Adventures are everywhere and more accessible than ever! But, with more adventure comes more risk for the participant and more risk for the business (and its owners). As you can imagine, the question\request I get most often from adventure business owners is related to liability waivers and protecting the business from legal risk in the … Read more
When talking with people starting businesses, one question that we get is a lot is “How do I limit my liability?”. First, we talk about creating a business entity. And don’t forget about insurance. But, one thing we always talk about is “Don’t cross the streams. It would be bad.” By that, we mean keep … Read more
Last time I wrote about tips for Landlords embarking on their first adventure into residential renting – but today, I’m going to concentrate on a few tips for tenants. In Wisconsin, there are plenty of “gotchas” or “trap doors” in the law for both parties – but when\if mistakes happen, the outcomes often disproportionately impact … Read more
We started on this fair use train to answer a question someone asked me: When can you use music in videos and podcasts? I think you can make some guesses as to the answer. First, you can certainly use music if you get permission from the owner of the music. Second, there are companies that … Read more
Becoming a landlord sounds like a great plan – you have a nice house you can rent out, the monthly rent payments will cover your mortgage, and you will be free to buy a new house, retire early, or all of the above! But, as with many things, it probably won’t work out quite as … Read more
Last week was a bit of a let down, wasn’t it? Here’s all of these interesting facts, and then thbbt! No resolution. This week is better. This one also involves the manipulation of a photograph but with a lot more humor. This time, Sconnie Nation, a t-shirt company, used a photo taken by Michael Kienitz … Read more
Fair use is a defense, but it isn’t always a slam dunk winning defense. Shepard Fairey is a graphic artist and known for street art. You may not recognize his name, but you likely recognize at least one piece of his work: The Obama HOPE poster. The photo is instantly recognizable and arguably iconic. It … Read more
Collin Schaefer of the Law Firm of Collin Schaefer in Cedarburg, Wisconsin has joined Erin Ogden and Jeffrey Glazer at OgdenGlazer, LLC as a partner. The new firm is now Ogden Glazer + Schaefer, or OG+S. Schaefer brings a strong practice in business, real estate, and technology. He will keep his practice centered in Cedarburg, … Read more
As we discussed earlier, courts look at the purpose and character of the use for both the original owner and the derivative use. Courts look at how the party claiming fair use is using the copyrighted work. Is the derivative use meant to make money? If so, it is more likely to be found infringing, but if … Read more
The United States Tobacco and Trade Bureau (“TTB”) has finally issued guidance around the pieces of Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform (the TTB is not as good at acronyms or naming as our legislators) contained in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“Tax Act”). The Tax Act made a number of changes to … Read more