Decisions

Archive for April, 2009

Sometimes couples separate because their marriage was just not meant to succeed. They may well separate on good terms, with no rancor or bitterness, because things just did not work out for them as a couple. Other times it will be down to irreconcilable differences. They may just have been poorly matched to start off with, but still, it is nobody’s fault, and after a period of separation they can agree to a divorce and go their separate ways for good, to pursue other dreams. And then sometimes there is someone to blame. This kind of divorce will often be brought unilaterally by the spouse who has been the victim of whatever wrong has been committed.

But what constitutes a “fault”? What are reasonable grounds to bring a divorce case, potentially occasioning a large financial pay off when the case goes through? Generally, it requires some amount of wrongdoing on the part of the defendant. The most obvious, and most common reason why couples get divorced is pure and simple adultery. As the standard marriage vows say “forsaking all others”, if one party in the marriage is prepared to have an affair it is reasonable to conclude that they have broken their marriage vows. Adultery generally will entail sexual contact with a third party outside the marriage, but it is not obligatory for sex to play a part. If one party has been dating or romantically involved with a third party, this is enough to constitute adultery.

Another reason accepted as constituting a “fault” in a fault divorce is desertion. If one partner spends more and more time away from the marital home, they may be divorced on the grounds of constructive desertion – continuing absences hinting at a likely eventual departure. Equally, they might just leave the marital home altogether, at which point they are liable to be taken to court on that basis.

It is also possible to file for divorce on the grounds of physical or mental cruelty. In the case of mental cruelty this will need to constitute a repeat offence, as one case can easily be put down to misinterpretation or potentially provocation. But in the case of physical violence, once is enough to justify bringing a legal case to end the marriage. Equally, so may insanity – defined as no longer being of sound mind, which may constitute grounds for divorce on the basis of fear for personal safety – as may alcohol or drug abuse for similar reasons.

It may also be possible in some states to divorce a partner for sexual impotence or for the comparatively worse crime of infecting the other spouse with a venereal disease. It is NOT considered acceptable to divorce a spouse due to being bored in the marriage, nor may you divorce someone for snoring. Some protection needs to remain for the institution of marriage, after all, and if there are minor problems the idea is that you work on them. Divorce may be easier than before, but just cause still needs to be presented to dissolve a marriage.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational and entertainment purposes only, and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter.

About the Author:
http://LegalBuffet.com is a complete online resource that compares the legal services offered by various online companies. Find the best company for your online divorce needs http://legalbuffet.com/divorce-services/.

Keyword tags: Online divorce, uncontested divorce, do it yourself divorce, how to get a divorce, divorce lawyers

Perhaps U.S. Senator Charles Schumer was inspired by Trent Reznor. Recently, the Nine Inch Nails front man posted an article on his band’s website calling for the demolition of the secondary ticket market.

Maybe Senator Schumer was outraged over the February incident involving Bruce Springsteen tickets. Fans trying to purchase tickets to one of his concerts were directed away from Ticketmaster’s main website to the website of their subsidiary, TicketsNow, a ticket reseller. On that site, tickets were being sold for considerably more than their face value.

Whatever his inspiration, Schumer’s proposed anti-scalping laws do little to add transparency or eliminate the mechanisms that frustrate fans.

The bill Schumer plans on introducing to congress imposes a two-day waiting period on tickets. Resellers must wait 48 hours, starting from the time tickets first went on sale by the primary provider, before they can resell tickets on the secondary market. The legislation also forces ticket resellers to obtain a federal registration number from the Federal Trade Commission.

While the measures included in the bill seem like logical steps to level the playing field between the consumer and the reseller, they do little to combat the real scourge of the secondary ticket market and that’s the artists and promoters. Most of the tickets sold by resellers are provided by the artist or the promoter in hopes of profiting from their high markups.

A famous example of how an artist can find an extra revenue stream in the secondary ticket market occurred last August and involved the sale of Neil Diamond tickets.

Less than a minute after tickets went on sale for several of his performances at Madison Square Garden, more than a hundred of the best seats in the house were available on TicketExchange.com, another Ticketmaster subsidiary. This practice has been confirmed by former Ticketmaster chief executive Sean Moriarty.

Due to the large amount of “A” list artists connected to Ticketmaster, this practice may be utilized by Britney Spears, Celine Dion, Bon Jovi, Van Halen, Billy Joel and Elton John. Depending on the tour, and the artist, having a pipeline to the secondary ticket market can create an additional $2 million in revenue.

By the way, Ticketmaster Chief Executive Irving Azoff is also Diamond’s personal manager. Their relationship highlights just how closely intertwined the entities are within the ticket industry.

In returning to the bill’s stipulations, the two day waiting period is quite curious. There’s no real reason for a consumer to go a reseller if there are still tickets available from the primary seller. Therefore, if an event is sold out the arbitrary waiting period just delays the inevitable for 48 hours.

The registration number called for by Schumer’s bill is useless unless it identifies the artist or the promoter as the seller. Certainly the artist and the promoter will take the necessary precautions to hide their true identity.

The legislation does not apply to season ticket holders, ticket packages or tickets to entertainment series. The bill will require that hard copies of tickets be labeled with the date and time of their sale. However since “scalping” is legal, this bill does not outlaw the practice, a time stamp seems to have little consequence.

And “little consequences” seems to be the theme of Schumer’s legislation. This may explain why Ticketmaster supports the bill.

“I am very happy to support Sen. Schumer’s thoughtful proposal and leadership on this issue. [It] is a very important step in reforming the process and bringing transparency to the on-sale process,” Azoff said in a prepared statement.

In his article, Reznor calls for the ticket industry to adopt several measure which will greatly hamper, if not eliminate the secondary ticket market. He calls for limiting the amount of ticket sales per customer and printing the customers’ names on tickets. The name on the ticket would have to match their identification in order to enter the venue.

As proactive as those measures appear, the secondary ticket market will continue to be a thorn in the side of consumers, as well as Reznor’s, as long as they ignore the fact that the greediest part of the industry could be the artist.

About the Author:
Ryan Hogan writes for AuthorityTickets (http://www.authoritytickets.com), a secondary ticket industry news and information blog and event tickets website.

Keyword tags: Senator Schumer, trent reznor, secondary ticket market, Ticketmaster, bruce springsteen tickets, Irv

Do you know what a dial is worth to your business? Would you like to improve your dial to scheduled ratio? Do you feel you could sell more if you could see more prospects? The telephone for most of us is where it happens. If we have difficulty selling the appointment, we may never have the opportunity to tell how great our product is for the prospect. You have a line between you and that prospect, and you better be “equipped” when a live one answers. With the appropriate Call Center Training and Customer Service Training, you can handle the obstacles and objections that are stopping your business from achieving its full potential. Here are some pointers that can improve your dialed to scheduled ratio:

Sell with PURPOSE! The best call center training tells us that the first thing we must ask ourselves when we pick up the telephone is what are we selling on the call and why. Very often, I will hear sales rep’s selling product, giving away all their features and benefits when really they should be focused on “selling the appointment.” After your greeting, have a “purpose to your call.” According to call center training research, most people lose interest within mere seconds if not given some sort of explanation that holds their attention. And doing this is simply polite and considered good customer service training. Simply begin, “Hello, the purpose of my call is………”

Sell with some sizzle…have a big fat claim: You need a thirty second commercial, that is about 16-20 words that must be so compelling that they want to see you, i.e., “The purpose of my call today is to ask the opportunity to show you our new ……..………that will…..and will….” This is where good call center training can make the difference between a successful business model and a business that fails inside the first two years of operating. You’re trying to peak their interest, not bore them with every last detail. You can’t do this without a good product. But good marketing is also required and so is good customer service training.

Close the call with the Alternate Choice Close: In asking for the appointment, call center training tells us that it is best to always give the prospect a choice of times, i.e., “Are mornings or afternoons usually better for you? Would Tues at 9am or Thurs at 8 am work better.” This technique keeps you in control of the call and helps avoid the “I’m too busy…” The last thing you want to do is limit your customer’s choices. Giving them too few choices can push them away, and customer service training would tell us that this is never a good idea.

Defer the Objection and be prepared for resistance: Know how to handle objections and tell them you will take that into consideration when you get together. The prospect will give you answers to questions you did not ask! Call center training experts agree that the best way to handle objections is to present options and, in a sense, make assumptions. You are not asking for a meeting. You are assuming that you will have a meeting, and you’d like to when is best. Again, this technique follows from what most experts agree is the best way to defer objections and ultimately get the most out of the customer service training you have spent potentially hundreds if not thousands on, during on-site training. Your statement might be something like, “I understand your concern, other clients use the same system you have, and I will take that into consideration, (name) when we get together, when would be a good time to get together, Thursday at ___ or_____?”

What’s your “aura”? Good customer service training tells us you must always sound professional. Use the prospects name and know the name they like to be called. Take care of your voice and project a positive confident “aura.” Speak just a little louder, a lot clearer and just a little faster. Call center training experts agree that if you use the phone a great deal for your work, exercise your neck regularly. Drink water without ice cubes, (cold water constricts the voice), breath from your abdomen, avoid dairy products and heavy meals prior to calling time, and most of all be sure to smile. Prospects will welcome enthusiastic, energetic positive people that have a planned call.

And any experienced call center training professional will tell you that you must get “to” the Gatekeeper vs. “past” the Gatekeeper. Too often sales reps try to get past the gatekeeper. Make them your ally. Get their name. Ask for that gatekeeper on the second try, and ask them when you should try back. Chances are they’re more likely to remember you, and if you can leave a good impression, this can only open up the lines of communication. They may even recommend you the next time their tasked with a project by their manager. Hopefully these customer service training tips can make your calling time more productive and your bottom line results more profitable.

About the Author:
This article is brought to you by Joseph FeRoss and customer service training team at Peak Performance Solutions. For more information regarding customer service training please visit http://www.peakperformancesolutions.com

Keyword tags: call center training, customer service training, call center solutions, customer service, business

Perhaps, by now, you already know that when you get injured at work or some other place not because of your own doing, you may be entitled to make a claim. Then again, even though you may be aware of this, you may not really know how to go about it.

Making a claim can in fact be a tedious and often frustrating experience if you are going to do everything on your own. There are a lot of technicalities that you need to go through, and not being legally minded or well versed in legal terminology, understanding these things can be very difficult. So if you want to go easy on yourself and increase your chances of receiving the maximum amount of compensation for your claim, the best thing to do is to hire the services of a specialist personal injury claim solicitor.

A personal injury claim solicitor is someone who has the skill and experience to help you through the process of filing for your personal injury claims. He can help you a lot in getting the maximum amount of compensation that you deserve, and making sure the process is and quick and easy as possible. It is even possible for you to get a 100% compensation guarantee, meaning all losses you incurred as a result of the accident can be covered. Whether or not you will be provided with a 100% compensation guarantee will usually depend on the type of accident claim you are intending to make. For example, it may not be possible to get a 100% compensation guarantee for clinical negligence claims, attack claims and accidents abroad.

The first time you meet your personal injury solicitor, he will most likely present to you a comprehensive list of all the situations and circumstances by which you can make a claim. Then he will assess your case and see if it has enough bearing in court. He can offer you legal advice too, so that you will be guided accordingly on the right thing to do.

It’s really a good thing to get the services of a personal injury solicitor. This way, you will not have to go through a lot of pressure and stress because a lot of the burden will be shouldered by your solicitor. What’s more is that you get a very good chance of recovering all your losses financially in order for you to move on with your life.

When choosing a personal injury solicitor, you should make sure you pick a solicitor that works on a no win no fee claim basis. This is certainly beneficial, as if for any reason your personal injury compensation claim is not successful, you will not have to pay the legal costs of your solicitor, which could be quite a lot of money. Most personal injury solicitors will be able to provide a no win no fee agreement, but you should make sure before you sign anything with the solicitor. It may depend on the type of accident you have had.

About the Author:
If you have had an accident which was not your fault, you could be entitled to make a personal injury compensation claim. Contact a personal injury solicitor for a free consultation. For further information, visit http://www.claims4negligence.co.uk

Keyword tags: personal injury solicitors,compensation,claim,accident,lawyer,no win no fee,car accident

UK is considered to be among countries that have the best road safety conditions. In spite of all this, there are still many accidents that occur on daily basis. The number of these accidents prevails further in winters when the weather and road conditions become somewhat unfavorable. Many safety measures are taken by people to reduce the probability of a possible accident. However, it is not completely possible to avoid accidents at all.

As far as road safety measures are concerned, roads in the UK are known to be among the best.

The number of accidents in UK that are of serious and fatal nature is over forty thousand on yearly basis. The number of people killed each year in the accidents is more than thirty five hundred. In order to avoid accidents at maximum, you should limit your driving to such conditions where there is no other solution besides driving. Other than that, you should also avoid driving in bad weather conditions.

In case, you unfortunately encounter an accident, it is very important to take the right steps in order to save yourself from any further trouble. It is important that you remain calm after an accident so as to save yourself from any further damages than the ones already being done. As soon as the accident occurs, you should determine the extent of injuries to the people involved along with the damage done to the vehicle.

Getting panicked never helps, so you should think rationally and not do anything that might cause further problems afterwards. One thing you should be careful about is not to discuss the accident with anyone else other than the police. This is important because sometimes in panic you don’t realise what you’re saying. In addition, you should not admit your fault or admit anything in front of anyone. The only people you should talk to about the accident are the police officers and your insurance agent.

Even if the accident is a minor one, you should report to the police so that there is a legal report, and presence of evidence that the accident actually occurred. You should not leave the accident scene until the police have arrived and the accident has been reported. You should call your insurance company as soon as the accident occurs. It is always good if the insurance agent arrives when the police are present. This is because sometimes the police can report the incident to the insurance agent in a better way than you would do in a state of panic. This ultimately saves the time it takes in processing your claim.

Obtaining the facts is also very important. You should note down the facts about the people involved in the accident especially with whom the accident occurred. The information that should be noted includes name, license number, address, contact number, and the number plate of the other car. You should also get the insurance company, and the vehicle identification of the other driver. It is always preferable to note down the important details of the accident as well, because sometimes you’re not able to narrate the accident accurately in a state of tension and panic.

About the Author:
Nicholas Tate is the owner of several personal injury websites which provide information on car accident claims and other types of road accident claims. For further information, visit http://www.claims4negligence.co.uk or for whiplash claims visit http://www.claims4whiplash.co.uk

Keyword tags: car accident claim,auto,accident,crash,compensation,injury,insurance,solicitor,personal injury

There is something that has constantly been around in the area of property and it is the mantra that says location is the most important thing you need to have when selling property. Knowing this is something of a default really when you are in the property line. Now this fixation on location when it comes to property does not mean that it has to be limited only to property. It has to be a wide free form philosophy that encompasses everything about business and this is where the concept of the business address comes in.

Thinking about this in terms of the location of the business means that where you place your office or the centre of your operations is really one of the most important things you need to consider before actually doing. It is your calling card, your bespoke identity and one that has the potential either to inspire trust in your potential consumer or leave them with doubts. Now, there is a way to represent this directly and make this statement much more clear.

For example, say you were approached by someone online, saying that he or she is a financial expert and would like to extend his or her services to you, to help to expand your investment portfolio and make things better for you day at the market. He looks polished, he has all the earmarks of a professional but as you receive his digital name card, you see that his email he is using is the sort of free email you can get online. Almost immediately, his credibility as a professional is compromised and you will find hard to trust him.

Everything that he has said before to you does not make sense anymore and you begin to question. Soon, that train of thought will lead you into a darker place and he or she will be associated with a scam. Once that happens, there is no going back really. Mental associations are one of the most powerful things in business and not only do they affect a purchasing decision, but they affect the overall trust and will stop the potential consumer from ever contacting you again. In this respects, you will why you need to have a business address that matters.

People who want to start their enterprise will soon realise that they only have a small budget for renting an office, and because they need to have some sort of physical location, they will be settling for some location on the outskirts of town, sometimes it is a neighbourhood of bad repute and when he tries to market himself, he realises too late the error of his ways and how important a business address is. When there is no way that you can afford a swanky new office in the centre of town, then you need to be able to understand that virtual offices with good addresses in the heart of the business district will give you those benefits and more.

About the Author:
Cut your business rental costs and use a a virtual office at http://www.virtualofficespace.com.sg Visit http://www.virtualofficespace.com.sg/desk-rental/ to rent desk space.

Keyword tags: business address,location of the business,renting an office,virtual offices,business district