In a case of first impression, a split New York State appellate court reversed a family court's order dismissing the adoption petition filed by a lesbian couple, and approved the adoption of a 5-year-old Cambodian girl. Matter of Adoption of Carolyn B., CAF 03-01032, Appellate Division, 4th Department, March 24, 2004.
Life Insurance is an important matter in most divorces. There are a host of issues that are not addressed in the typical negotiation. Consider the following sample insurance clause from a Property Settlement Agreement (PSA): The husband shall maintain life insurance for the wife having an aggregate death benefit of $250,000. Said obligation shall be terminated if the husband's obligation to pay alimony is modified/terminated. The husband shall maintain life insurance having an aggregate death benefit of $250,000 for the benefit of the unemancipated children. Said benefit shall be reduced by $75,000 upon the emancipation of the first child and again upon the emancipation of the second child. The obligation to maintain any life insurance for the children shall terminate upon the emancipation of all Three (3) children.
Recent rulings of importance to you and your practice.
More frequently than not, the divorce attorney will receive a call from the client who has paid his or her bill, inquiring as to what portion of attorney's fees paid can be deductible for income tax purposes. The client's accountant advised that he/she needed an opinion from his/her attorney and a letter allocating the deductible portion of what was paid for income tax purposes. The client may have paid a princely sum and will want to deduct as much as possible.
As Managing Director of the Law Firm Business Institute (www.lawfirmbiz.com), Pete Peterson draws on his experience until 2000 as a law firm CFO in Denver…
In this new article for A&FP, Professor Ross takes a fresh look at one of several vexing billing problems he explored in his 1996 book, "The Honest Hour: The Ethics of Time-Based Billing By Attorneys."
What is your law firm's definition of "pro bono?" Seems like a simple enough question, but ask any two lawyers or law firms what "pro bono" means to them, and you are likely to get two or even several different answers.
The following remarks are excerpted from "The Outlook for 2004: A Recruiter Roundtable." Lawyers, firms and corporate legal departments can all find reasons for optimism in over a dozen interrelated trends identified by this thoughtful panel.
Two panelists in the Recruiter Views article note current economic trends that favor midsize firms. In this article, the managing director of a suburban midsize firm describes how to position such a firm for profitability.
Does the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) protect an employee regardless of his or her age, once that employee turns 40? The EEOC's regulation provides that it does, stating that the ADEA works both ways once someone reaches protected status at age 40. Finding this regulation "clearly wrong," the Supreme Court recently held in General Dymanics Land Systems Inc. v. Cline, 124 S. Ct. 1236 (2004), that the ADEA does not protect younger employees who are treated less favorably than older employees.
