Contrary to popular belief, once someone has died, in most situations there is no reason to rush to the courthouse to record the will and qualify as executor, nor is there a specific deadline to do so. The first priority is typically to make funeral and burial arrangements and see them through. Next, take some time to gather information about the decedent’s assets and debts. Where did he or she have bank accounts, investment accounts, retirement accounts, life insurance, and real property? How were those assets titled? Were there beneficiaries named? Any asset in the sole name of the decedent and for which there was no beneficiary named will pass through the decedent’s probate estate. The court is interested only in those assets passing through the probate estate, and not in assets that will pass directly to a joint owner or to a named beneficiary.
Once you have a good understanding of the decedent’s assets, consult with an experienced trusts and estates attorney. Depending on how much will be passing through the probate estate, the attorney may recommend that you simply record the original will in court without qualifying as executor. Often if the total value of the probate estate is below $50,000, there is no reason for an executor to qualify – and to take on the responsibilities (including the filing of an inventory and accounting(s)) and liabilities associated with serving as executor. There are other ways to close out what’s considered a “small estate” without going through the full probate process.
If there are insufficient assets to cover the decedent’s outstanding debts, the estate is considered “insolvent,” and debts must be paid in a specific order as prescribed by the Virginia Code. It is extremely important that the executor pay debts in this order as opposed to paying debts as he or she sees fit, because the executor can be held personally liable for debts of the decedent if he or she fails to follow that order.
On occasion, I will meet with an individual who has already qualified as executor unnecessarily, usually because the value of the estate he reported to the court includes the value of a retirement account or life insurance policy which names beneficiaries. The steps we then must take in order to relieve the executor from going through the involved, often lengthy probate process are more complicated than if the executor had spoken with us before qualifying.
If a loved one has named you as executor of his or her will, you can save yourself a lot of time, effort and expense by seeking the advice of an experienced attorney before qualifying as executor in court.
Ask Kit Kat – Learning From Dogs
Hook Law Center: Kit Kat, what can you tell us about dogs being used in medical research which can actually help humans?
Kit Kat: Yes, there is some ground-breaking information on this topic. Here’s the latest. It turns out that dogs make excellent research subjects for scientists who want to locate the precise gene which is responsible for controlling the development of specific diseases. While humans have approximately 1 million genetic markers, dogs only have 170,000. That sure reduces the amount of what sometimes ends up being random testing. Scientists came to this conclusion back in 1999 when Emmanuel Mignot of the Stanford Center for Sleep Sciences and Medicine was able to isolate the gene responsible for narcolepsy in Doberman pinscher puppies. Dobermans are prone to narcolepsy. That finding led to identifying the gene in humans.
There are other examples where different dog breeds have higher than normal ratios of specific diseases. Cancer is more prevalent in golden retrievers, epilepsy in beagles, and autoimmune disorders in Siberian huskies. As this realization has grown, new grants from prestigious institutions such as the National Institutes of Health are becoming available. While some scoff at the idea, others say it is no more unreasonable than using mice, heretofore the standard animal used to further research for humans.
Also, scientists are beginning to tap the huge reservoir of household canines for information collection. The estimated number of pet dogs in the United States is 77.8 million! Elinor Karkson of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard says they are an “…incredible resource for science.” No one knows their dog better than its owner. Their insights and record collection are building a bank of data that will be used in medical research. The Broad Institute has invited dog owners to participate in an online survey of 10 questions since October 2015 called Darwin’s Dogs. By June 2016, dog owners had answered more than 616,000 questions, and volunteered almost 7,000 pets as available for DNA sampling. It’s a win for everybody! Stay tuned as we learn more from out canine friends. (http://www.ozy.com/fast-forward/what-dogs-can-teach-us=about-ocd-and-cancer/68623) (8-29-16)
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Hook Law Center encourages you to share this newsletter with anyone who is interested in issues pertaining to the elderly, the disabled and their advocates. The information in this newsletter may be copied and distributed, without charge and without permission, but with appropriate citation to Hook Law Center, P.C. If you are interested in a free subscription to the Hook Law Center News, then please telephone us at 757-399-7506, e-mail us at mail@hooklawcenter.com or fax us at 757-397-1267.The post My Loved One Just Died and I’m Named as Executor . . . Now What? first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>
The most common cases in the Orange County family law courts tend to involve married couples, i.e. husband and wives. There are, however, times when a case is a little different and is likely to involve single parents. The way the law in Orange County operates with respect to single parents can be a bit different from the way it works when dealing with married couples. In most states, the rights of the single parents, especially of the father, are a bare minimum unless they decide to ask for them.
The basis of California law in terms of single parents is that a single parent, i.e. the father, needs to prove that he is the father, as opposed to the vice versa assumption in the couple’s cases. This article will highlight the key aspects of the California law with respect to single parents, thus highlighting the legal path they can adopt to seek legal protection and rights.
The Automatic Custody of the Child is with the Mother, Pending Establishment of Paternity
There is seldom a doubt regarding the identity of the child’s mother. This is because the mother is the one who gives birth and the hospital records etc. make it impossible to doubt that. In family law, a single parent mother will have what amounts to de facto physical and legal custody of the child from the day of the birth of the child, until the paternity is determined, i.e. that the father of the child is in fact the biological father, which is generally determined by genetic DNA testing. What is important to understand is that when married couples have a child, there is a legal presumption that the husband and wife are the biological parents of the child. When couples have a child but are not married, there is no legal presumption that the father is in fact the biological father of the child, and that can only be established by either genetic DNA testing or by stipulation of both parties that the father is in fact the biological father of the child.
The Father Must Prove He is the Father
Again, any child that is born out of wedlock means that the mother is the custodial parent, and the father has to take two major legal steps to have some degree of authority or control over his child’s life. The first step is that he needs to prove that he is the rightful father in terms of biology. The second aspect is to go to the court or an Orange County mediator to get custody or visitation of their child. Paternity can be proved by the father signing the acknowledgment form and the mother signing it too or by petitioning in the court and asking for a paternity test to settle the issue.
A Proven Father Generally Must Support The Child
Once the paternity is proven or acknowledged, the father now will have the same rights as a married father would have, but that also means that the father could be expected to pay child support depending on the income of the parties and percentage of custodial time that each party has as determined by the court. These funds are going to be given to the mother and the amount can be decided mutually through Orange County divorce mediation or by Orange County family law proceedings.
Gerald A. Maggio is a trained Orange County divorce mediator who has amicably resolved cases many cases out of court, as well as an experienced divorce and family law attorney. Mr. Maggio founded California Divorce Mediators in 2012 with the belief that although “not every marriage can be saved, every family can” and a mission to save families from the financial and emotional distress associated with traditional divorce litigation. California Divorce Mediators is located in Irvine, California, and serves the Orange County area and other counties in California offering divorce mediation, child custody mediation and mediation of other family law matters.
Now, several technology companies have set out to change this situation for the better.
Cognoa is a new company founded by Dr. Dennis Wall, an integrative biologist who has run research labs at both Harvard and Stanford. He has used his research to develop an assessment protocol that predicts a child’s risk for autism or other developmental delay with 90 percent accuracy.
Parents can download the Cognoa app to a mobile device. In just 10 minutes, parents can complete a confidential questionnaire and upload a few videos of their child completing a specific activity. A team of doctors and scientists reviews the profile, and then gets back to parents a few days later with a risk assessment. The resulting information, which parents can give to their family doctor, should assist in getting a more timely diagnosis.
Startups are not the only companies taking on autism. Tech giant Google recently announced a partnership with Autism Speaks to assist in the sequencing of DNA from 10,000 autism patients and their relatives.
Through the use of Google Genomics, genetic researchers will not only be able to access all of the genetic data in one place, but they will also be able to match that data in dynamic ways, such as by region or by sequence. According to Wired magazine, genetic data takes up a lot of storage space, and the use of Google Genomics will give researchers a major leg up in the quest to find the genetic factors that influence autism.
According to ABC News, Google will open its autism database to anyone who would like to access it, meaning that scientists and researchers anywhere in the world can use and analyze the data.
Pioneers of Elder Law – For over 30 years, Gilfix & La Poll Associates LLP has innovated creative legal solutions to help you manage and plan the future of your estate.
To contact a special needs planning lawyer visit http://www.gilfix.com/ or call 800.244.9424.
The Wuths, both teachers, alleged that the Medical Center did not send Laboratory Corporation of America the information it needed to look for a genetic defect in the correct location – an oversight that resulted in the birth of a son, now 6 years old, with an IQ of less than 70 who cannot walk. The baby was born in 2008 with unbalanced chromosomal translocation. The problem can result in either missing genetic material or extra genetic material in a person’s DNA.
The result would have been entirely different had the hospital sent the correct information to the lab performing the tests. The couple chose to sue Valley Medical Center and the Laboratory Corporation of America for the wrongful birth of their son. Had they known about the condition in advance, they would have chosen to abort the fetus.
Their court case resulted in a $50 million jury settlement.
Some see wrongful death lawsuits as a travesty in justice and claim they demean and denigrate the value of human life. Interestingly, cases of wrongful birth are on the rise. The justice system often finds for the families who, through no fault of their own, end up facing millions of dollars in lifelong childcare because of a medical error.
The medical expenses the Wuth family faces are enormous, and paying those bills is a never-ending process. While waiting for their case to go to trial, they may have been struggling to keep up with the expenses, wondering how they would manage them in addition to their usual financial obligations. Even with an impaired family member requiring extraordinary levels of care, life must move forward.
The Wuths might have befitted from litigation funding, also referred to as a lawsuit loan or pre-settlement funding. Litigation funding assists plaintiffs in paying for medical expenses along with their mortgage, car loan, student loan, utilities and/or rent.
Applying for a lawsuit loan is a user-friendly process that only involves filling out an application online or filling one out on the phone with a staff member. The applicant must have a lawyer hired to begin the application process, and he or she needs to provide case details and an estimated award figure, calculated by the attorney of record.
Once the litigation funding company has the details of the case, it is reviewed quickly, with any funds approved sent to the plaintiff’s bank account within 48 hours. When the money arrives, the plaintiff may pay medical bills immediately and budget out the remainder for “usual” expenses, knowing they have funds to see them through until their case is resolved.
While litigation funding is not for everyone, it allows many people to know they do not need to worry about how to pay their bills while waiting for justice.
Daren Monroe writes for Litigation Funding Corp. To learn more about lawsuit funding and litigation funding, visit http://www.litigationfundingcorp.com/.
The post Knowingly Aborting an Abnormal Fetus Poses a Delicate Ethical Issue first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>His father acquiesced and Robert McConachie joined the United States Marine Corps. He was killed in action in Okinawa on June 14, 1945, in the final months of the war. He was just 18 years old when he gave his life for his country. However, Pvt. McConachie’s remains went unidentified for nearly seventy years.
In 1987, Pvt. McConachie’s still unidentified remains were delivered to the Army’s Central Identification Lab in Hawaii. Recent advancements in DNA testing, however, have helped the Pentagon link them to his brother. This year, nearly seven decades after his death, Army analysts positively identified Pvt. McConachie’s remains using DNA analysis and dental records.
Pvt. McConachie made his final trip home to Michigan this year. The Detroit native was buried on November 3 with full military honors at Fort Custer National Cemetery west of Battle Creek. The fallen soldier’s family now has closure knowing that he has been laid to rest in his home state of Michigan.
On this Veterans Day, it is an important reminder to thank those who serve our country in the armed forces. It is also a time to reflect on those, like Pvt. McConachie, who made the ultimate sacrifice so that we may continue to live in a free country.
If you are a veteran and need assistance with a disability benefits claim, contact the experts at Legal Help For Veterans. You can reach us at 800/693.4800 or online at www.legalhelpforveterans.com.
To learn more about Pvt. McConachie’s story, please visit: http://patch.com/michigan/wyandotte/world-war-ii-soldier-finally-laid-rest-0
Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact an attorney about your PTSD, TBI, Mental Health, Sexual Assault, Hearing Loss and Tinnitus, TDIU, Medical Malpractice, or Aid and Attendance claim, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800
The post World War II Veteran Laid to Rest in Michigan first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>
If you are divorced or going through a divorce, the topic near at the top of the agenda is going to be child support, unless of course you don’t have children. The issue of child support is complicated when some partners are unwilling to pay. In certain circumstances, the partner with primary custody of the children might not know their full rights concerning child support. Here is a list of answers to questions clarifying when the partner is entitled for child support:
1. “I am pregnant and getting divorced, am I eligible for child support?”
It’s rare for pregnant women to separate from their spouse, but it does happen. File for child support as soon after the child’s birth as possible. Your spouse is also liable to pay one-half of the child’s medical expenses not covered or reimbursed by insurance.
2. “I was married for a short time, but found out I was pregnant, now he’s says the baby isn’t his, but I know it is, so can I make him pay child support?
If a man is married and his wife has a child during marriage, he is legally presumed to be the father unless proven otherwise. If your spouse declines to pay child support or tells you that the baby isn’t his, the only way for him to fight that legal presumption is to seek a genetic DNA test to prove parentage. If the DNA matches with your child, the legal presumption is confirmed as fact. However, if there is no DNA match, the husband has legal ground to fight against paying for child support.
3. We share the custody of our kids and are separated, not divorced, but my partner’s name is not on the birth certificate nor is there a court order in place. Can I still file for child support?
If your partner and you have a mutual understanding to share custody of the kids, that’s great, but in order for your partner to pay child support, you need to file for it. The better option is to go to a divorce mediator to make a settlement agreement, which includes child support. The mediator can also tell you about the state’s laws regarding the payments.
Gerald A. Maggio is an experienced Orange County divorce and family law attorney and family law attorney located in Irvine, California, serving the Orange County and Riverside areas. Mr. Maggio assists clients with legal issues including divorce, legal separation, divorce mediation, child custody, prenuptial agreements, stepparent adoptions, and other family law issues. Mr. Maggio has practiced law in California since 1999, and founded The Maggio Law Firm in 2005, focusing exclusively on divorce and family law matters.
Paternity frequently complicates the process of determining custody in cases where the parents were never married. If either party denies the paternity of the father, paternity will be addressed in court. It should be noted that unmarried fathers who initially contest their paternity may have difficulty obtaining custody or visitation later on.
Fathers who are not married may need to establish their paternity and associated rights through a court-ordered DNA test and/or a paternity action. In Virginia, the first step to establishing paternity rights is filing a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity form (if the parents agree on the biological identity of the child’s father) or a Petition to Establish Paternity (if they do not) .
Once the initial steps of establishing paternity are completed, the determination of child custody and support is very similar for never-married parents and for parents going through a divorce. The primary purpose of custody and support laws is to ensure that the child receives financial support and physical care.
Unmarried couples usually decide on child custody issues outside of court, because the lack of divorce means that it is not necessary for the courts to get involved. Unmarried couples can work with a mediator, a family law counselor or an attorney to make a parenting agreement that outlines child support, custody and visitation.
If you are seeking to establish paternity and/or child custody following a breakup, hiring a skilled attorney is the first step, especially if you anticipate conflict with the other parent.
Contact a family law attorney with the McDevitt Law Office of call 1-571-223-7642.
The post Never-married parents face extra steps when establishing child custody first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>In some situations resulting in a death, the death was an accident or a caused by a careless individual. However, even in circumstances where a deliberate act caused a death, the charge of involuntary manslaughter may still apply.
Involuntary manslaughter may be the end result of a failure to carry out a legal duty specifically required to protect a human life or from the commission of an illegal act that is not a felony. The charge may also be laid as a result of the commission of a lawful act improperly or negligently carried out. In either case, a prosecuting attorney must corroborate two elements to prove the crime of involuntary manslaughter –- that a human was killed and the killing was unlawful.
An illegal killing is defined by the commission of an act, normally lawful, involving great risk of death or bodily harm, done without due care, circumspection and caution. The killing must also be perpetrated during an unlawful act (not a felony), dangerous to human life given the situation surrounding its commission.
A deliberate act causing death was the focal point of a Midwest case that resulted in a 23-year-old’s manslaughter conviction The defendant was at a party and struck another individual in the head with a beer bottle. The victim later died as a result of the blunt force trauma, which caused a blood clot in his brain. When the case was first tried, it ended with a hung jury. Jury members could not agree whether the defendant acted recklessly — or merely with reasonable force to allegedly assist a friend he perceived to be in a dangerous situation.
The case was retried, and the defendant was convicted on the basis of DNA evidence that showed that the beer bottle used to assault the victim was not the same bottle from which the defendant was drinking, which proved that he acted in a deliberate and reckless manner. He acquired a second bottle as a weapon as part of a distinct decision.
This particular area of law is complex, and depending on the circumstances of the case at hand, it may result in some unexpected outcomes. If you have been charged with involuntary manslaughter, do not wait to contact an experienced criminal defense lawyer.
Thomas C .Grajek is a criminal defense lawyer in Tampa, Lakeland, and Polk County Florida. To contact a DUI attorney or to learn more, visit http://www.flcrimedefense.com/ or call 863-688-4606.
The post What Does the Crime of Involuntary Manslaughter Involve? first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>A man in Jacksonville, Florida was accused of grand theft and organized fraud after touch DNA linked him to several crimes in 2013. Allegedly, the 71-year-old man scammed a woman who was taking cash out of an ATM. He showed the woman a folder that allegedly had cash in it and asked if she knew the location of the address on the front so he could return it. Just as she was about to speak, another man came along and indicated that he was familiar with the address. But he needed a ride to get there.
At this point, the second man was apparently able to convince the woman to take $6,000 out of her account, supposedly to show the man’s boss and earn a reward for returning the found money. The reward was to be $15,000. The three individuals climbed into the car and arrived at the address on the folder. The woman went into the store to speak to the employer about the found folder and her reward in returning it, only to discover that the two men were not employed there. No one knew anything about them. When she went back to her car, the two men and her money were gone.
The initial investigation uncovered very little evidence, but the Flagler County police had been taught to collect and store touch DNA. Use of the new forensic technique resulted in an arrest.
Touch DNA involves extracting skin cells from fingerprints. Proper collection requires a steady hand and careful preparation due to the size of the available sample.
The Flagler deputies were able to extract an identifiable sample of cells and determined the existence of a major contributor. The material was sent for analysis and entered into CODIS (Combined DNA Index System). It was matched to the 71-year-old man, whose DNA was on file as part of an extensive criminal record, including grand theft, robbery, money laundering and drug trafficking.
Use of the technology is still in preliminary stages, but it appears to have a high accuracy rate and a solid legal basis. Criminal defense lawyers are unlikely to object to it: touch DNA extraction does not involve taking samples directly from the alleged perpetrator, and a warrant is not needed to collect samples, which are taken from surfaces the person has already touched.
It remains to be seen how touch DNA technology will evolve over time. Each case will be different, and no one knows for sure how this new development will impact legal defense. No matter what changes come, everyone accused of a crime will still be entitled to a capable legal defense.
Thomas C .Grajek is a criminal defense lawyer in Tampa, Lakeland, and Polk County Florida. To contact a Polk County DUI lawyer or to learn more, visit http://www.flcrimedefense.com/ or call 863-688-4606.
The post Touch DNA May Change Conviction Rates in Criminal Offenses first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>The proposed legislation is called “Avonte’s law,” after Avonte Oquendo, a 14-year-old boy with autism who was found dead after he disappeared from his school in Queens.
The law would increase funding for a Department of Justice program that provides grants to police departments and other groups that allow them to supply tracking devices for people with Alzheimer’s disease. The law would allocate $10 million to expand the program to cover children with autism. The tracking device cost between $80 and $90 to purchase and a few dollars per month to operate. Interested parents would have free access to the devices, which can be sewn into clothing or worn around the wrist.
Use of the devices would be the decision of the parents, and local governments would decide exactly how they would be implemented. The devices can be programmed in different ways, for instance to alert authorities automatically when a child leaves a certain perimeter such as school grounds, or to become activated only when authorities are notified.
Avonte Oquendo disappeared from his school by the Queens waterfront in October. He had no prior history of running away. Due to severe autism, he was not able to communicate verbally, making him more vulnerable to danger. The New York Police Department, along with the boy’s family and volunteers, searched for him by every available means. Bloodhounds were put on the scent, divers searched the East River, and neighbors and subway riders saw the boy’s face on posters and heard announcements regarding his disappearance. His remains were discovered along the East River shoreline in January. DNA testing confirmed the identity of the body, and an investigation continues into the cause of death.
According to Sen. Schumer, the tracking equipment is “a high-tech solution to an age-old problem.” Research indicates that almost 50 percent of children with autism are prone to wandering or bolting, often to get away from noises that overstimulate them. Many are drawn to bodies of water because they seem soothing, which creates a significant drowning risk.
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The U.S. Supreme Court has delivered a decision that has enormous ramifications for criminal offenders and criminal defense attorneys. The Court handed down a ruling that says law enforcement officers may gather DNA samples without getting a warrant first and such a process does not violate the 4th Amendment (protection against unreasonable searches and seizures).
While the Court indicates gathering DNA is a minor intrusion, there are others that suggest it will exponentially increase police powers – powers that may well be open to abuse.
As it now stands, anyone arrested in Florida for a serious crime is expected to comply with the police, allowing them to collect a mouth swab. Criminal defense attorneys view this as one more insult to the tenet that everyone suspected of a crime and/or arrested is presumed innocent until proven guilty – another infringement of rights.
The hole one could drive a truck through is that DNA collected is often used to close other crimes. For instance, consider a criminal arrested for an assault charge who is then linked with an unrelated burglary because of a DNA sample. It is important to remember that just because someone’s DNA may be present at a crime scene does not mean that it is that individual who committed the offense in question. There are many reasons why someone’s DNA may be present.
Anytime the courts change a basic principle that links to an individual’s rights, there is the potential for abuse. It is not unusual for law enforcement to violate someone’s rights in the name of justice. That should never be the case.
Collection of DNA without a warrant is an invasion of privacy and is wrong on so many levels. What about the question of the 5th Amendment, a person’s right to remain silent? Does having to provide a DNA swab without the benefit of a warrant not violate a person’s right to remain silent? It forces alleged offenders into a situation where they are incriminating themselves without proper recourse to a defense attorney.
The ruling opens a can of worms that will likely be revisited. Interestingly, even the Supreme Court was clearly divided on the ruling, by a vote of five to four. Despite the police suggesting DNA is also used to prove people innocent, there is a fine line being crossed. No one knows what will come about as a result of it.
Thomas C .Grajek is a criminal defense lawyer in Tampa, Lakeland, and Polk County Florida. To contact a Lakeland criminal defense lawyer or to learn more, visit http://www.flcrimedefense.com/ or call 863-688-4606.
The post DNA Samples May Be Garnered from Criminal Suspects Without a Warrant first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>On Friday, a man was found guilty of second degree murder in Polk County. One piece of evidence was a tiny piece of DNA evidence on the shirt at the crime scene. This shirt was around the neck of the strangled victim. As a criminal defense attorney, you need to know how to determine if this DNA evidence is reliable.
- Was it the defendant’s? Was the testing done correctly?
- Is the lab that did the testing accredited?
- Was there contamination during DNA testing?
- Is the prosecutor’s DNA analyst competent to testify about these matters?
- Is there another explanation has how the DNA could have ended up at the scene (transfer DNA)?
- What expert is available to come to court to explain your defense to a jury?
If you are facing a serious criminal charge and your case involves DNA evidence, you need an Polk criminal lawyer that keeps up to date on the latest issues in DNA testing, science, and the law. Criminal defense attorneys have to educate themselves in these matters that make the difference between winning and losing your criminal case. Always ask the attorney you are thinking of retaining for your criminal case how often they attend legal seminars. Ask when was the last seminar the attorney attended? What was the subject matter and what issues did the seminar cover?
You need to have an experienced attorney attorney that knows the law, the science, and how to try a criminal case fighting for you in court.
Thomas C. Grajek 863-688-4606
Aggressive criminal defense of all felony, misdemeanor, sexual battery and DUI cases in Polk County, Florida.
The post Polk Criminal Lawyer Thomas C. Grajek attends National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers seminar on DNA evidence. first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>