your seminars and speaking engagements nationwide. Make sure everyone on your mailing list knows you offer seminars. While they might not be the contact person, they can make your seminar known to the right people, who may get in touch with you. This is the most common way I receive invitations to speak to lawyers. Also, thanks to technology, now you can offer seminars over the telephone, by video conferencing, and over the internet.

Step #19: If you can collect e-mail addresses from people on your mailing list, send an e-mail alert or briefing every week or two. The more often you stay in touch with everyone your mailing list (prospects, clients, past clients and referral sources), the more new clients you'll attract.

After your law firm marketing efforts take root, and your publicity starts to appear, you'll get inquiries from prospective clients. Trade and professional associations will invite you to speak. And, one by one, you'll start getting clients from throughout the geographical area you wish to serve. Soon, you'll have a profitable, prestigious nationwide law practice, thanks to the energy you've invested in attorney marketing.

We're seeing substantial changes in attorney marketing programs. Thanks to sophisticated law firm marketing efforts, many lawyers are now expanding their practices beyond state boundaries, building regional or national practices. In some cases, they provide narrowly focused services; in others, they offer broad-based skills with the hopes of attracting a handful of the best cases in the country.

I urge attorneys to go beyond their state boundaries, for four reasons:

Reason #1: You have more opportunities to attract the types of cases you want. When you draw clients from 50 states, you have a much greater selection than when you limit your field to your home state. If every state has three really good cases, you can compete for the three in your own state -- or you can compete for your share of 150 from across the U.S.

Reason #2: You have many more opportunities for media publicity. Gaining publicity outside your state is often easier than getting attention in your own state. This is because nearly every business wants to be featured in your local newspapers. But when you pursue articles in regional and national publications, you often find yourself competing with fewer businesses and fewer lawyers.
Most businesses and lawyers get customers from within a few-mile radius, so they don't need attention beyond their local boundaries. Plus, businesses often assume that gaining national publicity would be much harder than gaining local attention. But, in fact, when you go beyond your state's boundaries, you have access to hundreds of additional publications at the state, regional and national levels, all of which could be suitable targets for your publicity effort.

Reason #3: The mystery of distance@ results in your being perceived as the authority in your field because you're from out of town. You have probably heard of this marketing principle, but you may not have used it as part of your marketing strategy. The mystery of distance says: The farther you go to get a product or service, the better and more valuable it is.

Here's an example:
You can buy a pair of binoculars at your local sporting goods store. Or you can buy them online from a company in Switzerland. Which pair is better? Obviously, the binoculars from Switzerland.

There's no logical reason to believe that something that comes from far away is better than something that comes from down the street. Still, subconsciously, we think it is.

Reason #4: You can live wherever you want. Many lawyers don't need to see their clients often. Some never see them at all. If you can service clients by phone, fax, mail and e-mail, then you don't need to work with them in person. And if you go to trial in their state -- or if you need to meet with them -- you can always travel. Technology has changed how we market and deliver services.

Here are 19 attorney marketing steps to building a respected regional or national practice.

Step #1: Identify the niche you want to fill and the services you want to market. When clients hear your name, you want them to associate you with a specific type of legal services. For example, John Wilbanks is a personal injury attorney. Karen Ambrose is a tax lawyer. Mark O'Connor is a corporate lawyer. Consider whether any lawyer in your market area immediately springs to mind when you mention your area of law. If so, that lawyer owns a very strong position. If no lawyer comes to mind, an effective marketing program will help you build the perception that you are the leader in that practice area.

Step #2: Identify the type of clients you want to attract. You must know where to aim if you expect to hit your target. List the types of people or companies you want to attract that are ready, willing and able to hire your services. Identify your prospective clients by who they are and what they have. For individuals, consider things such as gender, age, marital and family status, education, occupation, income and home ownership. For companies, consider things such as industry, gross sales, number of employees, level of risk or whatever makes a client attractive to you.

Step #3: Identify how you and your services differ from those of your competitors. Positive differences are your competitive advantages. Negative differences are your competitive disadvantages. Identify both so you'll know your strengths and weaknesses. Evaluate your qualifications, background and experience. Evaluate how you serve clients. Evaluate the environment in which you serve clients. Look at your strengths and weaknesses from your prospects' point of view because prospects evaluate you based on what is important to them. Every time you talk with prospects, make sure you emphasize your competitive advantages so prospects appreciate how you differ from other lawyers.

Step #4: Identify ways you can add value to your services so prospects eagerly choose you over all other lawyers. What can you add to your services to make them more attractive than they are now -- and more attractive than services offered by your competitors? If you were in your prospect's shoes, what could your lawyer provide that would cause you to choose him or her over every other attorney? Review how you currently provide legal services. Then ask yourself how you could provide services more efficiently, more effectively, more completely, or faster -- with your client benefiting from less risk and more value. Then, in addition to what you listed in step 3, the ways you add value to your services now become more competitive advantages.

Step #5: Compile and keep on computer a comprehensive mailing list. Your most important business asset is your mailing list. It's your own personal area of influence. It should include your current clients, past clients, referral sources and prospects. Whether your list contains 20 names -- or 2,000 names -- these people are the core around which you build a prosperous firm. As you attract an ongoing flow of new inquiries, keep all of your prospects' names and addresses on your mailing list.
The critical element in your marketing program is your ability to add new names of prospective clients to your mailing list. You want to attract names at whatever rate will bring you the number of new clients you want. How long you leave names on your mailing list will depend on how long your prospects need to make their decision and at what point the list becomes unmanageable.

Step #6: Make sure prospects and clients can reach you easily and without hassle. As distance increases, prospects often grow concerned about their ability to contact you. To reassure them, explain the many ways you invite contact from clients, like these: Toll-free direct line, cell phone, pager, fax, e-mail, mail, courier, as well as intake and contact forms on your web site.

Step #7: Compile your information and advice into your own unique educational message, built on this proven five-part framework:

Part #1: Identify and explain your prospect's problem. People won't pay for a solution until they understand their problem. The bigger the problem -- and the greater the risk of allowing it to persist - the more they will pay to solve it.

Part #2: Prove the problem exists. Prospects know you earn your living from solving problems. Skeptical prospects may think you are overstating the depth of the problem. You can overcome this sometimes-hidden suspicion by taking time to prove the problem exists and to prove that it is serious enough to warrant your client hiring your services to solve it.

Part #3: Identify and explain one or more solutions. Prospects want a clear understanding of what you recommend to solve their problem.

Part #4: Prove the solution works. Prospects may be skeptical as to whether your recommended solution will actually do what you claim. You can expect an even higher level of skepticism if the solution you recommend is perceived by your prospects to be expensive.

Part #5: Build yourself into the solution. You don't want prospects to agree they have a problem but then hire another lawyer to solve it. You must do everything possible to make sure that your prospects conclude you are best equipped to provide the solution.

Your marketing message is the same as your educational message. You build your message on a foundation of information that explains your prospect's problem and the solutions you can provide. Then you support your message with proof documents that further add credibility to everything you say. Proof documents include your photo and biography, article reprints, schedule of services and fees, and references. Testimonials help a great deal, but some jurisdictions do not allow their use. Check your rules of professional conduct before using testimonials.

Hand calculations are good.

It is very important that design engineers do hand calculations. It is very important that engineering expert witnesses do hand calculations.

For everything but the simplest of part geometries, hand calculations of stress are generally rough estimates. Often they are only in the ballpark of the true maximum stress levels. Sometimes they are only in the ballpark of the average stress levels, and miss the highest stresses entirely.

In the span of 50 years, finite element analysis has gone from esoteric research topic to widely available, widely applied mature technology. In the 1980's, FEA required extremely expensive mainframe computers, very expensive FEA codes and highly trained analysts, and was still implemented at many large corporations. In the 1990's, Unix workstations provided distributed FEA processing and FEA packages went mainstream, lowering entry costs. A seat of hardware and software still cost many tens of thousands of dollars, and highly trained analysts were still required, and still FEA spread to thousands of companies. In the 2000's, lower priced FEA packages run well on medium to high-end personal computers, and FEA usage continues to grow. Highly trained analysts are still needed to consistently obtain accurate results, a fact unfortunately ignored by too many in the industry.

Why does FEA usage continue to grow when all of these companies already have hand calculations? Because, when applied correctly, FEA works. It delivers accurate stress estimates for parts with geometry too complicated for hand calculations alone, which describes most of today's parts. Accuracy means that localized stress concentrations can be removed. Accuracy means one less uncertainty, meaning that a lower factor of safety can be considered--resulting in lower weight, lower cost parts that are still stronger and have longer life cycles. Accuracy means that an expert witness can pinpoint areas of concern, and can often nail down the why's and how's of a part failure. As discussed in previous issues of Courtroom FEA, this will often point the finger at the responsible party, be it designer, manufacturer or end user. Accuracy can mean reduced lab testing by concentrating the investigation on the suspect areas. Accuracy means credibility.

FEA has internal checks that a good analyst needs to apply to verify the results. Hand calculations provide a rough estimate of the results, and the hand calculations and FEA had better match within their accuracies. If not, something is wrong with one or both of them, and the analyst had better correct that. Once they do match, hand calculations are an external check of the detailed FEA results. Hand calculations are good.

Many attorneys hire metallurgists to study failures across many industries. Similarly, finite element analysis is regularly applied to a vast array of products. As discussed in previous issues of Courtroom FEA, FEA applies when something bending or breaking is an issue.

The following collage presents some of the industries that FEA is applied to. The blue text lists some of the products the author has experience with (collage available at www.finiteelement.com/newsletter/CourtroomFEA_Vol03.html).

FEA is a fairly recent discipline which allows the numerical solution of governing physical equations over complicated geometric domains. The method is regularly applied to the structural analysis of designs with complex geometries.

The part being analyzed is divided into many small regions called "finite elements". The physical behavior within each element is understood in concise mathematical terms. Assemblage of all elements' behavior produces a large matrix equation, which is solved for the quantity of interest, e.g. the deformation due to a maximum loading condition. Additional quantities, such as stresses, are then computed.

Commercial FEA packages are usually used, to insulate the user from the substantial programming required to perform even a simple analysis. Still, obtaining accurate results from any package requires an experienced analyst. FEA can, and will, deliver incorrect results to the inexperienced user, who will then make important design decisions based on this false information.

Many legal professionals are exposed to Finite Element Analysis (FEA) in the courtroom. Having a fundamental understanding of how the method works can help an attorney (i) recognize when FEA can strengthen a case, (ii) choose a capable expert and (iii) develop meaningful challenges to the opposition's expert. As discussed in the last issue of Courtroom FEA, if a loss, injury or death is due to something bending or breaking, FEA can help identify the cause of failure and hence the responsible party. But how does it work?

Divide and conquer.

But first, let's back up and discuss what is being conquered. FEA is applied to many types of problems, such as temperatures in consumer electronics, airflow around aircraft, and magnetic fields in electric motors. By far the most common application is structural FEA -- determining how a solid body responds to various forces. The structural problem amounts to writing down some "governing equations" that describe the material and how it behaves, and then solving those equations for the physical part being analyzed subject to how it is held and loaded. This can be done on paper for some simple part shapes. The resulting "closed form solution" is another equation that provides the answer in terms of the basic variables, such as the part's dimensions.

But reality intervenes, and most parts are too complicated to solve in closed form. FEA comes to the rescue by providing a "numerical solution" for each individual problem. This is a large gathering of numbers approximating the desired answers, such as displacements and stresses, across the part. But each solution is unique to a specific case; there is no simple answer in equation form.

Now then, how does FEA divide and conquer the problem to provide the numerical solution? The answer lies in the name, "Finite Element Analysis".

"Analysis" is obvious: the part is being analyzed under certain conditions.

"Element" describes a small section of the part. In fact, the governing equations mentioned above can generally be derived by considering a small section, writing the equations for what's happening in that section, and then mathematically allowing the size of the section to become infinitesimal, or infinitely small. In FEA, each section is called an "element", and the elements are not made infinitely small.

"Finite", then, refers to the countable number of elements used to represent the structure. The elements are of finite, measurable size. A computer can handle the computations on this finite number of elements.

Each element acts on its neighboring elements. FEA assembles the equations from all the elements into one large matrix equation, and the computer is used to determine the numerical solution. A key concept of FEA is this: if the elements are made small enough and are spread advantageously across the part, the numerical solution can closely approximate reality.

An experienced analyst can prepare the finite element model such that it accurately predicts the part's behavior, and can ensure that the solution algorithms do not interject significant errors. Results from the less-experienced are often suspect, and identifying them as so can be a tremendous advantage in the courtroom.

As a product liability professional, it is important that you know what Finite Element Analysis (FEA) can do for you. If you don't, your adversary might. Whether you serve plaintiffs, defendants or both, you're probably already familiar with FEA.

Simply put, if a loss, injury or death is due to something bending or breaking, FEA can help explain the failure.

An experienced FEA expert can determine the stresses and displacements in the failed part. When compared to industry standards, earlier designs and competitive designs, this often identifies the cause of failure, and hence the responsible party.

As in any field, your choice of an expert is important in making your case. It's not unusual for an inexperienced FEA analyst to generate incorrect results; this is both a warning to the wise and a strategy for dealing with the other side's expert.

FEA results lend themselves to color plots and animations, making conveying the key concepts to the jury much easier.