SSG Advisors, LLC and Chiron Financial LLC filed the lawsuit against Daybreak Oil and Gas Inc., claiming that Daybreak violated an agreement among the three companies. The investment firms claim they are owed approximately $1.1 million.
According to court documents, the relationship among the parties began in May 2015. The engagement agreement, which was renewed on two occasions, called for SSG and Chiron to provide investment banking services to Daybreak.
The lawsuit claims that Daybreak failed to submit payment for three months under the most recent engagement agreement, which the firms claim is still active. The lawsuit also names Platinum Partners, LP; Maximillian Resources, LLC; and Zach Weiner, a portfolio manager based in New York City, as co-defendants.
The investment firms allege that Daybreak and Weiner held discussions about restructuring the company, without informing them. The lawsuit claims that Daybreak and Maximillian sold a significant portion of Daybreak’s assets to a third party, which was allegedly a breach of the engagement agreement. According to court documents, SSG and Chiron learned of the sale by reading a press release issued by Daybreak.
Gregory D. Jordan is an Oil and Gas lawyer in Austin. To learn more, visit http://www.theaustintriallawyer.com or call 512-419-0684.
The post Investment firms sue oil company, alleging breach of contract first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>On the other hand, there are things that you can do to avoid conflict in your family after you are gone. The first step, and perhaps the most important one, is to make sure that you know your family – both the good and the bad. You can love all your children and grandchildren very much and still recognize that one or more of them have serious financial or addiction problems that might not make them good choices as a fiduciary. You can love your family and recognize that some of your children do not get along and will not work together well. You may have a child who means well but really doesn’t understand the realities of financial planning or managing wealth and who needs a trust to protect his or her interests. You can have a child who is great with money but oblivious to the emotional interactions within the family. Once you have identified potential problems within the family, discuss with your attorney how to draft your documents to manage or avoid the potential conflicts you can already see.
For instance, if you have children who do not get along and you have determined that trust planning for them meets your goals, you might avoid making the children trustees of each other’s trusts. That way they do not have to be in conflict with one another over distributions from the trust and can focus, instead, on their relationship as siblings. This may be particularly true in instances where a trust is created for only one child as a result of an addiction issue. Depending on the circumstances, a professional trustee may even make sense. A no contest clause could also make sense in appropriate circumstances, especially where you are making an uneven distribution of your estate, or you have one or two descendants who like to cause trouble.
The second step is to know your assets and the relative importance and value that each member of the family places on such assets. For instance, if you have a family farm, it may be very important to maintain the farm as such while others may see it as a development opportunity. If your goal is to maintain the property as a family farm, you will want to take steps to ensure that this asset is controlled by family members who think as you do. If you have other assets that you can use to equalize bequests to your family, it may make sense to give the farm to one child who wants to maintain the farm, while giving the liquid assets to another who has no interest in farming. If you have multiple family members who value the farm or really any business, it may make sense to create a family LLC for the farm that you can run as a family while you are alive. Nothing, and I mean nothing, will pass on your values and traditions like incorporating your family into your business while you are alive. By doing so, you pass on your passions, your business strategies, your values in ways that make them truly alive for the next generations.
A similar issue arises with respect to tangible personal property. It is not uncommon for family members to fight over the distribution of tangible personal property. While most families ultimately work this issue out themselves, if only because the cost of legal help rarely makes sense, it can cause tensions within the family that may take a long time to clear up. By knowing the importance that your family members place on particular items of tangible personal property, you can alleviate these tensions in many cases while you are alive. You can give the tangibles away to particular people during your lifetime. This can be done one-on-one or at a family party where the children take turns choosing items. If you are concerned that the children may fight over things, you can even sell them and take a personal vacation.
The third step is to communicate with your family. It is rarely a good idea to keep your estate plan a secret from your family members. If you have decided that only one of your children should be a fiduciary or only one needs a trust or you have made some other uneven distribution of your estate, let all of the children know. Explain, while you can, why you have made your choices as you have. Usually, the family understands your decisions and, even if they do not like the decisions, they are willing to accept your decisions on the matter. After all, it is your money and you can do with it what you like. Secrecy in the family, especially where one family member has been favored by an ailing parent and the other family members feel isolated from that parent, is a leading cause of conflict that ultimately ends up resolved in court. Not just because one child feels left out, but because the trust within the family has been broken. Once you are gone, the opportunity is lost.
The fourth step is to encourage your named fiduciary to seek qualified legal counsel in connection with the administration of your estate. Some problems can be easily resolved with careful guidance of the fiduciary through the administration of the estate. It can also reduce conflict within the family to have a dispassionate third party communicate with the beneficiaries, explain the process etc., so that the focus of any disappointment or anger may not rest on the child named to act your fiduciary.
Addressing potential conflicts within the family before death with your attorney cannot guarantee that conflicts will not arise. However, an experienced estate planner like the attorneys at the Hook Law Center, can offer individualized advice and assistance to reduce the conflict while you are alive and to minimize the conflict after your death.
Ask Kit Kat – Kitten Nursery
Hook Law Center: Kit Kat, what can you tell us about the special kitten nursery in NYC?
Kit Kat: Well, they are doing a wonderful job and performing a unique service to the feline population of New York City. Leave it to New York—a city of 8 million people also has an outsized population of kittens. Breeding season is April to November, and kittens proliferate. This particular nursery is located on the Upper East Side at East 91st Street and was opened in 2014, because the ASPCA needed some way to deal with the high number of kittens. It can handle up to 300 kittens at a time. Once they reach 8 weeks of age and are spayed, they are transitioned to one of the regular ASPCA locations.
It takes a horde of volunteers to handle these little darlings. They need individual attention to become accustomed to handling by humans. Some have come to the nursery as young as a day old. The volunteers act as surrogate mothers. They feed them individually with tiny bottles of formula. They mimic the mother cat’s grooming with the use of a toothbrush. The grooming act, in turn, stimulates the kitten to feed and take the bottle. The volunteers also rub the kittens’ tummies with warm water to get them to use the litter box. Bubbles are blown at them to foster their hunting skills.
In the nursery’s two-year existence, it has handled 3,500 kittens! Kitten euthanasias have declined by 20 percent, because the kittens are able to get the care they need at a critical time in their development. Kittens from the same litter stay together and are given names starting with the same letter of the alphabet. “Orion, Ozzy and Osbourne in one cage; Hallie, Hamlet and Hiro in the next.” It’s a great service to the feline population. Often the mother does as much as she can for her kittens, but if she has to move suddenly because she feels threatened, frequently a kitten or two get lost in the shuffle. Thank goodness this safety net is here to help! (Andy Newman, “Two Rooms, 300 Kittens,” The New York Times, New York Region, November 23, 2016)
Distribution of This Newsletter
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 Intra-Family Conflict After Death – It’s Expensive first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>
This phenomenon of course has become extremely popular in nursing home injury lawsuits across the country. What’s been happening is nursing homes, as a condition of admission, require residents or their family members to sign arbitration agreements in which they forfeit the right to have any future disputes heard in court. There are many advantages to this for the nursing home. Arbitration is not public, for starters, so nursing homes aren’t risk damaging their reputation. Arbitrators are often on contract with certain companies, and they tend to issue decisions favoring the business that’s driving their income. Even when they do issue damage awards, arbitration damage awards tend to be a lot lower than what is issued by juries. On top of that, arbitrators don’t even technically have to follow the law. There are very few benefits to arbitration for nursing home plaintiffs, which is why so many are battling it out in court, trying to find ways to have their case heard by a judge rather than an arbitrator.
Now comes the case of Mendez v. Hampton Court Nursing Center, LLC, which was an appeal from a decision handed down by justices with the Third District Court of Appeal.
According to court records, the Miami-Dade case involved a contract that was signed back in 2009 by plaintiff when his father was admitted to the nursing home. Part of that contract indicated that if there were legal disputes regarding nursing home abuse or negligence, they would be handled by an arbitrator, rather than going to court and possibly being weighed by a jury.
Two years after the father was admitted to the nursing home, he suffered an infection that required the removal of one of his eyes. Later, his son filed a nursing home injury lawsuit against the facility on his father’s behalf. However, the nursing home fired back with a motion to compel arbitration. Plaintiff’s father died in 2013, but the case continued.
A circuit judge and later the 3rd DCA sided with the nursing home, finding the case should go to an arbitrator. However, in a 5-2 decision handed down by the Florida Supreme Court, justices decided the arbitration agreement wasn’t valid because it was signed without the father’s agreement. The court reasoned that it does not enforce contracts when one party only agrees out of duress or threat. By that same logic, it should not enforce a contract that lacks the party’s agreement altogether.
Dissenting opinions from two justices, however, sharply disagreed with this, saying the opinion by the majority “obliterates longstanding Florida contract law.” They indicated that even though the father lacked the capacity to give informed consent and the son did not have power of attorney, he signed the admission agreement as his father’s representative. However, the majority reasoned the father’s mental capacity doesn’t matter in this case. Had the nursing home wanted to do so, it could have petitioned the court for an adjudication to find the father incapacitated and then have the court appoint a representative who then could have signed.
If you have been a victim of a traffic accident, call Chalik & Chalik at (954) 476-1000 or 1 (800) 873-9040.
Additional Resources:
Mendez v. Hampton Court Nursing Center, LLC, Sept. 22, 2016, Florida Supreme Court
More Blog Entries:
Suing Employer for Driving Negligence of Employee, Sept. 22, 2016, Miami Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog
The post Florida Supreme Court: No Arbitration in Nursing Home Injury Lawsuit first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>
Sifting through which policies are applicable involves first identifying them all and then carefully combing through the contracts to ascertain how liability payments were structured. We may also need to know research out-of-state laws if the companies involved were based elsewhere, as is often the case. Most commercial truck insurance policies will be much higher than what you will see for passenger-style vehicles. That’s because typically, when these trucks are involved in crashes, the damage is often severe. Although large trucks aren’t involved in as many crashes as passenger vehicles, when they are involved in a crash, losses can be devastating.
In the recent case of Great West Cas. Co. v. Robbins, the question before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit was whether the commercial liability policy that covered the lessor and lessee of the trailer part of the truck – a $5 million policy – was available to cover an allegedly negligent driver and her employer, who owned the trailer. The driver and her employer were insured by a separate policy that carried a $1 million bodily injury liability limit.
This was a truck accident wrongful death lawsuit stemming from a horrific crash that killed a 44-year-old man in Indiana in January 2011. The trucker, who according to court records worked for a company called Hoker Trucking, LLC, was cited for failure to yield. Hoker is an Iowa company, and it owned the tractor being driven. The driver, the company and the tractor were insured with a $1 million policy provided by Northland Insurance Company. However, the trailer was being loaned by a Minnesota-based firm called Lakeville Motor Express, Inc., which didn’t actually own the trailer, but had been leasing it from a company called Wren Equipment, also a Minnesota company. Per the agreement between Lakeville and Wren, Lakeville secured a $5 million liability policy from a company called Great West Casualty Co. that covered itself and Wren and the trailer.
Neither the truck driver nor her employer were named insureds under the Great West policy.
Plaintiff, the widow of the man killed in the truck accident, filed a lawsuit alleging negligence on the part of the driver, the driver’s employer and Lakeville, the lessee of the trailer. Lakeville was later dismissed from the lawsuit. The question became whether Great West should have to indemnify – and ultimately be responsible for the negligence of – the driver and her employer. The 7th Circuit, applying Minnesota law, decided: No.
The court found no ambiguity in the policy that might construe it against the insurer. The policy expressly excludes “anyone who has leased, rented or borrowed your auto when it is used in a business other than yours.” Because the truck was not being used to further Lakeville’s business at the time, no coverage was provided.
If you have been a victim of a traffic accident, call Chalik & Chalik at (954) 476-1000 or 1 (800) 873-9040.
Additional Resources:
Great West Cas. Co. v. Robbins, Aug. 16, 2016, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
More Blog Entries:
Tundidor v. Miami-Dade County – Canal Doesn’t Fall Under Maritime Law in Negligence Case, Aug. 15, 2016, Miami Truck Accident Attorney Blog
The post Great West Cas. Co. v. Robbins – Truck Accident Insurance Dispute Weighed by 7th Circuit first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>Your business entity may be any one of the following: corporation, sole proprietorship, LLC or partnership. Take the time to get an Employer Identification Number from the IRS and make sure to set up a separate bank account.
Anything financial relating to your company must be run through your business bank account. Having the trappings of what you need to run a business in place helps you think like you are running a business and not just doing something you like as a hobby. Formalizing it with the paperwork makes you a real entity and you’re ready to get out there and sell insurance.
Lay the groundwork for success before you leap off a tall building and dive right in. If you have the foundation in place, success follows.
Benepath is the leading provider of exclusive group health insurance leads. To learn more, visit http://www.benepath.net or call 1-866-368-0377
The post Make sure you do the paperwork to make your agency legitimate first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>Matter of Simeio Solutions, LLC concerns the H-1B visa classification, a nonimmigrant category which permits a U.S. employer to employ a foreign national worker temporarily in a specialty occupation in the United States. The precedent decision stated that a U.S. employer must file an amended petition when a change in an H-1B worker’s worksite location requires a new Labor Condition Application (LCA). USCIS guidance released in May, 2015, made that process retroactive, requiring a new LCA and an amended H-1B petition for each worker whose location changed prior to the decision. USCIS set August 19, 2015, as the amended petition deadline for compliance.
In its final guidance issued July 21, 2015, USCIS changed that position. USCIS now states that it will generally not pursue adverse actions, solely based on an employer’s failure to file an amended petition, against employers whose H-1B employees moved to a new area of employment on or before April 9, 2015 (the date that Matter of Simeio Solutions, LLC was decided). Thus, a new LCA application and an amended petition is only required for a location change occurring after April 9, 2015.
In addition, the deadline of August 19, 2015, was moved to January 15, 2016. USCIS will consider an amended H-1B petition filed by the amended deadline to be timely. The precedent decision and policy guidance demonstrate the importance and complexity of this issue. Employers employing foreign workers in H-1B status should work with an experienced immigration attorney to ensure compliance.
The post USCIS issues final guidance on when to file an amended H-1B petition first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>In Phillips v. Carlton Energy Group, LLC, Carlton sued entrepreneur Gene Phillips and other entities, alleging tortious interference with the company’s attempt to invest in an unproven methane exploration project in Bulgaria. Carlton sought the lost “market value” of its interest in the venture, and an expert witness testified that the fair market value of the investment ranged from $12.54 million to $11.305 billion, under three different models of damages. The jury found for Carlton and awarded actual damages of $66.5 million and exemplary damages of $8.5 million.
The First District Court of Appeals in Houston upheld the jury’s award on appeal. However, the Texas Supreme Court unanimously reversed the damages award, ruling that there was no evidence that the amount was based on objective facts from which the amount of lost profits could be determined. The court stated that while the requirement of “reasonable certainty” clearly applies when the damages sought are the lost profits themselves, it had not previously made clear that the standard also applies when lost profits are used instead to ascertain the market value of property. However, the court ruled that the reasonable certainty standard “clearly must” apply in such a case as well.
Gregory D. Jordan is an Austin business attorney and business litigation lawyer. To learn more, visit http://www.theaustintriallawyer.com or call 512-419-0684.
The post Texas Supreme Court rules in tortious intereference case that “reasonable certainty” requirement for lost profits applies to claims for “lost market value” first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>In the Eagle Ford Shale in Texas, Anadarko owned leases for mineral interests beneath the Chaparral Wildlife Management Area. The lease required Anadarko to use offsite drilling locations when prudent and feasible. Lightning owns adjacent mineral leases, and Briscoe Ranch, Inc. owns the surface above Lightning’s leases. Anadarko entered into an agreement with Briscoe to establish drill sites on Briscoe’s land, drill through – but not produce from – Lightning’s leases, and drill from Anadarko’s own lease.
Lightning sought an injunction, claiming that its own mineral interests could be harmed by Anadarko’s proposed drilling activity. Lightning argued that drilling fluid could seep into Lightning’s mineral interests if Anadarko failed to case its wells properly. In that case, Lightning would be forced to drill extra offset wells in order to prevent drainage occurring from Anadarko’s wells.
The trial court denied the injunction, and the appellate court affirmed, stating that Lightning had failed to show an imminent and irreparable harm that would result from the drilling activity.
Gregory D. Jordan is an Oil and Gas lawyer in Austin. To learn more, visit http://www.theaustintriallawyer.com or call 512-419-0684.
The post Texas oil driller sued for tortious interference first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>While I commend the Air Force for this initiative, I first want to point out that women in our armed-forces have been in combat situations from the beginning. Whether as nurses or in other positions, women have been serving in combat and have sacrificed just as much as our male counterparts.
I am excited that these currently male-only direct-combat jobs will be open to women. Today, only seven jobs in the Air Force are closed to women to include special tactics officer, pararescue, tactical air control party (TACP), combat rescue officer, combat control team, special operation weather officer and enlisted.
Other service branches have already begun implementing plans to integrate women into direct-combat jobs by January 2016.
It has been nearly two years since then-Defense Secretary Leon Panetta ordered that all combat jobs be open to women by 2016 or explain why any must remain closed. In addition, the Pentagon lifted its ban on women in such roles in 2012.
While the ball has been slow to move, progress is finally being made to allow women the full opportunities to serve our country that they have long-deserve.
I have listened to many reports recently that give snapshot stories of women at the Marine Corps Infantry Officer Course, and they are having their abilities questioned. It is as if their capabilities are on trial in the media, as well as at boot camp. Once again, I return to my first point: women have been serving in combat situations for years.
Women make up 15% of the 1.3 million active-duty members. With declining enrollment in enlistment, opening equal opportunity within the service for current women in the military and future female enlistees will only benefit the armed-forces.
Brigadier General Carol Ann Fausone (ret.)
General Fausone began her military career in the U.S. Air Force, and ended her service as the first female Brigadier General in the Michigan National Guard’s history. Today, she continues to help veterans and their families nationwide with her small business, The Veteran Advocate, LLC.
Read more on this story on the armed-forces news site, Military.com:
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 Post Traumatic Stress, Traumatic Brain Injury, Mental Health, Sexual Assault, Hearing Loss and Tinnitus, Total Disability Based on Individual Unemployability, Medical Malpractice, or Aid and Attendance claim, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800
The post Air Force Sets Goal to Open 7 Combat Jobs to Women by Spring 2016 first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>These reports are preliminary and have yet to be publicly released, so the actual numbers could shift slightly as the reports are finalized. But, under the new reporting methods, there were 3,604 victims in 2012, 5,518 in 2013, and 5,983 in 2014.
The new reporting method counts every victim as one report, rather than having one report of a sexual assault contain multiple victims.
However, we should pause for a moment and consider the fact that this has always been a problem. New research and surveys suggest that victims are more willing to come forward and actually report such assaults than they were previously. The trend could be due to increased awareness of the issue, victims feeling more empowered, and a combination of other factors.
Based on the recently reported numbers, and an anonymous survey conducted by the Rand Corporation, officials said that about 1 in every 4 victims filed a sexual assault report this year. In contrast, only 1 in every 10 victims filed a report in 2012.
Certainly, the under-reporting of sexual assault is a problem inside the military and in society at-large. However, the military presents unique circumstances, where lower ranking troops are unwilling to report out of fear of retaliation from their superiors. In addition, females in the military can attest to the “good ole’ boys club” mentality that exists. And in fact, one new survey reported that 60% of women who said they reported sexual assault did experience retaliation or social backlash from their peers. There may very well be an additional feeling of helplessness due to systemic problems.
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill have complained that the Pentagon has not done enough to make it easier and more acceptable for victims to report harassment and assaults. Meanwhile victims have complained that they are indeed not comfortable going to their superiors to report sexual assault. Reporting such an incident is (unjustly) stigmatized as a weakness and infidelity to your fellow troops in a culture that breeds strength and loyalty.
While the reported numbers of sexual assault are going up, the gap between the real numbers and reported numbers is shrinking. That trend represents a positive step for the service branches, but we must recognize it is just one step in a process to minimize sexual assault as much as possible.
Brigadier General Carol Ann Fausone (ret.)
General Fausone began her military career in the U.S. Air Force, and ended her service as the first female Brigadier General in the Michigan National Guard’s history. Today, she continues to help veterans and their families nationwide with her small business, The Veteran Advocate, LLC.
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 Reports of Sexual Assault in the Military Spike Again first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>[This article was originally printed in the Barrister, a publication of the Camden County Bar Association in November, 2014.]
Many business and professional people, including lawyers, have worked a long time and accumulated significant assets. There is an old saying: “It not what you earn, it is what you keep.” We live in a litigious society. Business and professional people have significant exposure to claims from creditors, because of the activities in which they engage and because they have assets and, therefore, make good targets. This is the first of a three-part article exploring strategies to protect hard-earned assets from claims of creditors. There are steps that can be taken to protect assets from these claims, if they are taken in a timely manner. An individual cannot wait until a claim is filed, or even until an incident has occurred that may lead to a claim, before taking action. Steps must be taken in advance. The Fraudulent Transfer Act is discussed below. This article will discuss the strategies for asset protection from simple to complex. Useful strategies include obtaining the proper insurance, proper titling of assets, retirement plans, structuring business assets, Domestic Asset Protection Trusts (DAPTs), and Off-Shore Trusts. Finally, an analysis will be made as to whether an individual is a good candidate for asset protection planning.
STRATEGIES
There are a number of strategies available to protect assets. Some are quite simple, and others are complex.
INSURANCE
The basic first step for asset protection is insurance. Basic insurance includes automobile, homeowner’s insurance, and life insurance. The purpose of auto insurance and homeowner’s insurance is obvious. Life insurance is critical to help protect assets in the hands of surviving family members. Life insurance proceeds are generally free from the claims of creditors. Every professional should have adequate malpractice insurance. The amount of the insurance will depend on the professional’s exposure to risk. If commercial real estate is owned, fire and casualty insurance, together with liability insurance, is important. For business owners or individuals serving on boards of directors of for-profit entities, and non-profits, it is essential to obtain officer’s and director’s liability insurance. Personal umbrella insurance is extremely inexpensive. A personal umbrella insurance policy supplements the liability limits on standard policies. The insurance company issuing the umbrella policy will have certain minimums for the underlying policies and will cover liability in excess of those limits. Business interruption insurance is available to provide operating monies while a business is not operating due to certain casualties.
TITLING OF ASSETS
Proper titling of assets can be a useful strategy in asset protection planning. Litigation-prone professionals or business persons may choose to title the bulk of their family assets in the name of their spouse. This may offer some creditor protection, but it could hinder estate planning. If a primary residence is owned as tenants-by-the entireties, a judgment creditor cannot enforce a lien against the debtor so long as both spouses are residing in the home. Assets can be titled in the names of children. The problem is if the children are subject to claims of their own creditors, the transferred assets are at risk.
RETIREMENT PLANS
ERISA plans include employer-sponsored 401ks and defined benefit and defined contribution plans. These include both pension plans and profit-sharing plans. ERISA plans provide protection against all types of creditors. It should be understood that while creditors cannot assert a claim against funds while they are in the retirement account, they can make a claim on any distributions. In New Jersey,[1] IRA accounts are protected against the claims of creditors. The funds are protected while they are in the account, and distributions from the account are also protected. Under the Federal Bankruptcy Act, federal bankruptcy provides complete protection if the IRA is a rollover from a qualified ERISA plan. Under federal bankruptcy law the protection is limited to $1,000,000 if the IRA is not a rollover from an ERISA plan. An inherited IRA is not protected under federal bankruptcy law.[2]
ASSETS USED IN PROFESSION OR BUSINESS
There are a number of business entities that provide protection of business assets from claims of creditors. These include corporations, LLCs and LLPs. In utilizing these entities, it is often useful to establish separate entities for separate purposes. A corporation, properly operated, should protect business assets from claims of business creditors. For all intents and purposes, an LLC offers essentially the same creditor protection as a corporation with the same trap for the unwary (i.e., personal guarantees). Limited Liability Partnerships offer significant protection for limited partners. However, the general partner is exposed to claims of creditors. A general partner has unlimited liability for acts of the partnership. A solution to this problem is to form a corporation to serve as general partner. A good strategy is often to use separate business entities to own separate business assets. For example, a corporation might be formed to operate a business while a separate LLC might own business equipment and another LLC might own business real estate. Equipment and real estate could be leased to the corporation operating the business. The claim against one entity may not jeopardize assets owned by separate entities. It is critical in operating separate entities that funds not be mixed between or among those entities. Funds generated by the operating company must remain in the operating company. Funds generated by the leasing companies must remain separate in the leasing companies. If the operating company runs low on money, it should not borrow from the leasing companies.
Next month’s column will discuss Domestic Asset Protection Trusts and Off-Shore Trusts.
[1] N.J.S.A. 25:2-1.
[2] Clark v. Rameker, 573 U.S. ____ (2014).
The post PROTECTING YOUR ASSETS FROM CREDITORS: ARE YOU BULLET-PROOF? PART 1 first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>
The United States is experiencing an oil boom. As with every boom, hucksters are busy designing clever schemes to steal money from eager oil and gas investors.
Federal officials recently accused Halek Energy, LLC with swindling 300 investors out of nearly $22 million in a Texas oil and gas project. The company’s CEO, Jason Halek, settled with the Securities and Exchange Commission by agreeing to a $50,000 fine and to repay “ill-gotten gains.” A Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling recently affirmed that Halek and two of his companies, CBO Energy, Inc. and Halek Energy, should disgorge $21,452,137 in “ill-gotten profits”.
Just this month, the SEC filed charges against Chimera Energy Corp. alleging that Chimera was falsely claiming to have contracts with Pemex, the state-owned Mexican oil company. In addition, the SEC alleges that Chimera made false claims that it had developed a revolutionary and environmentally friendly technology that would replace the controversial hydraulic fracturing method of extracting oil. The federal Complaint charges that Chimera was involved in a classic “pump-and-dump” scheme to inflate its stock price and to cheat investors out of their money.
Attorney Richard LaGarde believes that investors can protect themselves by being skeptical.
“Many of my clients have been victims of fraud in the oil patch. Here are some red flags I’ve seen in the past: Fraudsters often form a limited partnership in State 1, acquire leases or drill wells in State 2, and use unsolicited high-pressure phone calls or e-mails to make offers to investors in State 3. By doing so, they minimize the chances that an investor might drop by to inspect a well site or the company’s headquarters. Additionally, hucksters tend to make ‘too good to be true’ promises. Hang up if someone calls you from a ‘boiler room’ and promises that an investment in their well will be a ‘sure thing’ because the driller has never drilled a dry hole in the area, or a big oil company is about to drill a well next door. Beware of claims that you need to act quickly because there are a limited number of working interests left in the well. If it sounds too good to be true, it’s very likely fraudulent.”
The post Fraud in the Oil Patch – Oil and Gas Investors Should Be Wary first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>Orca claims that it agreed to pay $3.2 million for the lease to over 900 acres. J.P. Morgan represented the seller, the Red Crest Trust, and also served as trustee and administrator of the trust. Orca is claiming lost profits of up to $400 million.
J.P. Morgan filed a motion for summary judgment, in which it acknowledged that it had leased the property both to Orca and to another entity within a time period of five months. However, the bank claimed that Orca failed in its responsibility to thoroughly vet the title to the property. According to J.P. Morgan, if Orca had attempted to verify the validity of the title and the ability of the land to be leased, it would have discovered the prior lease.
J.P. Morgan also said that Orca’s damages claims were inflated. The bank said that the company’s claims were based on “pie-in-the-sky assumptions” and that Orca’s ability as an oil operator was unproven.
The case, unusual because of the size of the damages claim and the fact that J.P. Morgan admitted its error, is expected to go to trial in December.
Gregory D. Jordan is an Oil and Gas lawyer in Austin. To learn more, visit http://www.theaustintriallawyer.com or call 512-419-0684.
The post J.P. Morgan Accused of Double-Leasing Oil Land first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>It is alleged that patients have become ill after taking products manufactured at Specialty Compounding, LLC, based in Cedar Park, Texas. Specialty Compounding is in the process of recalling all of the medicines manufactured in that facility dispensed since May 9, 2013 after at least 15 people developed bacterial infections traced back to the medicines.
Patients who received intravenous infusions of calcium gluconate, a drug to treat too much potassium or to correct calcium deficiencies, have reported issues after their treatment at Corpus Christi Medical Center Bay Area and Corpus Christi Medical Center Doctors Regional. It is suspected that the medication was not sterile, which caused bloodstream infections; Rhodococcus bacteria was detected, which typically causes symptoms including fever and pain.
The now-recalled batches of calcium gluconate were distributed directly to medical offices and hospitals throughout Texas, and also nationwide to patients, with the exception of North Carolina. Specialty Compounding has announced that is has contacted all customers to notify them of the recall; anyone who is in possession of the product should contact Specialty Compounding at (512) 219-0724 Monday through Friday, between 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. CDT, to find out how to return it.
A spokesperson for Specialty Compounding has announced that the company is voluntarily recalling all sterile products at this time out of concern for patient safety. The Federal Drug Administration inspected the facility in March 2013 and reported “questionable testing practices” and a lack of some procedures to establish drug sterility. Some drug processors were seen wearing improper clothing (i.e., not sterile), according to the findings, and it was noted that there was inadequate drug testing to ensure a lack of unwanted microorganisms.
This April, a new Senate bill was proposed which calls for much tighter regulations for the drug compounding industry. The FDA has called for an increase in its regulatory powers for compounding facilities; the regulatory powers typically fall under state regulations.
In 2012, a compounding facility in Framingham, Mass., The New England Compounding Center, was the center of an investigation after people in 20 states were affected; 750 were sickened, including 63 deaths. Contaminated drugs made at the facility caused an outbreak of fungal infections, including meningitis. More than 17,600 doses of methylprednisolone acetate steroid injections were affected. An investigation by FDA investigators discovered mold and fungal contamination in numerous vials of the drugs, and in areas where the drugs were made.
At The Hale Law Firm, we have helped thousands of clients successfully prosecute their personal injury claims including auto accidents, wrongful death, dangerous products, brain injuries, burn injuries, and defective medical devices. Clients depend on their personal injury lawyers for guidance and legal advice across a broad range of personal injury accidents. To learn more, visit http://www.hale911.com/ or call 972.351.0000.
The post Compounding Pharmacy In Texas Recalls Medication first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>On July 5, a new lawsuit was filed as part of the growing Zoloft multidistrict litigation (MDL) proceeding in federal court in Pennsylvania before Judge Cynthia Rufe. The complaint alleges that the minor plaintiff suffered several birth defects when he was born in 2002, because of his mother’s use of the antidepressant while she was pregnant. The lawsuit was filed against Pfizer, the manufacturer of Zoloft, and Greenstone, LLC.
According to the lawsuit, the mother took Zoloft throughout her pregnancy and was not informed of the possible side effects for her child. The child was born with a Type 1 laryngeal cleft, which has required tube feedings and will likely require lifelong medical treatment. The child was also born with other congenital birth defects.
The complaint alleges that Pfizer knew that Zoloft crosses the placenta and poses a danger to the developing fetus. The lawsuit cites a study from the New England Journal of Medicine that examined the risks of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs, such as Zoloft, during pregnancy. The 1996 study found significantly higher rates of low birth weight, prematurity and persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn were associated with mothers who took SSRIs late in their pregnancy.
Paul Greenberg is a Chicago birth injury lawyer with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.
The post New Birth Injury Lawsuit Filed Over Zoloft first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>The group’s members vowed to push for the elimination of permanent alimony in the 2014 legislative session. In 2013, a bill that would end permanent alimony passed both houses of the Florida legislature, but it was vetoed by Governor Scott. The governor said in his veto statement that he did not support the retroactive nature of the bill and that existing alimony orders should not be revised except by the courts.
State Rep. Ritch Workman, R-Melbourne, and state Sen. Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland were cosponsors of the 2013 bill, and they said they would work with Gov. Scott’s staff to draft a workable bill for the 2014 legislative session.
Family Law Reform said that it would push for certain elements to be included in the proposed legislation, such as the elimination of permanent alimony, the right of the alimony payer to retire at the standard retirement age, and ending the practice of allowing a second spouse’s income to be used to determine an increase in alimony. The organization is also pushing for a formal definition of “a substantial change in circumstances,” which is the current standard for modifying an alimony order.
The revised bill will not apply retroactively.
Contact a Jacksonville divorce lawyer with Richard D. Zasada, LLC or visit http://www.zasadalaw.com/
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The post Alimony Reform Summit Held in Orlando first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>Florida courts have consistently held that awarding visitation rights to grandparents over the objection of the parents would violate parental privacy, unless it would be harmful to the child to deny visitation. According to Florida law, grandparents have the right to petition for visitation under certain circumstances, but most of the substantive provisions of that law have been struck down as unconstitutional. Grandparents may obtain temporary custody of children in certain circumstances, such as neglect or abuse.
When grandparents have been awarded visitation rights under the laws of another state, Florida courts will usually enforce the provisions of those decisions. However, a 2012 case indicates that such decisions of other states may be invalidated under certain circumstances.
The Florida District Court of Appeals case Fazzini v. Davis concerned a father who was widowed with a three-month-old child. A Virginia court had ordered visitation rights for the maternal grandmother. When the father relocated with the child to Florida and remarried, he sought to terminate the maternal grandmother’s visitation rights. The Florida court found that there was a substantial change in circumstances and terminated the grandmother’s visitation rights.
Contact a Jacksonville divorce lawyer with Richard D. Zasada, LLC or visit http://www.zasadalaw.com/
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The post Do Grandparents Have Visitation Rights in Florida? first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>At present, same-sex married couples who reside in Florida cannot obtain a divorce, because the state does not recognize the existence of their marriage. On the other hand, they cannot remarry, as that would constitute bigamy in the states where the marriage is recognized. Some states where same-sex marriage is recognized have strict residency requirements for divorce, leaving some Florida residents who want a divorce in legal limbo.
While the section of DOMA that permits states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages granted in other states was not struck down by the high court, the court’s decision is broad enough that it may provide a basis for future challenges to state laws. Same-sex marriage is prohibited in Florida and same-sex marriages from other states are not recognized.
Any legal challenge to state law will take some time, but the outlook has improved for same-sex couples wanting a divorce in Florida.
Contact a Jacksonville divorce lawyer with Richard D. Zasada, LLC or visit http://www.zasadalaw.com/
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The post End of DOMA May Make Florida Divorces Easier for Same-Sex Married Couples first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>According to bill sponsor state Sen. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla, the law would have prevented Americans from having their rights violated by foreign law. Gov. Rick Scott released a statement in support of the bill, saying it would make it clear that citizens’ constitutional rights would be protected. However, opponents maintained that the bill was unnecessary because rights and protections are already directly guaranteed by the U.S. and Florida Constitutions.
Opponents of the bill were also concerned that it would tarnish Florida’s reputation as a center for international dispute resolution and unnecessarily complicate Florida divorces for foreign couples residing in the state, for instance if the couple had an antenuptial agreement holding that foreign law would apply in the event of a divorce.
The bill was opposed by the American Bar Association, the International Law Section of the Florida Bar, the Anti-Defamation League, the American Civil Liberties Union, and several other civic, religious and professional organizations.
Contact a Jacksonville divorce lawyer with Richard D. Zasada, LLC or visit http://www.zasadalaw.com/
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The post Proposed Family Law Legislation Fails to Move Forward in Florida Senate first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>Divorce involves many legal complexities, especially if a couple has children or substantial assets. There are many financial and legal factors that a couple may not have ever thought about during their marriage, but that need to be analyzed during a divorce to ensure that property is distributed equitably and parental rights and responsibilities are fairly assigned. Some divorcing spouses do not realize the extent of these complexities and attempt to file for divorce without the assistance of an attorney. Though this error may be motivated by an attempt to save money, it can actually cost more in the long run, as mistakes can be made which may be costly in themselves, and also may require the services of an attorney to correct.
A second common mistake is attempting to rush through the divorce process. It is understandable that divorcing spouses may wish for a difficult process to end quickly, but decisions such as whether to keep the family home have far-reaching effects and should not be made without careful consideration of the consequences. It is important that these decisions be made not on the basis of emotion but by analyzing the potential costs and benefits.
Finally, divorcing couples often neglect to make the necessary changes to their estate plans. For instance, he finalization of a divorce does not automatically entail changing the beneficiaries of insurance policies. Wills and other estate planning documents such as any trusts also need to be updated to reflect the wishes of the individual after a divorce.
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The post Avoid Common Divorce Mistakes first appeared on SEONewsWire.net.]]>In a letter to state legislators who worked on the bill, Scott wrote that the proposed legislation had many forward-looking elements, but that alimony remained an important judicial remedy to provide support for families after a divorce. Scott objected to the fact that the bill would have applied retroactively and would thus affect the settled economic expectations of many divorced Floridians, with potentially unfair results.
In issuing his veto, Scott wrote that the law in Florida already provides for alimony adjustment under the right circumstances.
Under the proposed legislation, limits would have been set on the amount of alimony, it would be harder to obtain for shorter marriages, and alimony payments would not last longer than half of the time the spouses had been married. The bill also would have required judges to award equal child custody to divorced parents, except in unusual circumstances.
The bill had strong bipartisan support in both the Florida Senate and House.
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