Is An Initial Consultation With A DWI Attorney Free?

Most drivers who have been arrested for DWI may intentionally not consult an attorney to avoid paying for anything. However, this can be extremely risky as the state of Texas is raising the stakes for any individual who will be charged for DWI. The penalties that one may face are even stricter if they have had prior convictions, if their blood alcohol content was found a lot higher than the legal limit and if there were accidents, injuries or deaths caused by the accused. However, to those are truly concerned and prepared to defend themselves and their rights in court can contact a DWI attorney for a free initial consultation.

This free service is mostly offered by DWI attorneys but with a time limit usually of half an hour. Not only does this give any person who has been charged with DWI a chance to know someone who will be crucial for their current situation but also will allow them to do so without any commitment. 30 minutes will be enough time to explain potential DWI charges and court proceedings clearly to the driver as well as throw in a few advices during the initial appointment.

Most DWI attorneys offer this free initial consultation lasting for 30 minutes as it would be wrong to make any individual pay without knowing what they will get in return. Any driver recently charged with DWI should take this offer to be able to make a determination based on their own judgment on whether or not they need a DWI attorney and who exactly they will need for this hearing. Of course, you will have to understand that part of their job is to manage time wisely so they can only allot a limited amount of time to consult free of charge. To make sure you can get the most out of this, remember to ask the following important questions.

Try to ask them about their experience in handling DWI cases and practicing law in general. Of course, in those cases, were they able to succeed or when they had done so most recently. Ask them about the extent of this experience such as with jury trial cases and so on. Finally, ask about your DWI case and if they had handled anything like it as each case differs from another and about the major complications they see.

Ask them to give you a written document stating all their potential fees as well and about their malpractice insurance which is mandatory for DWI attorneys. It is also crucial to know if anyone else on their team will work on your DWI case and if they have the same record in terms of experience.

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Credit Card Lawsuit Defense: Fight For Your Rights and Win

Hounded by junk debt buyer for old, unpaid card debts? If you got served and possibly facing a lawsuit in a few weeks, you need to know all the right credit card lawsuit defense you can use in order to win your case otherwise, you stand to pay not only for the alleged debt but also the junk debt buyer's legal fees!

Now, a great credit card lawsuit defense can be used by simply checking the Statute of Limitation to old card debt in your state. If the debt is outside the statute of your state, then this is an open and shut case for you. Junk debt buyers cannot collect out of statute debts. If such is the case for you, make sure you raise this on your credit card lawsuit defense.

If you are absolutely sure that your old card debt is time-barred, you need to present evidence. Start by checking for the last check you made to the original creditor. If you made that payment via the internet, you can access old statements. You can also check your credit report to check the last date of payment. You can use the statutes of limitation credit card lawsuit defense as an Affirmative Defense and get answers from the plaintiff during the Discovery phase of the lawsuit.

Another notable credit card lawsuit defense is the validation of debt. It is within your rights to demand the junk debt buyer to PROVE you own the debt in question. The good news is, once the original creditor closed toe book on old, charged off accounts, even the buyer of said accounts do not have access to any documents, like credit card statements, original signed contract, cardholders agreement, etc., they will not be able to pin the debt on you easily. Instead, the junk debt buyers will rely on a sloppy affidavit signed by their own employees that won't hold substance in court.

Knowing if the debt you are being sued for is time-barred is one of the first things you need to check when defending yourself in court. Your creditor is assuming you don't know a thing about Statutes of Limitation in your area so don't be a sitting duck!

Beef up your credit card lawsuit defense, start by doing your own research and finding out where you can get the most valuable information you can use to have your case dismissed.

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How to Beat a Credit Card Lawsuit

Learning how to beat a credit card lawsuit starts with getting the right facts. Remember, just because a creditor filed a lawsuit against you does not necessarily mean they can prove their case. You can raise various defenses against junk debt buyers or collection agents but it should only be raised through the court system. Creating your Answer to the summons and complaints is the first step on how to beat a credit card lawsuit.

How?

Generally, most junk debt buyers or collection agencies release multiple summons and complaints to all accounts they have under them hoping that none of them will respond. More than 96% of debt related lawsuit end in default judgment, your creditor assumes your case won't be any different. If you respond to the summons and complaints, it gives the clear message that you understand the complaint, you know your rights and you are not afraid to fight for yourself in court. Something as simple as filing a Notice of Appearance, Answer, and Certificate of Service are enough for many creditors to drop the lawsuit and move on to less informed debtors.

So first things first, you need to dedicate some time researching on how to file the necessary documents is the first step you need to take when learning how to beat a credit card lawsuit. Make sure all documents are filed in court within the allowable period. Failure to present these documents on time will cause your creditor brownie points from the court and you risk the chance of them being awarded with default judgment against you.

Default judgment will give the creditor legal rights to access your banking, employment and personal records, freeze your account and garnish your wages. On top of all these, your credit will be ruined for a minimum of seven years! So it takes a little effort on your part to avoid things from getting bad to worse. Fight back, you got nothing to lose and everything to gain!

Find out how to beat a credit card lawsuit using effective, proven strategies. Additionally, you need to exhaust efforts trying to find the right information to guide you through this ordeal. This can be done by researching for great strategies, checking your state's local court rules to determine what you can and what you cannot do during the legal proceedings, purchase an eBook that can help you fight against the lawsuit Pro Se, or consult a lawyer.

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Collecting A Judgment Yourself

I am not a lawyer, I am a Judgment Broker. This article is my opinion, and not legal advice, based on my experience in California, and laws vary in each state. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

When you use a professional judgment enforcer, they typically keep about half of every dollar that they recover. Most take expenses off the top, meaning you might get less than half of what is recovered. If your judgment situation looks difficult, you might have to pay more, if your judgment looks easy to recover, you might get to pay less.

It is very possible for you to collect your own judgment, although everything depends on your judgment debtor. You do not have to be a collection attorney or be in the debt collection field to try to recover your judgment money.

The advantage of collecting your judgment yourself is that you get to keep 100% of all the money you net from the potential recovery of your judgment. Perhaps you do not have to share any potential recovery with a professional judgment enforcement specialist.

It is true that recovering judgments is not trivial, and you must spend money at every turn. You must follow the many laws, rules, and procedures. Take your time, and accept that not everything will work, or work the first time.

Like most other work, judgment recovery is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration. As long as your debtor has some available assets, you can be part of the ten percent that recovers something on your judgment, instead of the ninety-nine percent of those who never recover a dollar from their judgment.

You must learn the laws about judgment recovery, and follow them, or you can waste money and perhaps get in trouble. To recover your own judgment, you must read and investigate the steps needed. The people that win are the people who prepare and learn what to do. If you can, make judgment recovery a game, and education is one key to winning in this game.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained comes to mind in judgment recovery. What have you got to lose by trying? If your debtor files for bankruptcy protection, whatever you spent will be likely be lost. You cannot squeeze honey out of a rock, and you should not spend money on hopelessly poor judgment debtors.

If your judgment debtor has, or can get enough assets to settle or repay the judgment, you might get the thrill and satisfaction of collecting your money. Whether you need the money or not, the court ruled that you deserve to get it. If you do not make progress, or get tired of spending money, you can find a judgment enforcer. Good luck!

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Who Is Calling Me And Stop The Wondering

Who is calling me? This is totally a common question people ask every time their phones ring and they see an unknown number on the screen. Every time you seen an unknown phone number on your screen, you shouldn't be getting scared right away. You shouldn't also feel startled just because an anonymous number called you on your phone. You should know that not all anonymous calls are alarming. You should know that some of these anonymous calls are from those people who are just experiencing technical problems on the line. It could be that your friend is trying to call you on your phone but every time he picks up the phone, the call gets interrupted. On the other end, it could also be that someone had dialed your number incorrectly and when he realized that he got the wrong number, he immediately disconnected the call. That was an honest mistake then. If you have experienced any of these, you should know that conducting this type of search won't be too hard to accomplish. If you think this would cost you so much money, well then you are totally wrong. There are various options that you can check which won't actually require you to shell out considerable amount of money. As a matter of fact, there are options you can check which won't require you to go out of your home.

Finding out who is calling me is quite easy to accomplish and the first step that you need to do is simply visit all those public offices and government agencies within your local area. You shouldn't be having problems locating these offices because they are situated almost everywhere. This simply means that you won't have to go elsewhere just to get the information you need. If you wish to get started, you would have to speak with the personnel in charge and let him know what you are trying to accomplish. You would have to provide him the correct phone number that you would like to check. You won't be having problems with the charges because these offices would only charge you the administrate fee.

You should know that finding out who is calling can actually be accomplished without having to leave your home. You can surely go online and look for a reliable site that will allow you to conduct phone number search. You can simply type in the phone number that you wish to check and you will be able to find out who called you on your phone.

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The Bail Bond License - Steps for Acquiring and Rights of Licensed Agents

Steps Necessary for Acquiring a Bail Bond License

The first step a person interested in acquiring a bail bond license must typically complete is finding a local bail school and signing up for training. Each state prescribes the specific courses that must be completed for certification and licensing, as well as the number of hours of training that it requires before the candidate qualifies for a bail bond license.

After successfully completing the required training and passing the certification examination, the candidate can move on to the second step of the agent licensing process: submitting an application to the Department of Insurance Office in the future bondsman's state. Application forms for the license, which is officially referred to as a Limited Surety Agent's License, can generally be accessed online. Some states also mandate that new agents work under an already-licensed bail bondsman for a prescribed period of time (generally not exceeding one year) before they qualify for full licensing.

Prospective bail agents will also need to be fingerprinted and pass a background check before receiving a license.

Once licensed, agents should be prepared to meet their states' requirements for keeping their bail bond license current, as some states require a specific minimum number of continuing education hours annually for bail bond license renewal.

Powers Granted by a Bail Bond License

A bail bond license confers on an agent all the rights and responsibilities prescribed for fulfilling the role of bail agent in each individual state. Since these can vary significantly by state, it's important for a license applicants to research the specific rights and responsibilities of agents in their own states. While several states do not allow commercial bail at all, of the ones that do, some only allow professional bail agents (i.e. agents who use their own assets to secure a bond, rather than the assets of the accused individual or his/her family members).

The powers generally granted by most states to agents who hold a valid license follow:

The right to post bail on behalf of incarcerated individuals The right to charge a fee for the service, based on a specific percentage of the bond amount, which is prescribed by state law (generally 10-15%) The right to track the client's whereabouts at all times to ensure that the client appears in court for all proceedings The right to arrest defendants who jump bail and take them to jail The right to break and enter a defendant's house for the purpose of arrest The right to pursue defendants into any of the 50 states to bring them back for oversight and ensure their appearance at trial The right to surrender uncooperative defendants they've apprehended to the custody of the court

The reason agents who hold a valid license have so many rights with regard to pursuing and arresting defendants is that they are responsible for knowing their clients' whereabouts at all times and ensuring that they make every court date.

We make every effort to use our bail bond license to help cooperative clients remain free while awaiting trial.

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Tips For Being A Great Expert Witness

Avoid Embarrassing Remarks from the Judge

Lawyers and other legal experts have expressed concerns about the many instances of expert witnesses getting lambasted in court. There are two reasons commonly blamed for these embarrassing criticisms.

1. Quality of the expert's opinion / testimony / report

Many experts have received harsh criticisms for their inability to present substantial and helpful reports about the case. Either this is due to bad communication skills or the expert's questionable expertise.

2. Objectivity of the expert

Another issue pointed out by judges is an expert's evident partiality towards a party.

Tips to Prevent Harsh Criticisms from Judges

When you get criticized by a judge, this will obviously not do you and the solicitor who hired you any good. It may create a negative impact on the case, and your reputation will go down the drain. So to make sure that this will never happen to you, never ever give the court a reason to give you such criticisms.

Here are some tips and guidelines.

1. Prepare before your testimony.

Study the case beforehand, and anticipate all the possible questions you'll be asked of you. If you can, prepare visuals (such as a video or multimedia presentation) to make it easier for everyone to understand your point.

2. Make a detailed report indicating your expert opinion.

You are obligated to assist the court through your expert opinion. Make sure that you create a detailed (and if possible, jargon-free) report that will help the court understand any complexities that the case has. Also, do not forget to attach supporting facts and documents.

3. Be confident, but do not sound argumentative.

Do not give the court a reason to believe that you are supporting either the defendant or the plaintiff. Answer all questions without inhibitions. Ask for clarifications if the questions seem vague or unclear.

4. Look like an expert, act like an expert.

Credibility is everything. Do not wear any casual clothes, or an outfit that would compromise your credibility as an expert. Also, you are expected to possess a high level of knowledge, so be professional at all times.

5. Remember and take your legal duties as an expert witness to heart.

When you agreed to be an expert witness, you accepted your duties to be as truthful and objective as possible in court. So before you do anything, ask yourself if it is in non-compliant with your legal duties.

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Difficult Judgment Debtors

Most judgments are tough to recover. The economy is the first general reason, and your judgment debtor's circumstance is the first specific reason. When a judgment debtor is really poor; an uncollected judgment is explainable, understandable, and expected. This article highlights a few of the less fair reasons for uncollected judgments.

This article is my opinion, and not legal advice. I am a judgment broker, and am not a lawyer. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer. Uncollected judgment situations that are less fair, are those where the judgment debtor could easily afford to pay you, however they are more than determined not to, or through planning or by circumstance, have their assets protected by laws.

A classic fraud situation is when one gets defrauded, and then sues the fraud and gets a judgment, and their judgment debtor seems to consistently be living very well. The debtor magically seems to pay cash for everything including expensive cars, travel, and fine dining, with no paper trails, and often own nothing of value in their own name.

Many judgment debtor fraudsters often have unlimited funds to fight any recovery efforts, yet often live in either a modest, or in an expensive house that is protected by homestead or exemption laws. In courts, they will claim they are poor. I know of many default judgments where the judgment debtors claimed they were dirt poor, however they could easily afford expensive lawyers for their motion to vacate, their attempt to appeal the judgment, filing for bankruptcy, and then fighting off creditor adversarial motions.

The "best" frauds rip off many people over a long period of time. They often offer "guaranteed investment opportunities", where their victims are shown fake collateral evidence and security for loans. The common fraud is your good buddy first, and later they have a great deal for you. At first, they make you money, so you keep "investing".

An example scam might go like this, you loan the fraud $10K and they pay you back 12K in 60 days. Then, you loan them $20K and they return 25K to you in 60 days. Then, you loan them $30K and in 90 days they pay you $40k. Then, they say they have the best deal ever, so you loan them $80K, and they never pay you back.

Most of these kind of fraudsters run a Ponzi scheme, with perhaps hundreds of victim investors. They used your money to pay others and vice versa. Near the end, they burned everyone at about the same time, hiding all the money. Then, they absconded to a place such as Florida. Unless they defrauded VIPs or old people, the cops and DA will not help creditors. Many professional frauds would rather live the rest of their life under the radar, and paying cash for things, than to settle with any creditors.

Another unfair situation is when a rich person or company defrauds you, and you sued them. I know of situations where judgment debtors chose to spend (e.g., 20K) on attorneys to consistently thwart judgment recovery efforts, instead of paying $10K to satisfy the judgment.

When it comes to not having to pay off judgments, being old has its advantages. When a judgment debtor is old (or disabled), many assets such as disability payments, retirement funds, and social security, are off limits to creditors, even if they defrauded you. An old slogan comes to mind: "Youth and skill are no match for old age and treachery". Old judgment debtors sometimes get sympathy from judges, especially on judgment debtor examinations and document production requests.

At a court, I once witnessed an old lady carry her walker, walking quickly up the court steps. Then, just before entering the courtroom, she got ready. In court, she appeared to be in pain, putting her weight on her walker, and walked very slowly. It seemed as though the lady's ailment got much worse inside the courtroom.

At the conclusion of the judgment debtor examination, the creditor complained to the judge that the debtor did not answer his questions. The lady told the judge she was sorry, but she was in too much pain and was on medication that affected her memory. The judge shook his head and said: "Mr. Creditor, why are you subjecting this poor woman to questioning? I see no reason to prolong the discomfort of Mrs. Debtor, and I am excusing her from having to answer your questions".

The same old lady, after her judgment debtor examination, after she left the courtroom; suddenly got much better, and carried her walker and walked down the courthouse steps, and put the walker in the trunk, and drove her car away.

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Suing With The Correct Name

I am not a lawyer, I am a Judgment Broker. This article is my opinion, and not legal advice, based on my experience in California, and laws vary in each state. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

Why start a civil lawsuit unless there will be a chance to collect your judgment? The process to sue someone that owes you money, and then trying to recover judgment money owed you, is usually not easy or cheap. You should maximize your chances for recovery of your judgment, by taking care to name your debtor(s) correctly before you sue them.

When you start a lawsuit, it is really important to name your defendants property, so your judgment will "attach" to actual people or valid entities. If you sue someone with the wrong, or a misspelled name, it opens up a possible defense for the debtor to use, to avoid paying the money that is due for the judgment.

When your debtor is a corporate entity, it is very important to name them accurately. Before suing them, check your Secretary of State's (SOS) website, to see precisely how the corporate entity name is spelled. Make sure to check the punctuation carefully, because even a missing comma can make it harder to recover a judgment.

Here are some examples of possible variations in company naming: Cheatum Corporation, Cheatum Company Inc., Cheatum Company, Inc., The Cheatum Corp, Cheatum, LLC, Cheatum Group, LLC, Cheatum LLC, Cheatum Company, Cheatum Corp. If you do not list the company name correctly, you might be left with a judgment that is difficult or impossible to collect.

If an entity is not found on the SOS's web site, maybe they are operating the business as a fictitious DBA name, and perhaps you could sue the people responsible instead. Also, companies can fold or change names overnight, so if a person associated with a company defrauded you, consider suing them, in addition to suing the company.

What if you already have a judgment that does not correctly name the actual person or entity that owes you money? Depending on which state and court, you could file an affidavit of identity, or a motion to amend the judgment. To do this, you need to either hire a lawyer, or learn the rules of your court, and find examples and information about how to form, serve, file, and usually pay the court; to amend or make corrections to a judgment, to reflect the actual parties that owe money.

Some jurisdictions put a time limit on making any type of amendments or corrections to a judgment. Some courts also have some specific reasons or requirements to be met, before they will accept an amendment. Look into the rules of procedure for your court to find out what methods can be used to correct judgment naming problems.

You can also check with your local law library, and find resources about this subject, to help you make a motion for the court. Ask your court what their procedures are, to amend a judgment, however remember they cannot give you legal advice. Stick to questions about the procedures specific to their court.

If you cannot amend the judgment, you may have the option of suing again, and then carefully naming the actual entity that owes you money.

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You May Be Able to Challenge a Bank Garnishment

Texas does not permit wage garnishment against you as a judgment debtor unless your judgment is for court-ordered child support or spousal maintenance. But, Texas does authorize a bank garnishment to collect civil money judgments.

What Is a Bank Account Garnishment?

A bank account garnishment just means that your judgment creditor can, after filing with the court, confiscate your checking account and apply the proceeds to what you owe on a legitimate, uncollected judicial judgment. Generally speaking, garnishment permits the plaintiff to take possession of any type of property you possess that is in the possession of a third party.

Bank account garnishment works because the bank is actually holding your money in an account. Essentially, the bank is indebted to you and the plaintiff is asking that the funds the bank owes you be rerouted to pay off your judgment.

When Is a Bank Account Garnishment Possible?

Your judgment creditor may pursue a bank account garnishment only in specific circumstances. Allow me to explain those circumstances.

1. The person seeking a bank garnishment against you must have a valid, final, and subsisting judgment against you in a Texas court. See Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code § 63.001 (3).

A judgment is final and subsisting for garnishment purposes when it is signed by the judge. See Texas Rules of Civil Procedure 657. Thus, effectively, on the day the judge signs the order against you your judgment creditor may apply for a bank garnishment writ as long as each of the requirements of garnishment are satisfied.

2. Your judgment creditor cannot get a writ of garnishment to get your bank accounts if you have filed an approved supersedeas bond to suspend execution on the judgment. See Texas Rules of Civil Procedure 657.

3. The judgment creditor must sign an affidavit attached to the application for writ of garnishment.

In that affidavit the judgment creditor must take an oath that, to his knowledge, you do not possess in the State of Texas adequate property subject to execution to satisfy the judgment. See Texas Civil Practices & Remedies Code § 63.001 (3).

The judgment creditor does not need to demonstrate that you do not have adequate property in the state to satisfy the judgment, but he must state that, to his knowledge, you do not have enough property.

What Can You Do About a Bank Garnishment?

There is no guarantee that you can defeat a bank garnishment in Texas. If you are obligated on a judgment; however, there are several things you should do to make certain your judgment creditor heeds both the letter of the law and the spirit of the law while pursuing collection of that judgment.

If, for instance, you do own nonexempt property in Texas that may be taken by a writ of execution and your judgment debtor files a writ of garnishment your judgment creditor could be found liable for a wrongful garnishment. Remember, the judgment creditor has to sign an affidavit wherein he states under oath that to his knowledge you do not own sufficient property subject to execution to pay the judgment.

Therefore, if that statement is untrue, the judgment creditor may possibly be liable for a wrongful garnishment even when he had probable cause to believe the statement was true and he did not act maliciously. See Peerless Oil & Gas Co. v. Teas, 138 S.W. 2d 637, 640 (Tex. Civ. App.-- San Antonio 1940), aff 'd, 158 S.W. 2d 758 (Tex. 1942). However, the law is very clear that a wrongful garnishment happens when your judgment creditor in fact knows you have property inside Texas that is subject to execution adequate to satisfy the judgment but he goes forward with a garnishment instead. See King v. Tom, 352 S.W. 2d 910, 913 (Tex. Civ. App.-- El Paso 1961, no writ); Griffin v. Cawthon, 77 S.W. 2d 700, 702 (Tex. Civ. App.-- Fort Worth 1934, writ ref 'd).

Your judgment creditor has a duty to make a reasonable inquiry to figure out whether you have any sort of nonexempt property in the State of Texas that he can seize by using a writ of execution. See Massachusetts v. Davis, 160 S.W. 2d 543 (Tex. Civ. App.-- Austin), aff 'd in part and rev 'd in part on other grounds, 168 S.W. 2d 216 (Tex. 1942), cert. Denied, 320 U.S. 210 (1943).

The way your judgment creditor may make a reasonable investigation is usually with Interrogatories in Aid of Judgment. If you get such interrogatories, it is your obligation to respond to them completely and truthfully under oath. You cannot hide your assets and then make a claim that your judgment creditor wrongfully garnished your bank account.

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Written Interrogatories in Federal District Court Litigation

Discovery is permitted in civil litigation in both Federal District Courts, and also in Bankruptcy Courts pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP). While depositions are permitted the use of other discovery methods is often more cost effective. Written interrogatories are extremely useful in obtaining the facts, witnesses and existence of documents that support the opposing party's claims or defenses. They are also particularly useful in obtaining facts and information when a party wishes to take a deposition, but does not want to do so until pertinent facts and information have been ascertained.

The scope of discovery under FRCP Rule 26(b) is very broad. "Parties may obtain discovery regarding any nonprivileged matter that is relevant to any party's claim or defense - including the existence, description, nature, custody, condition, and location of any documents or other tangible things and the identity and location of persons who know of any discoverable matter. For good cause, the court may order discovery of any matter relevant to the subject matter involved in the action. Relevant information need not be admissible at the trial if the discovery appears reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence."

Written interrogatories to the other party are permitted pursuant to Rule 33 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. However, unless leave of court is obtained a party may serve on any other party no more than 25 written interrogatories, including all discrete subparts. Some courts may have local rules that further restrict the number of written interrogatories.

An interrogatory may relate to any matter that may be inquired into under FRCP Rule 26(b). An interrogatory is not objectionable merely because it asks for an opinion or contention that relates to fact or the application of law to fact, but the court may order that the interrogatory need not be answered until designated discovery is complete, or until a pretrial conference or some other time.

The responding party must serve its answers and any objections within 30 days after being served with the interrogatories. Each interrogatory must, to the extent it is not objected to, be answered separately and fully in writing under oath.

The grounds for objecting to an interrogatory must be stated with specificity. Any ground not stated in a timely objection is waived unless the court, for good cause, excuses the failure.

The person who makes the answers must sign them, and the attorney who objects must sign any objections.

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Settlement of Property Disputes in Australia

Property disputes have a tendency to get very ugly and create rifts between entire families. In Australia, family courts have a four step approach to resolving such property disputes. Here's how these property disputes are approached by the family courts in Australia:

Ascertain Net Assets

Property disputes are always resolved by taking into account the entire property of the parties involved. The court first appoints someone to ascertain the entire net worth of all the combined assets of the property. In case of married couples, the assets include everything acquired before, after or during the period of marriage as well as separation. This appropriation takes into account everything of value, including household products such as furniture and other effects. The court also tries to ascertain all the financial resources of the contesting parties. This would usually also include prospective entitlements and bequeaths. Other issues such as taxation and stamp duties are also taken into account.  

Assess Contribution to the Asset Pool

The next step of the process is to assess both parties' contribution to the net pool and the marriage. This is not only a financial contribution, but also non financials. In case one of the contesting parties is a home maker, this evaluation can take into account contributions such as gifts and bequeaths that you enter into the marriage with. Other physical contribution such as taking care of the children and management of other important household activities are also considered.

Assessment of Future Needs

Both parties in a property settlement dispute have some prospective needs and these needs are taken into account as well. This usually includes a range of factors such as health, earning capacity, age, child support and financial circumstances of other important relationships. Contribution based adjustments may be made when considering these specific factors.  

Proposed Settlement

This is the final step in the settlement process. The proposed settlement is performed to ascertain just and equitable distribution for both the parties. The court attempts to include an appropriate blend of all assets to reach a settlement where both parties have access to both immediately available assets as well as assets which may mature at a later stage. Once an agreement is reached between the two parties, there are two methods of formalizing it. You can opt for getting consent orders through the court or can make financial agreements under the family law act. Your lawyers can advise as to which of these options is the most appropriate considering your individual circumstances.

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Defining Lemon Law: What Is a Lemon?

Defined as a car that is found to be defective beyond repair and therefore unable to serve its purpose, owning a "lemon" can be one of the most difficult and frustrating events. A person who owns a lemon, or a defective vehicle, is one that was unaware at the time of purchase that the car would be defective or have flaws too great and too irreparable to be useful. There are laws, though, enacted in every one of the 50 U.S. states that protect these consumers who have purchased a lemon. These laws are entitled lemon laws.

Varying from state to state, a lemon law is a statute that has been enacted in the state to protect a consumer who has purchased a faulty vehicle from suffering the severe financial consequences of trying to repair, sell, or simply rid of the vehicle. While most of the statutes differ from each other in one way or another, filing an effective lemon law claim can result in a person obtaining some type of settlement or recovery for their losses or projected losses. This settlement can come in the form of a cash payout or a replacement vehicle. In some cases, a dealership or manufacturing company can be held responsible and be forced to repurchase the vehicle back from the owner.

A lemon law claim can come in a variety of forms, from a defective SUV to sports car to a pick-up truck to a motorcycle, and all types of motor vehicles in between. Only with a representative should you pursue a claim however. Similar to auto accidents, a person with a lemon will find it extremely difficult to litigate on their own behalf. Knowing that a person may not necessarily be fully aware of their rights and the laws, dealerships and manufacturing companies are known to take advantage of their customers when handling a lemon law claim. They may try to tell the vehicle owner that the damage is repairable or that the vehicle is in fact, not a lemon. The truth of the matter is that they are a profit-driven organization that is solely looking out for their own best interests, which may not coincide with your best interests.

There are many different aspects of this type of case to take into consideration, including what type of vehicle you have purchased, how the vehicle was "sold" to you, whether the dealership or manufacturer knew about the defects, and whether the person who sold the car lied in regards to the vehicle being a lemon. It is your responsibility to get the legal help that you not only need, but that you deserve as well if you fear that you have purchased a lemon, or a vehicle that is defective beyond repair. You should not have to suffer financial damages due to a manufacturer's or dealership's mistakes. You need the help of a lemon law attorney right away.

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On the Concept of Lawyer's Club

Finding a good lawyer can actually be a daunting task for some. I have seen many lawsuits going haywire simply because of a lack of effective communication between the client and his advocate. With due respect to the noble profession, most of the professional practitioners are busy like hell, and they don't have time even to pay attention to what the client might be actually talking about. Most lawyers are playing a dual role that of a solicitor and of an advocate at the same time. Doing justice to every client's grievances and specific demands for redressal becomes often impossible for the law practitioner who would rather want to recast the main issue in a pre-conceived framework that may or may not suit the actual case. Such a prejudice might often spoil the merit of the case.

There already is a clear division between the lawyers who practise civil procedures, and those who appear in the trials of the criminals, suspects and convicts. It's no surprise that in the lower courts, lawyers dealing in the criminal lawsuits actually begin to think in the criminals' paradigm. As most of them do not have any professional expertise in the crime psychology and the related disciplines, for the sake of their own profession, often want to get themselves in the shoes of the criminal or the suspect in order to get down to the stark reality, or even to find the proper alibi when defending. Within a framework where the judiciary process is slow to say the least, there is every possibility that another suit of a different motif and of different merit would intervene while the advocate himself was busy becoming the victim or the perpetrator of crime in the former case already at hand. In such a situation, our learned friend would normally try either of the two things: either he might want to slow down the second suit a little so that he has enough time to get out of the first one, or he would judge the second in the perspective of the first. Eventually, both are on the wrong side. Nonetheless, if one pursues a survey in the pattern how time is elapsed towards the beginning of the suits, he would find enough data to support the above view, more so in countries like India where the judiciary is slow enough. In no country in the world, the crime rate would ever match the rate of disposal of the suits by the judiciary, not even in the USA. Lawyers do have a busy life.

Here comes the concept of a free-floating agent like the lawyers' club. Personally, I have been a member of one such online club for a couple of years now, and I must say that the concept works to some extent, though how much practicable the concept is in view of the actual persuasion of the suits, is still a matter of debate. The basic concept is of having an open forum of advocates from various fields of specialisation; say an open market of opinions, instead of a close door small chamber of the advocate or a law firm, where a limited number of opinions are available at any given point of time. The client, whether the plaintiff or not, may present his case openly before the panel, concealing the real identity if necessary for the sake of privacy to be maintained, and the agora of the learned professionals are free to write back their opinions, suggestions, recommendations etc. If the client finds one of the answers realistic or even closer to his hearts, he might then continue the discussion with the advocate or attorney at a personal level. This conversation then might lead to an actual presentation before some court of law with appropriate jurisdiction.

However, two real problems are there. One, the client has to be smart enough to find and judge the proper answer from the host of diverse opinions, which in most cases do not work for the client, if a victim himself, often fails to see the reason and rationale; two, often a problem of jurisdiction arises, the lawyer who gave the right answer may not be authorised to proceed in the jurisdiction where the actual incident has taken place. A wider network of the professionals is necessary to resolve such issues.

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Your Judgment Debtor

I am not a lawyer, I am a Judgment Broker. This article is my opinion, and not legal advice, based on my experience in California, and laws vary in each state. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

Before any money can be paid from the sale of a judgment, or any money can be recovered on a judgment, it is essential to precisely identify your judgment debtor.

It is critical to know exactly who your judgment debtor is, and what available assets they may have, before trying to sue someone or to collect a judgment. After that, one needs to know for sure that the judgment is correct and effective.

Judgments can be flawed, making them very difficult to recover. There may be important issues to resolve, before a judgment can be collected. It is absolutely necessary to determine whether or not the judgment is enforceable.

The first issue is, who is named on the lawsuit that later turned into a judgment? Only persons or entities specifically mentioned inside the body of the judgment will owe you money. One cannot count on the captions, which are the abbreviated names listed at the top of judgments. Judgments specify exactly who is liable and what they owe, only in their body.

Many lawsuits do not name the entity or person that owes the money correctly or specifically enough. Some lawsuits create judgments that can never be enforced.

Common mistakes in lawsuits are not correctly spelling people's names, not paying enough attention to a company's DBA or corporate status, and not researching the defendants enough before suing them. Also, the proof of service is very important. A defective proof of service or an incorrect name, can get the judgment set aside (vacated).

As a judgment broker, I see many thousands of judgments. I have seen a few judgments that listed the defendant's age, date of birth, partial social security number, and a current address, within the body of the judgment. That is simply awesome, I wish every judgment showed all that information.

All too often, judgments against debtors with common names end up worthless. If you sue Dan Debtor, who seems to stay at 123 Cheaters Lane, there may be potential problems.

What if the judgment debtor's Dad, Son, Grandfather, and Uncle, all have the exact same name? What if your judgment debtor's name is very common, and he was only visiting where he was served notice of the lawsuit? What if he never lived, paid rent, or paid bills, at that address?

What if you won your judgment by default? All of the sudden, you may not know for sure which Dan Debtor owes you the money. It may be very troublesome to do examinations, levies, or garnishments, as it will be so easy for a Dan Debtor to say "it's not me, it's my...".

In that default judgment situation, it is best to serve possible judgment debtors first, and get them into court, to iron out the "is this the right judgment debtor?" question, before wasting time and money, looking for assets of the wrong person; or paying a Sheriff to possibly levy the wrong person's assets.

Always be certain to name and identify the right person or entity in your lawsuit, and when you are trying to recover a judgment. There should never be any confusion about who exactly is, your judgment debtor.

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