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Gerber Law

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March 2018

The Categories of Legal Malpractice

When a person believes that their lawyer has not performed up to the profession’s standards, they may have cause to bring a lawsuit against them. In general terms, legal malpractice may come down to one of three categories. If an attorney has violated one of these three standards of conduct, a client should contact an attorney with legal malpractice action experience to have their case evaluated. The three categories are: Negligence Breach of Fiduciary Duty Breach of Contract Proving that Malpractice Has Taken Place To prove that malpractice has taken place, the case against the attorney has to be evaluated ...

March 31, 2018|Legal Malpractice|

Land Use Disputes Can Lead to a Claim of Adverse Possession

In some land dispute cases, one of the parties may file a claim for the other party’s property by citing “Adverse Possession”. A person that wants to take possession of another’s land that they have been using without offering money or any other compensation must have been using the property for at least ten years. It may be rare that someone has been using a property for ten years without the owner acting to remove them. But there are many different ways that someone can accomplish this. How Do You Prove Adverse Possession? The claimant must prove all of the ...

March 24, 2018|Land Use Disputes|

Will The New Tax Law Affect My Mortgage Interest Deduction?

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was signed into law by President Trump on December 22, 2017. The new law reduces the limit on deductible mortgage debt to $750,000.00 for new loans taken out after December 14, 2017. Current loans of up to $1,000,000.00 are grandfathered and are not subject to the new $750,000.00 cap. Neither limit is indexed for inflation. Homeowners may refinance mortgage debts existing on December 14, 2017, up to $1,000,000.00 and still deduct the interest so long as the new loan does not exceed the amount of the mortgage being refinanced. The final bill repeals the ...

March 22, 2018|Real Estate Law|

Corporate Disputes Often Involve Fiduciary Duty

For many years, a trustee has been required to serve their beneficiaries loyally with the same regard for the beneficiary’s interests as they would their own. And a trustee must also surrender any gain to the beneficiary when the trustee has made a profit by serving their own needs while in the service to the beneficiary.  This duty of loyalty has been adapted by the courts to other relationships under the title of fiduciary duty. There are many instances of litigation where the member of a corporation is accused of a breach of fiduciary duty when this loyalty has been ...

March 17, 2018|Fiduciary Duty|

Estate Planning and the New Tax Law

Estate Planning Tax Law The new tax law promises many sweeping changes including a decrease in taxes for most Americans. It is also going to make changes in estate taxes which may have some people worried as they have made plans based on an old law. One step that many have taken in the past to reduce estate taxes might be a problem due to the nature of that strategy.  That strategy is the irrevocable life insurance trust. Irrevocably rearranging this type of trust to mesh with a new law will be impossible. However, in most cases, that still won’t ...

March 10, 2018|Estate Planning|

What Is The Origin Of The Federal Income Tax?

In the early years of the United States of America, there were very few taxes. Up until 1802, the nation was mainly supported by taxes on goods (such as tobacco, carriages, sugar and spirits). During the War of 1812, a sales tax was introduced to offset the high cost of war. The origin of the income tax on individuals is generally recognized to be the passage of the 16th Amendment by Congress on July 2, 1909, and ratified on February 3, 1913. However, its history actually goes back even further. During the Civil War, Congress passed the Revenue Act of ...

March 7, 2018|General|

Commercial Litigation for Services Rendered

When a contractor or subcontractor wins a bid to improve a commercial property, they make plans to fulfill that contract to the best of their ability. However, during the work, a problem may arise in the financial well-being of the company that awarded the contract. When this happens, payment for services rendered may not be made on time to the contractor who cannot make payment to his subcontractors. The contractor can then file a mechanic’s lien on the property. What is a Mechanic’s Lien? A mechanic's lien, otherwise known as a construction lien, is a guarantee of payment to contractors ...

March 3, 2018|Commercial Litigation|

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