Litigation Legal Questions

We do represent defendants in prison. However, these cases are very difficult to prove because the witnesses will not testify for your loved one and the correction officers are skilled at giviing testimony. These cases require the use of our excellent private detective who will try to obtain statements from witnesses. Ed Dimon 732-797-1600... Read More

Mr. Robins rightly answered that you hvae the right to represent yourself as long as you are not being sued as a corporation or an LLC. Whether you should do it on your own depends upon your legal expertise if you have to go to court and dispute the debt. It also depends upon the amount. If you are being sued in small claims for under $3,000.00 it may not be financially expedient to hire an attorney, but anything larger and you shoujld at least consult with an attorney. Additionally, in some types of cases, there may be entitlement for attorney fees, either by the plaintiff or by the defendant if your defense asserts certain defenses that are protected (i.e. consumer fraud or illegal withholding of a security deposit in a landlord tenant case). So you should at least try and see an attorney for an assessment of the claim.... Read More

Unless you are inclined to spend tens of thousands of dollars in legal expenses trying to address this, you are wasting time. He as the animinals in another country and is "hiding out".....there is no option "B" where for minimal expense someone rides in on a white horse to get your pets back and do so immediately. ... Read More

As an attorney who questions jurors, I don't want to ask any personal questions, specifically because I don't want to annoy any juror. You're already annoyed just being there. If a juror says she does not want to answer a question because the information is private, an attorney would be a fool to pursue that question. I would be surprised if a judge would make the juror answer the question. If the judge did require an answer to the question, then the information might not be as private as you think. For example, how much education a person completed can tell me a lot about the kind of juror a person is likely to be. That is based on prejudice and assumptions that are not always correct. Bill Gates dropped out of college. On the other hand, because of those prejudices and assumptions, a lot of people who did not finish college might be embarassed to admit it. Nonetheless, most judges would not consider that sufficiently private and would insist on an answer. Same for what political party you are registered as. On the other hand, even in a rape case, a juror's sex life would be completely out-of-bounds. No sensible attorney would ask, and no judge would allow it. If you appreciate this free advice, please remember to refer me to any friends or acquaintances who need a lawyer. Referrals are still our best source of new business. Do you have a revocable living trust to protect your heirs against probate? Probate takes forever, is expensive, and is annoying. Do your family a favor. Set up a trust, and put all your property, especially any real property, into the trust. Since it is revocable, you can change it, add to it, take property out of it, or even cancel it completely, at any time. We set up such trusts, provide a pour-over will as a back-up for any property that does not make it into the trust, provide you with blank durable powers of attorney for health care and financial decisions, in case you become incapable of making such decisions while still alive, and convey one piece of real property to the trust, usually the family home, for $1500.00. If you would like to hire me to do this, let me know, and I'll send you a list of the information I need.   Dana Sack... Read More

I've never handled such a case, but I feel confident my partner and I could do a good job for you. We have considered and turned down many such cases. Currently, we are not accepting any cases on a contingent fee basis. These cases are very rare. You can't sue someone for expressing an opinion. If the person did not actually know it was untrue, or was not reckless in not knowing whether or not it was true, those are good defenses for celebrities, but they also can be used to defend the case as having been a legitimate opinion. If there is going to be a trial over whether or not it was true, then the speaker might hava had a reasonable basis for believing that the person's opinion was valid. And truth is a defense. You also have to prove damages. Did you lose a job, a promotion or a raise? Did someone stop doing business with you or refuse to do business with you? Did the person false you accuse you of some really despicable behavior? A lot of these cases are not pursued because of the risk that the judgment awarded migh not be enough money to make the investment of time, attention and legal fees, worthwhile. If you appreciate this free advice, please remember to refer me to any friends or acquaintances who need a lawyer. Referrals are still our best source of new business. Do you have a revocable living trust to protect your heirs against probate? Probate takes forever, is expensive, and is annoying. Do your family a favor. Set up a trust, and put all your property, especially any real property, into the trust. Since it is revocable, you can change it, add to it, take property out of it, or even cancel it completely, at any time. We set up such trusts, provide a pour-over will as a back-up for any property that does not make it into the trust, provide you with blank durable powers of attorney for health care and financial decisions, in case you become incapable of making such decisions while still alive, and convey one piece of real property to the trust, usually the family home, for $1500.00. If you would like to hire me to do this, let me know, and I'll send you a list of the information I need.   Dana Sack... Read More

There won't be a subcategory for lawyers who represent notaries (that lawyer wouldn't get much work), but any litigator should be able to help you.  Attorneys who specialize in malpractice cases (not medical malpractice) may be particularly suited to represent you.  However, I don't know exactly what your particular policy provides, but I would expect your carrier to pay for your legal defense and provide you with counsel, or have a roster of approved attorneys from which you could choose.... Read More

This may be an issue depending on you being an owner or a tenant. If you are a disqualified tenant, the lack of a background check may be a waiver for your current lease period and then you will have to move and if you are MTM renter, start packing and find a new place. DO NOT fore the COA to seek eviction as this will also be on your public record and make renting even harder. ... Read More

If you have all your records confirming payment, you can certainly dispute the debts. You may even have rights under the Consumer Fair Credit Reporting and the Consumer Fraud Act, but more information would be needed. You certainly can contact the courthouse in your county to see if there was an active court case that you might have defaulted in answering. Even though the amounts are small, if you prove that they are in the wrong, you may be able to file your own legal action under state and federal law that would entitle you to being compensated, even for attorney fees and punitive damages. So it might be worth discussing with an attorney.... Read More

More likely your lack of lawyering ability was the culprit - not a conspiracy theory. By example, seeking to DQ a judge is a classic knee jerk reaction by legions of pro-se litigants and it usually backfires badly, even when it works. You really need to consider hiring a lawyer to handle the litigation case. ... Read More

Yes. Hotels.com, L.P. is qualified to do business in California. So you can sue them here and not in Texas. If the claim is less than $10,000.00, you can sue in small claims court for a $75.00 filing fee and with no lawyers on either side. If you win, the judgment will include the filing fee and the fee of the process server to formally deliver the complaint to Hotels.com. You might try sending them a letter on letterhead and with a signature, enclosing copies of your bank statements and emails, and stating a deadline for them to respond, at least one week, not more than two. The court will want to see a "demand," and a letter will look more formal and serious than a bunch of emails. The other side might suspect that there is an attorney lurking in the background and bump the letter up to someone who will have enough sense and authority to pay you. Good luck. If you appreciate this free advice, please remember to refer me to any friends or acquaintances who need a lawyer. Referrals are still our best source of new business. Do you have a revocable living trust to protect your heirs against probate? Probate takes forever, is expensive, and is annoying. Do your family a favor. Set up a trust, and put all your property, especially any real property, into the trust. Since it is revocable, you can change it, add to it, take property out of it, or even cancel it completely, at any time. We set up such trusts, provide a pour-over will as a back-up for any property that does not make it into the trust, provide you with blank durable powers of attorney for health care and financial decisions, in case you become incapable of making such decisions while still alive, and convey one piece of real property to the trust, usually the family home, for $1500.00. If you would like to hire me to do this, let me know, and I'll send you a list of the information I need.   Dana Sack... Read More

Yes and no.  There is a legal concept called adverse possession, which means that if you openly exercise control over someone else's real property without their permission for a period of time (the period varies between jurisdictions but is generally approximately 10 years; I don't know what it is in Indiana), you gain the right to continue to use the property as you had been, up to and including full ownership.  However, here you had the owner's permission to use the property, whcih they could revoke.  Any claim that you might make that they had agreed to allow the prior owner of your property to use the property in perpetuity is likely to fail, because such a contract is unenforceable unless it is in writing.... Read More

You do not say if she owns the co-op or if she is renting it.  In general, the co-op's insurance will cover the loss for the structure, but the contents and insurance for alternative housing would be the responsibility of the tenant.  If the fire was someone else's fault, there may be claims that can be made.... Read More