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TOP 5 WAYS TO WIN OVER YOUR DIVORCE JUDGE
Posted by: Tim Keck
December 11, 2009
Topic: TOP 5 WAYS TO WIN OVER YOUR DIVORCE JUDGE

1. Make sure you get to court on time. In fact, plan to get there 15 to 30 minutes before your scheduled time. One of my favorite sayings is "On time is late." This is especially true for Court; usually one of the most important days of your life. Since it is such an important date, you should treat it that way. The judge may be late, at lunch, or drinking coffee in his / her office. There may be another hearing in progress when you arrive at the courthouse. Still, you better get there when the hearing is scheduled. If the judge is ready to go, he / she won't be real happy to find that you aren't there.

2. Make sure you are dressed appropriately for Court. Your workout clothes or your pajamas don't qualify and take that lid off of your head. Dress as you would if you were attending someone else's wedding or funeral. While it shouldn't make a difference how you are dressed, it does at least unconsciously affect your credibility with the judge.

3. Keep your cool. The judge isn't personally invested with you and your case. There is no way the Court can know everything about your case. You may think your ex deserves the finger, or a cussing out, and maybe he / she does. However, the judge doesn't know him / her, and is likely to think you should treat him / her, and anyone else with courtesy and respect. Getting upset or having an outburst WILL damage your case.

4. Make sure people who come to court with you realize that they won't help you by jeering and grumbling at the other side. Yes, it is possible that your ex will lie through his / her teeth. It is even possible for his / her witnesses to give testimony that is more interesting than factual. However, hissing and booing should be saved for sporting events. No judge feels that his / her courtroom is the proper place for the expression of popular opinion, no matter how tempting a choice editorial comment may seem at the time. It just won't help your case, and can detract from your believability.

5. Answer the questions you are asked. Don't add information you think may be more interesting to the judge. If your attorney doesn't ask you something you think is important, he / she may have a good reason for not bringing it up. When you spend enough time in front of a particular judge, you get a pretty good idea what he / she doesn't like to hear. If you think something important has been omitted, mention it when you get back to your table. If you are really concerned, ask the judge if you can talk to your lawyer before you continue.

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DWD
Posted by: Tim Keck
November 29, 2009
Topic: Dangerous Distracted Drivers

No one expects to be injured in an auto accident. But no matter how careful a driver you may be, others around you may not be as careful. Several Studies show how distracted drivers have become in the age of technology:

•· Distraction from cell phone use while driving (hand held or hands free) extends a driver's reaction as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent. (University of Utah)

•· The No.1 source of driver inattention is use of a wireless device. (Virginia Tech/NHTSA)

•· Drivers that use cell phones are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves. (NHTSA, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)

•· 10 percent of drivers aged 16 to 24 years old are on their phone at any one time.

•· Driving while distracted is a factor in 25 percent of police reported crashes.

•· Driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37 percent (Carnegie Mellon)

As you can see, a great many people drive distracted and the numbers of such people are increasing all the time. Your chances of being in an accident with such a person are greater than you think. If you've been injured in Kansas you need a qualified Kansas auto injury lawyer.

The Auto Insurance Companies keep the statistics set out above, and the also keep a stable of adjusters and attorneys whose jobs are dependent on paying you as little money as possible. You need Arnold & Keck, LLC to help you recover as much as possible. We are experienced in handling automobile accident cases, and other types of negligence cases.

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Distracted Driving Statistics
Posted by: Tim Keck
November 28, 2009
Topic: Dangerous Distracted Drivers

No one expects to be injured in an auto accident. But no matter how careful a driver you may be, others around you may not be as careful. Several Studies show how distracted drivers have become in the age of technology:

•· Distraction from cell phone use while driving (hand held or hands free) extends a driver's reaction as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent. (University of Utah)

•· The No.1 source of driver inattention is use of a wireless device. (Virginia Tech/NHTSA)

•· Drivers that use cell phones are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves. (NHTSA, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)

•· 10 percent of drivers aged 16 to 24 years old are on their phone at any one time.

•· Driving while distracted is a factor in 25 percent of police reported crashes.

•· Driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37 percent (Carnegie Mellon)

As you can see, a great many people drive distracted and the numbers of such people are increasing all the time. Your chances of being in an accident with such a person are greater than you think. If you've been injured in Kansas you need a qualified Kansas auto injury lawyer.

The Auto Insurance Companies keep the statistics set out above, and the also keep a stable of adjusters and attorneys whose jobs are dependent on paying you as little money as possible. You need Arnold & Keck, LLC to help you recover as much as possible. We are experienced in handling automobile accident cases, and other types of negligence cases.

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Divorce is a Lawsuit
Posted by: Tim Keck
November 23, 2009
Topic: Divorce is a Lawsuit

When one spouse files a Divorce against another what is really happening is that the filing spouse is filing a lawsuit against the other. Procedurally, a lawsuit for divorce is handled just like any other lawsuit; a car accident, a real estate contract or any other civil suit are the same as a divorce.

The divorce lawsuit is special in that you are trying to accomplish several things, depending on whether or not there are children involved. There are several issues in a dicvorce lawsuit: the dissolution of the marital entity, the division of property, the issues involving the children, maintenance (alimony), and the various issues encompassed within these general areas. In Kansas and Missouri, a Judge will decide the issues of a marriage unless the parties reach an agreement. Even then, the Court will make a finding that the terms of the agreement are legally enforcible and not unjust to one party or the other.

The standard a Judge must follow for each of these issues is different for each of the issues themselves.

First, the Court will determine whether to grant the divorce (dissolution). The Court must find, through the testimony of one or both of the parties that the parties are incompatible and the marriage is irretrievably broken. There are other grounds for a divorce, but this is the most common. As long a one party or both wants the divorce, then the divorce will happen and the marital entity will be dissolved.

The next issue is division of property. The Court will look at all of the assets and debts of the marriage, and whether they were gained or incurred during the marriage or not. Once the Court gathers all of the assets and debts, then the Court will make a determination, if called upon to do so, to determine whether the asset or debt is marital property or marital debt. Generally, all assets and debts are marital unless unusual circumstances exist. For example, if one spuse inherited money from a relative, and kept that money separated from the other spouse and did not mix that money, then it may be determined to be "non-marital" property and set over to the spouse who owns that property. The effect of this is that the martial estate shrinks, and there are fewer assets for the court to divide.

Once the Court determines the marital estate then the law requires the Court to make a "fair, just and equitable division" of the marital estate. This usually is, but does not have to be, a 50/50 split.

The next issues concern the children. For most issue concerning the kids, the Court will determine and decide these issues based on what the Court believes is in the childrens' best interest. The first question is what type of custody situation will the Court order. Generally, the Court will decide if there will be sole custody, or joint custody for legal purposes. Legal custody is set to determine who will have say over how the children are raised; where do they go to school, do they attend church, what doctors do they see, etc. Generlly, the Court will grant joint legal custody.

The next issue is parenting time. That is when do the children see their respective parent. Is it every other weekend? Every Wednesday? What about Holidays and Birthdays and Spring Break?

Child support is the next big question. Both Kansas and Missouri have Child Support Guidelines that determine the amount of Child Support paid by the non-custodial parent to the custodial parent. The formula is based on the income of the parties, the work related child care costs, health insurance cost associated with the children, and the amount of time the non-custodial parent spends with the chilren, thereby entitling the non-custodial parent to and adjustment for parenting time.

Other issue concerning the kids include who gets the tax exemption for the kids, who pays for college, who pays for  activties, etc.

Spousal Maintenance (aka Alimony) may be ordered under certain circumstances. The statute and local guidelines establish general concepts for when alimony is appropriate. Generally, there must be a discrepancy between the respective incomes of the parties. Alimony is usually between 15% and 22% of the differences n the gross incomes of the two parties.

This is meant to be a general description of the issues to be determined in a divorce case. For further information, please contact Arnold & Keck, LLC.

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What is Negligence?
Posted by: Tim Keck
November 23, 2009
Topic: What is Negligence?

What is negligence?

Negligence is the legal term for any careless behavior that causes, or contributes to, an accident. For example, a person is negligent if he neglected to stop at a stop sign and, as a result, hit your car as you were coming through the intersection.

A person can be considered negligent whenever he or she had a duty to act carefully and failed to do so. (Generally, we all have an obligation to act with ordinary and reasonable care in any given situation -- that is, in a manner that will not foreseeably injure those around us.) For example, a person who drove at night wearing sunglasses would be negligent, because any reasonable driver would know that doing so would increase the chances of causing a traffic accident.

For most types of accidents, a person must be found negligent in order to be held legally responsible for another persons injuries. If a person behaves negligently and that behavior causes you harm, you can most likely recover compensation for your injuries.

How do I legally prove who was at fault for an accident?

You will probably be making your case to an insurance company, not a court of law, so you do not need legally perfect proof of anything. You will be negotiating informally with the insurance company through letters and phone calls with an insurance adjuster. You just need to make a reasonable argument -- in plain language -- that another person or company was careless (negligent), even if there are also plausible arguments on the other side.

For example, in a car accident case, you do not need to present measurements of tire marks or precise angles of collision. Just point out that the other driver hit you from the rear or turned in front of you. Common knowledge of driving rules tells both you and the insurance company who was at fault.

If you make a good argument why the other person was at fault, the adjuster will realize that if the matter wound up in court, there is a good possibility that its insured person would be found legally responsible. Companies usually prefer to pay a reasonable claim settlement sooner, rather than risk having to later pay not only for your injuries, but also court costs and lawyer fees.

Can I get compensation for my injuries if the accident might have been partly my fault?

Even if you might have partly caused an accident yourself, you can still receive compensation from anyone else who partly caused the accident through carelessness (or recklessness). The amount of another person responsibility is determined by comparing his or her carelessness with your own. For example, if you were 25% at fault and the other person was 75% at fault, the other person (or that person insurance company) must pay 75% of the fair compensation for your injuries. This rule is called comparative negligence.

A few states bar you from compensation if your own carelessness substantially contributed to the accident. (This is called contributory negligence.) But in practice, the question of whether and how much your carelessness actually contributed to the accident is a point to negotiate with the insurance adjuster.

There is no formula for assigning a percentage to your carelessness -- or that of the other person. During claim negotiations, you will come up with one percentage; the adjuster may come up with another percentage and explain why you bear greater responsibility for the accident. The different percentages at which you each arrive then go into the negotiating hopper with all the other factors that determine how much your claim is worth.

Can I get compensation for my injuries if my physical limitations made the accident more likely or made my injuries worse?

Say you have a bad knee, which makes one leg a bit unsteady. Or your eyesight, even with glasses, is not very strong. If you fall on a broken stair, are you still entitled to compensation even though someone with stronger legs or better eyesight might not have fallen?

Absolutely. All people, regardless of physical ability, have a legal right to make their way through the world without unnecessary danger. Owners and occupants of property must not put in unnecessary danger any person who might reasonably be expected to be on the property. The same goes for drivers and everyone else -- no one may create unnecessary danger for anyone whose path they might cross.

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