dpUtDK5bc93zYFaJK31k2gzoRty4PFH: 2012

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Article III, the Size of the Federal Government and the Constitution

The story of Article III of the United States Constitution, the judiciary of the United States and other elements central to the legal system are in many ways the story of American constitutionalism itself. The story has a beginning but no end of it is fraught with tension, uncertainty and ambivalence. Article III of the Constitution defines and the limits the judicial power of the United States. It is intended to guarantee an independent federal judiciary and its first section provides that federal judges shall enjoy tenure during good behaviour. Section 2 of the article enumerates the categories of cases in which a federal court either may or must have jurisdiction. Section 3 defines the crime of treason.

Although Article III purposely establishes the judicial branch as the political of the legislative and executive branches established by Articles I and II, the framers plans the judicial power were beset with ambivalence. At the Constitutional Convention, all agreed that there should be one Supreme Court in Article III provides in mandatory terms for the tribunal's establishment. But the framers, some of whom feared that the federal courts would intrude excessively on the state's lawmaking prerogatives, divided sharply over whether there should be any lower federal courts at all. The dispute ended in a compromise, under which Article III allows Congress the power to create lower federal courts but does not require it to do so. It is a corollary of the so-called Madisonian compromise to the jurisdiction of the lower federal courts that are subject to congressional limitation.

Even the Constitutional provision for the Supreme Court power is surprisingly laconic and apparently compromised. Article III subjects the courts to appellate jurisdiction under such exceptions and regulations as the Congress shall make. To some commentators and critics, is also striking that Article III nowhere provides expressly for the power of judicial review which is the court's power to assess the constitutionality of the State and Federal legislation presented to it. Some framers, most noticeably Alexander Hamilton in the federalist papers at number 78 argued for the existence of this extraordinary power. But because Article III never mentions judicial review explicitly the debate is perennial over whether judicial review was intended and what its scope should be.

Viewed solely as a text, this article was determines very little. It affords the potential for what has in fact developed as perhaps the most powerful judicial system in the history of the world. But the words of the article are also consistent with a relatively insignificant federal judiciary, possibly without the power of judicial review and with a federal court's jurisdiction delimited by Congress to protect claimed congressional and executive prerogatives. It is often argued by scholars that the power of the Federal government in United States has been expanded far beyond what the framers of the Constitution ever intended.

Debt Collection Laws: Statue of Limitations Explained Defense Against Credit Card Lawsuit: CC Statements Not Enough Evidence in Court Your Judgment Debtor Filing Bankruptcy and the Automatic Stay

Will the Laws of Gun Control Change in the Near Future?

One question that worries many advocates of a right to carry a personal firearm is whether their concealed carry permits would be valid outside the state issuing the permit. Can they take their guns on holiday with them? Can they pack them in their checked bags for a flight? What if the plane is diverted to a spot like New York, which makes it exceedingly difficult to carry a gun? And if they cannot bring their guns with them, how will they defend themselves and their loved ones were threatened?

Gun rights activists have a simple solution: require all states to honour one another's concealed carry permits. There is no reason to suppose, says the head of the National Rifle Association, that a person considered fit to carry a gun in one state would suddenly become a menace to society on entering another. Many states are ready have such reciprocal agreements, without any obvious ill effects, he adds. The House of Representatives agrees, earlier this month approved a bill that would make one states permit valid in any other, with the exception of Illinois and the District of Columbia, both of which do not allow concealed weapons at all.

Opponents of the measure, including the manners and police chiefs many big cities, say will allow people to get around local rules about who can obtain a concealed weapon permit. Many states-holders to undergo safety training, for example, or deny permits alcoholics and others do not. For states such as Alaska, Arizona, Vermont and more enemy do not require a permit at all, although three of them to helpfully issued on the use outside the state. The question which states have the cheapest and easiest to obtain permits is another popular topic amongst advocates of gun rights. Forcing states to accept the permanence of the most permissive jurisdictions would be an assault on states rights.

It will fall to the Senate to adjudicate. Republicans from South Dakota say he is working on getting concealed carry legislation through the chamber. He was also the leader of a last attempt, and doesn't mind, but fell just two votes short of approval. Conditions were more favourable now. Several of the Democrats who voted against reciprocity and has since been replaced by Republicans, who tend to be keen on gun rights. Others, such as Republicans from Missouri, facing difficult re-election battles in gun friendly states. Even Barack Obama, the boogie man of gun rights groups, has waited on the subject of concealed carry weapons. The claim to oppose it as a candidate, but then signed a law permitting a national parks in 2009.

Mr Obama, facing a difficult re-election battle of his own, would probably prefer not to offend anyone by weighing in on either side this time. Leader of the Democratic majority in the Senate, could well grant him his wish, by preventing the subject from coming to a vote. And even if there is a void, gun-control advocates assume that when the chips are down enough Democrats would probably be available to foil the Republican leaders again. Relying on allies who do not wish to come forward until the last minute is always a nerve wracking proposition.

Debt Collection Laws: Statue of Limitations Explained Defense Against Credit Card Lawsuit: CC Statements Not Enough Evidence in Court Your Judgment Debtor Filing Bankruptcy and the Automatic Stay

Judgment Referral Companies

I am not a lawyer, I am a judgment matchmaker. This article is my opinion, and not legal advice. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

In my job, almost every day I read and hear statements similar to: "I've contacted about 100 judgment buyers, and they either tell me no, or do not respond at all. My judgment is guaranteed and my debtor lives very well in their mobile home, getting both social security and disability payments, so why won't anyone buy my judgment?"

In that example statement, the judgment owner has no idea that their debtor's situation, and that judgments are never guaranteed, are the reasons they have had no success with their one hundred tries.

Because of the economy, most judgment buying companies are now either partially or fully out of business. However, many leave their web sites up and running, providing an illusion that they will pay cash upfront for most judgments.

Most judgment buying companies ignore or turn down, far more than 99% of incoming judgments. When a judgment debtor is really rich, some will pay cash upfront for your judgment. If your debtor is not rich, the best of them will say no, others do not respond at all.

The right way to sell a judgment is to market and price it correctly. Only the debtor's available assets can satisfy a judgment. When the debtor is poor or unknown, your judgment is worth very little, no matter who you contact.

If you have contacted several judgment companies or contingency collection lawyers about your judgment, and have been ignored or turned down several times, the wrong thing to do is to continue contacting companies or contingency collection lawyers.

A smarter thing to do, is to list your judgment once with a referral or listing company; because for free, they help you find a qualified buyer or recovery solution.

Here is four other reasons why it makes sense to send your judgment to a referral company:

1) You send your judgment and information just once. This conserves your voice and your time. You specify your request once, instead of negotiating with too many people, that will not be able to help you.

2) They bring the best offers to you. The best do the shopping for you, finding better experts than you could, and match your judgment, and debtor to the best experts local to your debtor.

3) They specialize in referring any and all judgments and debtor situations, so you do not need to search and look through ads.

4) The best referral companies screen out flaky or unresponsive companies, so you avoid wasting time on them.

Whether you have a "slam-dunk" and easy-to-recover judgment, or a "lemon" judgment, using a referral company saves you time and money. They are not magicians, however they can help make hassles and time wasting disappear.

Debt Collection Laws: Statue of Limitations Explained Defense Against Credit Card Lawsuit: CC Statements Not Enough Evidence in Court Your Judgment Debtor Filing Bankruptcy and the Automatic Stay How A Wireless Expert Witness Can Help You

New Legislation Could Impact DUI's in Florida

In Florida, Senator Stephen Wise filed a bill (SB 1810) that would amend the current DUI law in that State. The law would require a .08 blood alcohol level or any level of a schedule 1-4 (or controlled) drug to be in the blood or urine. Although it is commendable that Senator Wise is so determined to find a unique and more stringent way of combating driving under the influence, this law becomes disquieting upon further read as the suspect does not actually have to be driving a car at the time he or she is arrested, only to have driven the car after consuming the alcohol (with no specified way of determining the pre-consumption). Moreover, the controlled substance does not have to be found on the person, it can be determined by testing the level in the blood or urine, which brings up further question upon the legal rights of a suspect to have their urine or blood extracted.

The resulting consequences of this bill are even more troublesome as some schedule 3 and 4 drugs are prescribed regularly, such as Ritalin(R), Tylenol(R) with Codeine and Vicodin(R). Moreover, some of these drugs (like marijuana) can stay in the blood stream for up to two weeks. This could be a problem for receivers of second hand marijuana smoke inhalation as they could have the drug in their system without their knowledge.

The vagueness of the bill on what is required for a judge to pass sentence leaves too much leeway to the courts. This could result in convictions, with little fuel for the criminal defense lawyer, due to criminal profiling, character judgments and other unethical means of judgment. Another more disturbing result could be flagrant bribery of the judge or attorney to enable a prominent citizen to avoid conviction altogether. The Florida legislature is on the right path, but they need to find a better way to combat drunk driving.

Though the intentions are there for cracking down on DUIs, and establishing that inhibited driving isn't just caused by alcohol and could include a slew of many other drugs, the bill does not do justice to those that are simply victims of circumstance. Drugs present in the bloodstream do not justify the supposed inability to drive at a later date. It is unlikely that the bill will pass into law, but the fact that people within our government are taking this subject so seriously means that we may see different variants and modifications to this bill in years to come.

Debt Collection Laws: Statue of Limitations Explained Defense Against Credit Card Lawsuit: CC Statements Not Enough Evidence in Court Your Judgment Debtor Filing Bankruptcy and the Automatic Stay

Answering To a Credit Card Debt Collection Agency

The first step to take when you learn that a credit card debt collection agency is suing you for uncollected debt is to create a response to summons. First, once you received the summons and complaints, you need to file a Notice to Appear. This will prevent the court from entering a default judgment against you without court proceedings. This will also give a clear message to your creditor that you are a well-informed debtor ready to defend yourself in court.

Next, you need to draft a response to a summons. Your response to summons must include answers to all allegations against you. Just make sure to file your response within the given period otherwise, the creditor will be awarded with a default judgment against you.

Once the response to summons is filed, the Plaintiff has two choices, either go on with the lawsuit and request a court date or drop the case altogether. However, there are some cases wherein creditors will send off Discovery immediately once the response to summons has been filed in court.

If you found several inaccuracies or discrepancies with the Complaint the plaintiff filed and get the plaintiff to amend these errors, they just might not want to deal with you, drop the case and move on to less informed debtors.

On the other hand, if you admitted to every allegation on the complaints or you answered incorrectly with your response to summons, the plaintiff will get the impression that you are an easy target, expecting to win the case and request for a court date.

But instead of getting a court date, the plaintiff could also send you straight to discovery where you need to present answers to Interrogatories, Admissions, and Documents. Depending on your answers, the plaintiff may proceed with dropping the case or formally request a court hearing. If you failed to answer on time or your discovery is full of errors, the plaintiff will be awarded with a summary judgment by the court.

The fact is, if you know what to do, it is very easy to overcome any obstacle, including possible lawsuit from a creditor. You can start by reviewing your state's court rules and note what you can and what you cannot do during the proceedings as well as purchasing a document that can help you fight all debt claims without hiring a lawyer to represent you in court.

Debt Collection Laws: Statue of Limitations Explained Defense Against Credit Card Lawsuit: CC Statements Not Enough Evidence in Court Your Judgment Debtor Filing Bankruptcy and the Automatic Stay

Social Security Disability Attorneys

If you are disabled, and unable to work, you may qualify for Social Security Disability, or SSD. Applying for SSD is a long and complicated process; however, if you are ultimately approved it will provide monthly income, as well as qualify you for other benefits, for as long as your disability persists. A high percentage of SSD applications are initially denied, although you do have a right to appeal a denial. Given the complexity of the application process, and the importance of being approved, retaining the services of an experienced Social Security Disability attorney is strongly advised.

Social Security Disability requires two basic tests to be met in order to be eligible to receive benefits. First, you must have earned sufficient wages during the relevant time period in order to be considered for benefits. Second, you must have a qualifying medical condition that meets the Social Security Administration's definition of disabled.

The number of credits required to qualify for the work test component of the application process depends on a number of factors and is subject to change each year. In general, you need 40 credits of work to qualify, but when you must have earned those credits and the amount of earnings needed to equal a credit depends on your age and when you apply.

To meet the SSA's definition of disabled, you have to have a medical condition that lasted, or is expected to last, for a minimum of one year, or is expected to end in death. In addition, you must not be able to do the work you did before, and not be able to adjust to new work as a result of the medical condition. There are a number of conditions that presumptively qualify for Social Security Disability; however, this is not an exhaustive list and simply having a condition on the list will not, alone, guarantee approval of your application.

The application process for Social Security Disability is lengthy -- often taking six months or longer for an initial approval or denial. If you are denied and need to appeal the denial, you must do so within a specified time period or you will lose your right to appeal. If you are ultimately approved, you will receive a monthly monetary benefit that is based on various factors including your previous earnings record. You may also be entitled to retroactive benefits.

If you are disabled and unable to work, Social Security Disability may be a lifeline for you and your family. Retaining the services of an experienced Social Security Disability attorney early on in the process will ensure that you have the best chance possible to receive the benefits to which you are entitled.

OMG Bankruptcy

A judgment debtor filing for bankruptcy protection is about the worst judgment recovery roadblock a judgment owner can face. As soon as you find out that your judgment debtor has filed for bankruptcy protection, you must cease all judgment and debt collection activities. My articles are my opinions, and not legal advice. I am a Judgment Broker, and am not a lawyer. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

When a person or entity files for bankruptcy, their automatic bankruptcy protection stay starts. The automatic stay applies to any of the debtor's known (and sometimes even their unknown) debts, including all lawsuits or judgments that originated prior to their bankruptcy filing. The automatic stay prohibits all collection actions against the debtor or their assets. After a bankruptcy filing, it is a violation to even make a telephone call, asking your debtor about payment about any of their judgment-related or other debts.

The automatic bankruptcy stay is completely automatic. It starts at the date and time of the bankruptcy filing. The automatic stay does not depend on a written order from a judge, for the bankruptcy stay to take immediate effect. If anyone, including a judgment creditor, willfully violates a debtor's automatic stay, they can be found to be liable for damages, attorney's fees, and sometimes also punitive damages.

In community property states, the automatic stay also usually prohibits a judgment owner from pursuing the enforcement of their judgment against the community property assets of the judgment debtor's spouse. When a creditor suspects that their debtor has filed for bankruptcy protection; they should halt any judgment enforcement or debt collection activities, until they can verify that a bankruptcy filing has not taken place.

The automatic stay starts at the time of the debtor's bankruptcy filing, whether it is a chapter 7, 9, 11, 12, or a chapter 13 bankruptcy case. The stay remains in effect until the bankruptcy case is closed, denied, dismissed, or until the discharge of the debtor's debts is granted. If your judgment or debt gets discharged in the debtor's bankruptcy, it is game over, your judgment or debt is dead.

While there are some judgment debts that may ultimately survive their judgment debtor's filing for bankruptcy protection, you must still honor the automatic stay for as long as it lasts. Automatic stays usually last as long as the bankruptcy court case is open. If a creditor files an adversarial motion, and the bankruptcy judge signs an order, the creditor may get a leave of the automatic stay, and be allowed to recover the debt or judgment, while other creditors will not be allowed to recover from that debtor.

Bankruptcy is usually fatal to the enforceability of judgments, so it is the number one enemy of any judgment recovery. If you suspect your judgment debtor has or will file for bankruptcy protection, it is a good idea to verify their bankruptcy status before each step, using PACER; the government's Federal Court web site. PACER is very cheap, and almost mandatory for everyone that recovers judgments or debts.

Bankruptcy is so serious, it can be abused by debtors to fool creditors. For every three debtors that threaten to file for bankruptcy protection immediately, one actually does. Bankruptcy is so serious that many creditors do not verify the bankruptcy filing, they just walk away.

Another trick certain debtors try, is to file for bankruptcy protection, however they never follow through on their bankruptcy case. They only file so that they can get the automatic stay. Many creditors assume the bankruptcy filing means that their money judgment is automatically discharged, however that only happens after the debtor's bankruptcy successfully concludes and the court orders that. That is one more reason to get and use a PACER account.

Judgment owners should stay informed about their judgment debtor's bankruptcy court status. If their debtor's bankruptcy case gets dropped, dismissed, or denied, the judgment creditor is then free to crank up the judgment recovery machinery once again.

Dumpster Diving Can Be A Soap Opera

I have written a few articles about dumpster diving before, and since then, a few judgment experts have given me their feedback. One of their stories was so interesting, I got their permission to include their experience into this article.

My articles are my opinions, and not legal advice. I am a Judgment Broker, and am not a lawyer. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

The judgment recovery expert had hit a roadblock in their post judgment investigations. They had a particularly sly and experienced judgment debtor that hid their assets well. The judgment enforcer had accumulated quite a bit of information about their judgment debtor, however they had no clues about their available assets. This is the story of their first trash search experience, also known as a dumpster dive.

The judgment debtor lived in a house that they might be renting for cash, about ten miles away from the judgment enforcer's office. The judgment enforcer first used Google Maps, then did a drive-by, to see what he could find out by making a quick visit to the judgment debtor's house.

The judgment enforcer then Googled "cityname garbage pickup" and found the local trash/recycling company for where the judgment debtor lived. The garbage company's web site did not show the scheduled days and areas that garbage was picked up. So, he called the garbage company, and said he was going to move to their town soon, and he wanted to get a little bit of information.

The judgment enforcer told the garbage employee the street and block where their judgment debtor lived at, as the place he would soon move to. He then asked them what day, or day of the week, would his garbage receptacles have to be on the street for pickup? He got his answer (Wednesday morning) and thanked them and said goodbye.

The following Wednesday morning, about 4:30 AM, the judgment enforcer and their buddy started their adventure. The judgment enforcer's friend drove a small pickup truck to the judgment debtor's house. As predicted, the garbage and recycling cans were in front of their house, at the edge of the street.

They pulled up next to the garbage cans and stopped. Their plan was to leave the engine idling, and the enforcer would quickly grab the trash bags inside the judgment debtor's garbage cans. The reality was, while there were a few neatly-tied bags of trash, most of the garbage was loose, wet, sticky, and smelly. So much for a quick and easy dumpster dive.

The judgment enforcer had brought gloves with them, however they brought no other equipment, not even spare plastic bags. The enforcer moved the few sticky bags there were, to the back of the truck. Then he picked up the whole garbage can, and emptied all the garbage into the back of the truck, and got a greasy stain on his pants.

Next to the garbage can was a separate recycling bin, full of mostly junk mail. The judgment enforcer quickly dumped the papers into the back of their truck; just as a light came on at a neighbor's house, and a dog started to bark. The enforcer's pulse rate quickened, and he jumped back into the truck and they drove away, just as they thought they heard a man yelling at them. They did not wait to hear what the yelling was about. Luckily, they were long gone before anyone could see their license plate.

As they neared the freeway, they noticed some of the recycle bin papers were flying off the back of their pickup truck, so they decided to take the back-roads home at a slower speed. They resolved to either be much better prepared next time, or to never do this again. When they got home, they spread their "winnings" on a plastic tarp, and waited for daylight.

Using tongs and gloves, they sifted through the judgment debtor's garbage. As they expected, almost all their trash was just garbage, and all of the judgment debtor's recycling was junk. However, they found a gift within the garbage because they found a partially ripped-up banking statement and a voided check that was half-torn.

That provided enough information to later do a successful bank levy, that paid off the entire judgment. So, even though that stain never came out of his pants, and it was a scary, messy, and time consuming (especially for cleanup), the judgment payoff made the dumpster dive worth doing.

How To Collect My Judgment

I am not a lawyer, I am the nation's only Judgment Broker. This article is my opinion, and not legal advice. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

What if you won a lawsuit and have been awarded a civil money judgment, how do you collect your judgment? This article is a brief outline, with a simple overview of some common procedures to collect your judgment.

The first thing to check is, whether your judgment is enforceable or not. If the judgment is either void or voidable, due to a flaw in the proof of service, or the lawsuit, or judgment; that should be resolved before you try to recover a judgment.

The next thing to check is, did your debtor ever file for bankruptcy protection after you got your judgment. If they did, most likely your judgment was essentially wiped out in the bankruptcy proceeding.

Next, almost every judgment expires after a certain amount of time, usually five to twenty years. If the judgment is old, it is a good idea to confirm whether or not it has expired. If the old judgment is still valid, it would be good policy to renew it.

Next, can the your debtor be found? Do they have any available assets? You must find this out, or pay someone to discover this, to be able to recover any money. To collect your judgment, you need to locate the judgment debtor's assets, and determine their status, to check for any possible debtor exemptions that might be claimed on them.

If your judgment debtor owns, or may someday own, any interest in real estate property, record your judgment in the county property records department, usually called the county recorder. Recording a judgment or an abstract of judgment, creates a property lien that might one day get you paid.

Record a lien in every county where your judgment debtor owns, or may someday own, any interest in real estate property. Record a lien in the county where they currently live, and the county where their parents or older relatives own property, in case they inherit that property one day. Some states have state-wide property liens.

Post-judgment discovery methods can be very helpful when attempting to enforce a judgment. Each court and jurisdiction has unique rules about what discovery methods are allowed. Sometimes, after being commanded to go to court for a debtor exam, the debtor may decide to start paying you.

With sufficient information about the judgment debtor and their assets, it is possible to levy or garnish their assets. These are the tools to help you actually get (at least partially) paid on your judgment. When examinations and levies do not mostly or fully pay off the judgment; wait a year, then rinse, lather, repeat, and try again until the judgment is satisfied.

After most or all of the judgment has been recovered, file a Satisfaction of Judgment form with the clerk of the court. Usually this form must be notarized first. After the court stamps the satisfaction, make a copy of it, and mail the original to the former debtor.

Credit Card Lawsuit Information: Explaining The Plaintiff

If you are facing a credit card lawsuit for the first time, chances are, you have very little to go on in terms of defending yourself. In this article, we will discuss basic credit card lawsuit information and getting to know the plaintiff.

Now, if you got served a summons by the court, you need to read the Complaint and the summons thoroughly because they contain all the answers you need to know about how you can answer the summons correctly. From the documents, you will also discover how much time you have to file your answer. If you did not answer the Complaint within the given timeframe or you ignored the summons completely, your credit card company or collection agency will win the credit card lawsuit through a default judgment.

From the Complaint, you will see the Plaintiff's name and the defendant's name. The plaintiff is essentially the junk debt buyer, the original creditor or a collection agency while the defendant is you.

The plaintiff is the one who filed the credit card lawsuit and is seeking compensation for the damages. Those damages are Money damages and should be indicated on the complaint document that alongside the summons. Therefore, to determine how much money you need to pay up once you lost the case, you will need to check the court ordered summons as well as the accompanying documents.

The plaintiff filed the credit card lawsuit because either you failed to respond to their collection calls or you failed to answer their collection letter, including failure to send a debt validation letter. On the last paragraph of the complaint that starts off with "Wherefore" and within that paragraph, the amount of money the plaintiff wants you to pay will be indicated.

These are just some of the basic information you need to check when you are facing a credit card lawsuit. You need to get as much information as you can if you plan to represent yourself in court. The first thing you need to do when you got served with a summons is to check your state's local court rules to determine whether or not you have to file an Answer to the summons and complaint immediate. In some cases, filing an immediate Answer to the summons and complaints is not the best move. If you are required to answer the summons right away, do so in a type-written and legal format to void the documents from being sent back to you.

Sued By Credit Card Company: Answering and Sending Your Own Request for Admissions

Faced by legal problems for unpaid card debt? Sued by your credit card company? This can be quite a trying experience but it's not the best time to panic. It's important to create your own Answer as well as send your Request for Admissions to the plaintiff once you received a summons.

Here's how to do it:

When sued by credit card company, it's best to start crafting your Answers and Request for Admissions. Request for Admissions is essentially written statements, which you will prepare and serve, to the plaintiff to secure your creditor's admission that the facts or that the documents are accurate and genuine.

Note that Request for Admissions are not meant to Discover any information but to make things easier on you once the legal proceedings begin. Consequently, if you do not send over your Answer, you will make it easier for your creditor to win the case against you.

When you are sued by credit card company, your creditor will likely use leading or trick questions to mess up the Discovery process, thus succeeding in their case. Do not fall for these cheap tricks. You need to make sure you read and re-read every question and understand them thoroughly and then answer these questions with caution! One false move and the plaintiff will go after you.

If you do not know how to answer your Request for Admission, you have three choices: you can conduct your own research online, seek the help of an attorney who will guide you as you draft your Answer or purchase an eBook guide that will help you defend yourself in court without hiring an attorney.

When getting sued by credit card company, it's important to remember this: Requests for Admissions are used to get you to admit a fact is true and then use this fact as evidence to the court. Once a plaintiff gets you to admit a fact, you will likely lose your case because you don't know how to handle your defense.

At this phase, you cannot afford to fall on trick questions because that is exactly what the plaintiff is counting on. So always keep yourself informed, review your state's local court laws and get your hands on useful guides that will build your case and improve your own defense. This is the surefire way to defend yourself in court Pro Se and have your creditor drop the lawsuit.

The Top Ten Judgment Problems

I am a Judgment Broker, and am not a lawyer. My articles are my opinions, and not legal advice. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer. Usually, judgment recovery is a hassle. Some general frustrations are the laws that protect judgment debtors, the judgment debtors themselves, and our crummy economy. These are the top ten judgment recovery frustrations:

1) The judgment debtor files for bankruptcy protection. Usually, this is "game over" for the recovery of your judgment money. Usually, there is not much you can do after a judgment debtor files for bankruptcy protection. The law is you must immediately stop all collection activity as soon as you have knowledge of the bankruptcy filing. Once in a while, the judgment debtor loses in bankruptcy court. Usually, BK courts are bad news for judgment creditors.

2) The judgment has expired. This is also "game over", and this has caught some judgment creditors off guard, yet it can be prevented. In most states the life of a judgment can be extended. Learn how long your judgment will last, and renew it long before it expires.

3) Not ever getting repaid any money. At least eighty percent of judgment creditors are ever repaid.

4) Getting partially repaid only after hassles, expenses or costs, and many years. While "better late than never" is a positive thought, it can be frustrating to work, pay, and wait, a long time to be repaid something. Whenever you want someone else to try to recover your judgment on a contingency basis, where you do not pay any money; expect to give up an average of 50% of what is recovered. Half of something is better than all of nothing.

5) You cannot find the debtor. Sometimes the debtor was "your friend" for years, and then ripped you off. You sued them, and later you discovered the name they gave you was not their real name, or was one of several names they used. Some people live "off the grid", helped by cell phones, post office boxes, and cash-based underground economies. If a judgment debtor owns a home, or pays for rent, utilities, and/or land-based telephones with their checkbook; or has a conventional job, they can usually be located.

6) You cannot find the debtor's assets. Usually this is because the debtor is clever or poor. If they are rich and clever, you may have to hire a private investigation service to discover their assets. If they are poor, you might have to wait a very long time for a chance to be repaid anything.

7) Your judgment debtor files a claim of exemption in response to a Sheriff levy. This happens when the judgment debtor is poor, or when you levy an asset that is protected by laws, for example tools used in the business of the debtor.

8) The judgment debtor attempts to vacate or appeal the judgment. If either of these things happen, when the judgment creditor does nothing in response, the judgment debtor always wins. To keep the judgment alive in such situations, requires costs and/or extra work for the judgment creditor.

9) The lawyer that was supposed to collect your judgment does not seem to be doing much, if anything. Usually, this happens when a contingency lawyer discovers your judgment is not easy to recover.

10) The judgment enforcer you assigned your judgment to, does not seem to be doing much, if anything. Usually, this happens when they discover the judgment is not easy to recover. You can ask the judgment enforcer to assign the judgment back to you. The poorer your debtor is, the more likely a judgment enforcer will be very willing to assign the judgment back to you.

Tips To Reduce The Expenses In International Litigation

Business disputes are very common and businesses have to face litigations many times. As long as the litigations are confined to domestic area the expenses can be controlled very easily. The real problem occurs in case of international litigation where the court proceedings occur in a foreign country. It becomes too hard to predict the expenditure of such cases as there are many inherent uncertainties attached with them.

Businesses will always need legal advice and representation in courts, both domestic and foreign. Therefore, it is important that you know all the techniques that can help you in keeping down the expenses of a legal case. In this post, I have focused on the issues of international litigations and present to you some tips that can help you in reducing the expenses of an international litigation.

The Jurisdiction strategy should be decided from the Outset: Jurisdiction has and will always be the threshold issue for both plaintiffs and defendants while dealing with an international litigation. If the other party challenges the jurisdiction on the grounds of foreign non-conveniens or the jurisdiction is really unsuitable for either party then the expenses can soar up without any need for it. Further, such cases also tend to drag on for long durations. It is very important that you first understand the law of the foreign region before you get involved in any litigation there. Make sure that you find a lawyer who understands such situations very well and could offer you expert advice in this matter. Minimize your travelling expenses by using technology: The information technology has moved way ahead in the past decade. It has interconnected the whole world thus making it very easy for everyone to communicate and stay connected with their business and family personals. You should use communication tools to talk and exchange information with your lawyers and other related people. The video conferencing tools such as Skype Video and Apple's Face-time are very effective in arranging instant meetings with clients over the internet. This saves you from all the expenses, legalities and documentation associated with air travel. Further, you can now easily exchange and share documents via collaborative document sharing software and cloud technology. However, you must also understand that nothing can take the place of face-to-face meetings but expenses can be greatly reduced by properly using the available technology. Document Translation: If you have ever been involved in domestic litigation then you must know that document production is very costly. This cost increases exponentially when the same case is an international litigation. This occurs because the documents are required to be translated to or from the foreign language. The translation rates are usually very high. This cost becomes humongous when you need to translate thousands of documents. In order to reduce the cost of document translation, you can outsource the job to a firm based in that particular country. The overall saving will be highly significant and will reduce the overall expense of the litigation.

The cost of international litigations are always very hard to determine therefore it is always better to apply as many cost saving methods as possible while being engaged in such a case. This will help you in controlling the expenses right from the beginning of the case.

The Statewide Criminal Record Databases: How Good Are They?

Criminal court records are perhaps the most widely sought public record in the U.S. The process of researching court records online can be very complicated and frustrating because of the extensive diversity of the accessibility and content. Each state has two possible online resources of criminal court record content-

The court administration agency that oversees the state's trial and appellate court system. This agency is usually referred to as the Administration Office of the Courts (AOC) or the State Court Administration. The designated state agency holding the criminal record repository. The agency may be known by such names as the Criminal Record Bureau or State Police or Department of Public Safety, etc.

About the State Court Administrator's Records

Most states have a centralized case management system managed by this agency. In 32 states this agency offers a program for a public search of state or county court docket information. Most programs are online, but Mississippi and South Dakota offer unique, non-online statewide programs. A search in these court managed systems can be a particularly useful tool in those states - such as NY, NC, or UT - which do not permit a search from the state's criminal records repository.

Note: Overall, only 65% of the courts holding felony records provide online access. Also, many states will not sell their data in bulk electronic format. These facts make you wonder about the legitimacy of some of the so-called instant national background checks being sold on the Web.

About the State Criminal Record Repositories

As mentioned, all states have a central criminal record repository of records on individuals who have been subject to that state's criminal justice system. The repository content comes from information submitted by state, county, parish, and municipal courts as well as from local law enforcement. Information forwarded to this agency includes notations of arrests and charges, all usually with a set of fingerprints. Afterward the disposition is later forwarded as well (most of the time). 27 states offer access online to the repository.

How to Measure the Worthiness of these Online Sources

The value of a statewide criminal record search varies by state. Online researchers need to be aware of the many possible nuances and variations. For example; 1) there is no instant online statewide search in AZ since the 2nd largest county is not online, but many firms tout this "instant" service; 2) In MN, there are cases not on the statewide online system but do appear on the courthouse terminal system. Here are five factors to consider when evaluating the online statewide sources.

Is the site considered to have onsite equivalency? In other words, does the public access terminal (PAT) at the courthouse provide the exact same results and content as when searching online? What is the date range of the records online - meaning how far back do the records go online? Not all online sources go back 7 years How reliable is the database in terms of completeness and accuracy? Are all incidents recorded? Are all dispositions recorded? Are records updated? Are all courts reporting? What identifiers are provided - do you get the full DOB in order to match the subject to the record? Is the online site termed to be an Official Site or is it a Public Information site with a very distinct and strong Disclaimer?

Pluses and Minus of the Court Systems

In general, the records found at the Office of Court Administration are more likely to show arrests and have the final disposition than records found at the state repository.

Often the online search is free, but not always. The use of subscription accounts is common. A growing trend is to offer online access to information on a pay-as-you-go basis. Some agencies will give you a glimpse of the index or docket, but will charge a fee for the record copy. Some allow the record to be printed on the spot; others may only mail a document.

As accurate as the best statewide online systems may be, the fact remains there will always be stories about exceptions, errors, typos, etc. The recording of records is still a condition where humans are doing data entry - so the phrase Garbage In, Garbage Out is applicable to some degree.

Pluses and Minus of the State Repository Systems

The State Criminal Bureau often only has records submitted with fingerprints. While this is helpful when identifying the correct subject of the search, these records are more apt to only have convictions (no pendings) or to be missing dispositions or delayed disposition updates. Often deferred adjudication cases that were revoked resulting in a conviction at the county court do not make it into the repository. So how widespread is the disposition problem? Per the most recent statistics released by the U.S. Department of Justice, there was a backlog of 1.6 million unprocessed or partially processed court dispositions not entered into the states' criminal history databases. 1

Please don't misunderstand the message here - there are certainly good reasons for performing a search of a state repository record database. A statewide search covers a wider geographic range than a county search and is certainly less expensive than a separate search of each county. Many states do have strong database systems. But having access to the complete record with the final disposition can be a problem. And state statutes often designate this agency to be the official state repository-regardless of the completeness or accuracy.

The Bottom Line

A significant factor all providers and end-users of criminal records should consider boils down to a key concept - "What if the worthiness of the database is needed to show in court? Can you justify the validity of the search of the record source?"

Many consumer reporting agencies take the approach that for proper due diligence when performing a criminal record search, the best procedure is to use a statewide search with a county on-site search. And a search from a database vendor should also be considered as a key supplementary search. This is extremely critical for employers making hiring decisions in states with legislative limitations on using criminal court records without dispositions or when using misdemeanor records.

1 The statistics here are taken from U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistic's Survey of State Criminal History Information Systems, 2008 (released October 2009) found at http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbse&sid=52.

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Introduction To Learned Treatise For The Rookie Expert Witness

Are You Ready for Cross Examination?

They say that an expert witness testimony either breaks or makes a case. An expert witness is an individual who has spent years and years of education, training, and practice which makes him credible to assist the court in finding the truth.

But if you're an expert witness and about to testify before a judge or jury, you might want to learn what "learned treatise" is.

There's a story about an expert witness, an accountant, who was tasked to give his expert opinion about a document relevant to an insurance fraud case. He did what he was asked to do, took the witness stand, and testified in court. He was confident about his testimony, and thought that the case was considered to be closed.

But he was wrong. When it was time for the other party for his cross-examination, the expert witness wished he did not take the stand. He was embarrassed by the lawyer using the published works of a highly respectable author. The accountant's statements were rebutted under the "learned treatise" rule.

Learned Treatise, What is This?

What is "learned treatise"?

After an expert witness takes the stand and gives his testimony, the other party cross examines him with the goal of convincing the court that the witness is NOT credible enough. The lawyer presents any published work by a highly respectable and reputable author. If there are conflicting statements between the witness and the author, the expert witness's credibility may go down the drain -- just like what happened to the accountant mentioned above.

But it is not as simple as that.

The rule states that in order for the author's publication to be "authoritative" in court, it must be recognized by either the court or the expert. So if the expert does not recognize the publication, which is often the case, the cross-examiner will have to rely on other tactics to prove the expertise of the publication.

What are these strategies?

First, he may appeal to the judge or jury who would render the publication to be authoritative. This strategy, however, is unlikely to work. There are thousands of specializations as far as jobs are concerned, and there are thousands of people who are considered authority in these specializations. A judge or the jury may have difficulty recognizing who are the reputable people in one particular specialization.

Another strategy is to find other witnesses who will establish the authoritativeness of the publication. This often works because the witnesses have the same expertise as the one being cross-examined.

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