Posts Tagged ‘attorney’

Family Law Attorneys and Division Of Assets In A Divorce, Choosing The Best Fit For Your Family

Saturday, April 24th, 2010

When dealing with a divorce and division of assets “what happens to my stuff?” is a question often encountered by family law attorneys. A good family law attorney will be able to advise you on issues such as the division of marital assets, real property division, spousal support and the variety of issues which may arise in a divorce.

A divorce can be a difficult and painful process. It is very important that you make sure the attorney you choose is experienced in the field of family law and is a good fit for your family situation.

There are a variety of tools available to a divorce attorney when working on the division of marital assets. As an example, your lawyer can help you identify which assets will be considered marital property (owned by both parties) or non-marital (owned by only one party). Once this step is completed, most attorneys will create an Asset & Liability Statement. An Asset & Liability Statement is a spreadsheet that indicates which party will be responsible for the itemized marital assets and debts. This document, among others, can be an important bargaining chip in settlement negotiations or at trial.

In many cases the most sticky issue in a divorce is the division of personal property such as jewelry, furniture, electronics, appliances, and cars, most family law attorneys will begin by engaging in settlement negotiation with the opposing counsel or party to see if a reasonable resolution can be reached out of court, this can be a lengthy and challenging process which is why it is a good idea to have a unbiased third party such as an attorney involved. If settlement negotiations fail, this may be an issue to be resolved at trial or in an issue specific hearing.

In many cases, if you owned a home prior to the marriage, and your spouse made no major contribution to the improvement or maintenance of the home they may not be entitled to 50% of the value of the property, however, they may be entitled to 50% of the increase in equity in the property from the date of marriage.

Division of retirement and pension benefits can be another contentious issue in a divorce. In many cases this issue may require a QDRO (Qualified Domestic Relation Order) attorney to draft an order regarding this division to supplement the final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage.

Spousal support/Alimony awards are an issue which can put a strain on your finances. Spousal support awards vary from case to case and are dependent on issues such as the length of the marriage, work experience and training of the receiving party, level of education completed and child care costs. Again, this is a complicated issue which is best addressed by a family law attorney.

In the end it is always the court’s objective to reach a “fair and equitable” resolution to all of the contentious issues in a divorce, including but not limited to the division of the marital assets and debts.

Before entering into a Divorce Proceeding you should consult with an attorney regarding your rights.

categories: Divorce,division of assets,divorce attorneys,marital property,Spousal support,Divorce,Family Law,Attorney,Lawyer,Law,Divorce,Family


Indianapolis Attorney Helps Residents With Personal Injury Cases

Thursday, April 22nd, 2010

Corey Scott, an Indianapolis attorney, has a refreshing and incomparable approach to the much maligned law profession. Visit his office once and you will be thinking differently about attorneys. Their prime goal is to create relationships founded on faith and true concern for their clients.

The most common types of personal injury claims include traffic, home or office accidents, defective product accidents and assault claims. The term personal injury also incorporates dental and medical accidents. His law firm can help you with any of these types of cases.

Injured parties are entitled to monetary compensation if the negligent party proves to be guilty. These types of cases are complicated therefore; it is a good idea to have an attorney representing your case. Attorneys working on ‘contingency basis’ receive a percentage of the compensation; payable when the case has been settled.

When insurance companies will not settle on a fair compensation, hiring an aggressive attorney to present a threat will be worth the money. When you have severe injuries, it is best to have the knowledge of an experienced attorney helping you to get a sizable settlement.

No matter how much you have suffered or the cost of your lost wages and medical bills, acquiring an aggressive attorney’s services will help in dealing with government agencies and insurance companies that simply refuse to make a fair settlement. When recovering from your injuries you should not try to settle with insurance companies unless you have an attorney present to advise you.

Showing compassion and care to every client is the goal of the Law Office of Corey Scott. They are available to help residents with personal injury claims. Their commitment to providing you excellent legal service will help take the stress off you when filing a claim against a negligent party. This Indianapolis attorney is here to help you if you just give him a chance.

If you are in the need of an Attorney, then the Indianapolis Attorney will help you out. They have been in the law firm for many years, have won many cases and will be happy to assist you with yours.http://www.coreyscottlaw.com


A Personal Injury Lawyer Will Help You Get The Money You Deserve

Wednesday, April 21st, 2010

Call a personal injury lawyer if you have had an accident and you have been injured. Even if you were partly to blame for the accident you might still be able to receive compensation for your injuries. We live under a comparative negligence legal system.

This means that if you were partly to blame for the accident, let us say you were ten percent responsible for the accident, then you can still recover ninety percent of your damages. So do not think you do not have a lawsuit if you think you might be partly to blame.

The insurance companies would like to believe that you are not entitled to any payment or they will try to convince you to accept a settlement conditioned on you agreeing not to break legal action. In fact, if you have an accident and have sustained an injury, expect the insurance company to call you and offer you a cash settlement.

They might say that the cash will come in handy right now and you can have the money immediately if you sign a release. But do not fall for their ploy, avoid the temptation to take the quick money; instead hang up and contact a personal injury attorney.

If you already have an attorney you are working with, refer all calls from the insurance company to your lawyer. Do not speak with the insurance company, especially on the phone, about your physical or mental condition. They could be recording the call and if you say that you are doing fine and that you are not in pain, they will use this in court against you or they will use this to negotiate a lower settlement.

The insurance company is not your friend. They are trying to limit their payout as much as they can. They will not stop at anything to keep from paying you what you are entitled. This is why you need to contact an experienced lawyer as soon as you have an accident.

Most personal injury attorneys offer free consultations. This is a relaxed meeting where you can discuss your case at not obligation. The lawyer will know whether or not you have a case. He will explain your rights in this case and the strength of your case.

If you both think it is a good idea to go forward with the case and you choose him to represent you, the lawyer will give you a retainer agreement to sign which states that you are hiring his office to represent you and that you agree to pay him a contingent fee. His fee is contingent on him winning a settlement or jury award from the insurance company.

If he can negotiate a money figure you agree to then you will be able to settle out of court. If not, then your case will go to trial. He only will be paid out of the settlement agreement or the jury award.

Some lawyers charge up to forty percent. This might seem high but remember the personal injury lawyer will get you a larger settlement or jury award than you could have if you tried to deal with the insurance company on your own.

Injury Lawyer TorontoFirm helping clients to solve their cases with honesty and integrity. If looking for a disability lawyer in Toronto give us a call.


Child Custody and the Right to Move Away

Monday, April 19th, 2010

Copyright 2006 Law Offices of Donald P. Schweitzer For those of you who are interested in understanding the law concerning custodial parents who wish to move out of the area with children over the objections of the non-custodial parent, this article is for you. Presumptive Right to Move In our increasingly mobile society, custodial parents frequently desire to move out of state or to a different part of the state with the children, leaving the non-custodial parent far behind.  Such moves are usually based upon the fact that the custodial parent has found a new job that requires the move or has a network of family members that he or she would like to live near. 

Based on these realities, California law provides that a parent who has primary physical custody of a child has a presumptive right to change the child’s residence . i.e.  to move away with the child, subject to the power of the court to restrain a removal that would prejudice the rights or welfare of the child. A custodial parent seeking to relocate with a child bears no burden of establishing that the move is necessary.  In fact, the non-custodial parent bears the initial burden of showing that the proposed relocation of the child’s residence would cause detriment to the child, requiring a reevaluation of the child’s custody. Procedural Safeguards.Based on our strong public policy favoring stable custody arrangements, trial courts will usually make an immediate interim ruling staying the move-away until the parents have been given the opportunity to participate in meaningful mediation, to obtain an independent custody evaluation and, ultimately, to present their positions at a meaningful hearing ?including the right to present live testimony. If the non-custodial parent makes such an initial showing that the move-away would be detrimental to the child, the court must perform the delicate and difficult task of determining whether a change in custody of the child is in the room.

The author is a  building inspector and works on  Gas Fitting Auckland and  cosmetics about teeth.


How Come Law Firms Are Now A Business?

Monday, April 19th, 2010

Did you know that the practice of law is more business now than ever before?

There is a great deal of literature discussing how law has moved from being a profession to being a business.

The transition started in the early 20th century, but really gathered steam after WWII. By the 1980’s law was fully ensconced as a business rather than a profession.

What’s interesting is that consultants and other financial experts apply or refer to law firms as using a particular business model.

There are broadly speaking, 3 hyper-successful business models in the practice of law.

The first law firm model is using leverage to earn profits.

Big law firms use leveraging in that they hire a slew of associates, have the associates crank out work per hour to the client, pay the associates less than what is charged to the client, and pocket the difference.

The bulk of the lawyers bill at an hourly rate that generates profits for the few partners.

The result: hyper-profits for the partners (if done well).

The second model is a customized law practice.

The customized law practice typically has few lawyers.

The lawyers offering specialized legal services charge a premium because the knowledge and work product is specialized.

You need to remember that specialization requires a fair amount of previous study and experience and ability in order to rise to the top where higher rates can be charged.

The type of firms that develop with specialization are usually solo practitioners or boutique firms – firms with few lawyers.

For example, some large firms are leveraged, but then have some senior lawyers who are very specialized.

Although mixing business models isn’t generally recommended, sometimes it works for firms to combine the leveraged and specialization models.

The third model is a contingency model.

The contingency fee arrangement is where the lawyer gets paid a set percent of any money going to the client from the case.

A common practice area that uses the contingency model is car accident law.

Which model is best? All three models can be extremely successful.

There is no one best model in my view; each model has its advantages and disadvantages.

For example, a car accident law firm may hire a bunch of junior lawyers to crank out cases and the senior lawyers profit off the juniors.

At the end of the day, clients need to do their homework when looking for lawyers; take the time to read up on lawyers in order to make the best lawyer hiring decision possible.

For all of you in BC – if you’re looking for Abbotsford lawyers use a lawyer directory that gives you great details about its lawyers.

categories: lawyer,lawyers,attorney,attorneys,law firm,law firms,professional service firm,legal,law,legal business,business