Author Archive: admin

Legal-Ease: Leaves, trees and branches

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Every fall we can look forward to raking leaves, and often you might find that once you’ve finished cleaning up your own leaves, a neighbor’s leaves have blown into your yard. While some communities may have rules on leaf collection, most leaf and tree law is governed by Ohio law. 

Generally, leaves, acorns, small twigs and other items that naturally fall from trees do not need to be raked or removed. If the items blow over to a neighbor’s house, the neighbor may not force the tree owner to remove the leaves. 

What may cause issues, though, is if a tree falls on a neighbor’s property. Ohio has a handful of laws that sort out liability when a tree causes damage to a neighbor’s property. 

Legal-Ease: Basics of house and apartment leases

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Residential leasing is typically the term used to describe the renting of houses and apartments between landlords and tenants. Residential leases in Ohio are governed by a large number of detailed requirements. The list of requirements is extensive, especially for landlords. 

Even if all requirements of a rental agreement are satisfied, the law allows judges to declare almost any part of a lease invalid if the Judge decides that the decision in question was unconscionable.

Legal-Ease: Farmland came with my new house, now what?

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When you purchase a house or building lot that’s not connected to a public septic/sanitary sewer system, you must own additional acreage beyond the building footprint so that sewage can be treated onsite. So when someone purchases a new home, they may find themselves with additional acres of farmland or woods. 

Legal-Ease: Can I get out of this deal?

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Sometimes circumstances change, and you want to know if you can get out of a contract. Maybe you found a better price or higher quality option. Four principles should be considered when contemplating ending a contract.

Legal-Ease: Keeping money safe

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The question often comes up of what will happen to money in a bank if the bank closes. Typically, there’s no cause for concern when a bank closes, as your money should be safe. When money is deposited in banks, it’s protected in several different ways. 

First, money deposited in banks is protected by the government’s bank auditing and examination laws. Second, when banks loan money, it’s not always the bank’s own money. Finally, money in certain bank accounts is protected through FDIC insurance. 

Legal-Ease: Small business data loss and protection

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Data loss and protection for businesses is often much more complicated than for individuals. A business must protect its own data, the data of its employees and the data of its customers as well as anyone else with whom the business conducts transactions. 

Legal-Ease: LLCs and taxes

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Limited Liability Companies, or LLCs, are often established by business owners to protect assets and limit liabilities. Most often when an LLC is organized correctly, net taxes are not typically increased or decreased. But, there are some exceptions to this. 

Taxpayers can decide to have their LLCs taxed like “S corporations” as opposed to “C corporations.” “S Corporations” are slightly less cumbersome in tax administration than “C Corporations.” Taxpayers can also decide to have their LLCs taxed like partnerships if there is more than one owner. If the LLC only has one member, then it can be taxed as a sole proprietorship. Most business attorneys will consult with a client’s tax preparation professional before advising on how an LLC should be taxed. 

Legal-Ease: Facing a medical crisis without prior legal preparation

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Advance preparation doesn’t always happen as it should, and sometimes a medical crisis can leave you feeling helpless and underprepared. Fortunately, what you are likely to need from an attorney in a medical emergency is often pretty straightforward. 

First, be sure to execute two powers of attorney. This will allow someone to sign documents and make decisions for you. One power of attorney should address financial decisions while the other power of attorney should address healthcare decisions. You can also sign a living will if you’d like, but a good healthcare power of attorney should allow your agent to sign a DNR for you. 

Legal-Ease: What to consider when considering retirement

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Retirement typically means that while you still may work, the “make a living” phase of your life has wound down. When Lee works with clients preparing for retirement, he typically focuses on four major considerations. 

First, Lee asks his clients preparing for retirement about taxes. Second, retirees will need to decide when to take Social Security or money from a retirement plan. Third, people planning for retirement need to consider their healthcare options. Fourth, retirement is a perfect time to get more serious about estate planning and asset protection. 

Legal-Ease: Capitalism or price gouging?

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Of all the devastation that we’ve seen on the media in the wake of Harvey in Texas, some of the more widely shared photos were of price gouging. One picture that was especially widely shared on social media was of bottled water that was marked up to more than twice its value before a storm. So the question is, is this just capitalism, or is it price gouging? 

Price gouging typically means spiking the prices of services or commodities to a level that’s considered to be unfair and that it’s exploiting customers. Price gouging is frequently discussed in the wake of natural disasters such as Hurricane Harvey. There is no federal law that governs price gouging, although some people in congress have introduced legislations to try to limit price gouging.