Jimi asks:

If I have (I don't in reality) a website, and I need to mention the name of my clients (I don't in reality) and then let the visitors to link to the client website, or link to e.g. some government, or state website, how do I get the permission to install the link in my website?

There are numerous legal conflicts surrounding the issue of linking. As a general guideline, there's nothing wrong with linking to someone for legitimate or "fair use" purposes – say, you're reviewing their site or even satirizing it. It gets trickier if you are operating a commercial website that links to other commercial websites, but typically you can always link to a site's homepage.

Some sites are very picky about what's called "deep linking," where you link directly to a page on the site rather than the homepage. The reason for this is that so-called deep linking circumvents whatever advertising or other content the site owner wants you to see when you visit their site. However, if you violate a site's linking policy, you will typically get a "cease and desist" letter prior to any real legal action. I do recommend that you read a site's terms of use if you are concerned about linking to it; terms of use will often spell out exactly under what circumstances a site does and does not allow linking.

Finally, if you want to link to one your clients' sites, you may need to ask their permission. Many companies do no allow this because they feel it is tantamount to an endorsement. When in doubt, just ask. (I'm not a lawyer by the way, so none of this constitutes legal advice, yada yada.)