Kansas Recent Legal Answers from Lawyers

Contact a local estate planning attorney about a Marital Property Agreement (in some states called a Marital Separation Agreement).  Keep in mind that your husband must agree.  Like the inheritance, the money is his.  This is different from an IRA, which is deemed to be that of both spouses.... Read More

You're not going to like this answer.  But, the answer is maybe.   There are a lot of factors that are in play with constitutional issues.  For instance, there may be a previous case that deals with this issue.  And that case could have come down in your favor or against you.  Also, your brother's attorney will need to know a lot more details about his case.   Your brother will want to find some one with experience arguing difficult cases at the highest levels.  Good luck.... Read More

The ultimate sentence will depend on a number of factors, incuding whether the charge is prosecuted by the state or the feds; the penalty for federal charges tend to me more severe than for state charges. Also, regardless of which jurisdiction prosecutes the case, the sentence will likely be higher than the sentence your fiancee received for the first offense since this represents recidivist behavior and was committed while on parole.... Read More

If you are convicted of a new crime while you are on felony probation, the State could file a motion to revoke your probation.  And, the judge can bypass the intermediate sanctions based on the new law violation to send you straight to prison.  Even if your PO said she will not violate you, you are still in a precarious situation.  You need an attorney to make sure you get through this.... Read More

The agent under either a Durable Power of Attorney or a Medical Power of Attorney does not have the authority to make this decision.  Authority to share medical information is granted by someone (in this instance, your mother) by signing a HIPAA Medical Information Release stating who may disclose medical information, any limitations on what may be disclosed, and to whom it may be disclosed.  Sometimes this is a separate document.  Sometimes it is incorporated in the Medical Power of Attorney. Please keep in mind that nusring homes typically designate one family member as the point of contact.  This is designed to assure that one party has all the information and can share it with others rather than each person having a piece of the picture (recall the story of the blind men and the elephant).  ... Read More

It depends on what the POA says.  If it provides that the agents can act separately, the surviving agent can act.  If it provides that they must act jointly, the surviving agent can not act.  It may also provide for a successor agent to replace the deceased agent.  Read it carefully.... Read More

No one on this listserv can answer the question.  Your documents may be fine.  They may be a mess.  You also are not asking a lawyer to look them over but to tell you what changes, if any, need to be made and, likely, to make them.  In addition, prices vary with lawyer and with locale.... Read More

The question to a Customs and Border Patrol agent is whether your wife has an intention to only visit with you in the US and go back to Mexico, or whether she intends to resettle in the US. If the latter and you are a US citizen or permanent resident, you should sponsor her directly for the green card. If she only intends to visit and go back, she may be able to convince the CBP officer that her B1/B2 visa is proper for her travels. Please note that the B1/B2 is not for her to spend most of the time in the US and only take occasional trips back to Mexico. That would be an abuse of the nonimmigrant visa. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.  ... Read More

There are two basic types of patents that could apply to an article of clothing.  The cost of obtaining a patent depends in part on which type of patent is right for your invention. The first type of patent is a utility patent.  A utility patent covers an invention that is new, non-obvious and useful.  Utility patents cover either articles of manufacture, apparatuses (machines), processes or compositions of matter.  The subject invention needs to be something whose value is in its utility, its usefulness. There are utility inventions for articles of clothing.  These could include new clasps, new zippers, new methods of manufacturing the clothing, etc.  Utility patent applications are typically fairly expensive.  My firm charges from $3,500 to $5,000 plus costs (averaging another $1,000) to prepare and file a utility patent application.  Altogether for utility application preparation and filing, total outlay using our firm ranges from about $5,000 to about $8,000 for most applications. The second type of patent is a design patent.  A design patent covers an invention that is a new, non-obvious and decorative aspect of an article of manufacture.  For these inventions, the value is in their decorativeness, the way they look. Design patent applications are much simpler, as legal instruments.  They consist mostly of the drawings of different views of the article.  Typical legal fees to prepare and file the design patent application are $1,000, plus costs.  Additional costs for the drawings can be $1,500 or more.  With filing fees and other costs, altogether for design patent application preparation and filing, total outlay using our firm is generally in the range of $2,750 to $3,000. There is also a way to secure an invention for one year, by way of a provisional patent application.  A provisional application is much less expensive than either a utility patent application or a design patent application, but a provisional application can never on its own result in an issued patent. If you file a provisional application, you must file a non-provisional application for the same invention within a year or you have wasted the money on the provisional application. Much more on these subjects is available on my web pages at: https://claibornepatent.com/Patent%20process.htm.... Read More

I am confused by your asking whether bankruptcy will affect your immigration as it is not clear whether you are an applicant for permanent residence or already an LPR. If already an LPR, the bankruptcy will have no effect on your status. If an applicant for permanent residence, bankruptcy is generally not known to an adjudicator as it is not one of the factors looked for in an evaluation of public charge. Under the new public charge rules which are slated for implementation on October 15, 2019, U.S.C.I.S. will consider the totality of circumstances with liabilities being a factor. All cases postmarked before October 15 will be judged by the old rules. With the new rules, items such as age, health, history of work if authorized to work, credit score (if favorable), present income, household income, receipt of means tested benefits, etc. will all be considered in the mix in determining who is likely to become a public charge. I also note that there are categories for immigration that are not subject to the public charge requirement.  Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.  ... Read More