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JUNE 2018
I LOVE BEING A DAD MY KIDS, MY HEART
Ever since Finn was born four years ago, I’ve had the pleasure of being able to celebrate Father’s Day as a dad, and it’s great. I love being a dad so much. In the same way Nicole did, little Finn and Harlow have opened my eyes to a different part of the world. With them, I have reached of place of love in my heart that I didn’t even know was there. I didn’t know I could love someone so much until my children came into my life. Don’t get me wrong: being a parent is simultaneously the best and most
As a dad, one of the most important things I can do for my kids is instill in them the strength to be who they are.
to teach our kids to be whoever they are. We want to help them each learn and become strong enough to be that person. I hope Finn can do Finn and Harlow can do Harlow. Whomever those future versions
impossible thing I’ve ever done — and I went to law school! At the end of every day, after we’ve put the kids to bed, Nicole and I just look at each other like, “What just happened?” Finn and Harlow are still so little, and it can be difficult to see the world through their eyes and deal with all the heightened emotions. But it’s always amazing. I wouldn’t understand everything I know about life if it weren’t for Nicole and these little lunatics. It’s crazy at times, but they’re so pure and beautiful. Finn and Harlow are learning and growing so much every day. To them, everything is so new and exciting, and it’s fun to be showing them more and more about the world. I love getting my kids out of bed in the morning. Nicole and I say they come out hot. They wake up energized, and from the moment they open their eyes, Finn and Harlow are immediately telling stories and ready to party. It makes the mornings super fun, though I imagine things will be a little different when they’re teenagers! That future seems so far away, but my kids are growing fast, and the future will be here before I know it. As a dad, one of the most important things I can do for my kids is instill in them the strength to be who they are. That can be challenging as a parent, because you have to be careful not to impose on them your own ideas of what your kids should be like. But Nicole and I work really hard
of themselves may be, I know I’m going to love them. There’s something really special about being a dad. It’s a big challenge and a complicated, messy job, but it’s also really simple. They’re my kids, and my world isn’t complete without them.
–Case Barnett
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3 KEYS TO MAKING CORE VALUES COUNT Establish the Guiding Heart of Your Business
A cohesive vision for the future is central to any thriving company; it’s the road map by which you and your team steer the business to success. But a set of lofty goals isn’t quite enough to motivate and unify an organization. It’s important to have an overarching aim for the coming years, but you also need to provide some guidance on how your business should conduct itself today. You need core values that encourage a certain spirit for your team and hold them to a high standard of excellence. To build a set of core values that’s unique and valuable to your business, you must first decide whose input you want during the process. This should be a panel of the key players in your business and employees skilled at providing new and powerful ideas. Ensure that each of the members of your think tank embodies the qualities you want to see throughout your organization. Next, get everyone in a room to start brainstorming. Set a date for a meeting and encourage everyone to come prepared with a list of values
they feel are the most important for your business. Ask your think tank which values are central to them as individuals and expand that to include values that are vital to your entire company. After you’ve got a healthy list of good ideas, combine and define them. Look for commonalities. It’s likely that many of them will orbit just a few key principles. After a bit of pruning and rewording, these principles become your core values. Once you’ve got your set of 5–10 main ideas, outline exactly what each of them means in a few sentences or a paragraph. You may want a skilled writer on board during this step to nail down a set of clear and compelling definitions. The process may be difficult, but once you’re done, you and your team will have a set of powerful, unifying core values. These will state your company’s purpose and drive your team to excellence. Core values may seem like a small consideration in the midst of day-to-day operations, but they can make an enormous difference.
CASE CLOSED! Simmons Bedding Company Pays $60K and Discontinues Dangerous Prod uct
At Case Barnett Law, we strive to only take cases that can truly make a difference in our clients’ lives and make our communities safer, better places. JANUARY • $2,000,000 elder abuse case • $1,000,000 auto v. commercial truck accident MARCH • $250,000 pedestrian v. auto accident
APRIL • $195,000 elder abuse case • $1,000,000 auto v. commercial truck accident MAY • $340,000 pedestrian v. auto accident
this reason, the damages were not high on this case, but not every case is about the dollar signs. In this circumstance, we refused to settle the case until Simmons promised to enact change. We did not want to see another child hurt by their dangerous product. As part of the settlement, we demanded the mattress company discontinue use of plastic corner guards on their BeautyRest products. Simmons agreed to our terms and put it in writing. The family wouldn’t settle until Simmons signed off on making real changes. Major companies work hard to convince the public that all lawsuits are frivolous and that lawyers are sue-happy. The reality is, many of these lawsuits are the only way to put an end to the careless, dangerous practices major companies often engage in.
This publication is intended to educate the general public about personal injury and elder abuse. It is not intended to be legal advice. Every case is different.
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949-565-4886
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ARE FRONT COMPANIES STILL BUSINESSES?
Even an Illegal Business Needs a Plan
R unning a business is hard, but you know what’s even harder? Running a fake business. Front companies have been around since the early 1900s and have been steadily increasing in recent years. A front company is a business that presents itself as one entity but operates as another. They are usually set up by an organization with the intent of disguising an ulterior motive. In some cases, this is for good reasons. The CIA sets up front companies to give their agents legitimate backstories. In other cases, front companies are created to protect criminal organizations. Here are some of the latter. CASINOS Most businesses never get off the ground because they can’t find startup capital. You need these funds to pay employees, purchase operating space, and provide your service. In the case of the early days of Las Vegas, limited oversight and regulation allowed businesses to operate like the Wild West. Mafias could build casinos without too many questions about where the money came from or how much went through their operation. Racketeers could take funds obtained from criminal ventures, send them to Vegas, and claim them as house winnings.
BARS Building a strong customer base is one of the toughest parts of any successful business. Well, when you can create customers out of thin air, you eliminate that variable. Before bars began to be regulated, this is precisely what made them ideal front companies. Bar owners could create invoices for patrons who never existed and use the cash from their hidden illegitimate practice to make these patrons appear real. SHELL CORPORATIONS The constant upkeep of a brick- and-mortar location can be a huge expense for any owner. But if your business only exists on paper, you don’t have to deal with any of those complications. This is one reason shell corporations make great front companies. Shell companies aren’t illegal by any means, but they can be used in illegal ways. Many criminal organizations use them to hide money from investigators or to make illegal profits seem legal. Operating a front company is hard because there is no shortcut to success. Truly successful companies achieve their missions through vision and values, not fronts. Integrity makes people resonate with a brand, and that’s one thing you can’t fake.
SEARCH Word
Oatmeal Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
• • • • •
1 teaspoon kosher salt
• •
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 1/2 ounces store-bought waffle cones, lightly crushed
1 large egg yolk
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1 1/2 cups oats
2 teaspoons vanilla extract 4 pints ice cream (any flavor)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4. Add egg mixture to food processor while spinning on low. Once integrated, slowly add browned butter; blend until dough forms a solid mass around blades. 5. Form dough into 26 balls and place 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Flatten balls and bake 12–15 minutes or until edges begin to brown. 6. Let cool, then spread ice cream between cookies to make sandwiches. 7. Freeze for up to 5 days — or enjoy today!
1. Heat oven to 350 F. While oven is heating, cook butter in saucepan over medium heat until browned, 5–8 minutes. Scrape browned butter into a heatproof measuring glass. 2. Pulse waffle cones, oats, flour, and salt in a food processor or blender. Once cones are finely ground, add brown sugar and pulse again. 3. Whisk egg yolk, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl.
CAMPING FLIPFLOPS HAMBURGER JUNE
LEMONADE PICNIC POOL SMORES
SUNSCREEN SUNSHINE SWIMMING VACATION
Inspired by Food Network Inspired by B n Appetit
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Page 1 Happy Father’s Day!
Page 2 Core Values Are Vital — But How Do You Create Them?
$60K Settlement and the Fight for Change
Page 3 Even an Illegal Business Needs a Plan
Oatmeal Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Word Search
Page 4 3 Fathers Who Risked It All for Their Kids
3 AWESOME DADS F A T H E R S W H O P U T T H E I R L I V E S O N T H E L I N E F O R T H E I R K I D S
kicked the beast in the side, and when that didn’t work, he leapt onto its back and started punching it in the face. When the bear finally released Gabriel, Greg threw rocks until it fled. His son was hurt but made a full recovery in the hospital over the coming weeks. ARTUR MAGOMEDOV SAVED HIS DAUGHTERS FROM ISIS. Artur Magomedov was devastated to discover that his wife had taken his 3- and 10-year-old daughters from their home in Dagestan under the cover of night, flown to Turkey, and crossed into Syria to join ISIS. But he resolved to get his kids back. After a long, hazardous journey, he arrived in Tabqa to embrace his two daughters. To leave the caliphate — under penalty of death — they hitched a ride to the border one night and crawled along a railway line until they were within 70 meters of the border. Then they ran under fire from Turkish border guards until they could scramble into tall grasses. After some help from the Russian consulate in Istanbul, they made it back home, together again and safe.
This Father’s Day, thousands of dads will receive a “No. 1 Dad” mug to sip coffee out of at the office. But the following dads took that “No. 1” to a new level. BRIAN MUNN GAVE HIS SON A LIVER TRANSPLANT. When doctors discovered that baby Caleb Munn had a rare disease called biliary atresia, they told his parents that he was unlikely to survive past age 2 without a liver transplant. Luckily, his father was a perfect match, and he eagerly donated part of his liver in March of 2015 to save his son’s life. GREG ALEXANDER BATTLED A BEAR FOR HIS SON’S LIFE. While camping in the backcountry of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Greg Alexander was startled awake at dawn by the screams of his 16-year-old son, Gabriel. He rushed out of his hammock to see a black bear dragging his son away by the head. Without hesitation, he
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