Legal Insights

The Basics of International Adoption

The decision to expand your family is a joyous and exciting one, and adoption is a great option to do just that. Increasingly, families from the U.S. are adopting children, and with the dwindling number of children available for adoption in the U.S., more and more families in the U.S. are adopting children from other countries. The process for adopting internationally varies greatly depending on the country where the child lives, the state in which the prospective adoptive parent(s) live, ...

A Law Firm’s Guide to Choosing a Law Practice Management Software

Every practicing attorney has been frustrated with all the time wasted on non-legal tasks, such as scheduling, managing calendar entries, and other, time-consuming, administrative tasks. Enter law today’s practice management software.    According to a recent Above the Law article, author Robert Ambrogi took a look at ten reasons practice management software is important--a few notable reasons include significant reductions to salaries and overhead (more than $40,000 for the ave...

Business Bankruptcy – Which Type is Right for Your Business?

If your small business is overwhelmed by debt, you may want to consider filing for bankruptcy. The type of bankruptcy you choose will depend on the type of business, the business structure, the amount of your business debt, the assets owned by the business, and whether you would like to continue running the business after filing bankruptcy. Chapter 7 Bankruptcy In a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, the assets of the business are sold by the bankruptcy trustee to pay down the debts owed by the business...

Creating a Viable Business Plan

A business plan is an important step to take when starting a business, and essentially describes what your business plans to do and how it plans to do it. A well-written business plan serves not only as a blueprint for your company’s future operations, but is vital in acquiring financing and/or capital.  Below are some tips for preparing a viable business plan. What Makes a Business Plan Viable? A business plan accounts for commercial needs and financial realities in relation to your...

Legal Issues When Buying a Home—Part 2

Your home will likely be the largest purchase of your lifetime, and you’ll want to ensure you’re legally protected throughout the process. Part 1 of this series covered obtaining your mortgage, making an offer, and entering into the contract of sale. Part 2 touches on the final steps in your home-buying experience: inspecting the property, going through a title search, and attending the closing. Inspecting the Property Once the offer has been accepted by the seller (or the contract h...

Legal Issues When Buying a Home—Part 1

There is a lot to consider when buying a home, including purchase price, neighborhood, mortgage and interest rates, closing costs, homeowner’s insurance, and more. As a homebuyer, you should also be aware of the legal issues that may arise. This two-part series will take you through the home-buying process, educating you on the legal issues that you will encounter along the way. Obtaining a Mortgage Although you can’t obtain a mortgage before you’ve found a home to buy, you can cont...

Prenuptial Agreements: To Sign or Not to Sign?

A difficult decision engaged couples will have to make is whether or not to sign a prenuptial agreement. Any individual who brings significant assets into a marriage can benefit from a prenuptial agreement; however beginning a marriage with divorce in mind can lay the foundation for a relationship with a lack of trust. The fact of the matter is that marriage is not only a romantic endeavor, but also a business partnership, and a prenuptial agreement can be useful to protect each spouse’s f...

Buying a New or Used Car: Lemon Laws & Car Buyer Protections

A lot of research and planning goes into finding the perfect car. Whether new or used, it feels good when you find the car that meets all of your needs and fits into your budget. But what happens if you purchase a lemon? Here are some things to consider when buying a new and used car, and what to do if your car turns out to be a lemon. New Cars A “lemon” is any new vehicle that has a substantial problem that isn’t fixed within a reasonable number of attempts, or that has had a cer...

Ten Must-Know Legal Requirements for Small Businesses

It’s a known fact that small businesses are the heart and soul of the American economy, as well as incubators of innovation. But did you know that US businesses with fewer than 20 workers account for 89.6 percent of US businesses? Add in the 23 million individuals who are self-employed, and the share of US businesses with less than 20 workers increases to 97.9 percent. Protecting the Heart and Soul of the American Economy These small businesses are unique, diverse, and vital to innova...

How to Hire a Lawyer for a Lifetime of Legal Needs

It’s almost guaranteed: at some point in your life, you will need to hire a lawyer. For some people, this could be a relatively mundane part of life like getting a will, fighting a traffic ticket, or putting your house in a trust. For others, it could be a fortunate event, like starting a business, getting a new job, or buying a home, or an unfortunate event, like divorce, bankruptcy, getting injured, or being charged with a crime. A Majority of Americans Have Needed or Will Need Legal A...

Tips for Collecting Business Debts

One of the worst things about being a business owner—if not the worst—is collecting money owed to you. Some customers will do anything they can to avoid paying you—it is in their DNA. Others are willing to pay, but cannot pay all at once and may need a payment plan or additional time. Still, others may have encountered sudden financial difficulties that make them temporarily—or permanently—unable to pay.  You should take immediate action against a customer who would do anythi...

Choosing the Right Business Partner in a Law Practice

Choosing the right business partner in a law practice can impact your life almost as much as choosing the right spouse. Like a good marriage, a good law partnership that works well values common goals while embracing differences. Choosing the right partner can mean prosperity and choosing the wrong partner can mean failure.  It is important to do your due diligence, and find out about their expertise as an attorney, work ethic, personality, how they handle their finances, and also, th...

Things to Consider When Planning for Retirement: Coordinating Retirement and Estate Planning

A key part of a successful retirement plan is estate planning. Contributing to an employer sponsored retirement plan, such as a 401(k), means that you’ve taken an important step in avoiding probate, since most employers will allow you to fill out a form naming the beneficiary of your plan, thus allowing the beneficiary to collect the money quickly and easily. With that said, your estate and retirement savings often ends up being more than just a 401(k), and often times, includes a pension...

Things to Consider When Planning for Retirement: Pension Benefit & Retirement Distribution Options

One of the hardest parts of retirement can be determining how to receive your pension benefits and selecting your retirement distribution options. Before starting your distributions, you’ll need to make decisions about how you’ll use the savings you’ve accumulated and when to start taking distributions, in conjunction with identifying how long your money will need to last. Without careful retirement planning, your retirement savings can dwindle at a rate that you are not prepared for....

Things to Consider When Planning for Retirement: Healthcare

Planning for and securing affordable healthcare is a crucial step in your retirement planning. Below is a brief discussion of certain issues that you need to be aware of when taking those steps. What is Medicare? Medicare is a federal health insurance program for certain individuals with disabilities, end-stage renal disease, and most importantly, people who are age 65 and older. Even if you have federal health insurance under Medicare, managing your benefits and securing full coverage of ...

Dog Bites: What Are Your Legal Rights?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 4.5 million people are bitten by dogs every year and about 885,000 receive injuries that require medical attention. If someone is bit by a dog and injured as a result, he/she may have a legal claim against the dog’s owner for damages. Below is a discussion of the relevant laws and some of the related issues. Dog Bite Laws State laws vary on whether a dog owner should be liable for injuries caused by a dog bite. In some ...

Weighing the Pros & Cons of Long-Term Care Insurance

It’s never too early to plan and discuss your long-term care options. In 2010, the average cost for a semi-private room in a nursing home was $6,235 per month! With the costs of healthcare quickly rising, long-term care can quickly eat away or even wipe out retirement and savings. Undoubtedly, there’s reason for concern, but not fear. Long-term care insurance can be very beneficial, but it comes at a high cost and it may not be necessary for everyone. Ultimately, the decision you have to...

Assessment Appeals: Getting Your Property Taxes Lowered in Cook County

Whether a homeowner, multi-unit property owner, or business owner, property taxes in Chicago and Cook County are among the highest in the nation. What are your options as a home or business owner? We take a deeper look at appealing your property taxes in Cook County and provide useful resources for helping you succeed. Did you know that in 2013, 63.05% of appeals to the Cook County Board of Review were successful, and in that same year, of the 53,503 individual (non-parcel) cases filed, near...

Things to Consider When Planning for Retirement: Social Security

Social Security is a benefit provided by the federal government, paid to individuals who are elderly, disabled, or no longer able to work. If you have ever looked at your pay stub or a record of your earnings, you have seen part of your income go towards “OASDI” which stands for Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance program, which is the official name for Social Security. Social Security was never meant to be the only source of income for people when they retire; however, Social ...

Protecting Your Small Businesses Identity: Trademarks and Trade Names (Part 2)

In our first part in this series, we discussed choosing names and other identifiers, including product names, logos, symbols, and even colors that are used in conjunction with your business. In addition, searching state and federal registries for names or logos that might be similar to ensure that your business name is unique and does not infringe on others’ trademark rights. In this post, we’ll cover the basics of applying for trademark protection for your own marks. Applying for Trade...