How Does Your Garden Grow?

January 23, 2013  |  Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd.

Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd. is participating in a new Anoka County initiative aimed to help midsized businesses grow. Firm President Jeffrey Johnson was interviewed by the Star Tribune in an article featured in today’s newspaper about this program. Please follow the link to read more! Anoka County Aims to Help Businesses Grow

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Electronic Communications and Divorce

January 21, 2013  |  Elizabeth A. Schading

Almost everyone has gotten used to sharing most of their lives online, but it can be a bad idea during a divorce. Increasingly, text messages, emails, and social media data are winding up in front of judges as evidence. For example, the American Association of Matrimonial Lawyers reported in 2012 that 94{a0c01d20c42349884e67ff80c137866b0a9fe47aaae8f8a86a605a369ae487c3} of them had seen text messages used as evidence. Often, clients don’t even realize how much they’re giving away when they use these mediums, especially social media. Remember, if you put it out there online it is fair game and often not as private as you think it is. You should also remember that you don’t always have control over what goes out there. If your friend snaps a picture of you with a big beer in your hand, posts it online, and tags you, then you often have little recourse to get it removed. Here are some examples of the types of social media evidence which could impact your divorce case, especially in custody battles : photos of alcohol and drug use; photos of your kids in inappropriate places; discussions of your new boyfriend or girlfriend; evidence that you had overnight dates while the children were staying with you; vengeful or threatening comments; activities which violate your divorce order; information…

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Defective Product – When Products Don’t Function as Planned

January 21, 2013  |  Adriel B. Villarreal

Every year there are numerous cases here in Minnesota where people are injured because of a defective product. There are legal rules regarding product liability and a personal injury attorney can help you navigate them, making it easier to possibly recover damages. Who Has the Liability? The liability for a defective product can lie on many different people, depending on the source of the defect. It could be the product manufacturer who is held responsible, the manufacturer of the component parts, the wholesaler or even the store that sold the product. The law is clear that manufacturers must take reasonable precautions to ensure that their product is not defective and should not injure a consumer. Furthermore, a product is required to meet the reasonable expectations of a consumer, and when it has an unanticipated danger or defect, it no longer meets a reasonable expectation. While there are no federally mandated defective product liability laws, there are state laws and commercial statutes that these claims can be based on. These cases can be brought to court based on manufacturer negligence, liability and breach of warranty. Examples of Defective Products In product liability cases, the plaintiff must show that the product in question caused the injury due to defects. There are the three main types…

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