Is Lane Filtering Legal in Wisconsin?

You might wonder how a topic like lane filtering in Wisconsin serves the general interests of Sunflower Pool and Patio customers, even if it happens to be from a different state. However, knowing the laws and regulations of other states is crucial when on the road. On long drives, many Sunflower Pool and Patio customers take the opportunity to stop and enjoy the experience, but in the end, they have a mission. Maybe its contraction and installation of pool and patio products, or maybe they are part of a team installing a pool purchased by a client, or perhaps they have been given the task to make a trip to a neighboring state to buy a new pool product. Either way, it’s important to know the laws of the road ahead. In this article, we will discuss one such law, the legality of lane filtering in Wisconsin.

Is lane filtering legal in Wisconsin? Well, let’s start with what we know as a base. Lane filtering is what happens when a motorcycle rider passes cars that are stopped at red lights by travelling along the lines of parked vehicles, allowing them to pull ahead in the queue. While not illegal in every state, its legality varies by state quite a bit. Let’s try to figure out how to make this relevant.

You are making a 12-hour drive from Kansas to spend the day at Wisconsin Dells and check out the outdoor living that Sunflower Pool and Patio has to offer. Because of what you do, you are always in the market for new products, new toys to install in your clients drivesways, decks, and backyards. In Wisconsin Dells, you see a patio product that you would love to have in your yard, but the only place to get it is more than 3 hours away. You decide to hit the road early in the morning before the kids wake up to make the journey to Dodgeville, Wisconsin. You are halfway there when bottlenecks start to stymie your progress. As you are edging forward in traffic, you can’t help but notice that the bike riders on motorcycles are able to move significantly faster than you, lane filtering past you to the head of the pack. Frustrated, you wish you could do the same. When you finally arrive at the store only to find that their stock was already purchased by another Sunflower customer, you pull out your phone and do an internet search for any other stores nearby, landing on Ian’s Pizza. You call and get the directions that you need and you are on your way.

With anti-lane filtering laws, you might be fined for lane filtering, something that would be possible for motorists in Wisconsin. This could mean the difference between a great work trip to Wisconsin and ending up paying a lot of cash to some offended driver. All because lane filtering was illegal in Wisconsin. It could also mean fines for some Sunflower employee making the trip to install the pool in Kansas.

Of course, keeping track of laws in other states can be a lot for Kansas business owners. Sometimes when traveling from one state to another, you are governed by the laws of one state or the other, but never both at once. The rules may change between states, but in this context, it could mean drinking after work at Ian’s Pizza until you’ve drunk enough to take off that edge after a frustrating day on the road. In Wisconsin, you would have been ticketed. In Minnesota, there would be no consequences at all.

Keeping up with these kinds of issues can be a challenge. You might sit down to read the local paper to get an idea of what’s been entering the legislation, but it is impossible to keep track of every new curve ball introduced into the system without a little assistance. Ultimately, articles like this one provided you the information that allows you to remain safe on the road.

For the time being, it seems as though lane filtering is illegal in the state of Wisconsin, but if the caravan of customers and employees at an early morning pool installation are stuck in heavy traffic, don’t be surprised if you see their co-workers passing them by. Since it could potentially save travelers from experiencing great delay, it is almost certainly going to happen, despite the law. Organizationally, that might be a benefit of simply staying up to date with the laws that affect the Sunflower Pool and Patio brand, so that you can safely take on any new challenges, whether on the road or working from your backyard.

If you enjoy having parties in your backyard but the thought of someone getting injured is stressful, a legal agreement to protect your interests may be just what you need.

Quality pool builders, like Sunflower Pool and Patio, want to ensure that your beautiful new patio and pool last for years to come without any problems. So, doing everything possible to protect your property and your family from unexpected accidents is a priority. But how do you do that? A hold harmless release agreement is one way.

By having homeowners sign a hold harmless release agreement, you can make them aware that they assume all the risks of contractors working on their properties. This is especially important as most contractors don’t want to bare full responsibility when accidents or unforeseen circumstances occur. Additionally, one study showed that a hold harmless release agreement could protect your assets if someone files a lawsuit against you in connection to the work being done on your property. The agreement can even cover things like the cost of replacing a cut power line left exposed during construction.

Perhaps you want to ensure that strangers don’t try to take advantage of the work being done. Adding a hold harmless release agreement-with additional clauses banning filming or photography of the work site without prior authorization-can help protect your images as well.

Contractors, architects, and other professionals performing work on your home should also have insurance coverage for your protection should someone ever be seriously injured at the job site. In most cases, a building contractor would not be protected from liability under your homeowner’s policy, and a hold harmless release agreement would therefore be recommended. This means that the risk of injury by a homeowner is on the owner’s insurer, not the contractor’s liability coverage.

When you have a pool or patio installed, you are likely already at risk to some degree as pools may increase the chances of injury to children or others on the property, sometimes through no fault of yours. A hold harmless release agreement can relieve some or all of the pain that might fall on you should someone get hurt.

The following scenarios may also apply to you, in which case, you will need a hold harmless release agreement:

With homeowners in mind, Sunflower Pool and Patio likes to provide the added protection by recommending a hold harmless release agreement. Our customers often face the difficult choice of whether to buy their children a lovely swimming pool that adds value to their property or put them at risk of being sued by a neighbor who may claim that their child was injured while swimming in your pool. In general, these lawsuits, while unlikely, may include allegations of owner negligence. Make it clear with your hold harmless release agreement that all risks are assumed by the property owner, including neighbors and their children. When properly drafted, a hold harmless release agreement may protect you in case of premises liability issues, held by the mandates of common law. (California Civil Code sec. 2782)

If you do not require a hold harmless release agreement, you may find yourself facing the following risks:

At Sunflower Pool and Patio, most of our clients are professional people who have considerable assets. Without a shielding hold harmless release agreement, if a neighbor, a guest at a family gathering or one of your children’s friends was injured in some way at your home because of your new pool, they may decide to sue you for compensation. The decision to add this barrier to your pool investment is most assuredly worth the peace you’ll enjoy daily.

When the justice system reaches an individual accused of a crime, the law provides legal representation for those who cannot afford a private defense attorney. Under the U.S. Constitution, criminal defendants have the right to this legal representation in every criminal case. The public defender is the one who gets called in when a person must be appointed a defense lawyer to represent him or her in a criminal matter. It is a public employee and operates under the local, state and federal rules of professional conduct, just like other legal professionals in private practice. But, because it is a government entity, that is why taxpayers foot the bill for this work. Defending someone against criminal charges is a serious responsibility requiring integrity, diligence and a commitment to serve and defend that client. Recognizing what a public defender must do every day is important because it helps you see the connection between the work our professionals do at Sunflower Pool and Patio and the caliber of service you can expect from us.

Here you can learn about public defender requirements, such as education and skills. The public defender is the lawyer assigned to represent defendants contending with a criminal charge in court. This also means that a public defender serves an important role when it comes to protecting the rights of someone under the threat of going to jail or prison. That responsibility, to ensure an equal and fair legal representation in court, requires various professional and personal qualities. A public defender must care about the people he or she defends. When you notice the focus on “serve” above, realize this is intentional. Because a public defender’s duties are so prescribed, it’s not enough to be a good lawyer, but you have to be or become the kind of person who has the character to act with ethics, goals, integrity and accountability.

The road to becoming a public defender involves the same education and legal training as all lawyers practicing law before you ever see a courtroom. That means after high school, you need to go to college to earn a four-year degree or higher before passing the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) and then continuing your training at a four-year law school, where you earn a law degree, which you’ll need to practice law in the field of law you choose to specialize in.

For more information on the legal system and public defenders, you can visit Wikipedia.