Legal Advice Blog: Legal Advice, Case Insights, & Local Law Information

In this day and age, with all the cell phones, tablets and computers – you’d think we could be more organized. But in reality, staying on top of the endless meetings and practices has seemingly become a lot harder. Is it because we’ve got more ways to keep in touch now more than we did 30 years ago? Here are a few ways to try to be more productive in your personal and professional life to crush your goals: 1) Remove distractions. They say for every distraction you have while working, it takes at least 20 minutes to get back on track. 2) Take a break.  For every 20 minutes you spend looking at a computer screen or tablet, look at something at least 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. This will refresh your eyes and give them a break, something we rarely ever do! 3) Manage your daily goals.  3-5 daily goals sound reasonable for most people – making too long of a to-do list can let the important goals slip away from you. 4) Set a timer for each goal.  Once you’ve got your goals listed out, set a timer for each of them. If you focus on one for too long, you’ll suck the energy out of yourself and will lose the desire to focus on the others. 5) Be realistic.  Rome wasn’t built in a day – set realistic goals and expectations for yourself and the more realistic you are, the easier it will be!

Those of you who regularly follow the Bordas Blogs will remember that in my free time, I work as a basketball official in the OVAC. A few times each year, I try to write a blog entry that gives local hoops fans some insight into the most misunderstood rules of the game. Today, I decided to go a different route. After 25 years of officiating basketball, one thing that never ceases to amaze me is how little players (and some coaches) understand about how to relate to an official. I mean, think about this for a moment. There are three officials on the floor at each game, and those three officials can have a profound effect on the game. Every game has a handful of what we officials call bang-bang plays, where the call can go either way. If I am a player, I want to do everything in my power to make sure those plays go my way more often than not. With that in mind, here are some suggestions for dealing with the officials in your next game. Introduce yourself to us.  If you are one of the team captains, we are going to have the chance to chat with you briefly in the captains’ conference that happens a few minutes before the game starts. If you aren’t a captain, approach at least one of us during pre-game warm-ups. Shake our hand, look us in the eye and introduce yourself.  That sort of thing rarely happens, and it’s something we will remember. Show us that you take sportsmanship seriously.  In today’s game, it seems like players are only interested in showing the other team how tough they are. We have stare downs, we have primal screams after a nice block or dunk, we have look at me stares or gestures at the opposing bench or crowd. All of those say one thing to officials:  troublemaker. A nice change of pace would be to show us that while you are a fierce competitor, you also respect the opposition and the game.  Offer your hand to an opponent who has fallen down. Don’t engage in trash talk. Be the guy who calms down a teammate who is getting out of hand. Officials notice these sorts of things, and they make a big impression. Get us the ball. This one seems really simple, but you would be amazed at how rarely it happens. There are many times during a game when play is stopped and the ball is bouncing away from everyone. Someone is going to have to chase after it and get it to the officials so the game can resume. Players should remember that the officials are older than they are (sometimes a LOT older), and we appreciate anything that gives us a chance to conserve some energy. Go get the ball for us. Again, it’s a small gesture, but it’s one we will remember. Don’t try to show us up.  Basketball officiating is hard, and officials aren’t perfect.  Despite our best efforts, there are calls that are going to be missed. It’s the reality of the game. Don’t make things worse for us by standing there with your arms raised straight up after a foul is called against you, or running away from the play, jumping up and down in a display of I can’t believe you just called that. Even if such actions don’t draw a technical foul, they will leave a lasting impression on the officials, and it won’t be a good one. Don’t whine or gripe or complain.  Just talk to us. If you are asking your mother if you can have the car on Friday night, do you approach her with attitude and say something like a re you ever going to let me drive the damn car? Or do you approach respectfully and say, Mom, could I please have the car this Friday? One of those approaches is doomed to failure from the start. A player who comes to me and says, sir, could you watch #23 pushing me on rebounds is going to have a much better chance at success than the kid who says are you guys ever going to get 23 off my back? I could give countless more examples here, but I think you all get the idea. Players need to make a concerted effort to treat officials with courtesy and respect, and to demonstrate class and sportsmanship on the floor. Doing so will go a long way toward establishing a successful relationship with game officials. Now, if we could just talk to the parents in the stands . . .

Mid-winter is such a bleak time of year – snow, ice, shoveling, salty (and messy!) floors, biting cold, dry skin – and it seems like it will never end. But thanks to God’s faithfulness, spring is a certainty. Now is the time for planning and preparing for that blessed springtime! Brush off that dusty treadmill, begin designs for your flower garden and start preparations for that much anticipated summer vacation! Eventually the ground will soften, the cinders will be swept off the roads and the trees and flowers will begin to bud. Get a head start on spring cleaning – go through your closets and dressers to clear out clothes you don’t need/wear. Tackle the basement or garage junk while you’re at it. Once the snow melts, you can even start clearing the yard of leaves, branches and dead plants. Time to get off the couch and think spring! It’ll be here before you know it.

While most people expect flowers and gifts for Valentine’s Day, here are some ideas that don’t have to come with a hefty price tag. Do something outdoors (if the weather permits) – a walk in the park with some hot cocoa, ice skating or a day on the slopes are a few things that come to mind. Get out in the air out there! Make dinner at home – what is your favorite meal to share? Whip it up! Head to the grocery store together, grab a bottle of wine and your favorite fixings and go to town. Then maybe you can catch a new series on Netflix after. Recreate your first date – no matter where it was, be it a loud college bar or on a beach, going somewhere to toast the day you met on the most romantic day of the year sounds like the perfect Valentine’s Day tradition to us. Happy Valentine’s Day from us to you!

The 2018 Winter Games have kicked off in PyeongChang, South Korea. They’ll run until Sunday, February 25. The Olympics date back centuries into Greek history but the first official Olympic games that we know of was on April 6, 1896. The International Olympic Committee met for the first time in Paris in June 1894 and chose Greece as the site of the inaugural modern Olympiad. To learn more about the inaugural events dating back to the 5 th century B.C., click here. They were originally a one-day event, and then got extended to three and then to five! Now they last about 16 days in total. What are your favorite sports to watch? To view the full schedule or for scores and updates, visit the official Olympics page.

Everyone loves pizza and today we get to love it even more! Pizza comes in many different variations and whether it be deep dish, thin crust or Chicago-style – we love them all! Here are a few quick facts about pizza pies: Pepperoni is the most popular pizza at 36 percent of all pies ordered. Over 3 billion pizzas are sold in the U.S. each year. Add another 1 billion on frozen pizzas. 17 percent of all U.S. restaurants are pizzerias. Antica Pizzeria, the first pizzeria, opened in Naples, Italy, in 1738. Gennaro Lombardi, the first pizzeria in the United States, opened in 1895 in New York City. Americans consume on average 23 pounds of pizza per person each year. It’s highly likely that your favorite restaurants are doing some discounting today, so make sure you take the family out to dinner tonight to celebrate! That’s all we’ve got – you can follow the hashtag on social media: #NationalPizzaDay

This month is generally thought of as the month of love, but the American Heart Association urges you to think about your heart in a different way – a healthy one! The first American Heart Month took place in 1964 after it was proclaimed a federally designated event by President Lyndon B. Johnson. At the time of its proclamation, more than half the deaths in the U.S. were caused by cardiovascular disease. Chances are, we all know someone affected by heart disease and stroke, because about 2,300 Americans die of cardiovascular disease each day – an average of 1 death every 38 seconds! That is an astonishing number – so what are the benefits of getting more active? Physical activity can help you: lower your blood pressure boost your levels of good cholesterol improve blood flow (circulation) keep your weight under control prevent bone loss that can lead to osteoporosis So, get out there and take care of your heart! After all, it does more work than ANY other muscle in the body by pumping 2,000 gallons of blood per day – it deserves some TLC.

Most people are saddened by the loss of a police officer, but when it’s a K-9 officer the emotions are so different. These four-legged officers go first to clear the way for their two-legged partners and put themselves in danger for them and us and never once stop to think about themselves. Why is that?  Dogs are protectors of humans. They love us unconditionally and more than likely will befriend most humans until they are shown we can’t be trusted and therefore, it is forever ingrained in the dog that humans are the enemy. Today’s K-9 units are not like they were back in the day when dogs were first being introduced to police work. They are better trained and most of them live with their police officer partners and their families, and when they retire, they may live out the rest of their days with the families that have become so dear to their K-9 heart. The K-9 teams do more than just ride and walk our streets in the line of duty. They are bomb sniffing, drug smuggling detectors and so much more keeping us all safe. K-9 breeds have changed, too – they are no longer just the standard German Shepherd that they had back in the day. Mixed breeds and dogs of all sizes are now used to do so many wonderful things. So, from my pups Barley, Guinness & myself we thank you for your service for putting yourselves in harm’s way for all of us each day. Bark on Bordas dog nation, bark on!

Just recently, my parents took me to one of their favorite getaways. There is a quaint little town hidden at the tip top of the Buckeye state. This place is called Geneva, Ohio, also referred to as Geneva on the Lake. This town is a hidden gem as it sits beside Lake Erie and provides magnificent views. The town has several different vineyards and each one is more beautiful than the last. Every vineyard we visited we ordered a flight of wine. Ordering a flight of wine is the best way to sample all the wines that the vineyard has to offer. The varieties of wine featured were vast. I typically go for a sweet wine like a Moscato or Riesling, but after experiencing so many flavors my favorites may be expanding. From this trip I discovered my new-found love of dry red wines. I tried something new called a mulled wine. It’s a wine that is served warm. I was skeptical about trying a warm wine. I’ve only had wine at room temperature or chilled, but oddly enough I found mulled wine delicious. Not only was the wine incredible but the food was amazing. It was slightly chilly on the weekend of our visit, but we braved the cold to stroll along the shore of Lake Erie and take in the sights. There were plenty of trails and bikes for rent to explore more of what the town has to offer. After visiting I was shocked how this place was kept hidden from me for so long! A return trip is absolutely in my future.

The groundhog hath spoken…we get six more lovely weeks of winter! Phil crawled out of his little hole on Friday and saw his shadow which means we’re going to freeze for six more weeks. Why do we trust a rodent to predict the weather? Well, this tradition began on Feb. 2, 1887 in Punxsutawney, Penn. Local newspaper editor Clymer Freas drummed up the idea and his band of followers went up to a site called Gobbler’s Knob, which is where the inaugural groundhog became the bearer of bad news when he turned around and saw his shadow. This being said, here are some tips for keeping warm over the next several weeks: Wear a hat: Studies show that you lose heat from anything that is exposed – even your head! Layer up: Keeping your core warm is the first step to staying warm. Keep your thermostat at 70 or above: This will help prevent your pipes from freezing or (even worse) bursting. Avoid alcoholic beverages when possible: Alcohol has a tendency to drop your core temperature. Indulge in foods that keep you warm: soup, spicy foods, hot coffee and tea to name a few! Stay warm, friends!

“What kind of lawyer are you?” is a question most attorneys get as soon as someone learns of his or her occupation. However, what I didn’t realize until after graduating law school is that many people don’t realize that there are different types of lawyers who specialize in various areas of law. Although there are attorneys who act as general practitioners and deal with a wide variety of law, just like doctors, many of us attorneys have areas of specific expertise in which we practice. To paint a better picture of the legal world, I’ve provided a breakdown of the many areas of law in which attorneys may work and specialize: General Criminal Law DUI Law Personal Injury Medical Malpractice Trucking Consumer Legal Malpractice Insurance Bankruptcy Workers Compensation Real Estate Oil and Gas Tax Wills and Trusts Contracts Traffic Law Labor and Employment Corporate Disability Intellectual Property Patent Trademark Copyright Immigration International Law Family Law Products Liability Life Sciences Civil Litigation Elder Law Civil Rights Land Use and Development Toxic Tort Entertainment Law Construction Law Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Hopefully this gives you some insight into the various areas of law that exist.

Once again, I find myself looking for things to celebrate. The “big” holiday is over and I am feeling like, “this can’t be it, there’s gotta be more,” so I went looking for more reasons to celebrate, and boy did I find some good ones! Did you know Feb. 2 shares Groundhog Day with Bubble Gum Day? Feb. 3 is Eat Ice Cream for Breakfast Day. It gets better. Feb. 6 is National Chopsticks Day along with Lame Duck Day…really? And, of course, the big one - National Pizza Day on the 9 th along with Toothache Day (because you ate too much ice cream for breakfast and now, too much pizza). Valentine’s Day shares the 14 th with Ferris Wheel Day. One of my favorites comes along on the 16 th - Do a Grouch a Favor Day…who knew?  President’s Day shares the 19 th with National Chocolate Mint Day and Cherry Pie Day follows on the 20 th. Not to leave anyone out, National Margarita Day is on the 22 nd along with Walking the Dog Day, (better save the Margarita for after walking the dog). The 24 th shares two more good ones - National Tortilla Chip Day and Open that Bottle Night!  And finally, bringing up the rear, is No Brainer Day on the 27 th and Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday shares the 28 th with National Tooth Fairy Day, (because you lost your teeth from the ice cream and pizza!!) There is something for everyone to celebrate in February!  Enjoy!!