Law Line Of Questioning

Seditious revolutionaries or all talk? Michigan jury will decide

A Detroit jury will decide whether seven members of a Midwest militia known as Hutaree are Christian revolutionary bomb-throwers who broke the law -- or swaggering survivalists suffering from too much bluster and bravado.

Jury selection in the federal trial is expected to be completed Monday, with opening statements scheduled to begin soon after. The seven defendants are accused of conspiring to use force to oppose the authority of the U.S. government. According to the indictment , the defendants, acting as the Hutaree militia in Lenawee County, Mich., viewed all law enforcement as their enemy, and were preparing to engage them in armed conflict.

Nine people were charged in the case. In a deal with prosecutors, one defendant, Joshua Clough, pleaded guilty to illegal use of a firearm and could be called to testify agains the others, according to the Associated Press. Another defendant, Jacob Ward, will have a separate trial. The group is accused of planning to kill an unidentified member of local law enforcement then attack with improvised explosive devices the other officers who would gather for the funeral. If convicted, the defendants will face a maximum of life in prison on the charge of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction. Conviction of seditious conspiracy carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

The trial throws a spotlight on militias, which include a wide range of organizations -- from survivalist training groups to armed hate groups. The trial also raises questions about the line between talking and action. The former is constitutionally protected; the latter can be a crime.

In its defense, Hutaree members maintain that they were just exercising rights granted by the U.S. Constitution -- and that they were just fun-lovers.

“I'm going to fight it tooth and nail,” Tina Mae Stone, one of the defendants told the Associated Press last week during a break in jury selection. “It was just a bunch of good ol' boys out to have fun. We did survival stuff. I did it mostly to spend time with my husband.

No Price Objections? You Aren't Charging Enough - Defero Law

Most lawyers make the mistake of interpreting price objections as problematic and potentially damaging to profits. However, the absence of price objections is actually indicative of a poor pricing strategy.

If no one ever objects to your price, many of your clients would probably pay considerably more. Let's say hypothetically that across the board, you are charging 10% less than what your clients would be happy to pay. If the firm operates on a 30% of turnover profit margin, then even a 10% increase in your pricing structure will produce a 33% increase in net profit since the whole of the 10% goes to the bottom line.

Pricing objections provide great insight into what clients care about. They are learning opportunities. You also get the opportunity to test your messaging for why your price represents a good investment. No objections, no learning opportunities.

Client objections can generally be classified into one of the following four categories:

(1)    The client was never a good fit. These are the clients who not only hope to get a bottle of champagne for the price of a bottle of beer, they actually expect it, and are generally vocal when they don't get it. You should suggest that they go elsewhere.

 

(2)    The client is a good fit for your firm, but they have understandable if not necessarily rational reasons for wanting a cheaper price. They are good people, are deserving of your help but they need their expectations realigned. Explore ways in which they can help keep the cost down by doing some of the work themselves or opting for a less elaborate and expensive solution to their legal issues. They may also be worthy of a cheaper price for legitimate strategic reasons such as a willingness to pay upfront, flexible scheduling, volume purchases or other behaviours that create shared value between the client and the firm.

 

(3)    The client is a great fit but simply wants to see if they can get a better deal. As the saying goes, ‘if you don't ask, you don't get’. Many lawyers tend to make the mistake of thinking that the particular engagement or indeed the whole relationship with the client is in jeopardy if they don't immediately capitulate on price. There are two answers. Either ‘no’, or ‘we will look at that; what are you offering to justify a discount below what all our other clients pay for the same work?

The Complete Works of Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

This volume contains A Tale of Two Cities, which was originally serialized in Dickens's own periodical All the Year Round in 1859.

The House of the Seven Gables

HAIF-WAT down a by-street of one of our New England towns, stands a rusty wooden house, with seven acutely- peaked gables, facing towards various points of the compass, and a huge, clustered chimney in the midst.

Glimpses of Communion

Sharon provides inspiration to Grady. She has written several articles for the Christian Woman Magazine, and she has been a speaker at Ladies' retreats. She has been quite persuasive in insisting that this book be written.

Men and women of America, a biographical dictionary of contemporaries

Order of the Loyal Legion. He married, Nov. 28, 1801, Annie L. Miller. Residence : 1332 Vermont Avenue. ... Mr. Carter was admitted to the Bar of New York State in 1891, and was a member of the law firm of Fisher and Carter, with William ...

The Lavish Hospitality of God

This is a call to rethink the Lord's Supper and other church ordinances as an expression of the "outrageous and sometimes scandalous hospitality of God" and a sign of His kingdom presence.