New York Recent Legal Answers from Lawyers

Mr. Myers, so sorry to hear what happened to your mother. Whether your mother has a case will depend on whether the gas station had notice of the urine on which she slipped, i.e. that it either knew about it or, in the exercise of reasoanble care, should known about it and failed to clean it up.  Unfortunately, unless your mother suffered a serious, permanent injury, the indignity of sitting in a puddle of urine for 30-40 minutes might not justify the time and expense of a lawsuit.  You'd be better off reporting the incident to the gas station's owner and/or Sunoco corporate and see if they might be willing to compensate your mother for what she went through. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com... Read More

Yes.  Under New York Vehicle and Traffic Law § 388, every owner of a motor vehicle is responsible for any harm caused by the driver's negligence. https://codes.findlaw.com/ny/vehicle-and-traffic-law/vat-sect-388.html  Report the matter to your insurance company immediately.  It will hire attorneys to defend you and pay any judgment entered against you up to the limits of your insurance. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com... Read More

If you are not certain on how to process and prepare all the documents and collect all the documents that need to be obtained, then I suggest that you retain counsel to Represent you throughout the entire process. Some of us charge a reasonable flat fee and handle the case from start to finish.... Read More

Sorry to hear what you've been going through.  In New York, in order to bring a personal injury lawsuit arising out of a motor vehicle accident, you need to have sustained a "serious injury" within the meaning of the law.  Even if you haven't sustained a "serious injury", you should still file a claim for No-Fault benefits with your own insurance company so that your medical bills and lost earnings get paid.  Any such claim needs to be filed within 30 days of your accident. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com   ... Read More

Mr. Reyes, sorry to hear what you've been going through.  In New York, you can only bring a personal injury lawsuit arising out of a motor vehicle accident if you've suffered a "serious injury" within the meaning of the law.  The law has various definitions of what constitutes a serious injury.  Sinus issues, without more, might not qualify.  Even assuming your sinus issues constitute a "serious injury", you'd still need to prove through competent medical evidence that they were caused by the motor vehicle accident. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com... Read More

You will need to consult with an attorney to see if your husband qualifies for any relief from removal. I 130 helps only if you guys can prove real marriage and your husband qualities for adjustment of status or I 601a waiver. During the process for adjustment of status or Immigrant visa, you need to show you have sufficient income to sponsor your husband. That is when taxes come into play. If you cannot demonstrate that you have sufficient income, you will need to find a joint sponsor. Also, joint taxes help proving real marriage ... I hope to guys work with an experienced attorney.  If youare looming for more information of issues related to green card based on marriage you can check it out here: https://www.shautsova.com/m/law-publications/green-card-based-marriage-usc.html.  ... Read More

Sorry to hear what happened to you.  Whether you have a personal injury case depends on whether you suffered a "serious injury" within the meaning of the law.  Best to speak with an experienced personal injury attorney.  You can find one using the Find a Lawyer tab on the Lawyers.com homepage. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com  ... Read More

Mr. Sistrunk, so sorry for your loss.  In order to determine whether you have a viable wrongful death claim, you need to obtain copies of your mother's medical records and speak with an experienced personal injury attorney.  Keep in mind that the appropriate procedure to perform when someone is choking is the Heimlich maneuver, not CPR (which is only performed if they've stopped breathing).  And the Heimlich maneuver is not performed if the victim is still able to cough / talk. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com... Read More

Can they sue you?  Yes.  Should they be suinig the parents who furnished your son with the fireworks instead?  Yes.  There is no legal duty in New York for parents to supervise their children.  Putting the lawsuit aside, the parents of all the children involved ought to pool their resources and reimburse the neighbor for the damage caused by the fireworks (which are illegal in New York). Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com... Read More

Mr. Judd, sorry to hear what happened to you.  Unforunately and without minimizing what you went through, the time and expense of a lawsuit would not be justified by temporarily choking on a piece of salt paper.  Best to speak with the manager and ask for a full refund / store credit. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com... Read More

Sorry to hear what happened to you.  Although not impossible, it's unlikely that you got nail fungus from the nail salon.  Here's an article I found online which you might find helpful.  If the appearance of your nail really bothers you, make an appointment with a podiatrist.  The only way to treat nail fungus is with a course of oral antibiotics.  Topical medications do work as the fungus lives underneath the nail bed. Hope this helps. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com... Read More

As it is difficult to know your husband's case from just your fact situation, I suggest that you may wish to make an appointment with an immigration lawyer to go over your husband’s situation and to express an opinion if you are really worried. Otherwise, you can continue to wait. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Esqs.’ (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

Generally speaking anything you say to the police can be used against you in future proceedings with a number of exceptions. For instance, under certain circumstances you need to be read your Miranda rights prior to giving any type of statement or answering any questions that the P.O. asks. With that being said, it's difficult to say what impact your statement may have on your case without knowing the full statement and the circumstances in which you made that statement.  Any time that you do speak with police you should do so in the presence of legal counsel. With an attorney present, you can be sure that your legal rights are being protected. For instance, you have the right to not answer any of the P.O.'s questions when they interrogate you. You have the right to not incriminate yourself and to remain silent, refusing to answer questions. You also always have the right to have legal counsel present when being questioned by police. If you are going to surrender yourself, I would certainly suggest that you have an attorney present with you to ensure that your rights are protected. ... Read More

It depends. You may be able to qualify under the violence against women act and thereby self petition without his involvement. Spousal abandonment may constitute a form of abuse that may constitute grounds to self petition under the VAWA act. However I would not represent yourself in this type of case. You should get counsel to represent you from start to finish.... Read More

Order of Protection are typically issued in two ways.    1) Through the family court - if there is some type of intimate relationship a person can make an application for an order of protection in the family court - these are some examples - related by blood or marriage, have a child in common, they were in an intimate relationship, or they were in a relationship and lived together. It doesn't sound like this is the case here.  2) Through the criminal court - in order for the criminal court to get involved and issue an order of protection, the mother of your daughter would have to contact the police department and have your girlfriend arrested. In order to do that, some type of criminal conduct would have had to have occurred, otherwise the police will not make an arrest if they do not have probable cause to do so. If the mother of your daughter can credibly allege that your girlfriend committed some type of criminal conduct against her or against the child, then it is possible that the police will get involved.    I hope this information is helpful.   ... Read More

You reference a criminal court case in your question but say it's a family court order so I wasn't sure whether the Full Order of Protection comes from the criminal court or family court. Either way though, you should be able to bring an application in the family court to modify the order of protection to a limited order of protection where you can be around your husband. Your husband may want to check with his probation officer though to ensure that there was no specific agreement with the DA or Probation that the order would not be modified for the duration of the probation period. ... Read More

It sounds like your husband was issued what is called a Desk Appearance Ticket or a Criminal Summons. For misdemeanor offenses they need fingerprints most likely because he was arrested for a fingerprintable offense, and they need photos for his rap sheet. I'm assuming he has not been in front of a judge yet? Most likely the next Court date is going to be his arraignment and sometimes they try to arrange to have him fingerprinted and photographed before then to expedite the proceeding, rather than trying to do it the day of. With that being said, any time he interacts with the police on this case he should do so with his attorney present, to ensure that nothing is said that might incriminate him. You should certainly reach out to an attorney to see if you can hire them for the case, or even if you are not looking to hire an attorney for the case but instead have Legal Aid, you may be able to hire an attorney to represent him strictly when he is fingerprinted/photographed to ensure his rights are protected.    Good luck and I hope this information is helpful. ... Read More

I'm sorry but without more information this is a difficult question to anwer. Generally speaking though, if the ticket was received outside of NYC then your attorney can negotiate a possible disposition with the Prosecutor's office. If it was in NYC then your attorney would represent you at the traffic court trial at NYC TVB. Your best bet here though is to contact an attorney and speak with them about the specifics of your case. ... Read More

It really depends on what your father's insurance policy says.  Some policies will not cover you if you are not named on the policy; others will.  Best to discuss the matter with your father and let him make the decision.  Keep in mind that failing to report the matter to your insurance carrier could result in a denial of coverage in the event you are sued, either for property damage, personal injury or both. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com... Read More

You can evict the subtenant but you'll need to follow the same procedure for any other tenant.  Even if the subtenant does not have a lease, she arguably has a month-to-month tenancy which you can only terminate in accordance with the law.  Here are some articles I found online which you might find useful. Best regards, Jonathan R. Ratchik, Esq. Kramer, Dunleavy & Ratchik, PLLC 61 Broadway, Suite 2220 New York, NY  10006 (212) 226-6662 www.kdrpilawyers.com... Read More