rcll, Author at Riverside County Law Library

The Price of Health

Written on October 7, 2022.

Medical debt continues to weigh down the futures of Americans even as new laws are passed. With the recent announcement of President Joe Biden forgiving up to $20,000 of student debt for eligible people, I was reminded of another form of debt that weighs down on Americans: medical debt. TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian announced they began removing cleared medical debts beginning back on July 1, 2022. Dealing with medical bills being sent to collections and current medical bills lingering over...

A Labor of a Day

Written on September 2, 2022.

Labor Day weekend is upon us. After… well… laboring away for a while without a (state-sanction) 3-day weekend, it’s time to finally kickback and unwind! The typical Sunday dread that accompanies that gradual realization of a return to work the following day is postponed to Monday. A reward for our hard work during the year? Or the result of years of struggle carried out by workers just like us in the late 19th century? One might be inclined to think that there is a reason for the specificity in...

a room full of people sitting at desks with computers

Inland Empire Businesses Are Starting To Hire Again; ICLS Offers Free Employment Law Guidance To Small Business Owners.

Written on July 1, 2022.

While COVID continues to take a toll on Southern California, with substantial amount of the economic impact on small businesses, recent studies suggest that businesses are starting to recover. And since nearly 85% of all businesses in the Inland Empire are considered small or very small,[1] this recovery has been critical to our local economy. How is the recovery going? According to a Spring 2022 Inland Empire Business Activity Index, the Inland Empire has outperformed many regions in California...

3 pairs of 2 golden/copper like bullets, 2 pairs on their sides and one pair upright on a reflective surface

Gun Laws in the United States

Written on June 3, 2022.

With the United States surpassing 200 mass shootings[1] in this year alone, the conversations around gun restrictions and regulations are hitting a fever pitch. Do you know laws the United States has regarding gun ownership? Does the United States Constitution defend the right to own guns? The Second Amendment, the right to bear arms, is one of the most well-known and quoted amendments to the United States Constitution, what have gun laws looked like throughout America’s history? In this blog,...

library shelving featuring rows of books

Challenged Books and the Ambiguity of Freedom of Choice

Written on April 1, 2022.

You may have heard about book challenges, particularly in school libraries, recently. The debate to censor or restrict materials can be a dividing and contentious topic, calling into question the boundaries of freedom of speech and the right to access information. Amidst this debate, the ABA’s National Law Day Theme, “Toward a More Perfect Union: The Constitution in Times of Change” invites us into discourse in what the constitution, and the first amendment, mean to us. This blog intends to give...

official program of the 1913 women's suffrage march featuring a woman in purple and gold robes riding a white horse and blaring a trumpet. two women follow behind her on foot

Among the First

Written on March 29, 2022.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Judy Sheindlin, better known as Judge Judy, and Kamala Harris are household names, and there are so many trailblazers in the law field, like Margaret Brent, Arabella Mansfield, Charlotte E. Ray, Clara Foltz, Lyda Conley, Ada Kepley, Myra Bradwell, Belva Lockwood, and Florence E. Allen. There are so many amazing women that it is difficult to decide who to highlight. While many lists will focus on the “first”, we are going to learn about women who were not the first in some...

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My time at the SCALL Institute

Written on March 8, 2022.

My first in-person conference post-pandemic was a welcome return to normal rhythms. The Southern California Association of Law Libraries (SCALL) hosted its 50th Institute this year and it was memorable. Traveling to Palm Springs and soaking up that California “winter” sun while discussing the history of legal research was the perfect way to start off my first in-person conference of the year. Other highlights included reconnecting with colleagues and meeting some for the first-time face to face. The...

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Covid-19 policies and implications for Small Businesses

Written on March 4, 2022.

New Government Policies Around COVID-19 Could Result In Further Legal Implications For Small Businesses Over the past two years, we have seen a wide range of evolving compliance and regulatory policies relating to COVID-19, which have impacted the operations of small businesses in the Inland Empire (and throughout the country). And change is on the horizon again. A few weeks ago, Governor Newsom announced that California is transitioning to an “endemic phase” of COVID-19 management, reflecting...

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Should “Auld” laws be forgot?

Written on January 21, 2022.

Now that we’ve rung in the New Year, we can turn our attention to laws that went into effect starting January 1, 2022. In this blog, we’ll cover a few of the laws that go into effect this year by providing a brief description and a link to the law in the California Legislature. The California Legislature provides the text of the bill, votes, history and analysis. First, we’ll look at SB 572, on enforcement liens. This bill will be added to the Labor Code. It states “this bill authorizes the Labor...

Author: rcll