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Grand Jury Finds Fault with Westchester County's Child Protective Services
Prompted by the deaths of two children and the injuries two others sustained when Westchester Child Services returned abused children to their parents, a grand jury was convened in January to make recommendations for improvements to the system. The members of the grand jury heard sworn testimony from nearly 30 witnesses, examined over a hundred pieces of evidence and analyzed relevant law. They found that there were systematic failings in protective services to prevent injury and death to children already under the supervision of DSS. Their report, released to the public in June at the Grand Jury's request, made 15 suggestions for improvements. The report is tellingly titled “Returning Abused Children to their Abuser: How Westchester County's Child Protective System Fails the Children It Most Needs to Protect.”
The Cases
One of the cases that brought on the call for the investigation involved a mother whose child was taken from her after she abandoned it. The child was placed in foster care but was later returned to the mother after she gave birth to a second child. The placement with the mother was made on the condition that a social worker visit the home every 2 weeks. The child was later beaten to death after the social worker failed to visit the family for a period of 6 weeks. In another case, a child was taken from its parents at birth because its older siblings had been abused by the parents. He was later returned to his home, after which he ended up at a hospital emergency room malnourished and with bruises and fractures.
Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
Legal Possession: What Does It Mean?
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
The Stranger to the Deed Rule
In 1987, a unanimous Court of Appeals reaffirmed the vitality of the "stranger to the deed" rule, which holds that if a grantor executes a deed to a grantee purporting to create an easement in a third party, the easement is invalid. Daniello v. Wagner, decided by the Second Department on November 29th, makes it clear that not all grantors (or their lawyers) have received the Court of Appeals' message, suggesting that the rule needs re-examination.