The Court Of Public Opinion

My mom told me she has a living will. That way she’s going to avoid probate

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard this when a new person finds out I was a living trust lawyer.

They go on to say, She got one of those forms at the seniors’ center. You know, the one she can fill out herself. They even witnessed it for her.

I hate it when this comes up, because I have to set the record straight, I have to let the person know that a living will and a living trust are two different instruments that serve two different purposes.

One, the living will, is your statement that If I am terminally ill or mortally injured (I’m using simple language here to get the point across), then don’t hook me up to life support that will never return me to life. It’s the issue that’s currently being fought in Florida, with Governor Bush signing a law to keep a woman alive over her family’s wishes and a court ruling.

Her living will has nothing to do with avoiding probate. It is a health care document. Really it should be called a death desire, but our society can’t handle that bluntness.

A living trust, on the other hand, IS a probate avoiding document.

Basically, probate is used to transfer property you own when you die. If you have a will, your executor uses the probate court to carry out the terms of your will. If you die without a will, the laws of your state has statutes that describe where your property goes and who is in charge of getting it there.

So, if you don’t own any property when you die, then (generally…there are always exceptions) there is no need for probate.

This is where the living trust steps in. It called a living trust because it is created while you are living.

When you create a trust, you transfer title to your property to the trustee of the trust. You, as an individual, no longer own the property.

So, if you die, no probate is needed (remember, there are always exceptions), since YOU don’t own the property. The property is owned by the trustee of the trust. The trust instrument instructs him/her on what to do with the property upon your death.

A living trust is a LOT more complicated to set up and maintain than a living will. They accomplish different tasks.

So, when you hear that a loved one has a living will to avoid probate, it might be smart to ask a few questions.

Good luck and until next time,

Phil Craig

P.S. Feel free to forward this on to any friends.

Phil Craig, All Rights Reserved

Phil Craig is a licensed attorney and entreprenuer. He started practicing law at age 25 in 1979. He does not take on any more clients, but is advisor to some of the biggest names in the internet world. He shares his knowledge gained over the last 25 years at his Living Trust Secrets newsletter site: click here=========>http://www.LivingTrustSecrets.com

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Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws. Plato.

Identity theft, one of the fastest growing crimes in America, is a federal crime under the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act. Bad people or con men usually find ways to get around this law. Identity fraud occurs when a con artist illegitimately uses your identity to make a frightening number of financial and personal transactions in your name, leaving you - the ID theft victim, responsible for what might turn out to be a mind-boggling turmoil in your life. Last year ID fraud crimes topped the list of complaints reported to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the governmental agency addressing the problem of identity fraud, for the fourth consecutive year.

The FTC estimates that ten million people are victims of ID theft each year. Perhaps the only people minting money are the conmen and identity theft lawyers! Determining the exact scope and financial impact of id theft on people and businesses is difficult. According to a survey conducted by Privacy Right Clearing Group, victims spend from $50 to $2000 on costs related to ID theft, not including identity theft lawyers’ fees. Since ID fraud is a complex crime you may not be able to clear your name as fast as you would like. Bureaucratic financial institutions move slowly, partly to protect you. But if ID theft recovery procedures fail to resolve the problem, you should get in touch with identity theft lawyers. Credit issuers and reporting agencies are sometimes slow in responding to complaints from consumers. The threat of lawsuits can provide some impetus.

If you believe you have been a victim of identity fraud and all steps to restore your name and credit fail, contact top identity theft lawyers in your area immediately, to minimize the damage to your personal and financial accounts, as well as your credit report and reputation. Thanks to the nature of the crime, most identity thieves are never found. So, in order to clear your name, you patiently need to work with the law enforcement agencies and identity theft lawyers, assisting them when you can. Remember, justice moves slowly, and ultimately you will be proven on the side of right, and your life can go return to normal. This is usually a slow process, but it is a necessary evil we all live with.

Keith Londrie II is a well known author. For more information on Identity Theft, please visit Identity Theft for a wealth of information. You may also want to visit keith’s own web site at http://keithlondrie.com/

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Does anyone go to law school to run a small business? How about to become a salesperson? Probably not. Attorneys go to law school for many reasons, but being a business owner or closing sales is not one of them.

But thats what happened, isn’t it? Instead of the noble vocation of practicing law envisioned, many attorneys find out quickly about the harsh realities of running a professional legal business. They learn that:

The billable hour is everything

They’ve become the salesperson they never wanted to be

They own and operate a small business

The last point is sometimes the hardest issue to face. Owning your own business means that bringing in revenue and keeping the doors open may get pushed aside and replaced by the many details of actually running a small business.

Whos Running the Store?

Many attorneys find that business matters overtake their practice, and billable hours and revenues decline. So a secretary or administrator is hired to run that side of the business. Not a bad idea. But who ends up running their business — the staff person or the owner? Do you want to hand over your livelihood to someone else? What happens when that person leaves? Does 90% of your administrative knowledge also leave or are you stuck with an underperforming employee who can hold your business hostage with their knowledge? That can be a dangerous way to run a business.

There are solutions to this issue, but the one that may work the best is sometimes the hardest to find time for: writing and maintaining a procedures manual so that anyone can step in and take over when needed.

Why is this Important?

If procedures are streamlined and duties written exactly as they should occur, attorneys are free to do what they truly love to do practice law. But thats not the only advantage. If procedures are written:

a staff member can take over the non-legal, non-billable matters that take so much of the attorneys precious billable time.

correspondence and pleadings will have the same quality of work product, look, and accuracy.

clients are confident that consistent, high quality service is assured. Outstanding quality, accuracy, and service are a priceless commodity in todays highly competitive legal market.

How Do I Write a Manual?

Option A: The attorney could do that themselves, but again, thats a waste of valuable billable time.

Option B: The attorney could entrust the staff to record the steps that compose their daily duties, but that probably wouldnt streamline the process since no new techniques or insights would be gained.

Option C: Outsource the process to a knowledgeable, trained consultant specializing in law firms and their procedures.

Obviously, Option C would probably work best. A consultant assesses the true needs of the firm, suggests options for different categories, observes the duties and processes employed by the staff, recommends steps to streamline needed procedures or eliminate unnecessary ones, and documents and writes the procedures manual.

However, care must be taken in finding and hiring the right consultant. There are many qualified Human Resource professionals who consult with small businesses; however, a professional law firm is unique in its services, confidentiality issues, practice, and procedures.

What to Look For

When hiring a consultant, look for the following qualities, body of knowledge, and experience in the:

day-to-day operations of a law practice

client confidentiality issues inherent in a law practice

legal terminology

different types of law and resulting practice procedures and requirements

organization of a well-run practice

techniques to increase staff participation

recruiting of qualified staff

training of legal staff to adopt an ownership attitude

legal marketing and business development

creation of additional profit centers

The right consultant who can assess the true needs of the practice and apply that knowledge to streamline processes, document procedures, increase client satisfaction, originate new profit centers, encourage a staff ownership attitude, and increase the attorneys billable hours is truly worth their weight in gold. They can help change your PRACTICE into a BUSINESS that works for you and that can run its daily operations without you. Leaving you to do what you really desire — practice law.

Copyright 2005

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Once you find the right staten island accident lawyers for your case, you can relax and focus instead on your daily routine.

There are various techniques and strategies that can help you hire a Staten Island accident lawyers. Start by understanding the type of case you have, and the type of services offered by various lawyers.

Choose the staten island accident lawyers who puts much of his or her practice into the areas that represent the case you have. Study and examine each lawyers you are considering using this same process. Subsequent reviewing and research will help you narrow down the choices so you can find the lawyers who are really right for you. When choosing a lawyers to fight your accident case, keep in mind that it is absolutely essential for you to choose an extremely competent person for the job. You only get one chance to fight your compensation case. Imagine losing the case, not because you are in the wrong, but because the lawyers you chose did not have the necessary expertise to fight your case. The lawyers or the firm might have a proven track record in real estate or bankruptcy cases, but that experience probably will not win your accident compensation case. It is extremely important to check the credentials and reputation of the Staten Island accident lawyers you choose.

Another thing to keep in mind is the lawyers must be ready to take your case to the court. You also must be sure that the Staten Island accident lawyers you choose actually fights your case for you. In many case, you meet the lawyers to discuss your case, but when the real work begins, the assistants or the paralegals take over. Car accidents are usually considered to be personal injury cases in court. An experienced accident lawyers can look into the details of the lawsuit to ensure proper justice is ried out.

Staten Island accident lawyers are specialized in this field and are experts in dealing with such cases. Accident lawyers can help deal with the details of the accident such as witnesses, details of the guilty party, filing a police report, and other information that might be useful while filing a lawsuit.

Most owners are covered by insurance these days. the Staten Island accident lawyers can be invaluable in such cases where the negotiations would be required to ensure that the injured party gets all the necessary reimbursement for the trauma faced. Accident lawyers will keep in mind all the injured party’s legal rights and go through various options before arriving at the best solution. Staten Island accident lawyers can assist the injured party to get compensation for medical bills, rehabilitation expenses, disability claims, minor fractures and sufferings, as well as the loss of income due to the accident. Many other small details would also be taken e of over by a accident lawyers.

Since these lawyers are specialized in this field, their expertise could be of immense help when involved in a accident.

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