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Specificity is Key in Estate Planning
A Will and other estate planning documents provide you with the opportunity to make decisions that will affect your loved ones and beneficiaries after you have left this earth. You decide who gets what and you decide how much each person gets. You can even decide to leave something or everything to charity. A Will allows you the final say over the distribution of property and belongings you leave behind.
When making these decisions, it is important to be clear and specific as to how you want your items distributed. Ambiguous language in ...
Read More....Do You Have a Will? You Should.
Do You Have a Will? You Should. No one enjoys talking about death, but it is an inevitable fate everyone will eventually face. Having your affairs in order through the drafting of a Last Will and Testament will help to ease the stress in administering your estate.
A Will is an organized document that outlines your wishes and desires for your probate assets. Your Will gives you the control to designate to who your assets are distributed from your estate upon your passing.
Before preparing a Will, you want to take inventory of your assets. It...
Read More....Commercial Property Owners: Are You Responsible to Remove Snow and Ice During an Ongoing Storm?
Winter is right around the corner. It is not always clear during New Jersey winters when a storm may occur or how much snow, sleet, and/or ice will hit the ground. Sometimes it is predicted to snow less than an inch and we end up with a foot of snow or perhaps freezing rain. With winter conditions being so unpredictable, commercial property owners may have a difficult time determining when is the appropriate time to remove snow and ice or apply salt to the areas surrounding their properties.
Commercial property owners may be under the impression...
Read More....Ancillary Probate: Are additional steps required to sell a decedent’s property located in another state?
Handling the loss of a loved one is already a difficult time, but there can be additional stress if you find yourself appointed as executor in the decedent’s Will, or you must apply to be an administrator if there is no Will. Probate is the court-supervised process an executor or administrator takes in settling a decedent’s estate. The probate process can become even more complicated if the decedent owned property outside of the state in which they resided and ancillary probate is required.
Ancillary probate is the probate process ...
Read More....Can You File a Lawsuit If You Fall on the Boardwalk?
Summertime in New Jersey is full of people enjoying the sandy beaches and taking long strolls on the boardwalk. Many New Jersey beach locations offer boardwalks that can be fun for the whole family. Games, snacks, rides; everything to make a summer night unforgettable. Other things that might make your beach vacation memorable is that lifted wood plank that you tripped over, or the nail that poked through your flip flop. Unfortunately injuries do happen, even on the boardwalk.
Public entities are usually immune from liability meaning...
Read More....Are You Really Paying Too Much In Property Taxes?
Property tax appeals are related to the assessed value of your property and any improvements thereon. In order to appeal a property assessment, the taxpayer must file a property tax appeal in the County where the property is located. First, it should be noted that if the property assessment is over $1,000,000.00, the taxpayer has the option of filing their appeal in either the Tax Court of New Jersey, or in the County Board of Taxation of the county where the property is located. On the other hand, if the property assessment is $1,000,000...
Read More....COVID-19 and Protections for Employees and Their Families
Even before the current COVID crisis, most employees were afforded some protections by their employer. For example, the New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA), coupled with the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), entitles certain employees to twelve weeks of paid leave within a twelve-month period without losing their jobs. However, aside from the employee and employer having to meet certain eligibility requirements, the paid leave is only available for instances where the employee must care (1) for a newly born or ...
Read More....Aggravation of a Pre-Existing Condition in New Jersey Personal Injury Cases
Ever wonder why opposing counsel or your adjuster is fixating on your prior injuries, even those that you yourself have forgotten about? It is because an aggravation of a pre-existing condition, as opposed to causing a new injury, generally results in lower damages received by the injured party. Typically, this is due to the difficulty a jury may have in determining which party should be liable and how much of the injury was due to the subsequent accident.
There are different types of damages a personal injury claimant may recover, most...
Read More....New Jersey Law Regarding Waiver of Attorney-Client Privilege Amended
Much like the protections afforded to a patient seeking treatment from a physician, clients who meet with attorneys for legal services are afforded professional privileges, as well. Namely, when dealing with an attorney, client information may be shielded by the work-product doctrine and attorney-client privilege.
Simply stated, the work-product doctrine shields tangible materials prepared in anticipation of litigation from discovery by opposing counsel. The attorney-client privilege, on the other hand, protects written...
Read More....You Can Be Forced to Sue Outside of New Jersey
Due to the growing prevalence of Internet shopping, it is worthwhile for suppliers, retailers, and all other individuals or corporations who conduct interstate business through such platforms to familiarize themselves with basic jurisdictional laws in order to avoid future liability in inconvenient or undesirable forums. While determining the state in which you can file your lawsuit can be challenging, it is critical to the fate of your claim. Recently, the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, analyzed the liability...
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