Erina Legal has moved offices just a few doors up on the Central Coast Highway (aka The Entrance Road.)
We are in the office suites above the Coastal Design furniture shop (and next door to Clarke’s Rubber.) Call us for directions or check our new location on Google Maps.
Suite 26,
166 The Central Coast Highway
Erina NSW 2250
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The new year is just around the corner and so it’s time to reflect, where our personal world is taking us and what new situations have arisen in our life.
And that means it’s time to think about your will.
A recent survey revealed that 74% of people with children don’t have a will. Are you one of them? Or have your circumstances changed? Read this quick checklist and see if it’s time you updated your will.
If any of these things strike a chord with you, maybe you should give us a call and discuss updating (or writing a brand new) will.
Call today and book an appointment.
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This Thursday (30th July) Denise will be speaking on the topic of parental alienation. Call our office if you’d like the details.
Click the link below to see the slide presentation.
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When you are separating from your partner you need to consider how you will fairly share out the assets you have both accumulated over the years.
While this is challenging enough for the physical things in your home and any property you have, it can get particularly complicated for future potential assets.
Think superannuation.
If my super fund is worth $100,000 today, what will it be worth in 5 or 10 more years? And what does this future value have to do with what is in the account today?
For example, if the way you have achieved the super asset of $100,000 is to have had your spouse support you while you built your career and earning capacity, is she entitled to any portion of your future earnings?
These are important questions to consider and consult with your lawyer on when planning a property settlement.
The Australian Government also provides some information in this area at it’s Attorney General’s Family Law website.
Link: www.ag.gov.au/www/agd/agd.nsf/Page/FamiliesSuperannuation
If you have a question please callto book an appointment on 02 4365 6556.
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The Department of Fair Trading has an information sheet on conveyancing (you can get it here.)
In it they highlight that doing your own conveyancing is a risky path. Apart from the support and guidance you get from working with experienced law firms, there is also the added benefits of professional indemnity insuance.
That’s right. If, for some reason, things go very badly, you can sue your lawyer for damages.
Now, we aren’t planning to make mistakes so you can sue us, but we do have experience, so if you need assistance in your conveyancing, give us a call on 02 4365 6556.
We’ll discuss your options and prices.
Filed under property
ABC’s radio national programme recently broadcast an interview with an American researcher who has found that parents moving away from each other (ie to different cities) is not in the interests of the children.
You can get access to the podcast here.
Life Matter’s summary of the article is as follows;
Relocation, after a couple has separated and there are children involved, is one of the hottest topics in family law. Should she, or he, be allowed to go, and take the children?
A leading — and controversial — American researcher on relocation, Sanford Braver, is in Australia to present his work to the Australian Institute of Family Studies conference.
He found that it is usually not in children’s interests if a parent moves the children away. American courts have been influenced by his findings.
The reform of the Australian Family Law Act in 2006 has rewritten the rules on relocation, to an extent. Early indicators are that parents are being refused permission to move more now than in the past.
The interviewee’s website is here; Sanford Braver.
When looking for a lawyer to represent you its worth remembering the old adage that nobody remembers the price after the deal is done.
When looking for a lawyer this is particularly relevant, because a lawyer’s hourly rate is typically your first indication of how expensive the work will be.
In fact it is often the case that a higher hourly rate is likely to result in a lower overall cost. The idea here is that the more expensive a lawyer per hour, the less hours they are likely to spend on your work to achieve a satisfactory outcome.
Of course that isn’t always the case so you need to do your checks.
Your first appointment with your lawyer should be a two way interview process with the lawyer interviewing your for the facts of the case and you interviewing them to see of they are suitable for your needs.
Remember; you are basically hiring them to do wok for you. You need to be comfortable that they are good at what you are hiring them for.
Here are a couple of questions you can ask when seeking a lawyer.
Have you done similar work before?
You are looking for someone with relevant experience. Law is a broad industry and there are people who develop deep experience in a few areas, and people who develop a little bit of experience in many. If your solicitor-candidate has little experience, ask how they will manage the gap?
What challenges (in these types of cases) do you find cause the most difficulty?
The answer to this question will help you both draw out likely problems in your case. It will also help you see how the solicitor-candidate deals with difficult situations. You can assess whether this is someone you can work with.
Can you describe the whole process from this meeting to the end in simple terms?
A solicitor who can describe the whole process in simple terms is a clear communicator and, more importantly, someone who understand the process from your point of view. You are probably not an expert in the legal system. Your solicitor will be your guide. Without a guide you will have to deal with a lot of uncertainty and stress. How good will this solicitor-candidate be as your guide?
What is it likely to cost for each stage of this matter?
The answer to this is usually “it depends.” What you are looking for is degrees of certainty or cost windows by each stage. The next stage should be reasonably accurate, the latter stages more uncertain. As you progress through your legal matter your solicitor should be able to clarify future cost estimates with more accuracy.
Quality legal services are very important, and notoriously difficult to judge up front. Taking a partnership approach with your lawyer, and interviewing them up front to determine their skills and personality fit with your is an important step to help you achiev your goals.
Good luck, and of course Erina Legal is here to answer any questions you have about your matter. Maybe you’d like to interview us?
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Catherine Caruana writes a review on the impact of last year’s changes to the Family Law Act.
Caherine’s report is provided care of the Australian Institue of Family Studies and can be accessed at their website here.
Some of the key points are;
Filed under divorce, family law
Today the ABC’s law report ran a very informative story on wills. If you are thinking about udating your will, or even more importamntly, if you haven’t got a will you should take the time to listen to this story.
“Wills
Wills: they tell the world how the dead want their assets carved up, but do they always get carried out in an efficient way?”
You can access the Law Report here.
This specific article is available for download for a month (after a month you can contact the ABC and they will dig it up for you.)
Filed under wills
When buying property make sure you know what you are getting. Always arrange an independent Pest and Building report. You may also want to arrange a valuation.
While real estate agents usually have a good understanding of the local market they are biased in their views on what a property is worth. Agents are going to be paid if and when the property is sold, so their estimation is always coloured by this incentive.
You can get a valuation from two main sources; professional valuers and database estimates. The benefits of independent provider sis that you get a complete and accurate report that has been created specifically for you, and not for a real estate agent or a vendor.
A Google search for property statistical estimates will help you locate providers of this service. Statistical estimates have strengths and weaknesses.
I am of the belief that the statistical estimates are useful in two main ways; the first is in general research into a suburb, and the second is to help assess the value of the average house on the average street in a particular suburb or market.
Beyond these scenarios people still need to hire a valuer to go and inspect the property, along with the building and pest inspectors. The very nature of statistical estimation means that if a particular house or property is in any way unusual that uniqueness is not identified, and so the estimate could be too high or too low.
For a more precise estimate of the value of a property it is best to contact a qualified valuer. We recommend you use www.evaluator.com.au to arrange your valuation, but you could also search Google or the white pages for alternate providers.
You really do want to know of there are problems with the property before you agree to buy it. The cost of repairs is often greater than $20,000 for things such as subsidence or termite damage, and the bill can often top $100,000.
The couple of hundred dollars that you spend on these reports has the potential to save you many times that amount in the long run.
We also recommend www.evaluator.com.au for you to order your pest and building reports.
Think of these reports as a cost of buying like stamp duty or insurance, or even better as an investment into avoiding costly repairs.
If you have any questions you would like to ask about buying property you are welcome to call us on 02 4365 6556 or email us.
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