Massachusetts Recent Legal Answers from Lawyers

No executor named in a Will becomes the executor until a court appoints that person executor.  If the named executor refuses to act and the Will names a successor executor, the court can appoint that person if the first named executor provides a satisfactory excuse.  If the named executor refuses to act and the Will does not name a successor executor, submit the Will for probate and ask the court to appoint an executor.... Read More

Short Answer:  Probably, Yes.   Longer Answer:  It depends how long the corporation has been dissolved.  Once it has been permanently disolved, it becomes a little more difficult to reinstate it.  If it has been a long time since it was dissolved, check with the Secretary of State to see if someone else has registered the corporate name.  If no one is using the corporation name, you should be able to regain the corporation's ability to do business through the reinstatement process with the Secretary of State.    ... Read More

OK so if you're a US citizen, then you can sponsor your boyfriend for a fiancée visa and then after he receives the fiancée visa he enters the United States and you must get married within 90 days and then you can apply for his green card. He is not required to obtain a citizenship if he has acquired a green card. Consider working with an attorney here in the United States to process your case from start to finish. Some of us charge a very affordable flat fee with no hidden costs from representation from start to finish, and counsel in any state can represent any client from all over the world.... Read More

You and you boyfriend should sign and record a deed naming both of you as tenants in common (having undivided interests in the entire property) or as holding "joint with right of survivorship" (meaning that the survivor inherits the entire propety).  If this cannot be done, loan your boyfriend the money, at interest, with a promissoy note and a recorded mortgage (deed of trust).  If you do neither, you have made a gift.  If the amount is over $15,000, file a Form 709 with your 1040 and pay the tax.  As Shakespeare warned us, "The wont of men was ever so:  one foot on sea and one on shore; to one love faithful never."... Read More

Hello. If you travelled to the Dominican republic to meet your fiancé in person, then you could establish proof of that through entry and exit stamps in your passport, and your plane tickets and hotel reservations overseas. It would help if you have pictures but it's not going to be critical. I suggest you work with an attorney who can handle your case from start to finish to make sure that his process correctly. Some of us, including myself, charge a very affordable flat fee, with no hidden costs, to handle the case from start to finish. I file a G 28, which is a notice of appearance of attorney of record in the Immigration case. I am licensed in the state of Florida and Texas, and I handle cases all over the world.... Read More

Assuming that your timing works out and that there are no Covid-19 restrictions or other bars, your employer can apply for both H-1B and the green card for you at the same time. The H-1B is a dual intent visa which allows the holder to have the intent to immigrate during the time that he or she is here as a nonimmigrant. 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

HR may not realize it, but unless the company hired Fidelity to do this (iunlikely), the company is the plan administrator and holds the document on which your boyfriend designated you as beneficiary.  If you have a copy of this document, please send it to the company.  If not, send them the document (Will?) designating you as beneficiary.... Read More

While some county probate courts will hold a Will in safekeeping, most people find the Will, if there is one, somewhere in the home or the safety deposit box.  If your probate attorney is a member of a state probate lawyers' listserv, she may be able to ask who prepared the Will.  But not all lawyers keep a copy of the Wills they draft.... Read More

A Will has no legal effect until it is submitted to probate. It then becomes a public document. Only beneficieries and creditors need be notified,  If you were among them, please contact a probate lawyer who practices in the county in which your mother died to determine your best course of action.... Read More

At this time, it is apparent that your mother-in-law will not be able to attend her biometrics since she has already left the country. You can either do nothing or return the biometrics notice with an explanation that your mother-in-law has already left the country and will not be attending the biometrics appointment. 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

It is highly doubtful that a divorced spouse inherits a home not awarded to her in the divorce decree.  Nor does a home deed by your parents to one child become a "family home" on his death.  If the house was not awarded to the divorced spouse in the divorce decree, it, and everything else, likely passes to your brother's children or, if he had none, to his parents or, if they are dead, to his siblings.  Please take the divorce decree and the deed to a local probate lawyer.  When someone says that they have a lawyer, that does not mean that they have one or, if they do, that their statements reflect the law or the lawyer's advice.... Read More

Federal law prohibits a mortgage lender from foreclosing for six months after the court appoints an executor. An executor's duty is to gather the assets, pay the debts and distribute the rest according to the Will.  If there was no lease, the "tenant" is a guest.  If the tenant does not leave, the executor's duty is to bring an eviction action in small claims/justice of the peace court and pay the sheriff to enforce it.  Meanwhile, you can cut off the utilities and change the locks.... Read More

A Durable Power of Attorney is only effective while the person granting it is alive. Agents can be added to a Durable Power of Attorney by another agent only if the Durable Power of Attorney says that it can.  Most do not. Who is the principal, the person who named you and your brother to act for him or her as agents under the Durable Power of Attorney?  That person can sign new Durable Power of Attorney, revoking the old one, and naming the new agents.... Read More

No.  The house is not yours. As your probate attorney should advise you,  you should either (1) sell the house and, after paying the estate's debts, distribute the net proceeds three ways or, if it is not necessary to sell the house to pay the estate's debts, (2) file a Distribution Deed (formerly called an Executor's Deed) distributing the ownership of the house to you, your sister and your brother equally.  After that, your brother may choose to sell or gift his interest to you or your sister.  Another deed must be filed to accomplish this.... Read More

Yes that is possible and the US citizen can sponsor his spouse at the US consulate overseas, but a requirement To sponsor his spouse is that The sponsor has a US domicile, meaning that the permanent residence of the sponsoring spouse is in the United States, sometimes the government will allow the married couple to avoid that requirement if they can prove that they have taken significant steps to relocating back to the United States like for example hiring a moving company signing a lease buying property obtaining the US drivers license, etc. But I always advise people in that situation to have the US citizen spouse relocate back to the United States in advance of the foreign national getting the green card and coming over here.Furthermore, a case such as this should not be done by yourself, it really should be done with the aid and representation by an immigration attorney.... Read More

Royalties charged for the use of intellectual property vary widely.  If an intellectual property is foremost in defining or providing the functionality of a product or service, the royalty fee may be a substantial percentage of the revenue received for the product or service by the licensee.  Alternatively, if the licensed IP is merely incidential to the covered product or service, the royalty payment is typically a much smaller portion of the gross revenue for the covered item. Payment terms also may vary.  In come cases, a substantial sum is paid up front when the license is granted.  In many cases, royalties are simply paid periodically as a percentage of sales.  Many royaltiy agreeements combinde minimum periodic payments with additional remitance of a percentage of sales. Carefully drafted royalty agreements focus on gross sales of the licensee rather than profits of the licensee, because determination of gross sales is much more ascertainable than a determination of profits (profit figures can be manipulated with clever bookkeeping, while gross sales are pretty easily verified). I am available to review your royalty arrangement and offer an opinion whether, in light of the facts particular to your case, the arrangement seems fair and workable. Anthony Claiborne Claiborne Intellectual Property Law Services 425.533.6132... Read More

I can help.  Please check out my web site, www.erkanlaw.com.  My firm has a vast amount of experience in criminal defense, and federal criminal defense in particular. Alternatively, there are a few other reputable attorneys with strong backgrounds in this area, which you may find on the lawyers.com platform or by conducting careful google searches.  More importantly, you may find word-of-mouth referrals to be most reliable. Best of luck during this difficult time. Sincerely, Murat... Read More