Articles Posted in News and Law for Non-lawyers

I get a lot of questions from friends and clients about insurance points. In NC, when you get in a car wreck, or receive a speeding ticket, you get license points AND insurance points. Insurance Points = $$$$ Insurance points determine the increase in the cost of your insurance. For example, if you pay a…

Before I set up my firm in Raleigh, I practiced in the western part of North Carolina and lived in Hendersonville, south of Asheville. I still maintain an office there as part of an “of counsel” relationship with my old law partners. I have family there as well whom I particularly enjoy visting when it…

My friend Holly sent me this bit of news. New law becomes effective today; Medicaid recipients required to provide proof of citizenship (See below my comments for the story) I have mixed feelings, but in the end, I don’t think this is the right move for our government. On the one hand we don’t want…

New DWI Laws Allow Speed Testimony under Rule 702(i) As of December 1, 2006, the new Rule 702(i) will allow accident reconstructionists who have been qualified as experts to give an opinion as to the speed of a vehicle, even if they did not observe the moving vehicle(s). Please note that this should apply to…

Living Wills? I thought you were a personal Injury Attorney? Ok, I assure you that I am not branching out into a new area of practice. I receive the occasional inquiry about wills and estates and always refer people on to someone who likes that kind of law. What I’m talking about here is a…

I stumbled across a neat little site by Professor Douglas Linder, a professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law.  You can view Professor Linder’s website here: Famous Trials – UMKC School of Law – Prof. Douglas Linder. Would John Brown have fled in a white SUV? Linder teaches a class on “Famous…

A Hole in the Umbrella Most people driving around these days are blissfully unaware of Umbrella Policies. Umbrella policies or “Personal Liability Umbrella Policies” (PLUP) are insurance policies sold to cover individuals and businesses in case the “regular” insurance is not enough. In other words, if you kill someone by your own negligence, and they…

How to Choose a Lawyer: The Insiders Guide Ok, I’m a lawyer so I suppose that I have a vested interest in writing an article about choosing lawyers. But at the same time, I realize that I can’t represent ever person in the world, and I see people choosing lawyers that I would not let…

I get a lot of phone calls from people that are “upside down” on their car loans after their vehicle gets destroyed or “totaled” in a wreck. Being “upside down” means that the money owed on the car loan is more that what the car is worth (or at least what the insurance company is…

Following a legal trend from around the nation, the North Carolina Senate has finalized legislation to ban teenagers from operating cars while talking on cell phones. Starting December 1, 2006, teenagers may be fined $25 and get a six month extension of their “learner’s permit” if they are caught driving and talking. Seems like a…