Battersby Law Office

Downsizing...what happens to all the stuff? As the baby boomers grow old, many of them will down size to smaller homes, apartments and condos. The volume of unwanted keepsakes and family herilooms is growing...along with conversations about what to do with all of the "stuff". Often folks come to us and want to include long lists of household property to be distributed in their wills and estates. This quandry is becoming more familiar with many adults who must soon dispose ...Continue reading

Choice Seating According to David Brooks, "Shoppers in grocery stores usually see the fruit and vegitable section first. Grocers know that shoppers who buy healthy stuff first will feel so good about themselves that they will buy more junk food later in their trip. Food stores also know that the smell of baked goods stimulates shopping , so they bake their bread from frozen dough on the premises each morning and then pump the bread smell into the store throughout the day...... In department stores, the women's shoe section is generally next to the women's cosmetics section ( while the clerk is going back to look for the right size shoe, bored customers are likely to wonder over to find some makeup they might want to try later) Consumers frequently believe products placed on the right side of a display are of higher quality than those on the left. In one study, four identical pairs of panty hose were placed on a table and consumes were asked to rate them. The further to the right a pair was on the table, the higher the rating the women gave it. The rightward most pair was rated the highest by 40 percent of the customers, the next one by 31 percent, the next by 17 percent and the leftward-most by 12 percent. All the customers denied that location made any difference in their selection, and none noticed that the products were exactly the same." So where should you sit in a courtroom? Often you have no choice as the Plaintfiff/ Prosecution is directed to sit on a given prescribed side and so is the defense. However, in many conference and settlement situations, you can choose. I like to sit on the right side....how about you?

Child Support & Retirement With the advent of second marriages and the delay in starting families, it is becoming more common for people who are retiring or about to retire to have to consider ongoing child support obligations. The Pa. Superior Court in Smedley vs. Lowman 2 A.3d 1266 (2010) covered the topic of retirement and child support.... The Smedley case delt with a father who was fully vested in a police department pension when he retired at the age of 52. At the time of his retirement, he still had a 7 year old child that he was obligated to support pursuant to a child support order. The general rule in Pennsylvania is that a person who is subject to a child support order can NOT voluntarily reduce their child support obligation by taking a lesser paying job. So what about a voulntary retirement? Does retirement ( and a lower income as a result thereof) justify a reduction of a child support obligation? In the Smedley case, father was held to an earning capacity rather than his actual income from his retirement. The trial court found that his voluntary retirement and reduction in his earnings did not circumvent his child support obligation.. On appeal the Superior court agreed. The court found that father's reduction of income ( his pension was half of the amount that he earned from full time employment ) was voluntary. No evidence was presented that his employer pressured him to retire or that his health made it diffcult or impossible for him to continue to work. The court found that he was in good health and relaively young. The father in this case had a 7 year old child to care for and his decision to voluntarily retire at a relatively young age and in good health does not somehow take away his obligation to ensure his child has adequate support as, support orders are for the benefit and interests of the children. If you are considering retirement and you still have minor children , you should carefully consider the on-going child support obligations you may still have and seek legal advice if you have any questions. You don't want to pull the plug on a career , take retirement, and ultimately find out you are still held to a higher income/ earning capacity when you in fact are only being paid half of what you used to earn.

The 5 Don'ts of Estate Planning 1. Don't appoint someone as executor who doesn't speak to others you have remembered in your will. This often happens when a parent names two of their children as co-executors thinking that "at last they will have to get along with each other". What ends up happening is just the opposite and the estate gets caught up in a court fight to see "who" will be removed or even worse, a full-blown accounting nightmare over every nickle and dime in t...he estate. If the people you name won't speak to each other and get along, chances are that after your death, they will be even less inclined to do so. 2.Don't be secretive. Let others know what the size of your estate and where your information on your assets can be found. ( This includes letting you lawyer know as well) Without this type of information planning your estate and carrying out your wishes becomes difficult. Be sure that if things are online that passwords are available and executors know where to find the information. 3. Don't have surpirses. If you left someone out or your will or have bad news for someone, let them know this while you are alive. They may not like it, but it is much better to hear it from you now , rather than during an estate fight. ( Even though you won't be around for it ) 4. Don't harbor grudges. Make sure "all is well with your soul" or as well as it can be. Pick up the phone one more time and reach out to the person you have been estranged from for so long. Once you are dead it is too late to make amends. Also, hard feelings often get carried over during the estate administration causing all sorts of problems that need not be. 5. Don't have an unnecessarily high bar to those who help you. Your executors and deciders ( your power of attorney appointees) do not have to have any special qualifications or licenses ( CPA or RN) What they need to be is trustworthy. If the person you are considering can navigate normal life and is trustworthy, he or she is the person you want.

Time to Write A Will? When someone dies, generally their property passes on according to the law of Pennsylvania ( if there is no will ). This is called intestate succession. If you have a will , then the property goes to those named in the will ( this is called testate succession ). Young people often don't think much about their own death , and if they are generally in good health, their odds are good that death is a long way off. However, once you get married and/or have... children, a will is necessary so that YOU name who is going to be the guardian of your children and who is going to manage the money you leave for your children until they are old enough to ge the money on their own. Our courts give great weight to who you name in your will to raise the children. As people age, they think more about which children should be in charge of their estate, how the money will be divided, and the possibility of grandchildren inheriting, etc. Often, we see families bringing in elderly parents and grandparents that are simply not capable of signing any documents due to dementia, and mental illness. When this happens , it's simpoly too late to execute a will or power of attorney . The notary must acknowledge that the person signing the documents knows what they are signing, and the attorney must also be able to go to court to defend the will/ power of attorney and state to the court that the person was of "sound mind". Think about all of the above if you have minor children, grown children or elderly parents or grandparents.....the time to do a will is propbably now! According to the Gallaop poll 51% of American adults do NOT have a will. Battersby Law Office charges a flat fee of $150.00 plus a $5.00 notary fee for a simple will.

Co Signing for a Grandchild's College Loan: According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the number of older Americans who are carrying student debt has quadrupled in the past ten years! These are NOT left-over student loans by baby boomers. Instead, these are loans that grandparents co-signed for their children and grand children...often at the expense of their own retirements, and on top of their own debt ( car loans, mortgages, etc.) Student loans are now the ...largest source of debt in the United States, surpassing mortgages and credit card debt. The average amount of student loan debt for borrowers 60 years or older is $25,000. Several states and the federal government have recently filed lawsuits against Navient, the nation's largest servicer of student loans, accusing them of extensive mistakes and violations ( N.Y. Times April 10, 2017). Many of Navient's private student loans those made outside the federal laon program, required borrows to obtain a co-signer, who is legally on the hook for making sure the loan is repaid. If a grandparent signs as a co-signer ( which means they are just as obligated to pay off the loan as the child or grandchild ) and the child/ student defaults; the grandparent is on the hook for the full amount of the loan. Navient and other student loan service providers often push customers toward forebearance, which lets borrowers stop making payments for up to 12 months..though interest continues accuring. The student/ child/ grandchild that elects the forebearance of a student loan can do so without the grandparent's consent. When this happens the grandparent's credit score along with the student's is affected. There are numerious student loan plans. Understanding what you are obligated to pay when the student's plans for financial stability and success falter is critical to know PRIOR to co-signing for a student loan. Have your family attorney review this before you sign. The safer bet is to simply give the child or grandchild money directly for college costs and expenses, or , if there is some time before they will be going to college, to set-up a 529 College Fund for them. No matter which course you choose, be sure you fully understand what you are getting yourself into.

Time Shares are becoming more difficult than ever to "re-sell". We see most of this in connection with a divorce or estate settlement. Typically, they turn out to be worth far less than what someone has paid up front. It is a good idea to consult a lawyer PRIOR to falling for the high pressure sales and purchase of a time share.