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Helping aging clients find appropriate housing by making them aware of their options and the attendant risks and advantages of each should be an essential part of adviser-client consultations. Learn how you can advise them.
In a criminal case, the objective of trial strategy is a plan to attack the prosecutor's case and also a plan for establishing the defense strategy to win the case. The following are two helpful tips to develop your trial strategy.
Professionals such as lawyers, accountants, architects, engineers, and appraisers owe a primary duty of care to their clients and are liable for breach of duty. Increasingly, however, professionals are being held liable for breach of duties owed to third parties—to persons other than clients. Consider these examples.
Usually, but not always, the lawyer knows that his or her client is seeking financing. That does not assure that the lawyer will be consulted before a loan commitment is signed. Where the borrower is a user of the property—a company which is acquiring or owns the property and is financing it for the conduct of its non-real estate business, he or she is not likely to know the risks of signing the commitment without first showing it to the lawyer. This is especially a problem when the commitment is not labeled a commitment at all, but a loan application which becomes a commitment when accepted.
Although U.S. citizenship is conferred at birth upon persons born on U.S. land, the determination of citizenship for persons "born of the blood" of U.S. citizens is far less straightforward. How can you be certain whether or not your client is a U.S. citizen?
Many lawyers have heard of wikis, but don't know what they are, much less how to use them in their practice. The term "wiki" comes from the Hawaiian wiki-wiki, meaning "fast." A wiki is a web- or intranet-based tool that can be edited by anyone and can be used to link from one Web page to another. Lawyers can use wikis in a number of ways, including setting up a wiki to provide clients with an online "idea space" to place their thoughts, ideas, and other information, or to provide firm attorneys with a place to share their business plans, carry out consultations, and compile reports from their offices.
Two years after the 2005 hurricanes slammed into the Gulf Coast, many residents are still struggling to find affordable housing, and local economies remain in disrepair. In southeast Louisiana alone, 36 percent of the hospitals in the region are still shuttered, and only 45 percent of public schools have reopened. Skyrocketing insurance rates continue to place an additional burden on residents and businesses alike. Crime is again on the rise. Not surprisingly, approximately 200,000 former residents of New Orleans and surrounding communities have chosen not to return.
Now you can have instant access to articles previously available only to members of certain ABA entities. Articles from Litigation, Probate & Property, The SciTech Lawyer, and Experience are available as searchable PDF downloads.
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This audio program consists of an overview of the estate tax, gift tax, and generation-skipping transfer tax systems. In particular, this program focuses on fundamental estate planning concepts such as: planning with your client's applicable exclusion amount, computing gross and taxable estates, utilizing marital and charitable deductions, implementing annual exclusion gifts, and understanding generation-skipping transfer tax transfers. In addition, the program addresses recent proposals for estate tax reform providing both a solid framework for junior practitioners and an excellent review for senior practitioners.
As baby boomers rapidly approach retirement age, their ability to retire comfortably may depend on decisions they make in the next few years. The rules on distributions from individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and employer sponsored retirement plans are complex and it's easy for clients to be confused about their options. In addition to trying to determine if they have sufficient income, clients also must navigate the income and estate tax rules for retirement plans.
Since most legal standards are based on the marital contract, unmarried couples, same sex or otherwise, are not afforded the same rights and protections as married couples. From such issues as employee benefits and housing rights, to the challenge of just having a relationship recognized, unmarried couples face an uphill battle. The increase in unmarried couples makes it more likely that estate planners will represent one or both partners. What challenges/problems face this growing aspect of the population? Which estate planning strategies are most suitable for such clients? How can domestic partners provide for one another contractually in the event of death or break-up?
The ABA Book Briefs Podcast is a series of audo interviews, discussions, and readings from ABA Books. Our Feature Podcasts are about 10 - 15 minutes in length and come out once a month. Occasionally we offer Special Podcasts. You can listen to each podcast individually or you can subscribe to receive them automatically when they are released.
Modern Election Law and Voting Rights
Listen to an interview with Benjamin E. Griffith editor of the ABA best seller America Votes! A Guide to Modern Election Law and Voting Rights. In this podcast, Mr. Griffith discusses the current state of election law and voting rights.
Review of Estate Tax, Gift Tax & GST Tax
How to Avoid the Top 10 Retirement Distribution Disasters
