Maryland Recent Legal Answers from Lawyers

It’s extremely difficult to find an attorney who will pursue a case against an at‑fault party when there’s no insurance coverage. Most lawyers won’t take a contingency case unless there’s insurance money to recover, and even smaller solo firms may hesitate. Also remember that when an insurance company pays policy limits, they always require a release, and that release covers both the insurer and their insured. Before taking any further legal action, you should carefully review the release the insurance company is asking you to sign.... Read Answer

Unfortunately, the US immigration system does not work like this. If the dependent is overseas and the principal wishes to adjust status in the US, the principal must file for an I-824 Application for Action on an Approved Application or Petition to allow USCIS to send a copy of proof of your adjustment of status so that your spouse can begin the consular processing. There is no simultaneous processing of adjustment and consular action. The dependent is usually able to interview and come over within a year of the principal’s approval as long as there is continued visa availability. 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 Answer

Contact the District attorney for the county where he is in jail.  Let them know the situation and that you are the victim. Tally the amount of the damages and ask that they seek the damages to your property from the tenant as  he goes to trial or resolves the case.   Stay on top of it.  find out if they have a victims advocate, and call them regularly.  Show up at his court dates, to assure they seek resitistution for your loss. Find out the name and contact number of the prosecutor and let them know you want to stay informed, and that you are requesting a restitution hearing if the amount of the damages are questioned.... Read Answer

The sixty day grace period for H-1B holders to find new H-1B employment is capped by the H-1B expiration date. Your second employer filed a timely H-1B change of employer petition, and you would not accrue unlawful presence until the petition is denied. Hopefully your new employer is able to respond effectively to the NOID. Your employer can submit a new petition explaining the circumstances of the new late filing, and it will be up to USCIS whether to favorably forgive the late filing or not. As you note, there is an issue with accruing unlawful presence if the first H-1B petition is denied. To avoid being barred by accruing 180 days of unlawful presence, your employer can perhaps file the petition with a request for premium processing on form I-907. USCIS should then reach the petition for adjudication within 15 business days. 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 Answer

Under the H-1B registration system, organizations register candidates online with USCIS in the hope that their candidates will be selected. The selection is particular to the sponsoring organization and particular to the candidate, which means that the beneficiary is restricted to being sponsored on the H-1B petition after selection. In addition, for those selected, the H-1B petition must be filed by June 30. In your situation, the date is past and an outside company cannot take up the sponsorship of another organization. Sorry. 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 Answer

A US citizen child over 21 can sponsor both mom and dad as long as mom and dad entered the United States with permission. This is true even if many decades have passed since that lawful entry and they've been out of status the entire time. Yes, the US citizen child needs to file an 864 affidavit of support establishing that he has the minimum income level necessary to sponsor his parents based on his household size. However, if you do not qualify, then you can engage a joint financial sponsor who does have the minimum income necessary. A joint sponsor can be anybody with US citizenship or a green card that lives in the United States. You should work with an attorney. Some of us charge a very affordable flat fee to represent the clients in cases like this from start to finish. Counsel in any state can represent you.     ... Read Answer

As a matter of fact collection agencies are subject to fairly strict rtegulation about how and with whom they may communicate about your debt.  Sending information about your debt to another person, even though a relative, could be aviolation of Federal and Maryland law.  I syggest you use the Find a Lawyer feature of this website to find an attorney who specializes in consumer protection law.  Not only may you be able to receive payment from the collector if they violated the law the collector may have to pay the attorney's fees.  Violations like these happen regularly and, that iswhy there are laws to prevent what sounds like is happenning to you.  You may also wish to contact your State Attorney General who polices consumer protection matterssuch as this.... Read Answer

I am assuming your claim involved medical expenses - if I am right then my first reaction is ten days for the attorney to have satisfied and obtained releases for all medical expense claims especially if any were paid by any government agency would be near record time.  Once a bit more time has passed I suggest you find your state's equivalent of what is here in Pennsylvania  the Pennsylvania Lawyers Fund for Client Security which acts on clients' behalf to recover funds a dishonest lawyer keeps from a client.  You might want to send a letter (not just call) to the lawyer advising him or her that if you do not receive your funds or a detailed accounting for the funds received on your case you will report him or her to the State Bar.  A lawyer can face serious discipline for keepinf client money so this threat will get his or her attention.... Read Answer

You notify Uscis that you want to change the field office location because you moved to another state. If you want counsel to represent you, you can always hire someone and they can file a G 28 notice of appearance of attorney of record in the case to take it over. Some of us charge a very affordable flat fee to handle a case midstream. ... Read Answer

As an individual having a final order of removal and not having appealed on time, your husband’s present immigration case will most likely not save him. He may, however, be able to go through the I-601A process, an Obama program, to get a green card as long as it is not rescinded by incoming President Trump. The mechanics are that you would file an I-130 relative petition; he would file an I-212 conditional request for advance permission to enter the US; and if both are approved, he would file an I-601A application for waiver of grounds of excludability based upon extreme hardship to you if he and you are separated for a long period of time. Assuming that the application is approved, he would complete consular processing and return to the home country for an interview with the American consulate or embassy. If approved at interview, he would return to the US with permanent residency. The process is currently taking about 4-5 years at this time. 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 Answer

Although the federal agencies do not disclose what databases are shared, I do not believe that a consular post would have access to information from USCIS that you applied for information under the Freedom of Information Act. 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 Answer

Background checks are generally to ascertain information other than immigration status, and so I do not believe that the fact that you do not have the EAD card in hand at this time will impact the check. Lack of a Social Security number may have an effect as it lessens the amount of available information about you. Of course, if the employer offers you the position, you will have to submit evidence of employment authorization (the actual card)  and fill out the I-9 employment authorization verification form. 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 Answer

The online docket will also show the name of the lawyer that issued the subpoena. It is easy enough to call. The Clerk can be mistaken when marking a case "closed." Don't guess, ask a direct question and get a direct answer.  And nobody on this website will give you a definite answer without reading the actual subpoena, a review of the online docket, and perhaps a call to the issuing lawyer.... Read Answer

Yes, if you are a US Citizen. A US Citizen can sponsor a foreign national who entered the US on a tourist visa and file the green card even if the foreign national has overstayed his visa. Work with a lawyer. Some of us charge an affordable flat fee to handle the case from start to finish. The processing speed take about 20 months and involves filling out many forms and collecting many documents. Call for a free consultation. ... Read Answer

If your ex-husband is filing endless motions in your divorce case, and if they are consistently denied, then you could probably move for sanctions under Md. R. 1-341. This would allow the judge to reimburse you for your counsel fees. On the other hand, if he is filing cases against you outside of the divorce action, then you may have claims against him for abuse of civil process or malicious use of civil process. The problem however is that one of the elements for both causes of action is "special damages," which typically requires arrest or seizure of property. If the husband's actions, for instance, have lead to a foreclosure, then you could have the requisite damages that would allow a Baltimore County divorce lawyer or civil practice lawyer from your specific jurisdiction to pursue the claim. If you do not have arrest or seizure of property as damages, then your best bet would be to hire an attorney, and then move for Md. R. 1-341 sanctions during and after the cases, assuming that you are consistently prevailing.... Read Answer

Whether your wife will be able to come to the US on her present B1/B2 visa during the time that her green card application is pending depends upon whether she is able to convince Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at the airport or the port of entry of her intention to only stay in the US for a short period of time and then return to the home country. Having an I-130 petition marked for consular processing overseas is helpful. The temporary visit should not be with the intent to cover most of the waiting time and only have your wife return for a consular interview. 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 Answer

Police do not have to be involved for charges to be filed. A representative from the store can file charges through the court commissioner of the county where the incident happened. If the store filed theft charges, then yes you would still have to go to court. You should get an attorney to represent you for court.... Read Answer

Claire. A US Citizen child over 21 can sponsor your husband provided that your marriage took place before your child was 18. Thus, he could not sponsor his step dad if you marrued a few years ago. However, once your son sponsors you for a green card, you can sponsor your husband once you obtain lawful permanent residency. ... Read Answer

To extend a B-2 stay in the US, you would file Form I-539 Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status at the appropriate USCIS service center with filing fee of $455 prior to the expiration of your present allowed stay. Your fact situation does not contain enough information to assess how you may be eligible to work in the US. I suggest that you make an appointment with an immigration lawyer who can go over your possible options for employment. 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 Answer