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ARBITRATION
A mini-trial, which may be for a lawsuit ready to go to trial, held in an
attempt to avoid a court trial and conducted by a person or a panel of
people who are not judges. The arbitration may be agreed to by the
parties, may be required by a provision in a contract for settling
disputes, or may be provided for under statute. To avoid clogged court
calendars the parties often agree to have the matter determined by a panel
such as one provided by the American Arbitration Association (which has a
specific set of rules), a retired judge, some other respected lawyer, or
some organization that provides these services. Usually contract-required
arbitration may be converted into a legal judgment on petition to the
court, unless some party has protested that there has been a gross
injustice, collusion or fraud. Many states provide for mandatory
arbitration of cases on a non-binding basis in the hope that these
"mini-trials" (proceedings) conducted by experienced attorneys
will give the parties a clearer picture of the probable result and lead to
acceptance of the arbitrator's decision.
ARBITRATOR
One who conducts an arbitration, and serves as a judge who conducts a
"mini-trial," somewhat less formally than a court trial. In most
cases the arbitrator is an attorney, either alone or as part of a panel.
Most court jurisdictions now have lists of attorneys who serve as
arbitrators. Other arbitrators come from arbitration services which
provide lists from which the parties can agree on an arbitrator (many of
whom are retired judges-even "People's Court" Judge Wapner is on
such a panel in Los Angeles County). There is also the American
Arbitration Association which usually has a panel of attorneys chosen by
the association. Professional arbitration services are paid well to move
cases along. There are also arbitrators who are experts on everything from
construction to maritime damage. In some contracts there is a provision
for such an expert-type arbitrator named by each side with a third chosen
by the other two.
DISCOVERY
DISCOVERY - Part of the pre-trial litigation process during which each
party requests relevant information and documents from the other side in
an attempt to "discover" pertinent facts. Generally discovery
devices include depositions, interogatories, requests for admissions,
document production requests and requests for inspection.
The formal procedures used by parties to a lawsuit to obtain information
before a trial is called discovery. Discovery helps a party find out the
other side's version of the facts, what witnesses know, and other
evidence. Rules dictating the allowable methods of discovery have been set
up by Congress (for federal courts) and by state legislatures (for state
courts). Common discovery devices include:
* Deposition--a proceeding in which a witness or party is asked to answer
questions orally under oath before a court reporter.
* Interrogatories--written questions sent by one party to the other party
for the latter to answer in writing under oath.
* Request for admission--a request to a party that he admit certain facts.
One party sends the other a request for admission so that basic issues the
parties agree upon can be resolved and not have to be proven if the
parties go to trial.
* Request for physical examination--a request to a party that he be
examined by a doctor if his health is at issue.
* Request for production of documents--a request to a party to hand over
certain defined documents. In family law cases, parties often request from
each other bank statements, pay stubs and other documents showing
earnings, assets and debts.
* Request for inspection--a request by a party to look at tangible items
(other than writings) in the possession or control of the other party.
Items to be inspected include houses, cars, appliances and virtually any
other physical item.
* Subpoena--an order telling a witness to appear in court or at a
deposition. A subpoena is issued by the court, and if the witness fails to
comply, he can be held in contempt of court.
* Subpoena duces tecum--an order telling a witness to turn over certain
documents to a specific party or to bring them to a scheduled deposition.
A subpoena duces tecum is issued by the court, and if the witness fails to
comply, he can be held in contempt.
The scope of information obtainable through discovery is quite broad and
not limited to what can be used in a trial. Federal courts and most state
courts allow a party to discover any information 'reasonably calculated to
lead to the discovery of admissible evidence.' Because of this broad
standard, parties often disagree about what information must be exchanged
and what may be kept confidential. These disputes are resolved through
court rulings on discovery motions.
Intern. Law. The act of finding an unknown country.
The nations of Europe adopted the principle, that the discovery of any
part of America gave title to the government by whose subjects, or by
whose authority it was made, against all European governments. This title
was to be consummated by possession.
Rights. The patent laws of the United States use this word as synonymous
with invention or improvement.
MEDITATION
Meditation is a type of replacement / substitute for prayer.
Meditation is a prayer with effort.
Meditation is an awareness of inner silence.
Prayer with technique is meditation.
Basic goal of meditation is : Spiritual renewal or the feeling of oneness
with a higher source of life.
Meditation is a scientific tool developed thousands of years ago by Yogis
to awaken higher consciousness.
COPYRIGHT
The exclusive right of the author or creator of a literary or artistic
property (such as a book, movie or musical composition) to print, copy,
sell, license, distribute, transform to another medium, translate, record
or perform or otherwise use (or not use) and to give it to another by
will. As soon as a work is created and is in a tangible form (such as
writing or taping) the work automatically has federal copyright
protection. On any distributed and/or published work a notice should be
affixed stating the word copyright, copy or ©, with the name of the
creator and the date of copyright (which is the year of first
publication). The notice should be on the title page or the page
immediately following and for graphic arts on a clearly visible or
accessible place. A work should be registered with the U.S. Copyright
Office by submitting a registration form and two copies of the work with a
fee which a) establishes proof of earliest creation and publication, b) is
required to file a lawsuit for infringement of copyright, c) if filed
within three months of publication, establishes a right to attorneys' fees
in an infringement suit. Copyrights cover the following: literary, musical
and dramatic works, periodicals, maps, works of art (including models),
art reproductions, sculptural works, technical drawings, photographs,
prints (including labels), movies and other audiovisual works, computer
programs, compilations of works and derivative works, and architectural
drawings. Not subject to copyright are short phrases, titles,
extemporaneous speeches or live unrecorded performances, common
information, government publications, mere ideas, and seditious, obscene,
libelous and fraudulent work. For any work created from 1978 to date, a
copyright is good for the author's life, plus 50 years, with a few
exceptions such as work "for hire" which is owned by the one
commissioning the work for a period of 75 years from publication. After
that it falls into the public domain. Many, but not all, countries
recognize international copyrights under the "Universal Copyright
Convention," to which the United States is a party.
PUBLIC DOMAIN
In copyright law, the right of anyone to use literature, music or other
previously copyrighted materials after the copyright period has expired.
Although the copyright laws have been changed several times, a rule of
thumb would be that the last possible date for copyright protection would
be 50 years after the death of the author. Thus, the works of William
Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Jack London and other classic writers are in the
public domain and may be published by anyone without payment of a royalty.
TRADEMARK
A distinctive design, picture, emblem, logo or wording (or combination)
affixed to goods for sale to identify the manufacturer as the source of
the product. Words that merely name the maker (but without particular
lettering) or a generic name for the product are not trademarks.
Trademarks may be registered with the U.S. Patent Office to prove use and
ownership. Use of another's trademark (or one that is confusingly similar)
is infringement and the basis for a lawsuit for damages for unfair
competition and/or a petition for an injunction against the use of the
infringing trademark.
TRUST
An entity created to hold assets for the
benefit of certain persons or entities, with a trustee managing the trust
(and often holding title on behalf of the trust). Most trusts are founded
by the persons (called trustors, settlors and/or donors) who execute a
written declaration of trust which establishes the trust and spells out
the terms and conditions upon which it will be conducted. The declaration
also names the original trustee or trustees, successor trustees or means
to choose future trustees. The assets of the trust are usually given to
the trust by the creators, although assets may be added by others. During
the life of the trust, profits and, sometimes, a portion of the principal
(called "corpus") may be distributed to the beneficiaries, and
at some time in the future (such as the death of the last trustor or
settlor) the remaining assets will be distributed to beneficiaries. A
trust may take the place of a will and avoid probate (management of an
estate with court supervision) by providing for distribution of all assets
originally owned by the trustors or settlors upon their death. There are
numerous types of trusts, including "revocable trusts" created
to handle the trustors' assets (with the trustor acting as initial
trustee), often called a "living trust" or "inter vivos
trust" which only becomes irrevocable on the death of the first
trustor; "irrevocable trust," which cannot be changed at any
time; "charitable remainder unitrust," which provides for
eventual guaranteed distribution of the corpus (assets) to charity, thus
gaining a substantial tax benefit. There are also court-decreed
"constructive" and "resulting" trusts over property
held by someone for its owner. A "testamentary trust" can be
created by a will to manage assets given to beneficiaries
MEDIATION
Mediation is a process by which an independent, neutral third party
assists two parties to negotiate a settlement of a dispute between them.
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