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It was announced today that FindLaw is one of five websites nominated for the Webby Award in the Law category. The Webby Awards, the leading international honor for Web sites, received 8,000 entries from more than 60 countries in the various categories for this year’s awards. More information on the Webby Awards is at http://www.webbyawards.com/. As a nominee for a Webby Award, FindLaw is eligible to receive a People’s Voice Award, which is given based on votes from internet users....

Due to a possible steering shaft issue with a potential of corrosion, a huge recall of over 370,000 Ford cars will begin starting October 21, 2013 in North America. The recall will affect several car models, including Mercury Grand Marquis, Lincoln Town Cars, and Ford Crown Victorias manufactured and sold between 2005 and 2011. According to a statement released by Ford in early September, only 15,000 cars in Canada may be affected by the threat of corrosion in the steering shaft....

New York and Connecticut gun control laws banning semiautomatic assault rifles and large-capacity magazines will stand, according to a federal appeals court. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York held that the restrictions don’t violate the Constitution. The court did, however, strike down a provision in New York’s law barring gun owners from loading more than seven bullets in a clip as well as a Connecticut prohibition on the non-semiautomatic Remington 7615....

The U.S. House of Representatives voted on Tuesday to make “Do Not Call” registration permanent, meaning that consumers will not need to renew their participation every five years, as was originally mandated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The “Do Not Call” registry allows Americans to choose whether or not they want to receive telemarketing calls. Once a phone number is added to the registry, after 31 days most telemarketing calls will stop....

Last week, the Illinois Supreme Court struck down a state statute limiting the non-economic damage awards plaintiffs in medical malpractice suits can receive. Under the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure, Sec. 2-1706.5, monetary damages for pain and suffering awarded to plaintiffs were mostly limited to one million dollars per each hospital and staff and $500,000 per doctor. The underlying case was one for medical malpractice against a doctor and hospital for the delivery of a child, Abigail, who now suffers from very severe mental and physical disabilities including brain damage, cerebral palsy and an inability to be fed normally, all allegedly due to the actions of the doctors and nurses during her delivery....

Last week, an attorney for the IRS, who also is a professor at Georgetown University, was arrested for his alleged involvement in a conspiracy to sell methamphetamine. According to reports, the attorney had allegedly been involved with individuals in Long Island and Arizona, and has been distributing large quantities of methamphetamine since 2012. The attorney is alleged to have used FedEx to deliver the drugs, which was how he got discovered....

Jenni Rivera, the Mexican-American singing sensation, is presumed dead after her plane crashed in Mexico early Sunday. Rivera, 43, had finished a show in Monterrey, Mexico, and was aboard a plane bound for the city of Toluca when it disappeared from radar. While the Mexican government has not officially confirmed her death, it appears there were no survivors of the crash. News of Rivera’s death has rocked the entertainment industry. The singer’s fame and fortune will now make it a bit complicated to deal with her estate....

Under late comedian Joan Rivers’ estate plan, the majority of her of $150 million fortune will reportedly pass to her daughter Melissa and grandson Cooper. However, Rivers also made sure to include plans for her four dogs in her will, reports the New York Daily News. Though the $35 million New York City apartment Rivers lived in with her dogs is being sold by her daughter, Rivers’ plan likely made sure that her longtime assistant Jocelyn Pickett – who will act as the dogs’ caretaker – will have no trouble maintaining the dogs’ upscale lifestyle....

Should law enforcement be required to publish an immigrant “black list”? A portion of Alabama’s latest immigration law requires state law enforcement to publish a list of immigrants who may be undocumented. HB 658, signed by Alabama Governor Robert Bentley last May, was designed to “simplify and clarify” the state’s existing immigration law. The ACLU criticized the immigrant “black list” which offers no mechanism for persons on the list to challenge their inclusion....

Michael Jackson was a unique man and musician and now his death has spawned a tax battle unlike any other. The Internal Revenue Service claims that, based on the value of his name and likeness, Jackson’s estate was worth more than $400 million when he died. The estate claims it was much lower – more like $2,000. The tax authority and the estate are expected to have a showdown in court in 2017, but according to The Hollywood Reporter , neither party has much information about how the other arrived at the figures they cite....

The Marine urination video may be evidence of a crime, according to a senior military official. The 39-second video depicts four men in Marine combat gear. They are shown apparently urinating on three dead bodies on the ground. The uniformed Marines joked with each other in the video. “You got it on the video?” one asked another. The response: “Yeah.” Another man chimed in with “Golden, like a shower.” It’s unclear where the video was shot or who posted the clip....

How a company can mess up bottling water is beyond my comprehension, but be careful when you open your next water bottle. Niagara Bottling is recalling 14 brands of bottled water for possible E.coli contamination. Here is what you need to know: Niagara Bottling’s Bottled Water Niagara Bottling is recalling Acadia, Acme, Big Y, Best Yet, 7-11, Niagara, Nature’s Place, Pricerite, Superchill, Morning Fresh, Shaws, Shoprite, Western Beef Blue, and Wegman’s bottled water....

As consumers are repeatedly forced to learn, identity theives will attempt to utilize just about any form of communication to part you from private information such as your social security number, your bank account number or your credit card number. Phishing is the use of email or websites that look to come from a trustworthy source, but actually trick people into handing over private information. SMiShing is doing this through SMS messages (text messages) sent to mobile phones....

Soylent, the food company that makes meal replacement products, announced a voluntary recall of one of their powdered drinkable food products this week. The recall was due to a dairy free variety of the product that accidentally had dairy included in it during the manufacturing process. While this may not sound like a major concern, for those with dairy allergies, dairy contamination is a serious matter. Believe it or not, yes, there is actually a real food product called Soylent....

Texas will not join the national sex-offender registry, citing cost concerns and a requirement that Texas change its existing sex-offender laws. And Texas isn’t alone. Four other states – Arizona, Arkansas, California, and Nebraska – have also declined to take part in the federal registry, the Houston Chronicle reports. The national sex-offender registry is part of a federal law called the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, signed by President George W....

There’s no messing around with threats to schools. A fourteen year old Texas teen may have learned that lesson the hard way this week, as police in Pearland, Texas (outside of Houston) arrested the student for allegedly making a threat against Berry Miller Junior High School on Snapchat. “It was something along the lines of, “Don’t come to school tomorrow,” alluding to the fact that he was going to bring a gun,” said Officer Jason Wells of the Pearland Police, according to Click 2 Houston....

Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time. It’s harsh but generally good advice. If you want to stay out of jail, avoid doing things that are likely to land you there. Like driving drunk and running into parked cars when you’re already on probation. Warrant singer Jani Lane has been sentenced to 120 days in jail after his second DUI arrest in two years. He was arrested on May 9 in Woodland Hills in California....

While most of us are wrapped up in the holiday spirit, there are a few criminals out there looking to take advantage of the holiday season. And, admittedly, some of us enjoy a little too much of the holiday spirits, and get into trouble ourselves. Nobody wants to celebrate the holidays in prison, so here are the five most common holiday crimes, how you might avoid them, and what to do if you’re charged with one....

With this summer’s concert season set to break attendance records, it’s time to remember a few key items on your concert checklist: don’t forget the tickets, be sure to put on some sunscreen, and, oh yeah, don’t get arrested. Here are seven sure-fire, and really dumb, ways to get yourself arrested at a concert. Drive home intoxicated. Drunken driving is never a good idea. But police will definitely be on the lookout for people driving under the influence leaving a concert....

In a joint statement issued Thursday, February 18, Attorney General Eric Holder and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the settlement of and closure to the long litigation by African American farmers against the USDA for racial discrimination in USDA farm loan programs. The settlement, which totals $1.25 billion, is contingent upon appropriation by Congress and will set up a process outside the courts where farmers may make their claims for damage awards and debt relief....