January 2013 Archives

Welcome to another post from our "Meet the FindLaw Team" series. "Meet the FindLaw Team" provides insight into the day-to-day lives of our colleagues. Today we feature FindLaw Project Manager Shannon Van Schoonhoven. Get to know Shannon by reading about her experiences at FindLaw below.

What is your current title?
I am a Project Manager.

When we see a question asked multiple times in our Answers community, we take note of it. Why? Because we want to make sure that we address the issues our users really care about by having the most accurate, up-to-date, relevant content available throughout our website. At FindLaw, we are not only the number one source for free legal information, we also strive to be the most relevant source of legal information as well. Why? Because being relevant and trustworthy benefits our consumers, our clients, and the legal community as a whole.

Over the past two months, our Audience Team writers have been working hard to create consumer-friendly articles that answer some of the most asked legal questions from our Answers community. Here’s a look at some of the

We continue our Friday round-up of what is newest, best and brightest at FindLaw.com. Below, you will find this week’s offerings from various areas of FindLaw’s unique content, including: core legal content, blogs, news and case law. Take a look at what’s new:

FindLaw Consumer Blogs:

• What Is a ‘Catfishing’ Scam? Ask Manti Te’o: A story that shocked the sports world is raising awareness about a new form of Internet fraud called “catfishing.” What exactly does the hoax entail, and is it illegal? FindLaw’s Law and Daily Life explains the social-media deception, and how a Notre Dame football star may have fallen for it.

Welcome to another post from our "Meet the FindLaw Team" series. "Meet the FindLaw Team" provides insight into the day-to-day lives of our colleagues. Today we feature FindLaw Copywriter II Tanya Brody. Get to know Tanya by reading about her experiences at FindLaw below.

What is your current title?
Copywriter II

At the beginning of 2012, the FindLaw.com audience team out in California set a goal to gain 100,000 followers across all the FindLaw.com social networks by the end of the year. In accomplishing that goal, the team also wanted to make sure that they maintained the same level of fantastic community engagement that all of our networks enjoy. Mission accomplished.

When it comes to social networks, FindLaw.com really has something for every audience and interest. FindLaw.com social networks include: consumer and legal professional Facebook and Twitter accounts, consumer Google+ page, a LinkedIn account and Scribd page. Our social networks are not only dynamic legal communities but also represent a chance for FindLaw.com to interact directly with our users. This interaction gives us a chance to know the legal issues affecting our users the most and provide meaningful interactions.

We continue our Friday round-up of what is newest, best and brightest at FindLaw.com. Below, you will find this week's offerings from various areas of FindLaw's unique content, including: core legal content, blogs, news and case law. Take a look at what's new:

FindLaw Consumer Blogs:

• Refuse a Flu Shot, Get Fired?: A flu outbreak is hitting many states hard, and health officials are recommending flu shots. But some employers are going further by forcing employees to get flu shots. Are such workplace policies legal? FindLaw's Law and Daily Life takes a shot at explaining the law.

As an attorney, perhaps you've dipped your feet in the social media water. Or maybe you'd like to know how to get started connecting with potential client via social media.

Either way, you should attend a FindLaw webcast entitled Social Media: Fish Where the Fish Are. This free one-hour webcast will describe why social media is the present and the future of online legal marketing.

The informative seminar will break down how your firm can use tools like Facebook, Twitter and blogs to connect with clients and prospects in a direct, highly effective way. The webcast takes place on Wednesday, January 16th and there are two sessions to choose from - noon and 4 p.m. EST.

Last year, the legal world was swept up in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) debate. Was the individual mandate constitutional? Was it a penalty or a tax? For months, it was the topic that everyone wanted to discuss.

In 2013, we expect the ACA to remain a hot topic in the legal community, though it's unlikely to capture the same level of media attention as the individual mandate case. The ACA birth control mandate became effective on January 1, and non-exempt employers like religious colleges and family-owned companies are asking federal appellate courts to find that the mandate violates their Free Exercise rights. Even if the contraceptive coverage issues are resolved in 2013, we expect even more litigation in 2014, when the bulk of the ACA becomes effective.

Healthcare, however, will not be the only topic in the courts in 2013. Here are five more trending legal topics that lawyers and consumers alike will be discussing in 2013.

We continue our Friday round-up of what is newest, best and brightest at FindLaw.com. Below, you will find this week's offerings from various areas of FindLaw's unique content, including: core legal content, blogs, news and case law. Take a look at what's new:

FindLaw Consumer Blogs:

• 5 Notable New State Laws for 2013: Some 400 new laws went into effect across the country as clocks struck midnight on New Year's Day. FindLaw's Law and Daily Life highlights five of the most noteworthy new laws, including new limits on sex offenders and social-media password requests.

Goodbye 2012, hello 2013! With the New Year always comes a lot of reflection on the one past. More than just appreciating the year in review, one can also learn from the major issues of the past year. This is especially true when it comes to the major legal issues of the past year.

At FindLaw.com, we write about a range of legal issues in our Learn About The Law section as well as our many consumer-facing blogs. Because we always strive to provide our users with the information they are looking for, we pay special attention to those legal issues that are searched the most. Sometimes we use this information to add additional content to highly-searched topics while other times we research into the most searched terms to help us make guesses about what consumers will be looking for in the year ahead.

Here’s a look at the top 5 most searched legal issues of the past year.