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Settling and valuing intellectual property assets: Things you can “learn” from celebrity couples

A house, a car, and cash are some of the assets that never escape the scrutiny of divorcing spouses and family law attorneys. It seems easy to divide them, but dividing and settling them in case of a divorce is an exact science.

On the other hand, settling intangible properties — patents, trademarks, copyrights, royalties, and the like — is something else entirely.

What the Oscar-winning film Boyhood got right about divorce

Boyhood is a remarkable, moving, and very long film about divorce. Children of divorce can relate to it, and divorcees think it’s made especially for them. It’s like a documentary about a broken family, but with incredibly good-looking actors.

We may not be giving legal advice in these pages, but we thought we’d give you some tips as to what movies get things right about divorce, child custody, child support payments, and the like.

From retail therapy to physical therapy: Slip-and-fall lawsuits against big-box stores

Many consider grocery shopping therapeutic. In fact, there are studies that prove that “retail therapy” is more than just a fun catchphrase about burning cash on shopping sprees. Really, who needs a shrink when you can stroll along the biscuit and ice cream aisles in your neighborhood Target?

As with all forms of therapy, getting injured is not something one anticipates while “undergoing therapy.

Divorcing in Washington state? Here are some terms you need to learn

Divorce is a fact of modern life. It’s like birthdays but without the cake and the song.

In a divorce, spouses will be exchanging words far removed from the poetic language they used during their nuptials. Promises “to love and to cherish” and “to honor and sustain” are traded in for “marital dissolution,” “distribution of assets,” and “child support.

Vets behaving badly: Dogs that didn’t stand a chance against erring pet doctors

Animal cruelty — we abhor it. We can’t even stand the sight of animal death scenes in movies. However, we rein in our adoration for fur babies when we’re handling personal injury lawsuits involving dog bites for our clients in Renton.

The state of Washington is a “strict liability state,” which means owners are liable for their dogs’ bites whether or not they know that their dogs are dangerous prior to the biting incident.