What is a QDRO? If you have a retirement account, and you’re facing a divorce, you may become quite familiar with this acronym, which stands for Qualified Domestic Relations Order. A QDRO is a court order that allows an alternate payee – a spouse, an ex-spouse, a child, or some other dependent – to collect money from a retirement account. This may be needed for spousal or child support, for example....
What is executive privilege? President Barack Obama is asserting executive privilege as a House committee investigates a Justice Department gun-tracking program called Fast and Furious, the Los Angeles Times reports. Executive privilege is the president’s right to keep information confidential. It’s typically invoked because of national security concerns, or because disclosure would be contrary to the interests of the executive branch. The president’s right to assert executive privilege is actually not explicitly stated in the Constitution....
The American Opportunity Tax Credit will likely be a top pick among college-goers and their families; however, students planning on pursuing advanced degrees may prefer to opt for the Lifetime Learning Credit. The Tuition and Fees Deduction is a good option for families whose salary ranges price them out of the first two tax credit options. American Opportunity Tax Credit: Part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, this college tax credit essentially replaces the Hope scholarship tax credit....
As Arizona’s controversial new immigration law continues to draw headlines and legal challenges, a different Arizona immigration law is now headed to the U.S. Supreme Court for review. The Court agreed on Monday to hear a legal challenge brought by several groups including civil rights organizations, immigration groups and businesses. The law in question involves a 2007 Arizona state law, called the Legal Arizona Workers Act, which punishes employers if they knowingly hire illegal immigrants....
It’s hard to meet people these days, which is undoubtedly why there are so many dating apps currently on the market. But what if something goes wrong, like really wrong. Can you sue a dating app or website if your date turns out to be dangerous? Unfortunately, the answer may surprise you. The Communications Decency Act generally bars liability of any dating app for harm happening from a third party user....
Your business may wish to hire employees who are well suited to a physically demanding task. This may make you wonder if your applicants are healthy enough to perform these tasks – so much so you would like to ask about their medical history. Amsted Rail Co., Inc. and Amsted Industries, Inc. had similar concerns about its applicants having carpal tunnel syndrome, so it performed tests and asked about potential hires’ history with carpal tunnel....
Pfizer may have intentionally misreported hundreds of incidents detailing Chantix suicide risks and other serious side effects, according to a recent report by non-profit pharmaceutical watchdog. Though Pfizer did report suicides and suicide attempts linked to its smoking-cessation drug, the incidents were improperly buried amongst tens of thousands of reports describing minor side effects, the Institute for Safe Medication Practice reports. Last year, the FDA asked Pfizer to resubmit thousands of side-effect reports after it had done so in an improper format; they could not be properly inputted in the agency’s tracking system, reports MSNBC....
Most items we purchase are covered by some kind of warranty. Car salesmen often extol the benefits of their 10 year, 100,000 mile, bumper to bumper warranty. As a small business owner, do you need to offer a warranty? Is it required by law? Implied Warranty Even if you do not promise any express warranty, you already offer an implied warranty, as required by the law in most states. There are two major implied warranties: the warranty of merchantability and the warranty of fitness for a particular purpose....
Hot oil and sweet dough are ordinarily a good match. But when they form exploding churros? Not so much. The Chilean Supreme Court has ordered newspaper La Tercera to pay 13 exploding churro victims a combined 85 million pesos. That’s about $163,000 in the U.S. The group had accused the paper of not properly testing its churro recipe before publishing it in 2004. The 13 victims suffered oil burns on their arms, bodies and faces, according to the BBC....
Nebraska recently held its first execution in 21 years, its first by lethal injection, and a first in history to use fentanyl. In an interesting turn of events, this drug, which has been at the center of America’s opioid epidemic, is now being used to execute prisoners in the very same prison which houses recovered opioid addicts. Over the past 20 years, many states administering capital punishment have migrated away from electrocution towards lethal injection....
The divorce between Walter Forbes and his ex-wife Caren could be worth billions… for the government. The AP reports that a new divorce decree issued by Bridgeport Superior Court Judge Howard Owens orders that the former Mrs. Forbes must transfer ownership of the couple’s homes in Connecticut and Wisconsin back to Mr. Forbes as well as half of their jewelry and art collections. What does this mean? It means that anything under the former Cendant Corporation Chairman’s name is probably going to end up going to the government....
When the Westboro Baptist Church will picket the funerals of U.S. servicemembers because it believes those soldiers were punished for a government that recognizes the civil rights of gay, lesbian, and transgender Americans, it shouldn’t be shocking to learn they plan to protest the funerals of victims of the nation’s worst mass shooting that happened earlier this month at a gay nightclub in Orlando. What may be surprising, in a good way, was how effective a counter-protest of “angels” was in silencing the WBC....
Whether you’ve already filed your taxes, or you’re planning to right before the deadline, nobody wants to be audited by the IRS. Even if you let an accountant or some fancy new software file your taxes, you may still be worried about whether your filing was correct. Well, the recent statistics on IRS audits have been released, and they might have something to say about how likely you are to get audited this year....
When a loved one dies, the furthest thing from our minds is money. But when the shock and grief wear off, and we realize the death was someone else’s fault, we may consider filing a lawsuit. And part of that consideration is looking at whether the cost of filing and litigation is worth it. While there may be some caps on how much you can be awarded in a wrongful death claim, the amount a lawsuit is worth can vary significantly, depending on the circumstances....
The parents and estate of Otto Warmbier won a $501 million judgment against the North Korea government for wrongful death. Though questions remain about the legitimacy and collectability of this judgment, one thing is certain: no amount of money can undo Otto’s fate and ultimate death. Otto Warmbier was arrested Jan. 2, 2016 for allegedly taking a political propaganda poster from his hotel. After being found guilty of “hostile acts against the state,” he was sentenced to 15 years in prison with hard labor....
First, the bad news: the filing deadline for your 2015 was three days ago. Now, the good news: all is not lost. You have options, even if you’re filing late, and the IRS won’t be banging down your door. (Yet. Hopefully.) And there may even be a way to avoid late filing penalties and fees. Here’s what you need to know about filing your taxes late: Filing Late Just because you missed the deadline doesn’t mean you can’t file your taxes....
If you’re fighting in court over a cash payment, how can you prove that you actually paid? Paying for things in cash may be becoming less common as technology marches on, but if you still use cash, you’ll want to get some proof that you paid. In many cases, the person you paid may be reluctant or defiant about admitting that he’s been paid. In order to get the law’s help, you may need to prove that the cash in question actually changed hands....
As a Texas husband has learned, a living will may not be valid if the person on life support is a pregnant woman. Erick Munoz, whose wife Marlise is in a coma, faced frustration when he asked doctors to fulfill his wife’s wishes to pull the plug, reports Dallas-Fort Worth’s WFAA-TV. While Marlise had discussed the issue of a “Do Not Resuscitate” order with her husband, even this legal protection would be void in light of Texas state law, because Marlise is pregnant....
When is the sum of the parts greater than the whole? When it’s tax time in the cannabis industry. By now, everyone understands that the federal government does not recognize the decriminalization of cannabis, regardless of state law. Marijuana must be included in any federal law that deals with Schedule I controlled substances. This is where tax section 280E comes into play. If you’re i the marijuana startup biz, here’s what you need to know about this tax section:...
If you’ve ever gone through a divorce, you know that it’s not exactly the easiest thing in the world. Maybe that’s why some marriages may end in annulments instead of divorce. Emotionally, divorce can be draining. Financially, it can be stressful. Logistically, it can be a nightmare. In the eyes of the law, annulments allow separating couples to treat their marriage as if it never existed. Here are three things you should know about how marriage annulments work:...
