From The blog

“Why You Should Talk To Your Family About Your End Of Life Decisions and Estate Plan” No one is comfortable talking about dying. It is uncomfortable for the person thinking about dying, and it is uncomfortable for the person hearing about it. Most conversations about end-of-life topics end up being vague, short, and move on to other topics quickly. The problem is, this often leaves parents and...

“I Loaned A Friend Some Money. Can He File Bankruptcy On It?” The short answer is “probably.” Bankruptcy is a Federal right, and can be filed by anyone who qualifies. Loans are debts that are commonly included in bankruptcy petitions, and unsecured loans (loans with no collateral) are extremely unlikely to be paid back out of the bankruptcy estate. There are two kinds of personal bankruptcy that...

“Someone Broke A Contract We Had: How Long Do I Have To Sue Them?” In California, the applicable statute of limitations are two years for oral (verbal) contracts and four years for written contracts. The time begins to be measured by the time of the first breach of the contract, which means that as soon as one party stops performing the terms of the contract, the clock begins to run. If you have...

“I Lost My Job And I Am On Unemployment: Do I Have To Pay Child Support?” In much of California right now, people are losing jobs in the oil and agriculture sectors, and job loss is a common problem for people who pay child support even during good economic times. If you lose your job, you are entitled to have your child support reviewed and, in most situations, reduced. There are a few things...

I often get clients who come to my office discuss a hearing that has already happened, and went badly for them. Although my advice is always to hire a lawyer to help you with your case BEFORE things go badly, there are some options for after a hearing in California under the Family Law Code. First, if you have discovered new evidence after the hearing (this often comes up from something you...

“Why Am I Required to Go To Mediation For My Custody Case?” The State of California requires mediation for a variety reasons any time custody or visitation at issue. First, the court recognizes that while judges are quite capable of making decisions that are in the best interests of minor children and can and do set custody and visitation schedules, oftentimes the best schedule is one that is...

“Does California Have Common Law Marriage?” The short answer is “No, but…..” California does not acknowledge common law marriage. There are no provisions for common law marriage in the family law code. However, in the case of Marvin v. Marvin , 18 Cal.3d 660 (a 1976 decision) the California Supreme Court acknowledged that there are cases where unmarried parties have commingled their finances to...

“I Wrote My Own Contract: Can It Be Enforced?”   Written contracts that are signed by both parties are generally, with some exceptions, enforceable. There are, however, some things to keep in mind when deciding whether or not to have a contract prepared by a professional. If your contract has any ambiguous terms in it or uncertainty, it will generally be construed or interpreted against the...

“I’m Thinking About Getting Solar For My Home. What Do I Need To Know?” With the explosion of affordable solar options for personal use in residential homes has come a whole new set of problems: fly-by-night companies, poor technical support, bad installations, and under-performing systems. We see these kinds of cases regularly now, but there are things that you can do to protect yourself, and...

What is a Living Trust? A Living Trust or Revocable Trust is a legal document that allows you to place your property and assets into a “Trust” for your benefit during your lifetime and will act like a Will when you die. You may revoke or change the Trust during your lifetime. You retain control of all your property and assets during your lifetime but will designate someone to manage the Trust,...