When a nursing home resident is injured, tort litigation is traditionally the venue of choice for plaintiffs seeking compensation. However, with the risk of large verdicts appearing to increase in the last quarter-century, physicians and long-term health care facilities have begun to pursue mandatory arbitration as an alternative to traditional litigation.

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Attorneys are increasingly asking clinicians to evaluate their clients' (or their relatives') financial and legal capacities, as well as their ability to live independently. These evaluations have both legal and ethical implications because the determination can make the difference between maintaining an individual's right to autonomy and his need for protection. Although determinations regarding capacity can limit or remove one's freedom to make financial and legal decisions, they may be necessary to safeguard patients from being exploited.

There has been a lot of confusion between the terms 'Parental Alienation Syndrome' (hereinafter 'PAS') and parental alienation. Nearly every state considers parental alienation a factor in determining child custody. Some states even go further and impose tort liability on the person who alienates a child from the other parent. This article explains in depth.

Less than two weeks after stunning the nation by upholding marriage rights for same-sex couples, the California Supreme Court in May seemed poised to deliver another victory for gay rights. <i>North Coast Women's Care Medical Group v. Superior Court.</i> Specifically, the court gave every indication during oral arguments in San Francisco that it would rule that doctors cannot invoke their religious beliefs to deny gays and lesbians medical services.

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While many family practitioners are familiar with allegations of child sexual abuse and physical abuse, often arising in the context of a custody dispute, fewer are as knowledgeable about Factitious Disorder by Proxy ('FDP'), popularly referred to as Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy ('MSBP') and a variant thereof, Pediatric Condition Falsification ('PCF'). Whether you are representing a parent accused of child sexual abuse, the accusing parent or a parent with a chronically ill child, a basic understanding of these disorders is helpful to properly assess whether they may be an issue in your case.

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This article is the first in a series about developing a customized scorecard for your firm's partners, specific information to include in the scorecard, tailoring it to your firm's goals, and getting partners to understand the scorecard and achieve greater success.

Partners must be willing to make an investment in the future by becoming more involved in the associate's early experience at the firm. By monitoring each associate's progress, under the auspices of the coordinating partner and the individual partner-mentors, the firm can build toward its successful future.

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Some believe that there are a few naturally gifted rainmakers in each firm who are born with a talent for generating business. That theory is not quite accurate. There is a science to it and that science is to promote oneself without ever engaging in self-promotion. Those who appear to be naturally gifted simply internalized this idea many years ago and have built it into their daily routine.