Obviously wire fraud has been an issue in our industry for quite some time, and it something that we, and our various stakeholders (clients, realtors, lenders, title companies, etc.) MUST remain extremely vigilant on. It became common to require wire transfers several years ago because check fraud was so rampant. Both are a…
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Our firm regularly encourages and supports businesses in the process of getting on their feet. Starting a business can be a treacherous endeavor, and there is a certain temptation to keep things simple by remaining unincorporated/unorganized. If you are doing business in our state, there are quite a few reasons why doing so is an…
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Chances are you know someone with special needs or know someone who has a family member with special needs. Such special needs can arise due to a mental or physical defect existing at birth or an injury occurring later in life due to an automobile accident, drug and/or alcohol abuse, injury on the job (including…
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Managing rental property may seem simple and profitable to the uninitiated—in truth, the landlord-tenant relationship is ripe for conflict. In our state, landlord-tenant laws have been written and construed in such a way that tends to give the benefit of the doubt to the tenant. As a result, dealing with stubborn or clever tenants that…
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When people ask me what area of law I practice, I tell them that, among other things, I practice Elder Law. That response often has me answering a follow-up question: “What is Elder Law?” The definition that I have carefully chosen to give in response focuses on empowerment. I help older adults proactively manage their…
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For some time now, the Forsyth County District Attorney’s Office has dealt with traffic infractions through use of a representative in Courtroom 1B at the Forsyth County Hall of Justice. Recently, however, the number of defendants coming through Courtroom 1B on any given Tuesday or Thursday has increased to the point where defendants are waiting…
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For those of you who follow happenings in the Kernersville business/legal community, you may have noticed changes in our firm and our brand during the past year. Excitingly, our name has changed as we have added Joe Orenstein as a named partner, making our firm name Coltrane Grubbs Orenstein. Along with this change, we have…
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While most people DO get together with their families for at least one of the upcoming holidays, it is rare that the PLANNED discussion involves estate or long-term care planning. However, I have found in my years of practice, that while these discussions are not usually planned, they often occur nonetheless, rather spontaneously. There are…
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North Carolina Child Support Guidelines Child support generally is resolved by an application of the North Carolina Child Support Guidelines, which are adopted by the Conference of Chief District Court Judges at least once every four years. The current guidelines were adopted in 2011, so they will likely be revised sometime in 2015. When do…
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Chapter 13 bankruptcy is based on the principle of debt reorganization, rather than asset liquidation—you take all of your debts, put them into a pile, and then make repayments into that pile over a three to five year period. (If you need more information about the basic difference between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13, look…
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