ARTICLES

7/13/2016· Legal Issues

The Expert Witness In Real Estate Litigation - A User's Guide

By: Lawrence Jacobson

Although many articles have been written about the use of the expert witness in litigation, almost all are written by lawyers and rarely by an expert witness who is also a lawyer. Having practiced law since 1968 in the area of real estate and business transactions with a real estate broker's license since 1978, I have testified frequently as an expert witness in litigation involving the interpretation of real estate documents, the standard of care of real estate brokers, in legal malpractice actions involving real estate and business transactions and in legal fee disputes. As such, I thought it would be helpful to litigators handling real estate litigation matters to have the perspective of an expert witness on issues affecting the choice, usage and cross-examination of an expert witness in such litigation.

6/29/2016· Transportation

Buses and Motorcoaches: The Danger Deterrent

By: Ned Einstein

Like most fields, public transportation is swollen with studies, both in the U.S. and abroad. Yet some of the most fascinating things seem to be never studied, or rarely studied.

6/24/2016· OSHA

Safety Committees - Safety Culture: It's Not Just Another Trend

By: Greg Gerganoff

Safety culture is a term frequently bandied about in today's business world and sounds as trendy as "mission statements" were years ago. (Let's not forget "best in class". First time I heard this at a company meeting I looked around to make sure I hadn't mistakenly wandered into a dog show. Really?)

6/15/2016· Accounting

Valuing a Professional Practice Requires In-depth Analysis

By: Michael J. Garibaldi CPA, ABV, CFF, CGMA

Goodwill can be a significant asset for a professional practice. It may include both "personal" goodwill that's attributable to individual owners and "business" goodwill that can be transferred to third parties. When accountants and other types of professionals divorce, the amount of goodwill to include in the marital estate can become contentious (and may vary depending on state law). If expert testimony on the issue is inadequate, a court might look elsewhere for help, as it did in a recent Texas divorce case, Hill v. Hill.

6/14/2016· Insurance

Life Insurance and Retirement - The Unvarnished Truth

By: Willard Brumbaugh

Having spent over 45 years in the life insurance business, I had become frustrated with the books that I had been reading that promote permanent life insurance in a manner that I considered exaggerated or flawed. I shared my frustration with several people who responded by challenging me to write a response that says what should have been said by these other authors.

6/1/2016· Discovery & Electronic Discovery

A Primer on Electronic Discovery

By: Darryl Horowitt

As the owner of a business that may be a party to a lawsuit, you need to know about the discovery of electronically stored information (ESI), also known as e-discovery. Why? Because the requirements to preserve and produce ESI are quickly evolving and have often taken over lawsuits as if e-discovery has a life of its own. This article will address the basics of e-discovery so that your business can start taking steps to minimize its impact.

5/25/2016· Cosmetology: Hair / Makeup

The Dangerous Combination of Hair Dyes and Tattoos: What Every Cosmetologist and Tattoo Artist Must Know

By: Susan Maccoy

The exponential growth of tattoos/body modification has broken virtually all cultural barriers. Formerly the mark of sailors, prison inmates and gang members, now fashion designers, photographers, perfumers and cosmetic companies have seized and leveraged this form of expression. Hollywood actors and celebrities function as high-profile ambassadors of the tattooed lifestyle...further shifting tattoos into accepted social mainstream. Today, tattoos more body real estate than any other time in history.

5/23/2016· Transportation

Bad Regulations and Better Responses Part 7: Conclusions

By: Ned Einstein

This final installment of this series provides the rewards for reading the first six: Starting-point ideas about things the motorcoach industry can do defend its density against intrusion from Transportation Network Companies (like Uber, Lyft and Sidecar), which have already begun plunging into the charter and tour sectors, mostly with medium-sized, body-on-chassis vehicles. It also includes things that would help increase profits and create new service opportunities - and compete with new, legitimate players penetrating the market.

5/20/2016· Accident Prevention & Safety

"Work Related Vehicle Accidents - The Overlooked Hazard At Work."

By: Greg Gerganoff

Use fall protection; Use trench boxes when excavating; Lock out Tag Out any time repair or maintenance of equipment involving stored energy is performed; Slips, Trips and Falls are one of the most expensive types of injury. For my sixteen years in safety these safety hazards were always in the forefront of safety concerns for businesses and safety professionals. Guess what? Work related road way crashes is the number one serious/fatal injury cause for U.S. workers. OSHA recognizes this. CDC/NIOSH has generated a white paper studying this fact. Who knew? So here is some info on this number one safety hazard in the US work place.

5/9/2016· Real Estate

A Reasonable Standard of Care for Commercial Properties

By: Jeffrey Lapin

Tenants, visitors and vendors who enter upon commercial properties (office buildings, retail centers, apartment communities, industrial buildings, etc.) are entitled to the presumption of safety when traversing public spaces. They should, and do, expect that the owner of that property, by making it accessible to the public, will maintain the property (parking areas, lobbies, hallways, grounds, pools and the walkways that connect these elements) to a reasonable standard of care.