Yearly Archives: 2006
Jones v. Clinton – Sifting Through the Debris
Litigation is rarely a tidy or expeditious process. Parties to lawsuits generally are impatient and angry not only at the other party but at the plodding and often very expensive system. All of the problems seem to be exacerbated with celebrity litigants, especially when the… Continue reading
The King’s English
It probably comes to us from the Old West, the drawling cow-puncher, sidling up to the innocent maiden: “Ma’am, you look real pretty tonight.” Somehow a syllable, “ly”, fell by the wayside and seems irretrievably gone! One more bit of syntax erosion.To be technical, “real”… Continue reading
SATISFACTION
The Rolling Stones couldn’t get it. Sometimes landowners can’t get it either. A mortgage is an instrument of security usually for an accompanying loan. When recorded at the county Recorder of Deeds’ office, a mortgage creates a lien on real property until the underlying debt… Continue reading
Contracts with Key Employees
Employment relationships often are not embodied in a written contract between employer and employee. Instead, most employment is of an “at will” nature, terminable by employer or employee on a moment’s notice, with or without cause. Some employment relationships should be embodied in written agreements,… Continue reading
New Uses for the Old IRAs
Much of the press given to the changes in Individual Retirement Accounts (“IRAs”) in the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 has been directed at the new Roth IRA. However, there are other changes that benefit those who have existing “traditional” IRAs. The biggest change is… Continue reading
Five Practice Areas You Should Be Aware Of
Many of our clients have come to know us as a commercial law firm with strong emphasis on real estate, tax, corporate and financial areas of practice. This is certainly true; however, clients are sometimes surprised to learn that our practice touches other fields with… Continue reading
Subdividing Your Property
From time to time clients ask us to represent them in connection with subdividing a property into two or more separate parcels. Exactly what is subdivision and how is it accomplished? In its simplest form, subdivision is the division of a single tract of land… Continue reading
Cyberspace Privacy
Now that computer online services are becoming more prevalent in the workplace and accessible by an increasing number of employees, what privacy rights does an employee have in his or her personal e-mail or internet access? To what may an employer rightfully have access? Suppose… Continue reading
The Queen’s English – Pronouns That Challenge!
What, which, and who are often used interchangeably, but each has its special meaning, and they are not synonymous when used at the beginning of clauses in complex sentences.Where a clause is “restrictive”, or necessary, to the meaning of a sentence and refers to a… Continue reading
The Explosive, “Hidden” Branch of Government
When the U.S. Constitution was formally adopted, the drafters envisioned a government essentially consisting of three branches: executive (President), legislative (Congress), and judiciary (Supreme Court).It was obvious that the three branches would need administrative assistance to operate, but until early in the Twentieth Century the… Continue reading