La Quinta Business Attorney’s Top Ten Things That Sarah Palin Would Like Changed in the Constitution

February 8th, 2010


Here is La Quinta Business Attorney Sebastian Gibson’s Top Ten:

1. No more free speech for those liberal media types.

 

2. Move the capital from Washington D.C. to Anchorage.

 

3. Free guns for everyone.

 

4. Religion should replace recess in all the schools and economics in all the colleges.

 

5. Drilling in the ANWR and off the coast of California should be mandatory.

 

6. Neiman Marcus should be required to open a store in Alaska.

 

7. Every woman should be required to have their hair in a beehive.

 

8. From now on, Putin shouldn’t be allowed to rear his head in the airspace above Alaska.

 

9. Katie Couric is persona non grata.

 

10. There is only one political party and the name of it rhymes with mepublican.

 

Now here is everything (well, almost everything) you need in business about personal injury, car accidents, brain damage, wrongful deaths, business, real estate, landlord-tenant, homeowners association law, construction, patents, trademarks, corporations, entertainment law, advertising, copyrights, and litigation without making any serious legal missteps.  

If you need to know more about business environmental, international law, election and campaign law, consumer law, class actions, constitutional, internet, publishing, advertising, media, food and wine, hotel and restaurant law, estate planning, wills, trusts, water law, agricultural, insurance law, bad faith, psychologist and psychotherapist defense, education law or child accidents, you can find valuable information by searching for those subjects and adding the words La Quinta business lawyer or La Quinta business attorney to your search terms and looking for other articles by Sebastian Gibson.

 

You can also learn more about any of these business areas of law and how we can assist you as La Quinta business attorneys, or as lawyers in any city, by calling the Law Offices of R. Sebastian Gibson at any of the numbers which can be found on our website at http://www.SebastianGibsonLaw.com  .

 

1. Personal Injury, Car Accidents, Drowning Accidents, Brain Damage, Catastrophic Injuries and Wrongful Deaths in La Quinta – If you’ve had a La Quinta auto, motorcycle, truck, pedestrian, bicycle, bus, train, airplane or car accident of any kind, get the other driver’s information, take camera or cell phone pictures, call the police, get a report, seek medical treatment immediately, call us or another good La Quinta personal injury lawyer, follow up with more medical treatment if you are still hurt, report the accident to your insurance agent, file a report with the DMV and don’t talk to anyone else or give a recorded statement until you talk with us. If you’ve lost a loved on in an accident, call us or another good La Quinta personal injury lawyer immediately. If you’ve been bitten by a dog, get treatment, call animal control and then call us. If you or someone you know has come close to drowning, seek medical treatment immediately as death or serious injury can still occur hours later.

 

2. La Quinta Business – Put everything in writing and preferably with our help or the help of another good La Quinta business lawyer. Spend money only as you need to. A La Quinta business attorney can tell you where to save costs and how to do it without risking liability. Limit your promises to employees and to customers. Buy insurance. Protect your intellectual property at the outset. Don’t disclose your inventions or any trade secrets to anyone without a non-disclosure agreement. Incorporate as soon as you are profitable. Get legal advice for problems or indications of pending lawsuits immediately. Keep all costs, including labor costs, to the bare minimum. Always use confidentiality agreements when disclosing valuable information and be careful what information you agree to receive. Tell customers they must pay in advance or on delivery. Do not agree to bill and be paid at a date after delivery. Otherwise you won’t be paid on a percentage of your products. Be wary of the potential for fraud by customers, business partners and employees.

 

3. Residential and Commercial Real Estate, Landlord Tenant Law, Mortgage Law and Homeowners Association Law in La Quinta – Use a La Quinta real estate lawyer who is also a Realtor, or a Realtor who is also a La Quinta real estate attorney. Don’t buy or lease more than you need. Choose the right location. Choose the right mortgage. Don’t refinance if you think you may need to walk away from a home. Don’t buy more than you can afford. Check out the neighborhood carefully. Get a home inspection and a home warranty. Have a La Quinta real estate lawyer look over the documents. Homeowner Associations are facing a host of problems stemming from the number of foreclosures. As fees are reduced by vacant homes and condos, projects must be trimmed back or delayed in order to save money. Some homeowner associations, who were already in trouble, may face additional problems in the future and both homeowners and their associations should consult with legal counsel to help resolve how to deal with such issues.

 

4. Construction in La Quinta – With the construction industry in it’s biggest ever slump, down more than 90% from its peak in many areas, La Quinta contractors need to shift their focus to energy free homes, apartment construction and to take advantage of contracts likely to be offered for bid under the new administration’s plan to create new jobs rebuilding the country’s infrastructure, construction of roads, bridges, the electrical grid and other utility projects. If you are dealing with contractors yourself, always use licensed contractors and have a La Quinta construction lawyer look over your contracts. You can also investigate the contractor online to ensure he is licensed and insured and a La Quinta construction attorney can do an additional investigation at little extra cost. Never pay a contractor the entire sum for a project at the start. Put all agreements in writing, including any changes.

 

5. La Quinta Patents and Biotechnology – A patent should be applied for, for any new, and non-obvious process, or invention and to any new improvement of an invention at first opportunity. A patent is good for 20 years. Depending upon the complexity, most utility patent applications will cost between $8,000 and $12,000.00. A design patent can be applied for by a La Quinta patent attorney, for the look of an item and is good for 14 years. A provisional patent can be applied for, good for one year at a cost of half of the usual utility patent cost but is only good for one year. If the inventor does not upgrade the provisional patent into a utility patent application within that period, usually for the cost of the remainder of the corresponding cost of a utility patent, the inventor loses his or her protection. A patent is pending once it has been applied for, and can be licensed, or sold outright. Without a patent, others can make and sell your invention with no compensation to you. Patent searches help the La Quinta patent lawyer write an application around existing patents and cost an additional sum, usually under $1,000.00. Drawings must also be prepared for the patent application usually for under $500.00. A design patent can be sought for between $1,000 to $1,500 and a European design patent for between $2,000 to $2,500. Accelerated patent applications usually cost an additional 50% of normal patent applications. Foreign patent applications also require additional fees.

 

6. La Quinta Trademarks – Trademark any original logos, designs, words, phrases, symbols or combinations that you use to identify your products or services as soon as possible. Call a La Quinta trademark attorney as soon as anyone else’s trademark or service mark is so similar as to c
ause a likelihood of confusion in the public or if you receive a cease and desist letter from someone else accusing you of infringement. Trademark applications range from between $2,500 if there has not yet been any use of the trademark to $1,500 to apply for a trademark already in use. Therefore, to save money, create some products and advertising materials and apply for the trademark once they are ready to be sold and advertised.

 

7. La Quinta Corporations – Never incorporate by yourself. Corporations will not protect you from liability if you do not follow corporate formalities correctly. Protect your intellectual property from the start with the help of a La Quinta corporations attorney. Don’t borrow someone else’s employee handbook or fire problematic employees without legal advice. Don’t get investors without seeing one of our La Quinta corporate attorneys. Cut costs to the bone. Use extra money to advertise, and sell in new markets. A La Quinta corporations lawyer can provide you with advice as to which type of corporation or LLC to use for your business.

 

8. Entertainment Law, Sports Law, Marketing, Advertising, Media and Copyrights in La Quinta – Whether you are a musician, an actor, a model, a writer, an athlete, a broadcaster or connected in any other way to the entertainment industry, contact us or another good La Quinta entertainment attorney as soon as anyone gives you a contract to sign. Signing a bad contract can end your career before it’s ever begun. As soon as you have written any body of work, have it copyrighted. You can do this quite easily yourself, but if you need assistance or if someone else infringes your copyrighted work, you can then file suit against such a party.

 

9. La Quinta Litigation – At the first sign that someone may sue you or your business, consult with a La Quinta litigation attorney. Many times, a lawsuit can be forestalled before it has been filed or the matter resolved with letters between the litigation attorneys. If you are served with a lawsuit, hire a La Quinta litigation lawyer like one from our firm who specializes in mediations and non-binding arbitrations so your litigation can be resolved at the soonest possible opportunity and limit your exposure to years of lawyer’s fees and costs as your case winds slowly through the courts.

 

10. Employment Law in La Quinta – It may seem silly to think you should hire a La Quinta employment attorney whenever you are considering firing an employee, but it has come to that. However, a consultation with a good La Quinta employment law firm can provide you with the advice of how to handle your employee relations both immediately and in the future as you either seek to cut costs or get rid of a problematic employee. If you have been sued or threatened with a suit, or are being scammed by an employee, consult a La Quinta employment lawyer immediately.

 

If you have a legal matter in La Quinta, Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Coachella, Rancho Mirage, Indio, Indian Wells, Cathedral City, Desert Hot Springs, Thermal, Yucca Valley, Joshua Tree, Twentynine Palms or anywhere in the Coachella Valley, our La Quinta law firm has the knowledge and resources to be your La Quinta Lawyers and your La Quinta Attorneys. Be sure to hire a Coachella Valley law firm with experience in Personal Injury, Car Accidents, Drownings, Brain Damage, Catastrophic Injuries, Wrongful Death, Business, Real Estate and Landlord Tenant Law, Homeowner Association Law, Construction, Trademarks, Patents, Corporations, Entertainment, Sports Law, Marketing, Advertising, Media, and Copyright Law, and who will endeavor to ensure that your rights are properly represented.

 

Additionally, if you have a legal matter which involves Environmental and Toxic Tort Law, Litigation, International, Shipping and Maritime Law, Employment, Election and Campaign Finance Law, Consumer Law and Class Actions, Constitutional, Publishing, Publicity, Privacy Rights, Internet Law, Advertising and Media Law, Food and Wine Law, Hotel and Restaurant Law, Estate Planning, Wills and Trusts, Water, Agricultural and Natural Resource Law, Insurance Law, Bad Faith and Psychiatrist and Psychotherapist Defense, Education Law or a Child Accident in La Quinta or anywhere in Southern California, call the Law Offices of R. Sebastian Gibson, or visit our website at http://www.SebastianGibsonLaw.com  and learn how a La Quinta attorney from our offices can assist you.

Why Do I Need a Divorce Lawyer?

February 8th, 2010


When a marriage dissolves, emotions run high, and the people involved in the dispute too often end up doing or saying things in the heat of the moment that they later regret. This is particularly damaging if there are children involved in divorce negotiations. In seeking to keep divorce proceedings civil, and to make the whole process easier on everyone concerned, an experienced divorce lawyer can make a huge difference.

What a Divorce Lawyer Does

A divorce lawyer will handle all the necessary paperwork required by the state in which you reside to finalize the dissolution of your marriage. The lawyer’s familiarity with the specific state laws will allow your divorce to be settled more quickly, and will ensure the final settlement meets all the qualifications of the state. He or she will also negotiate with your soon-to-be-ex-spouse’s attorney to resolve any conflicts or differences of opinions. By acting as a go-between, he will help shield you and your family from the more difficult aspects of the process of divorce.

Choosing a Divorce Lawyer

There are many places to start when choosing a divorce lawyer. If you know someone who has recently gone through a divorce, a referral from that person might be helpful in your search. But if you don’t have available referrals, it might be necessary to choose names from the phone book and evaluate lawyers without prior knowledge of them or how they work.

Many lawyers provide a free initial consultation to help you determine whether you eventually want to work together. This consultation can help you make the vital decision about whether a particular lawyer will be a good choice for you.

Some factors to consider when choosing a divorce lawyer include:

Is the lawyer easy to communicate with? Does he or she show a genuine concern for my welfare? Is he or she prepared to work to protect my children from the difficulty of divorce proceedings? Is the attorney’s office a place where I will feel comfortable while working out the details of my divorce?

If you feel in any way uncomfortable, or as if the attorney does not have your best interests at heart, then it would be best to move on and choose a different lawyer.

For more information about divorce proceedings in the Denver, Colorado area, please visit the website of Denver divorce lawyers Rick J. Hull and Michael P. Zimmerman to schedule a free initial consultation.

California Child Custody – Who Gets Custody?

February 7th, 2010


Like most states, the standard for child custody determinations in California is the overall best interest of the child with an emphasis on assuring the “health, safety, and welfare” of the child and “frequent and continuing contact” with both parents absent child abuse, domestic violence, or where the contact would not be in the best interest of the child as provided in the California family code section 3011 (See California Family Code Section 3011, 3020, 3040, 3080). Further, according to California family code section 3040, child custody should be granted in an order of preference and according to the best interest of the child.

A common challenge for the court is to decide who will get custody of the child. Child custody may be petitioned by parents, grandparents, stepparents, or any person who believes they can provide suitable care and guidance to the child. So how does the California family court or a California judge handle competing persons seeking custody of the child? According to California family code section 3040, child custody should be granted in an order of preference and according to the best interest of the child. The court looks first to grant custody to both parents jointly or to either parent before looking to grant custody to other persons. California however does not currently establish a preference or a presumption for or against joint custody arrangements. Instead, it allows the California family court or California judge to make the parenting arrangement decision on a case-by-case basis according to what it believes reflects the overall best interest of the child. If neither parent is granted custody, then the court may look towards the person’s home in which the child has been living and the stability of that environment and then to any person deemed by the court to be able to provide appropriate care for the child. In short, the court will typically look to grant child custody first to the parents according the best interest of the child and if they are deemed unfit the court will then look to grant child custody to other persons according to the best interest of the child.

If you are involved in a child custody battle with the other parent, grandparent, stepparent, or any other person, you would be wise to consult a California family law attorney to help you learn where you stand legally and what your legal options are with respect to your child custody rights and visitation rights.

Copyright © 2007 Child Custody Coach