Florida Bar Journal articles from November 2005

Florida Bar Journal archives from November 2005

Dispelling myths. (about bar associations) (Florida) (President's Page)
November 1, 2005... For years I have heard the same statements about the Bar as you have heard: "The Bar does nothing for me, only to me." "The Board of Governors is run by plaintiff's trial lawyers." "The Board of Governors does nothing but play." "The Bar pays...

Don't think you need to know about the 2005 Federal Bankruptcy Act? Think again!
November 1, 2005... The Bankruptcy Abuse Protection and Consumer Protection Act has important and wide-reaching implications not only for bankruptcy lawyers but also for those whose practices focus on estate planning, real estate, asset preservation, business, and...

Surprise! You may already be an asset protection attorney take the quiz and find out.
November 1, 2005... Lawyers have different views about asset protection planning. Some feel it is an area they and their firms will not include in their practice. Mention asset protection planning to certain lawyers and they wince. The impression is that it is a...

How protected are your clients' retirement accounts after the 2005 Bankruptcy Act?
November 1, 2005... Much ink has been spilled on how the 2001 federal tax act may, or may not, mean the end of the traditional estate planning practice as we have known it. Come what may from Congress in the form of estate tax legislation, one thing that will...

How does the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 affect Florida homestead? Many unanswered questions.
November 1, 2005... For years, debtors have used Florida's liberal homestead exemption to protect significant equity in their homes, even on the eve of a bankruptcy proceeding. (1) In 2001, Florida's Supreme Court, in the case of Havoco of America, Ltd. v. Hill,...

The importance of domicile in asset preservation planning.
November 1, 2005... A debtor, regardless of state of residence, can seek protection from his or her creditors in the federal bankruptcy courts. However, the state in which the debtor resides or, more accurately, is "domiciled" will determine which assets the...

Florida's new limited partnership act: provisions of interest for estate planning and asset preservation purposes.
November 1, 2005... Despite continuing attacks by the Internal Revenue Service, family limited partnerships ("FLPs"), and their sister entities, family limited liability companies electing to be taxed as partnerships, continue to be popular estate planning tools...

The wild and wooly world of inference and presumptions - when silence is deafening.
November 1, 2005... The term "record" refers to the official report of the proceedings in a case, including the filed papers, a verbatim transcript of the trial or hearing (if any), and tangible exhibits. (1) As a practical matter, however, these things are not...

And now ... school concurrency. (Florida)
November 1, 2005... In recent years, Florida's growing population has led to overcrowded schools in many communities. Although this problem is a brick-and-mortar fiscal issue, the legislature in 2005 decided to address the problem as a regulatory matter through a...

Striking affirmative defenses in government litigation.(Florida)
November 1, 2005... In government litigation, affirmative defenses typically allege the government is pre-erupted from taking action, or that it has been involved with, permitted, or encouraged the misconduct at issue. For example, when a mid-level government...

Family limited partnerships: to qualify or not to qualify for the bona fide sale for full and adequate consideration exception under section 2036.
November 1, 2005... The last article written by the authors regarding family limited partner ships ("FLPs") for The Florida Bar Journal discussed Estate of Thompson v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo 2002-246. (1) The article focused on [section] 2036(a)(1) of the...

Ouellette v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., and Florida's minimum wage law: are class actions for minimum wage on Florida's horizon?
November 1, 2005... In 2004, Florida's voters and the First Circuit Court of Appeal took steps which may work together to open Florida's courthouses to class claims for unpaid wages under state and contract law. In November 2004, the First Circuit Court of Appeal...

Florida Supreme Court defines "substantial change" in child custody modification proceedings.
November 1, 2005... In Wade v. Hirschman, 903 So. 2d 928 (Fla. 2005), the Florida Supreme Court considered the issue of what test trial courts should use in modifying rotating custody agreements. The court concluded that unless otherwise provided in the final...

The Arbitrator's Handbook, 2d ed.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
November 1, 2005... The Arbitrator's Handbook, 2d Ed. by John W. Cooley This handbook, published by the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, defines the role, authority, and ethics requirements of the arbitrator in addition to examining prehearing duties....

The Oxford Companion to Supreme Court of the United States, 2d ed..(Brief Article)(Book Review)
November 1, 2005... Oxford Companion to Supreme Court The revised edition of The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States contains 86 new articles, including thematic pieces on campaign finance and punitive damages, and commentaries on 14...

Children in the Courtroom: Challenges for Lawyers and Judges.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
November 1, 2005... Children in the Courtroom by Sherrie Bourg Carter There is no one right way to interview child witnesses; however, there are wrong ways. Children in the Courtroom: Challenges for Lawyers and Judges by Sherrie Bourg Carter is a guidebook for...

Sex Appealed: Was the U.S. Supreme Court Fooled?(Brief Article)(Book Review)
November 1, 2005... Sex Appealed by Judge Janice Law In Sex Appealed, Was the US. Supreme Court Fooled?, Judge Janice Law concludes that a 2003 U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down antisodomy laws was based on prearranged arrests staged to test the...