"Royalties" are monies earned from songs and/or sound recordings from various sources. Subject to certain exceptions, US copyright law confers the songwriters the exclusive right to a limited period to exploit copyrights by transferring, lending, or even selling a portion or whole of their exclusive copyrights. In return for these licenses, grants, assignments, and/or sales, the copyright owner receives monetary compensation called "royalties"

A felony will depend on the potential nature of punishment. If a law provides for imprisonment for longer than a year, the crime is usually considered a felony.

Employment law or labor law concerns the legal relationship between employers and employees, which arise out of an employment contract. Labor law regulates the entire relationship between employer and employee including the initial hiring process, job duties, wages, promotions, benefits, employment reviews, and termination of the employment relationship. It also includes litigation on the basis of unfair labor practices and discrimination.

Marriage is generally defined as a civil contract between a man and woman to become husband and wife. Human civilizations throughout history have recognized marriage as a dignified and sacramental institution deep rooted in the social fabric.

A tort is a private or civil wrong or injury (other than breach of contract) for which a court of law may provide a remedy through a lawsuit for damages (compensation). When a person violates his/her duty to others created under general (or statutory) law, a tort has been committed.

The term “estate” consists of all the property a person owns or controls, whether in one’s sole name, held in a partnership, in a joint ownership arrangement, or through a trust, and all other monies that would be generated on the person's death, such as through life insurance. It includes real property and things attached to it like houses, buildings, etc, all personal property including automobiles, bank accounts, stocks and bonds, etc, and all businesses and business interests, pension benefits, all debts and obligations owed to others, and the powers of appointment i.e. the right to direct who gets someone else's property.

People place children up for adoption for a variety of reasons including finances, age, stability, emotional issues, or a desire to give their child opportunities that they are currently unable to provide.

The question of child custody comes up in the event of divorce. Parents who are planning to divorce would come to an agreement as to the question of custody of child/children i.e. whether the child will primarily live with them or, if not, what alternate arrangements could be made, such as visitation rights or shared parenting. Often the separating parents frame for themselves an arrangement specifying child custody rights with the help of their attorneys. If they are unable to reach a decision, the court may intervene and specify in the divorce decree with whom the divorcing couple’s children will live, keeping in mind the child’s best interests.

Employment contracts contain the standard components like employee's start date, salary, and benefits. In addition to these, an employment contract may include confidentiality agreement, non-competition agreement, exclusive employment termination, arbitration, and choice of law in the event of a dispute, etc.

A divorce in common parlance refers to a legal dissolution of marriage leaving both parties free to remarry.

When a dog injures a person, whether by biting a victim, knocking a victim down, or hurting the victim in another way, the burden of the loss should be on the shoulder of the owner of the dog, not the victim. Two-thirds of American states follow this rule. The legal rights of a dog bite victim depend on where the attack happened, i.e. the city, county and state. The laws vary from city to city, county to county, and state to state. In every state, a dog owner is legally liable for bites to people inflicted viciously by a dog that previously bit a person viciously. In almost every state, a victim can recover compensation from (a) a person whose negligence caused the attack, and (b) a person who violated a leash law, a law prohibiting dogs from "running at large," a trespass law applicable to dogs, and other dog safety laws. In most states, a victim can recover compensation even for the first bite by a dog, whether or not the owner was negligent. People who are remotely connected with the dog are also made liable; for example, a property owner might be liable if he/she knows that a tenant keeps a dog that bites people, if the landlord has the legal power to get rid of the tenant.

It is unlawful for a person to operate a car, truck, motorcycle, or commercial vehicle if his/her ability to safely operate the vehicle is impaired by the effects of alcohol, illegal drugs etc or if he/she is intoxicated at a level above established DUI standards, such as blood-alcohol concentration (BAC). If a police officer suspects that the driver is intoxicated, he/she can conduct a field sobriety test on the driver and may ask for his or her consent to some form of chemical test. The law requires vehicle drivers to submit to some form of chemical test, such as breath, blood, or urine testing, if suspected of DUI. If the driver refuses to submit to such testing, penalties such as mandatory suspension of a driver's license may be imposed.

Employees and applicants for employment who suffer retaliation or discrimination because they engage in an activity protected by any law under the jurisdiction of the Labor Commissioner may file a complaint with the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE). The Commissioner will take appropriate action after an investigation and hearing. Adverse actions or retaliation include unlawful discharge, demotion, suspension, reduction in pay or hours, and refusal to hire or promote, etc.

Medical malpractice occurs because a doctor improperly treated a medical condition and this treatment or negligence is the cause of a new or worse injury to the patient. This is also known as medical negligence.

Nursing home malpractice is a term used to describe the intentional or unintentional harm inflicted on or the mistreatment of an elderly person, happening in an assisted living facility. Nursing home malpractice includes nursing home abuse, nursing home neglect, and nursing home injury.

Personal injury occurs when a person is wrongfully injured by the negligent or intentional conduct of a wrongdoer. Personal injury cases are legal disputes that arise when one person suffers harm from an accident or injury and someone else might be legally responsible for that harm.

Probate is the process by which legal title of property is transferred from the decedent's estate to his/her beneficiaries. The court will determine who will be the beneficiary depending upon whether the person dies with a will or with out a will.

Product liability refers to the liability of a manufacturer, seller, or supplier of a product for injuries caused by a defect in the design or manufacture of that product. Products liability law aims to protect consumers when products containing defects cause damage. Under this law, the manufacturers of the defective product are considered liable for any harm caused to consumers during their usage of the product.

Patent rights comprise of methods, designs, machines, ground -breaking inventions etc. U.S. law grants to patentees the right to exclude others from making, using, or selling their invention for a limited period. Human improvisation on an existing phenomenon or enhancing its utility qualifies for patent protection and only creations of the mind that are fresh, new and distinct are patented. As such, anything made out of human intellect is patentable, provided it conforms to the above requirements.

Estate planning means planning and managing one’s property, assets, insurances and investments before one becomes disabled or dies so that the property will be better distributed and managed in accordance with the wishes of the person. Probate also helps contingency planning for instance in health care treatment and minimizes potential taxes and fees. In this regard, Estate planning is quite comprehensive and is much more than just a simple will.

Workers’ compensation is a system that requires employers to pay lost wages, medical expenses, and certain other benefits to employees who are injured on the job. Workers' compensation is different from other types of torts in that it is not based on fault or negligence. The idea behind workers' compensation is not to right a wrong or punish negligence; rather, it is a way to protect employers from negligence lawsuits and injured workers from destitution.

Sexual assault generally refers to any crime in which the offender subjects the victim to sexual touching that is unwanted and offensive. These crimes can range from sexual groping to attempted rape.

Drug distribution or drug trafficking involves selling, transporting, and the illegal importing of unlawful controlled substances such as marijuana, methamphetamine, cocaine, LSD, club drugs, and heroin. Punishments vary according to drug type, amount, geographic area of distribution, and whether minors were sold to or targeted. Drug distribution/trafficking laws can implicate a single individual or a broad ring of people involved in organized illegal drug activity.

Murder is the act of killing another human being with "malice aforethought". Malice aforethought is defined to be the intent to kill or to inflict bodily injury, either express or implied. If a deadly weapon is used, intent to kill will necessarily be implied by a court of law. Murder can be characterized as first-degree and second degree.

White collar crimes typically refer to a type of crime committed by business people, entrepreneurs, public officials, and professionals through deception, as opposed to street crimes which tend to involve force and violence. Examples of white-collar crimes include embezzlement, bribery, extortion, larceny, fraud, bankruptcy, telemarketing, insurance, and mail fraud, securities and commodities law violations, environmental law violations, price fixing, racketeering, loan sharking, black market operations, obstruction of justice and perjury, and computer fraud.

Battery is the act of using force against another person which results in either bodily injury or offensive touching. It does not need to be intentional; force applied with criminal negligence is sufficient to be considered battery. In addition, the force does not have to be directly applied to the victim. For example, directing a dog to attack someone is considered battery.

Payments made from one spouse to the other during a separation or a divorce is generally known as spousal support or alimony. This can be in the form of rehabilitative support, i.e. payments made over a period of time to enable the supported spouse to obtain a career and become self-supporting.

Some couples, due to reasons of their own, decide to live together without marriage. Such relationships are often called live-in relationship or “living together” relations. The main ingredient in a live-in relation is the absence of marriage.

Pre-Marital agreements are binding legal contracts entered between two adults who intend to legally marry each other. Such agreements are also known as pre-nuptial agreements.

Domestic violence refers to physical harm inflicted on one member of a household or family or by another member of the same household or family and this usually happens between spouses.

A copyright offers special protection to the author of the copyrighted work with specific rights that the author can give or sell to others or keep for him/herself.

Trade secrets can cover ideas and know-how. A trade secret is a set of data or information that is generally not known in the industry, which provides the user with an edge over the competitors. The formula for Coca-Cola is an example.

Premises liability law is the body of law which makes the person who is in possession of land or premises responsible for certain injuries suffered by persons who are present on the premises. Premises liability holds owners and occupiers of property legally responsible for accidents and injuries that occur on that property.

A person who operates a vehicle is expected to exercise reasonable care. A failure to use reasonable care resulting in an accident is considered negligence. A person who negligently operates a vehicle may be required to pay for any damages, either to a person or property, caused by his or her negligence.

In the event of a person suffering from an incurable disease or involved in an accident and is unable to manage one’s own affairs, state law might require the person to have a conservator appointed by the court. The conservator is given the authority to make financial decisions and handle the injured/ incapacitated person’s financial affairs, subject to the supervision of the court.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the prominent anti-discrimination law, prohibits an employer with fifteen or more employees from refusing to hire, discipline, fire, deny training, fail to promote, pay less or demote, or harass an employee on the basis of race, national origin, gender, or religion. The federal Equal Pay Act requires any employer that is already subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act to provide equal pay to men and women who perform “equal work,” unless the difference in pay is caused by differences in seniority, merit or some other factor that is not based upon sex. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) prohibits discrimination against employees or applicants who are over the age of forty, by any employer with twenty or more employees. The Immigration Reform and Control Act bars any employer with more than three employees from discriminating against a U.S. citizen, or an “intended citizen”(such as one who may work legally but is not yet a citizen) on the basis of his or her national origin.

Independent contractors are people who earn their livelihoods from their own independent businesses instead of depending upon an employer to earn a living. They are sometimes called consultants, freelancers, or as being self-employed and even entrepreneurs and business owners. A written independent contractor agreement is used to establish independent contractor status.