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Welcome to the LAW FIRM OF DAYREL SEWELL, PLLC. Thank you for visiting the Blog section of this firm. We will be updating this page with information about the firm, recent legal updates, and other legal issues.
Takings by the government have long been a murky area. The Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution does not proffer a great deal of insight into how takings were to be effected. Recent case law adds some clarity to the murky sediment, but it remains a complex topic. The Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment exists to recompense private citizens in the event that government effects a taking of private property. It states, “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.” The intent behind this was to limit government in its task of maintaining public interest rather than empower it, but it also serves also to give the private citizen recourse when government (local, State or Federal) takes physical possession of land for public use. Over th Read More
Recently the Supreme Court decided the case South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., in which they addressed whether remote sellers of goods and services can be required to collect and remit sales taxes imposed by the consumer’s State.[1] According to S. 106, 2016 Leg. Assembly, 91st Sess. (S. D. 2016) [hereinafter “the Act”], remote sellers are required to collect and remit sales tax to the State in which the goods are sold.[2] Plaintiff, the State of South Dakota, filed of an injunction requiring respondents to register for licenses to collect and remit sales tax.[3] Respondents Wayfair, Overstock.com, Inc., and Newegg, online merchants selling goods such as furniture an Read More
Copyright Protection of Non-Utilitarian Designs under the Copyright Act of 1976 Designers in the high fashion industry face many obstacles in receiving intellectual property protection for the utilitarian aspects of their clothing. Congress has provided copyright protection only for original works of art, but not for industrial designs that embody utilitarian functions. See 17 U.S.C. 101. Copyright protection does not extend to utilitarian aspects of objects because it would open up a flood of litigation over exclusive monopoly rights that would “burden competition, raise prices, and also harm consumers.” See Read More
[caption id="attachment_823" align="aligncenter" width="946"] Rent Stabilization[/caption] New York’s first step towards rent regulation can be traced back to the 1920s.[1] The history of rent control in New York has been a battle between owners and tenants for quite some time. In general, rent controlled apartments must be in buildings of three or more units constructed on or before February 1, 1947 and tenants must have occupied their apartment since at least July 1, 1971. Read More
On June 4, 2018 the United States Supreme Court issued a decision in the controversial case, Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. The case concerned a baker, Mr. Jack Phillips, a devout Christian, who in 2012 declined to create a wedding cake for a same-sex wedding on the basis that doing so would require him to express himself artistically in a way that was inconsistent with his religious beliefs. At the time, gay marriage was not legally recognized in Colorado. However, the state had an anti-discrimination act regarding goods and services available to the public. See C.R.S. 24-34-601. The Commission determined that Mr. Phillips violated Read More
It was only a matter of time before cryptocurrency [1] pervaded the music industry. The proliferation and potential applications of blockchain seem to be the perfect fit for the challenges struggling musicians face. While musicians are the creators of their art, it’s the record labels that distribute the music who tend to own the songs. It is for this reason Paul McCartney has now been fighting for 40 years for the rights to The Beatles albums.[3] As technology evolves, some crafty music executives have been devising new ways for musicians to protect and sell their songs. [caption id="attachment_786" align="alignnone" width="840"] Read More
Background The idea behind the concept of Net Neutrality arose in the early 2000s, when, inter alia, the High Tech Broadband Coalition (“HTBC”) filed comments before the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”). At the time, the HTBC urged the FCC to “vigilantly monitor” the provision of internet services to consumers to ensure rights to access content of their choice. Today the matter has, to a great extent, become a political battle largely drawn Read More
One thing that many new business owners don’t realize, is that they also should make sure that they have the right legal assistance for their business. They are waiting until it is too late, or when they desperately need some assistance, before they are starting to look for legal help. Read More
In the rapidly changing world of Intellectual Property Law, street art protection is less commonly discussed than that of other innovative creations. Street art is somewhat ambiguous in its meaning. It is common to associate street art with the graffiti spray-painted tags on a building or subway. However, actual street art is something created with more depth. Legally, the distinction between permanent graffiti and art is permission. Street art becomes vandalism when that permission to publicly paint is not granted.[1] Because of the complexity of public art, the amount of protection warranted to street art is unclear. Graffiti law is not yet a legal practice; however, graffiti-related disputes have been stirring across the country. Read More
The term e-sports is short for electronic sports and has come to be associated with describing video games competitions. Much like traditional sports, there are amateur and professional scenes for the sports in question. There are also teams and contracts, leagues, and sponsorships. However, e-sports are very early in their lifespan and thus the infrastructure is not as well developed as traditional sports in many ways. Visas, for example, are routinely denied to competitors to go to events because they do not fit the traditional definition of an athlete or businessman. Specific contracts between players and teams are kept secret with unethical strategies being used. The basic terms of these contracts also are slanted heavily in favor of the o Read More
