Video: Questions Christians Have For Other Christians

I totally relate to several of the questions in this video. I think it's time we all stop judging other people's relationships with God and just ACCEPT that we're ALL LIVING LIFE.

Where's Rosie the Riveter when you need her? U.N Visitors "horrified" by Gender Equality in the U.S.

It turns out women in America aren't just bitching.

In today's article titled "The U.N. Sent 3 Foreign Women To The U.S. To Assess Gender Equality. They Were Horrified." the Huffington Post details the reaction of several women visiting the United States from a U.N. delegation.  Apparently, they were not impressed.

Notably, "they found the U.S. to be lagging far behind international human rights standards in a number of areas, including its 23 percent gender pay gap, maternity leave, affordable child care and the treatment of female migrants in detention centers."

Perhaps the most heartbreaking and part of the article was when they chronicled their trip into a clinic providing abortions.

"We were harassed. There were two vigilante men waiting to insult us," said Frances Raday, the delegate from the U.K. The men repeatedly shouted, "You're murdering children!" at them as soon as they neared the clinic, even though Raday said they are clearly past childbearing age.
"It's a kind of terrorism," added Eleonora Zielinska, the delegate from Poland. "To us, it was shocking."

While we are definitely fortunate to be living in the U.S., gender issues still lurk like landmines in day-to-day life.  I've never experienced them more blatantly than in the legal industry, where I was once asked why I was going to law school since, "you're just going to be a secretary anyway."  I'm constantly mistaken for administrative staff, and often asked, "so what do YOU do at the law firm?" That's in addition to getting grabbed, hit on, and asked out by clients.  So there's that.

Read the whole article here, and let's start making some changes.

From the work blog: Taylor Swift Sued for Allegedly Stealing Song Lyrics…And Why She’ll Win

*I blog for my law firm, and occasionally take some of the more interesting pieces to feature here.*

Taylor Swift on her 1989 Tour. Photo by GabboT used under the
 Creative Commons, Attribution Share Alike License.

Several media outlets report that Jesse Braham (real name Jesse Graham), an out of work and seemingly unknown musician, has filed a federal lawsuit Taylor Swift alleging that she stole the lyrics for her hit song “Shake It Off” from his song “Haters Gonna Hate.” In his complaint, Braham asserts “if Jessie Braham did not write the song ‘Haters Gone Hate,’ then Taylor Swift would not have written the song ‘Shake It Off.'”

Maybe it’s because I’m a huge Taylor Swift fan, but I believe that’s a very bold statement for Mr. Braham to make.  Ms. Swift, while recycling heartbreak, her manic-pixie-dreamgirl persona, and those faces she makes whenever she wins an award, (you know it– the “I-can’t-believe-I-won-how-shocking!” look) probably didn’t need a huge deal of inspiration in rearranging five words to get her point across.  Our job as attorneys, however, isn’t to chatter about the original songwriting prowess of our favorite blonde twenty-something, but to break down the legal argument behind the claim.

The lyrics at the root of the claim are as follows:

Swift's version:

"'Cause the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate / and the players gonna play, play, play, play, play" followed by "Heartbreakers gonna break break break break break/ and the fakers gonna fake fake fake fake fake."

Braham's version:

"Haters gone hate, playas gone play / watch out for them fakers, they'll fake you everyday"

Continue reading...

The CAN-SPAM Act: What a small business needs to know

Check out my post on our firm blog about the CAN-SPAM act. This act applies EVERY TIME you send a commercial email.  Commercial emails include newsletters, promo codes, or anything related to your business.  If you're a blog, it can include subscription messages as well.  Fines can be steep-- up to $1600 per violation.  Add a listserv of 100 people, and that's $16,000 for one email blast!  Read on to find out how you can keep in compliance.

Why "Chill" isn't always best

Connie Britton's Hair Secret

Brilliance.

The Best Door Mat I've Ever Encountered

Perfect for those days when you're too lazy to get out of bed when the police come knocking.

I support Planned Parenthood.

I am a successful woman.

At least I'm on my way there.

I'm a college and law school graduate.  I'm an attorney.  I've won awards, started my own law practice, moved on to work with an amazing law firm, and I work very, very hard. I'm a Christian, even though I don't attend Church as much as I should.  I save money and dream about the day when I will be done paying off student loans. I enjoy a little bit of trash TV, a lot of NPR, and believe you can never stop learning.

And I support Planned Parenthood.

I'll admit that I am disturbed over the recent videos regarding the sale of aborted babies' body parts.  At first, I really hoped I'd read a Snopes.com article about how the footage was made up by some right-wing crazy conservative anti-abortion group. But that article didn't come.  And I still stand by my decision to support Planned Parenthood.

When it comes to abortions, we need to do better for both the women undergoing abortions and the lives that won't come into being because of the procedure.  What we can't do is allow the misguided activities of one center to negate the immense amount of good Planned Parenthood does for society. Planned Parenthood isn't just a place women go for abortions; it's a place we go for medicine, gynecological exams, breast exams, and help when we're at the most terrifying point in our lives.  It's a place where women learn about and take care of their bodies, which-- in my opinion-- are pretty amazing.  And now, with the calls for #defundplannedparenthood, #StoPP, and especially #womenbetrayed I think it's time I shared the story of how they helped me.

Courtroom Yoga

Those folks over at the Bitter Lawyer have created one of my favorite new infographics: COURTROOM YOGA.

Recap: Presenting at Wedding Wire World

It's been a whirlwind week already, and it's only Wednesday!

Action shot courtesy of @WeddingWireEdu

I was blessed with the opportunity to present at Wedding Wire World 2015, Wedding Wire's annual national conference.  Held at the Gaylord National Harbor in DC, it was 2 days of networking, amazing presentations, and fantastic resources.  The Wedding Wire staff were FANTASTIC To work with, and the venue was simply gorgeous.  I was lucky enough to stay overnight at the Gaylord, and I can tell you that it's the closest thing to a cruise ship on dry land!  Between the glass-encased atrium, the top-of-the-line service, and fantastic food, I will definitely be back.

I was asked to present on "The Legalities of Small Business."  I shoved as much substantive content as I could into a 30-minute timeslot (while disclaiming that this was NOT LEGAL ADVICE, as any good attorney would....) and was delighted by the packed house!