BM Law

Archive for August, 2011

1. What is probate? Probate is a legal process which may be required in some circumstances upon the death of a friend or family member. The grant of probate allows executors to deal with proceedings relating to the last will and testimony of a deceased individual. It is required by law in order for the executors to be able to access the individual’s assets and estate. 2. Is probate always required? Probate is not required in all cases. Probate is not required when the deceased has left less than £5,000 in assets in their last will and testimony. Rather, it is required when dealing with larger sums of money or estates that have a higher value. Moreover, probate is not required for assets or estates that are held in joint names where another holder is surviving as the assets or estate will automatically transfer to the surviving holder. 3. How does one apply for probate? The application for probate is made to the local Probate Registry. The application takes the form of an oath sworn before a solicitor by the administrators or executors, whichever is appropriate. The oath is then sent to the Probate Registry along with the original last will and testimony of the deceased individual and the probate fees. Once the Probate Registry receives ...

In California, business disputes happen in one way or another. Especially when engaging into transactions with other companies, suppliers, clients and even partners, it is very possible that disagreements will arise.With these problem occurrences, the business manager has to make an important decision to prevent losses and further damages to the company - whether to file a case in court or to engage in an out of court settlement such as arbitration.What legal experts suggestBecause of the tremendous advantages of dealing with a corporate dispute, majority of the business law firms in California firmly recommend opposing parties to resolve the issue outside the court. In fact, arbitration is fast becoming a popular means of settling commercial and business disputes all over the country nowadays.Mainly, the following are the reasons why most disputing companies enter into arbitration rather that a court litigation. A court case may take a lot of time .. more»

OSHA AND EPA REGULATORY COMPLIANCE FRAMEWORKWhen the Congress passes laws in the United States often what is actually being passed is only the foundations for what will be regulated/ enforced by the Executive branch. These laws are passed to an agency of the Federal government to implement and enforce. The process is similar on the state and local level. Regulations become a measure for whether a group, institution, or individual is meeting the stated expectation. The idea is that if these groups are in compliance with the established baseline, then everyone is safe. The areas that this behavior is most pronounced and the average citizen is most likely to come in contact with these type of compliance measures are in the workplace (OSHA- Occupational Safety and Health Administration) and the environment (EPA-Environmental Protection Agency).OSHA AND EPA REGULATORY COMPLIANCE WEAKNESSESThe sad reality is that regulations are often established with a heavy .. more»

This morning a news story intrigued me. It involved an Arizona teenager who sent letters to hundreds of public school districts around the state informing them of resources they can use to change their anti-bullying policies in order to combat homophobic behavior and bullying. Not only was I impressed that a 15-year-old went through all of this trouble, but he also stated in each letter he sent that if appropriate actions were not taken to protect gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students, legal action would be taken to force necessary changes to each school's anti-bullying policies. Regardless of how you view the politics of this situation, it is important to the look at the precedent that might be set if this young man does indeed pursue legal action and win.In order to make such a case in state court, the plaintiff would have to claim a violation of personal injury .. more»

The following article looks at recent Court decisions that may have a significant impact upon the United States Immigration process for same sex couples.The body of legal information that makes up United States Immigration jurisprudence is vast and complex. As American Immigration law is codified it can be exhausting for laypeople to sift through the myriad rules and regulations that relate to visa application adjudication and inadmissibility. One area where American law is, currently, quite clear is family based immigration. Pursuant to relevant sections of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) it is, at the time of this writing, not possible for the same sex fiance, spouse, or partner of a United States Citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident to obtain US Immigration benefits based solely upon a same sex relationship. This still holds true even if the marriage, or prospective marriage, may be acknowledged or solemnized by one of .. more»

Labor laws are a very important part of the work force. There are several reasons why labor laws are important. For the most part, they are designed to protect employees while they work for their income. Having these laws in effect has created smoother operations in many areas of business.Child labor laws differ from the general laws that apply to adult citizens. This is mostly in order to protect the child's youth. There are age requirements concerning when a child is allowed to enter the work force. In addition, hours may be limited for underage workers. Only a certain number of hours can be worked per week, and that amount is reduced during weeks when the child is in school. This in order to help children focus on their education so that they can be as successful as possible in the future. There are also certain restrictions for children working .. more»