Image by Intel Free Press on Flickr (CC license)

In Marion County, Oregon, a juror in a criminal trial was jailed for two days after the presiding judge caught him texting.

Benjamin Kohler, 26, was singled out by Judge Dennis Graves when the “light glow around [Kohler’s] chest” clued the judge in to the fact that the juror was using his cell phone. Graves had instructed the jurors specifically to not use mobile devices, but Kohler got busted texting during the transmission of a video interview with the defendant, who had been accused of armed robbery, while the lights were dimmed.

At that point, Graves ordered all the jurors but Kohler from the courtroom and imposed a two-day jail sentence for contempt of court.

“The duty to serve as a juror must be taken very seriously. Every juror has the responsibility to devote his entire attention to the witnesses and evidence being presented,” Graves said via statement. “In this case, Mr. Kohler failed to meet his obligations and failed to honor the direction of this court. My hope is that he will use his time in jail to reflect upon his behavior.”

Kohler “had no explanation for his actions” according to officials. He was dismissed from his role as a juror, and an alternate took his place to complete the trial, which ended in a conviction of the defendant.

What do you think of this judge’s action? Should texting while performing one’s civic duty as a juror be punishable by jail or otherwise? Or did the judge go too far? Do you have experience texting while serving on a jury?

Welcome to this week’s small business news weekly roundup!

In this week’s roundup, we’ll discuss whether you’re insured for growth, how you can prepare your small biz for disasters such as terrorist attacks, how you can streamline your business, how you can boost employee morale, and how you can help your business “go green.”

First, here is another great roundup:

• This Week in Small Business: Free Lunch?: The New York Times shares links to articles on everything small biz owners need to know about the president’s budget, tech companies that offer free lunches drawing the attention of the IRS, why your least engaged employees may be your top performers, what your business can learn from the NCAA tournament, and much more.

And now, the rest!

• Are You Insured for Growth?: Time discusses the importance of making sure your insurance coverage keeps pace with your business needs and how you can do so.

• What You Can Do, in the Face of Boston Bombings: Inc. offers practical advice on how your small business can be prepared for disasters, including terrorist acts.

• 4 Ways to Streamline Your Small Business Today: Forbes discusses how to make your business more efficient while reducing costs, maximizing resources, and increasing customer satisfaction.

• 5 Ways to Boost Employee Morale in Your Small Business: Great advice on how you can keep your employees happy to ensure optimal productivity.

• 4 Simple Ways to Help Your Small Business Go Green Today: Greener Ideal offers ideas on how you can “go green” and in the process benefit your business, reduce your carbon footprint, and even attract a new target market.

As always, you can keep up with the latest small business news by following @LegalZoom on Twitter and LegalZoom on Facebook.

What’s new in your small business world this week?

Michael Clarke Duncan by blackurbanite via Wikimedia Commons

The sister of deceased actor Michael Clarke Duncan has hired a lawyer to investigate whether her brother was unduly influenced when he changed his will several months before his death.

Duncan, best known for his role in The Green Mile, died last September at age 54 after a heart attack suffered two months previously. He had changed his will in April of 2012 in order to leave the bulk of his estate to his fiancée, Omarosa Manigault, noted Apprentice and Celebrity Apprentice contestant.

According to TMZ, Duncan’s sister Judy, who was left $100,000 in Duncan’s will, has also said that Manigault sold some of Duncan’s personal effects while he was hospitalized without the family’s consent. Judy also alleges that when she saw her brother in December 2011, he was somewhat out of sorts, including slurring his words, which she may have mentioned to imply he may not have been of sound mind in April 2012 when he changed his will.

Manigault, however, as quoted at TMZ, maintains that she doesn’t “control the estate or the finances and Judy knows it. If you saw all of her emails and texts to me you would see that she is just trying to get money from me, and threatened going to the press if I did not give it to her and that is a crime!”

At this point, there has not been any formal challenge to Duncan’s will, but for more on what a will contest entails, have a look at What Does It Mean to Contest a Will?, which discusses who may contest a will as well as how and why a will contest may occur.

Welcome to this week’s small business news weekly roundup!

In this week’s roundup, we’ll discuss what you need to know about President Obama’s budget, the March small business optimism index, perks your small biz can afford to help keep your employees happy, and what small biz scams to avoid.

First, here are two other great roundups:

• This Week in Small Business: Not Again!: The New York Times shares links to articles on 16 big bubbles about to burst, a new smart drug especially popular among entrepreneurs, the 10 fastest growing industries for small businesses, an infographic that shows the true cost of poor customer service, and much more.

• 3 Things You Should Know About Small Business: April 9: From The Street, links to articles on a jump in franchise lending, what’s hot in the Silicon Valley, and a stalling of small business growth.

And now, the rest!

• Here’s everything small business owners need to know about Obama’s new budget: From The Washington Post, a guide to the “primary components of the budget and what it would mean for small businesses.”

• U.S. March Small Business Optimism Index: Summary: From Bloomberg, a look at a table compiled from the March small business optimism index, which fell slightly from February.

• 10 Perks Your Small Business Can Afford: From Inc. and Time, some ideas on what you can offer your employees to keep them happy, engaged, and high-performing — all on a budget.

• Watch out for these small business scams: While there are a lot of legitimate opportunities out there for you to expand your business’s reach, here are some you should check out very carefully before getting involved.

As always, you can keep up with the latest small business news by following @LegalZoom on Twitter and LegalZoom on Facebook.

What’s new in your small business world this week?

Image by firemedic58 on Flickr (CC license)

A Brooklyn appellate court recently shocked the legal world when it threw out a prenuptial agreement between a divorcing couple.

“A prenuptial agreement is a contract between two people signed before marriage that details what will happen in the event of divorce, particularly regarding financial affairs,” and they are almost always upheld in court.

But this was not the case for the agreement signed four days before the marriage of Elizabeth and Peter Petrakis, a real estate magnate worth millions of dollars. The couple tied the knot in 1998 after signing a prenup assuring Peter would keep everything in his name in the event of a divorce.

Elizabeth has maintained that Peter threatened to cancel the wedding if she didn’t sign, thereby coercing her signature, and also promised to void the agreement once they had children. She refers to prenup as “a knife in my heart from Day One.’’

The Brooklyn Appellate Court that heard the case agreed with Elizabeth, finding Peter’s “credibility to be suspect.”

Prenuptial agreements have been increasing in popularity even among everyday folk, which means this case is being closely watched by attorneys to celebrities as well as small town divorce lawyers — especially since the contract was negated through a verbal promise though the agreement mentioned no such verbal agreements.

Elizabeth’s lawyer, Dennis D’Antonio, called the decision “unprecedented.”

Divorce proceedings for the couple are now moving forward, but for those curious as to why a prenup might be a good idea even for those of us not followed by paparazzi, check out “The Big Dilemma: Saying I Do with a Prenup.”

What do you think about prenups?

Welcome to this week’s small business news weekly roundup!

In this week’s roundup, we’ll discuss the best and worst states for small business, small biz owners’ feelings on immigration regarding a road map to citizenship, how to build an e-commerce site for your small biz, and some time management tips for handling social media.

First, here are some other great roundups:

• This Week in Small Business: The Silly Money Ratio: The New York Times shares links to articles on what “bizspeak” should be outlawed, the silly money ratio’s highest level since 2007, what entrepreneurs can learn from Coca-Cola, why your business should consider solar power, and much more.

• 3 Things You Should Know About Small Business: April 3: From The Street, links to articles on the $1.5 million boost in lending by banks receiving capital through the Small Business Lending Fund, half of small business owners looking to invest this quarter, and Kabbage’s closing of a $75 million debt facility.

• Small Business Must-Reads: Monday, April 1: From The Wall Street Journal, links to articles on a study showing women-owned companies are less likely to be approved for a small business loan, a teen landscaper’s “thriving ‘weed’ franchise,” and more.

And now, the rest!

• The most small business-friendly places in the US: The Globe and Mail has a nice summary of a recent survey carried out by Thumbtack.com and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation that uncovered which are the best and worst states for small biz in the United States. Where did your state end up? Do you agree?

• Road map to citizenship has support among small business owners: The Los Angeles Times reports on a poll by the Main Street Alliance and American Sustainable Business Council, which found that 67% of small business owners support a road map to citizenship for immigrants currently living and working in the US.

• Five Steps to Building an E-Commerce Site for Your Small Business: The Better Business Bureau shares these tips on how you can get an online store up and running.

• 10 Social Media Time Management Tips for Small Business: Forbes helps you get a grasp on how much time you’re putting into social media — and making the most of those minutes.

As always, you can keep up with the latest small business news by following @LegalZoom on Twitter and LegalZoom on Facebook.

What’s new in your small business world this week?

Apple EarPods by Faruk Ateş on Flickr (CC license)

Randolph Divisions, maker of the HearPod digital hearing aid, has sued Apple over its EarPods, alleging trademark infringement — literally making a federal case out of it in the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii.

All this fuss over something that you stick in your ear?

Yes, according to Patently Apple, because Randolph Divisions insists that Apple is infringing on its 2007 trademark for “HearPod,” which is specific to the class of hearing aids. As of 2012, though, Apple also owns its trademark for “EarPods” and “Apple EarPods,” classified under “headphones; microphones; remote control for controlling audio and video players and mobile phones; sound reproducing apparatus.”

Still, Randolph Divisions claims that the products are similar, especially as they are both used in the ear, and that “[Apple’s] actions in this complaint commenced after [Randolph Division’s] Mark became ‘famous’ and cause[d] dilution of the distinctive quality of the Plaintiff’s Mark thereby causing damage to Plaintiff’s and entitling Plaintiffs to injunctive and other relief as provided by law.”

In order to claim trademark dilution, however, a brand must be sufficiently famous and well-known to even be recognized legally capable of dilution under the law. If the claimant’s mark does not rise to that level (and it’s rather unlikely that HearPod would — see the previous link explaining that Coach is not famous enough as a handbag to claim dilution), the determination as to whether there is trademark infringement turns to whether there is a likelihood of confusion among consumers regarding the two products in question.

So what do you think: would the average consumer confuse Apple’s headphones with Randolph Division’s hearing aids?

You be the judge in the comments — and then Judge Leslie Kobayashi in Honolulu will get her say as the presiding judge in this case.

Stay tuned for updates!

Kate Middleton by Tom Soper Photography on Flickr (CC license)

Across the pond, Kate Middleton has applied to trademark her title, the Duchess of Cambridge to be used on “a wide range of goods and services,” namely clothing — possibly including baby wear.

The Duchess of Cambridge is expecting her first child in July with Prince William, though the couple has been famously low-key about any details, including the sex of the Prince- or Princess-to-be.

The trademark move is to protect the name used as part of the Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry; proceeds from any such clothing line would benefit the charities supported by the foundation, including those for veterans, disadvantaged children, and wildlife, according to The Daily Beast.

The Royal Collection Trust is the family’s charitable body, which has seen a great boon in finances since Kate joined the family; the Royal Collection’s income rose sharply from £8.5 million to £50.2 million in 2011-12.

Of course, filing a trademark application in the UK doesn’t mean the royal couple has secured exclusive rights to use the term ‘Duchess of Cambridge’ on products in the United States, so it remains to be seen whether there will also be an application filed here.

Stay tuned!

Would you buy a royal onesie?

Welcome to this week’s small business news weekly roundup as we wrap up National Start Your Business Month!

In this week’s roundup, we’ll discuss how you can breed innovation in your small biz, why you should consider adding tablets to your technology, and how you can make Pinterest work for you.

Here are some other great roundups:

• This Week in Small Business: Does Yelp Help?: The New York Times shares links to articles on increases in economic confidence as well as the stock market, Yelp’s claims that small businesses who advertise on its review platform produce an average $23,000 more per year in revenue, the importance of stopping and saying “thanks,” a new book offering business lessons from Shakespeare, and much more.

• 3 Things You Should Know About Small Business: March 27: From The Street, links to articles on franchises growing faster than independent businesses, which franchise brands are producing the happiest multi-unit owners, and the importance of your business finding that “special sauce.”

• Small Business Must-Reads: Thursday, March 28: From The Wall Street Journal, links to articles on employers considering replacing low-wage workers with apps and other technological means, the push from some lawmakers to get paid sick days for more workers, the wrong way to set small biz goals, and more.

And now, the rest!

• How to breed big innovation inside a small business: Drew C. Marshall at The Washington Post emphasizes the importance of innovation even in the smallest businesses and offers advice on how you can be “competitive and inventive in your approach.”

• Go Remote: 10 Ways to Free Up Your Business with a Tablet: If you and your employees are still tied to a desktop, this article gives you some ideas on how to “help you get out among customers and get more done in your business.”

• 4 Things Pinterest Can Do for Small Business Marketing: Still not sure how you can use Pinterest in your small business? Here are some great ideas.

As always, you can keep up with the latest small business news by following @LegalZoom on Twitter and LegalZoom on Facebook.

What’s new in your small business world this week?

Welcome to this week’s small business news weekly roundup!

Remember, all month long here at LegalZoom, we’ll be celebrating National Start Your Business Month with tips, info, offers, and prizes for those with established businesses and for those who are ready to take the leap and bring their dream to life.

In this week’s roundup, we’ll discuss improving your operating performance using information technology, tax season tips, alleviating audit anxiety, and the increasing popularity of M.B.A. Lites.

Here are some other great roundups:

• This Week in Small Business: Surviving Shark Tank: The New York Times shares links to articles on rising small biz confidence, increasing retail sales in February, an employee tip jar that accepts credit cards, five nontraditional ways to access capital in 2013, and much more.

• 3 Things You Should Know About Small Business: March 21: From The Street, links to articles on how health care law uncertainty is gripping small businesses, how Intuit and LinkedIn are teaming up to help small businesses hire better employees, and how to avoid the number one mistake entrepreneurs make.

• Small Business Must-Reads: Thursday, March 21: From The Wall Street Journal, links to articles on the emergence of niche crowdfunding sites, four small business lessons from big business mistakes, a roundup of small biz legislation before Congress, and more.

And now, the rest!

• How to Improve Your Operating Performance Through Information Technology: From Small Business Trends, three strategies to improve company operating performance using technology options available today.

• Five tax season tips for small business owners: Brian Sutter at The Washington Post offers tips to “eliminate errors and kick stress to the curb.”

• Small business advice: How to alleviate audit anxiety: John Nealon at The Washington Post offers five steps to feeling more secure and better prepared should the IRS come knocking.

• Budding Entrepreneurs Can Choose an M.B.A. Lite: The New York Times reports on entrepreneurship or small-business certificates, which take less time to obtain and cost less than an M.B.A.

As always, you can keep up with the latest small business news by following @LegalZoom on Twitter and LegalZoom on Facebook.

What’s new in your small business world this week?