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© 2010 Amada Law Office.
Amada Law Office
Because understanding the law is important to you
LAW & AUTHOR SM
A Service of Amada Law Office
Get the Real Law for Your Screenplay, Stage Play,
Teleplay, Novel, or Other Work of Fiction.
LAW & AUTHOR SM is a service specifically
designed by attorney/author Rich Amada for
writers who need to ask a lawyer how the law
would apply to the plots in their stories.
Believe it or not, the law doesn’t always work exactly as it’s portrayed in movies and TV. Kooky courtroom antics and
gonzo cop capers may be entertaining, but they’re not the way things actually go in the real world. And your attempts to be
“true-to-life” in your screenplay, novel, or other creative writing could fall flat if you don’t know how the law would work in
the story you’ve created.
For example, are you aware that lawyers in the courtroom have two very different ways they’re allowed to question witnesses, depending on whether the lawyer has called that witnesses to the stand or is cross-examining the other side’s witness? Do you know what constitutes a proper objection in court? Do you know how to identify forbidden “hearsay evidence” and what the exceptions to the hearsay rule are?
And what about the rules that govern law enforcement officers? Sure, most people know the so-called Miranda Rule (“You have the right to remain silent, etc.”). But do you know the difference between probable cause and reasonable suspicion and how they affect what an officer can do in the field? Are you aware of what the Fourth Amendment means by unreasonable search or seizure and the rules for how evidence can be gathered legally?
These examples are just a tiny fraction of the questions that could present themselves to an author who is writing stories about criminal or civil actions taking place within our legal system. And it should also be noted that laws can differ significantly depending on where the story is supposed to take place or when it’s supposed to have happened.
LAW & AUTHOR SM is a service that gives a writer the opportunity to communicate directly with a lawyer and ask how the law would apply to the characters and situations the author is writing about. AMADA LAW OFFICE can review your questions about legal issues, research the appropriate law, and provide you with the answers you need to write a plausibly accurate story.
Fees for this service are based on the complexity of the questions posed and the amount of legal research that would be required to answer them. All fees must be agreed to and paid in advance before AMADA LAW OFFICE will agree to and undertake a LAW & AUTHOR SM project.
To submit a question to LAW & AUTHOR SM, click SUBMIT A QUESTION below. AMADA LAW OFFICE will contact you by e-mail to let you know if it can help answer the question and what the fee for that help would be. (It costs you nothing to ask.)
For example, are you aware that lawyers in the courtroom have two very different ways they’re allowed to question witnesses, depending on whether the lawyer has called that witnesses to the stand or is cross-examining the other side’s witness? Do you know what constitutes a proper objection in court? Do you know how to identify forbidden “hearsay evidence” and what the exceptions to the hearsay rule are?
And what about the rules that govern law enforcement officers? Sure, most people know the so-called Miranda Rule (“You have the right to remain silent, etc.”). But do you know the difference between probable cause and reasonable suspicion and how they affect what an officer can do in the field? Are you aware of what the Fourth Amendment means by unreasonable search or seizure and the rules for how evidence can be gathered legally?
These examples are just a tiny fraction of the questions that could present themselves to an author who is writing stories about criminal or civil actions taking place within our legal system. And it should also be noted that laws can differ significantly depending on where the story is supposed to take place or when it’s supposed to have happened.
LAW & AUTHOR SM is a service that gives a writer the opportunity to communicate directly with a lawyer and ask how the law would apply to the characters and situations the author is writing about. AMADA LAW OFFICE can review your questions about legal issues, research the appropriate law, and provide you with the answers you need to write a plausibly accurate story.
Fees for this service are based on the complexity of the questions posed and the amount of legal research that would be required to answer them. All fees must be agreed to and paid in advance before AMADA LAW OFFICE will agree to and undertake a LAW & AUTHOR SM project.
To submit a question to LAW & AUTHOR SM, click SUBMIT A QUESTION below. AMADA LAW OFFICE will contact you by e-mail to let you know if it can help answer the question and what the fee for that help would be. (It costs you nothing to ask.)