We love Amazon Alexa, Google, Siri and all those listening devices. They are fun, great at home, but an absolute no around offices. Lawyers, and any other profession handling confidential or sensitive information, simply can't have them around.

In this episode of the Legal Tech Podcast, Attorney and privacy expert Daniel J. Siegel explains why those devices are simply not for use in an office.

Pennsylvanians should  purchase more than the minimum $5,000 medical coverage in their auto insurance policies for several important reasons:

1. When you buy auto insurance, you buy medical coverage to pay for your medical bills. Most people buy the minimum, yet if you are seriously hurt, or even just need a few tests, you may use up/exhaust your medical coverage quickly. Then, you have to pay the bills, typically from your private health insurance. Unlike auto policies, private health coverage has copays and deductibles that add up quickly. The more auto medical coverage you have, the less chance you have of ever having to use your private health insurance. 
2. In this podcast, attorney Daniel J. Siegel explains why he recommends that his clients purchase $100,000 in medical coverage. And $100,000 in medical coverage usually does not cost much more than the minimum coverage, but it will give you tremendous peace of mind.
3. Pennsylvania has a no-fault type of auto insurance system with limited medical coverage. This means that in the event of an accident, your medical expenses may not be fully covered. Increasing your medical coverage can help ensure that you have adequate financial protection for medical bills, rehabilitation, and other related expenses.
4. Medical expenses can be substantial, no matter how serious your injuries are. MRIs, CAT Scans, and other tests are expensive. Even the copays for physical therapy add up quickly. By purchasing more medical coverage, you can reduce the out-of-pocket costs you have to pay for hospital stays, surgeries, doctor visits, ongoing medical treatments, and therapy.
5. Accidents can happen unexpectedly, and having comprehensive medical coverage in your auto insurance policy provides peace of mind knowing that you and your loved ones will be taken care of in the event of an accident.

In summary, this podcast explains why purchasing more medical coverage in your auto insurance policy in Pennsylvania is a prudent choice to protect yourself and your loved ones from the potential financial hardships associated with auto accidents. It provides a safety net for covering medical expenses, especially in cases of severe injuries, and offers peace of mind while driving on the roads.

Listen to experienced automobile accident attorney Daniel J. Siegel explain the reasons why you should evaluate your auto insurance policy today. Or visit our Auto Insurance Buying Guide at danieljsiegel.com.

Oh my God, the Martians are invading the legal world. Have you heard? There is this new thing called "Artificial Intelligence," and lawyers apparently have it do all of their work, including filing court documents. Or so it seems. Talk about AI is everywhere.

At its core, this podcast is a plea for rationality and calmness. At another level, it points out that many lawyers and judges really don't understand artificial intelligence and are reacting to it in ways that are neither appropriate nor logical. The podcast focuses on an Order from a federal judge ordering every attorney to certify if they have used AI and, if so, to certify further that they have checked every citation in the filing.

Oops. The judge apparently doesn't know that AI has been around for many years and is used all the time, including by that mysterious website called Google. The judge apparently also doesn't know that the AI in the news is just a new version of the old AI, akin to Martian 2.0, the old, less intrusive version being AI/Martian 1.0.

Technology changes, and lawyers and judges often fear the changes. But ignoring the innovations will not help. Would anyone be happy if doctors continued to ignore MRIs because they weren't around a few years ago? Of course not.

Let's not overreact. Instead, take a few minutes to listen to Attorney Daniel J. Siegel of the Law Offices of Daniel J. Siegel, LLC and Integrated Technology Services, LLC. Dan is also Co-Chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Technology Committee and is a nationally-known speaker and author on technology, ethics, law practice, and more. Dan offers a  calmer, more rational look at the latest technology to scare the legal profession.

The constant mantra that injured workers in Pennsylvania must treat with a "company doctor" for 90 days, or they won't receive their workers' compensation benefits, is a myth, albeit one that many attorneys who represent injured workers erroneously accept as gospel. This podcast, by Pennsylvania workers' compensation attorney Daniel J. Siegel, shreds the myth that injured workers are required to treat with a designated physician, often called the company doctor.

Attorney Daniel J. Siegel explains why, under  Section 306(f.1)(1)(i) of the Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Act, injured workers, often called claimants, rarely, if ever, are required to go to comp clinics or company doctors. The law says that before any injured worker must treat with any employer-designated medical provider, the employer must "provide a clearly written notification" of the employee's rights and duties to the employee, and ... obtain a "written acknowledgment" by the employee that they have been advised of the requirement. Verbal notice alone is inadequate. In fact, the Bureau of Workers' Compensation in Pennsylvania created its own form, "Notice: Medical Treatment for Your Work Injury or Occupational Illness," to dispel the myth.

In reality, most employers do not comply with this section of the Act; most injured workers do not have to treat with the so-called company doctor following a work injury. Despite this, many employers and insurance companies routinely tell injured employees they must go to a particular doctor or clinic, or the insurance company will not pay for their medical care. These statements are actually misrepresentations of the Workers' Compensation Act, which never gives an employer or insurance company the right to (1) mandate that an injured worker treat with only one provider or (2) "pre-deny" payment for care under most circumstances. Sadly, based upon the "90-Day Rule," many doctors refuse to treat injured workers for 90 days after their injuries because they have heard or been told that they will not be paid for any care they provide because of the "90-Day Rule."

This podcast tells you the truth about the law from an attorney with a nearly 40-year track record of representing injured workers and winning case after case in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. These cases have protected the rights of injured workers. Dan's firm, the Law Offices of Daniel J. Siegel, LLC, knows the law and treats every client personally; there is no bureaucracy, and no TV ads or billboards to pay for, just old-fashioned one-on-one lawyering.
 

One of the great mistakes people make is not having a Will, because they assume their spouse will get everything anyway. If you don't have a Will and live in Pennsylvania, you are wrong. If you don't have a Will, and you have kids, your spouse doesn't get everything, and your kids may end up inheriting a lot of your estate. But if you draft a Will, then you don't have to worry because you can leave everything to your spouse and be comfortable that your wishes will be honored.

On the other hand, if you draft a Will and live in Pennsylvania, you can't leave nothing to your spouse. That's right - you can't disinherit your spouse, even if you have been separated for decades. A spouse in Pennsylvania, when there is no divorce, can inherit part of the other spouse's estate, no matter how you don't want that to happen.

In this podcast, Estate Planning Attorney Daniel J. Siegel of the Pennsylvania Law Offices of Daniel J. Siegel, LLC explains that proper estate planning is crucial to being sure that when you die, the people whom you want to receive your assets actually do.  Attorney Siegel and his firm have been drafting Wills, Powers of Attorney, Living Wills, Healthcare Directives and other estate planning documents for individuals, couples, non-traditional couples and others for decades. Listen to Dan's advice on this short, but informative podcast.

If you eat food past its expiration date and it has spoiled, you could suffer a fever, chills, stomach cramps, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. Or if it is really bad, you could contract E.coli, listeria, or salmonella. Now, imagine if your computer contracted the electronic versions of these conditions and got sick.

Computer software also has “use by” dates, commonly known as the end-of-life  (EOL) date. These are dates after which a software developer, such as Microsoft or Apple, no longer supports its products. And just like their edible counterparts, using expired software could make your computer sick.

In this episode, attorney and technologist Daniel J. Siegel discusses the importance of not using EOL software and outdated hardware, and why it is important to update your software both for efficiency and for cybersecurity protection.

The Legal Tech Podcast is sponsored by Integrated Technology Services, LLC and the Law Offices of Daniel J. Siegel, LLC.

Social Security Disability Benefits Attorney Christa Frank High of the Law Offices of Daniel J. Siegel, LLC discusses the basics of applying for Social Security Disability Benefits. She addresses the requirements for Social Security Disability (SSD) as well as Supplemental Security Income (SSI). For both SSD and SSI, you must show the Social Security Administration that you are disabled. This means that you have a physical or mental condition(s) that causes severe limitations so you cannot work, and your condition(s) will either last for more than one year or will cause death. For Social Security Disability, you also must show that you are insured, which means that you have contributed enough to your Social Security account through your prior work. For Supplemental Security Income, you must show that you have limited resources and income.

Attorney High also explains specifically how to apply for Social Security Disability or Supplemental Security Income benefits--by first submitting the Application. If that is denied, then you apply for Reconsideration. If that is denied, then you request a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge. The process can take up to two years, but having an attorney to guide you through the process and represent you at the hearing increases your chances of getting benefits.

Lawyers, paralegals, legal support staff, and other businesses that must maintain the confidentiality of client and other information must be careful not to allow devices such as Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple's Siri to listen to and record conversations with this type of sensitive information. This podcast focuses on a recent episode of NCIS in which Forensic Scientist Kasie Hines is speaking to and getting information from an Alexa in her criminal investigatory lab.

What Kasie did cannot possibly be appropriate, and probably violates lots of rules and regulations. If a lawyer did that, however, he or she could be subject to discipline for violating the Rules of Professional Conduct. In other words, What were the NCIS writers thinking when they wrote those scenes? Or were they merely doing a product placement?

Listen to Attorney and Technologist Daniel J. Siegel as he discusses the ethical implications of NCIS in the latest episode of The Legal Tech Podcast, sponsored by the Law Offices of Daniel J. Siegel, LLC and Integrated Technology Services, LLC.