Our friends and collaborators as Lone Star Crowdfunding, a new venture, placed a crowdfunding FAQ on their homepage to help potential investors in the state of Texas learn more about how regulation changes will effect their investment plans in 2015.

This concept is interesting and has grown in popularity in other states. Now the Lone Star State gets in on the action and the business lawyers behind Lone Star Crowdfunding realized they were spending hours a day answering questions from prospective investors. Hence, the FAQ.

This is a great read that clears up a lot of misconceptions about how new laws in 2015 will affect micro-investing. Soon, the site will become a full-on business portal.

Two more premium dot coms we purchased and plan to offer to local lawyers:

• www.harriscountydefenselawyers.com (this is ideal for criminal defense lawyers in the Houston area)
• www.familylawyerdentoncounty.com (this is ideal for family and divorce lawyers north of Dallas)

Both of these sites were fought for and won during a bidding war on Godaddy and we are proud to own them. If you are a local lawyer in Texas, these could be great additions to your domain portfolio as they are "exact match" and can serve a variety of needs.

Harris County is also huge and this would hit over 4 million people. While Denton County isn't as big, it is home to the University of North Texas and any college town is a good fit for these services. More updates to follow.

In a recent article from ABA Journal, a team of researchers set out to determine the average lawyer wage in various regions across the US. The results are interesting. Alaska and Hawaii actually had comparable salaries of around 100k per year.

The poorest fairing areas: The midwest and less populated areas of the country.

The big winners: Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, the Northeast and California.

San Jose, San Francisco and New York were the clear standouts at right around $200,000 a year. El Paso, Oxnard and Los Angeles also moved up the list this year.

The article also speculates that there might be an overabundance of lawyers produced in this country over the last few years.

Q: Who is at fault if a foundation repair company comes out to do a basic repair job (after a previous owner messed up the foundation, admittedly) and makes the job worse? Keep in mind that this is on a rental property I own.

A: This is a grey area. We spoke with the owner of Hercules Foundation Repair in Dallas and he provided some good tips on how to pick a quality company. First, look for referrals and references from previous customers. Any quality concrete company should have these upon request. Secondly, look for accreditations like being involved with the BBB, Angies List and other such organizations. Third, ask for a proof of insurance. Most quality home improvement companies will have no problem providing these documents.

Three new guest posts from local lawyers - thanks to the law firms involved for their help in answering basic legal questions:

Used Car Disclosure Laws
Cost of Obtaining a Homestead Exemption
What If a Free Prize Isn't Actually Free?
Unintentional Deception When Selling Boat
Should I Help a Friend Co-Sign?
Who Owns Dential Records?

More FAQs coming soon.

I am a U.S. citizen but I have noticed (and spoken with an immigration attorney here in NYC) about the fact that I am having trouble getting hired because my union won't hire anyone without an ID and green card. Is this legal from an immigration law standpoint? I am a fourth-generation American and I resent having to prove I am legal - what's the best course of action to take?

Answer: This is a common immigration legal question. Employers must screen all new employees as a way of determining if they are eligible for employment. They must ask the same questions and require the same forms and paperwork of everyone. There are no sanctions for employers who have in the past hired an undocumented employee but there may be further penalties for people hired more recently. Whether in NYC or anywhere in New York, all employees must be treated the same during the hiring process.

Dear My Hometown Lawyers,

My boss is now requiring that all employees carry plastic see-through bags as purses to work. Can this be legal? I do not like the idea of co-workers knowing the contents of my purse.

Answer: Under the law, employers generally may impose whatever dress-code restrictions they want on employees. There really isn't anything illegal about see-through purse requirements. While you and your co-workers may not agree with the methodology, it sounds like your boss is concerned with theft via employees. Although the law may give your employer the right to ask for see-through purses in the workplace, you also have the right to find employment elsewhere.

Q: How can I collect on small claims court cases I have won? I have filed the abstract of judgment, and it still seems there is no real power to collect on these rulings unless I find where the person in question banks and then file for garnishment of wages? Please help! -Jason ("marketing director"/photographer)

A: Unfortunately, it can be difficult to collect after a judgment is handed out. In Texas, for example, a good bit of personal property is exempt and thus, cannot be taken to satisfy a judgment. In many cases, however, the person you sued will end up paying. This is because most people tend to pay their debts vs. living with the consequences, and because getting more credit becomes difficult and expensive. 

If you are not paid, however, you can garnish money in a bank account if you know where the person in question has an account. If you ever gave a person a check, look on the back to see where it was deposited and work backwards from there. You can do a little detective work or hire a PI to assist you.

Also, although there is no wage garnishment in Texas, you can garnish money owed if the person is known to be self-employed. Remember, your judgment will also remain on his credit report until it is settled. This is typically enough to ensure you are taken care of.

No. Texas law states that a merchant, with the exception of a government agency, may not charge a customer more if the customer uses a debit card instead of cash. Of course, the law doesn't require that merchants take credit cards, but once they do they may not charge you more on average. I suggest you let the store manager know that he didn't have the right to charge you the extra 5%, and that if he doesn't refund it, you will take the store in question to court if needed. Charing this illegal extra amount on a card also violates a basic tenant of Deceptive Trade Practice Act, and you could be entitled to at least double the amount paid. You also may want to let the attorney general's office know if you notice this practice.

You cannot go to jail for failure to pay a court judgment. Under Texas law, a debtor has certain protections. If you own or are buying your home, if cannot be taken away to pay a judgment, unless the judgment is for taxes, the mortgage on the home, or for a home-improvement loan on the home. This is the homestead law.