Blogs
What Does Medical Marijuana in Florida Mean for Entrepreneurs?
The answer to that question is hard to answer at this moment. Less than one month remains before a historic vote is made in Florida. This vote is to allow patients to use medical marijuana in Florida. Before dropping your hat in the ring, there is something you should know. Entrepreneurs need to know is that even if medical marijuana becomes legal in Florida, it still against Federal Law to cultivate, distribute, or possess marijuana.
Many people have questions about the language of the amendment. If you have not read the Amendment yet, read it here. I have had several people ask me what they can do to get into the medical marijuana business if Amendment Two passes on November 4, 2014. There are some things that can be done now to prepare for Amendment Two to pass. If anyone tells you they can guaranty you to get a license, grow medical marijuana, or sell medical marijuana, my suggestion would be to run. The first thing is to decide the best business organization to for you and to register with the State of Florida. The next thing is to makes sure people are aware that medical marijuana is on the ballot and vote on November 4, 2014.
At the Reissman Law Group, we have organized several businesses with the Secretary of State in anticipation of medical marijuana becoming legal in November. The Florida Department of Health has six months to promulgate the rules regarding medical marijuana. After the rules are promulgated, then we will know exactly what the rules are and what it will take for entrepreneurs to get into the medical marijuana business in Florida.
If you would like additional information about setting up a business to get into the medical marijuana business, contact one of the attorneys at the Reissman Law Group today for a free consultation.
The post Medical Marijuana appeared first on St. Petersburg Law Blog.
What Does Medical Marijuana in Florida Mean for Entrepreneurs?
The answer to that question is hard to answer at this moment. Less than one month remains before a historic vote is made in Florida. This vote is to allow patients to use medical marijuana in Florida. Before dropping your hat in the ring, there is something you should know. Entrepreneurs need to know is that even if medical marijuana becomes legal in Florida, it still against Federal Law to cultivate, distribute, or possess marijuana.
Many people have questions about the language of the amendment. If you have not read the Amendment yet, read it here. I have had several people ask me what they can do to get into the medical marijuana business if Amendment Two passes on November 4, 2014. There are some things that can be done now to prepare for Amendment Two to pass. If anyone tells you they can guaranty you to get a license, grow medical marijuana, or sell medical marijuana, my suggestion would be to run. The first thing is to decide the best business organization to for you and to register with the State of Florida. The next thing is to makes sure people are aware that medical marijuana is on the ballot and vote on November 4, 2014.
At the Reissman Law Group, we have organized several businesses with the Secretary of State in anticipation of medical marijuana becoming legal in November. The Florida Department of Health has six months to promulgate the rules regarding medical marijuana. After the rules are promulgated, then we will know exactly what the rules are and what it will take for entrepreneurs to get into the medical marijuana business in Florida.
If you would like additional information about setting up a business to get into the medical marijuana business, contact one of the attorneys at the Reissman Law Group today for a free consultation.
The post Medical Marijuana appeared first on St. Petersburg Law Blog.
Speeding Tickets
There was a recent article about a Pinellas County resident receiving a speeding ticket for speeding in a school zone, even though the driver had not yet entered the school z0ne.
If you receive a ticket for speeding in a school zone, I would advise following the suggestions in the article by making sure to have the officer note on the ticket the your exact location when cited, make the election to go to traffic court and contact us, take pictures, and do not settle without consulting with an attorney first.
We will aggressively defend you if you receive a traffic citation in Pinellas County. One of the main reasons to contact The Reisssman Law Group, is to help avoid getting points on your license. Too many points on your license can cause your insurance rates to increase and could possibly result in the suspension of your driving privileges.
If you receive a traffic citation, contact Shawn Gearhart today for a free consultation to discuss your rights and defend your license. At the Reissman Law Group, there is always a free consultation to discuss your specific legal issue.
Speeding Ticket
There was a recent article about a Pinellas County resident receiving a speeding ticket for speeding in a school zone. The driver received a ticket even though he had not yet entered the school z0ne.
If you receive a speeding ticket for speeding in a school zone, I would advise following the suggestions in the article. Make sure to have the officer note on the speeding ticket your exact location when cited. Make the election to go to traffic court and contact us. Take pictures, and do not settle without consulting with an attorney first.
We will aggressively defend you if you receive a speeding ticket in Pinellas County. One of the main reasons to contact The Reisssman Law Group, is to help avoid getting points on your license. Too many points on your license can cause your insurance rates to increase and could possibly result in the suspension of your driving privileges. Nobody wants to pay more just for insurance and no one wants to lose their license for settling their case, without consulting with an attorney from the Reissman Law Group first.
If you receive a traffic citation, contact Shawn Gearhart today for a free consultation to discuss your rights and defend your license. At the Reissman Law Group, there is always a free consultation to discuss your specific legal issue.
The post Speeding Ticket appeared first on St. Petersburg Law Blog.
Speeding Ticket
There was a recent article about a Pinellas County resident receiving a speeding ticket for speeding in a school zone. The driver received a ticket even though he had not yet entered the school z0ne.
If you receive a speeding ticket for speeding in a school zone, I would advise following the suggestions in the article. Make sure to have the officer note on the speeding ticket your exact location when cited. Make the election to go to traffic court and contact us. Take pictures, and do not settle without consulting with an attorney first.
We will aggressively defend you if you receive a speeding ticket in Pinellas County. One of the main reasons to contact The Reisssman Law Group, is to help avoid getting points on your license. Too many points on your license can cause your insurance rates to increase and could possibly result in the suspension of your driving privileges. Nobody wants to pay more just for insurance and no one wants to lose their license for settling their case, without consulting with an attorney from the Reissman Law Group first.
If you receive a traffic citation, contact Shawn Gearhart today for a free consultation to discuss your rights and defend your license. At the Reissman Law Group, there is always a free consultation to discuss your specific legal issue.
The post Speeding Ticket appeared first on St. Petersburg Law Blog.
Speeding Ticket
There was a recent article about a Pinellas County resident receiving a speeding ticket for speeding in a school zone. The driver received a ticket even though he had not yet entered the school z0ne.
If you receive a speeding ticket for speeding in a school zone, I would advise following the suggestions in the article. Make sure to have the officer note on the speeding ticket your exact location when cited. Make the election to go to traffic court and contact us. Take pictures, and do not settle without consulting with an attorney first.
We will aggressively defend you if you receive a speeding ticket in Pinellas County. One of the main reasons to contact The Reisssman Law Group, is to help avoid getting points on your license. Too many points on your license can cause your insurance rates to increase and could possibly result in the suspension of your driving privileges. Nobody wants to pay more just for insurance and no one wants to lose their license for settling their case, without consulting with an attorney from the Reissman Law Group first.
If you receive a traffic citation, contact Shawn Gearhart today for a free consultation to discuss your rights and defend your license. At the Reissman Law Group, there is always a free consultation to discuss your specific legal issue.
The post Speeding Ticket appeared first on St. Petersburg Law Blog.
When I meet with Oregon debtors for the first time in our Portland and Salem offices, I cannot help but notice that many of them are concerned that they will not qualify for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. For many of them, the worry is that they will be forced to pay back all their creditors. They have been told somewhere along the way that Chapter 13 is simply a reorganization of all their debt; that Chapter 13 is simply a mechanism for paying back all their creditors. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. The fact is many Oregon Chapter 13 Bankruptcy filers end up paying back less to their creditors than Chapter 7 Bankruptcy filers do.
First, Chapter 13 Bankruptcy normally means that you pay back what you can afford to pay back. Let’s say you owe $380,000 and you can afford to pay back $200 per month. At the end of the three year Chapter 13 payback period, you would have repaid $7200. Though you would have only repaid a small fraction of the $380,000, the entire balance would be eliminated.
Second, Chapter 13 Bankruptcy enables you to pay back any IRS, ODR or child support arrears back at zero percent interest over a three to five year period. This feature simply does not exist in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.
Third, Chapter 13 Bankruptcy enables you to reduce the rates of interest on your car loans and often enables you to reduce the balances on your car loans. It is not at all uncommon for a debtor to walk into our Salem or Portland office with a $500 car payment and a ton of debt and walk out with a $300 plan payment that pays off both their car and all their other debts. This feature is not available in Chapter 7.
Finally, Chapter 13 simply costs a whole lot less to get filed than Chapter 7. We are willing to file a Chapter 13 for as little as $100 down and $185 of the court’s filing fee. You can’t beat that.
The fact is there are a number of other benefits of filing Chapter 13 that are not available in Chapter 7, but this article is long enough. Call me if you have any questions, I could talk about bankruptcy all day long.
The original post is titled Chapter 13 Bankruptcy is Misunderstood , and it came from Portland Bankruptcy Attorney | Northwest Debt Relief .
Historically, being in credit card debt has come with a certain degree of social stigma. While societal pressures push us ceaselessly to buy, we face a sort of shame when we cannot pay. In 2010, the average New Yorker carried $6,600 in credit card debt, according to Debt.org. The national average for credit card debt that same year was $7,300. Sometimes this debt results in bankruptcy. However, new research shows that the stigma that comes along with this sort of debt is unfounded. Thus, if your debt is out of control, it does not mean you are irresponsible. In fact, taking the proper steps to manage your debt is one of the most responsible things you can do.
Fox Business recently reported on this new research. A think tank, called Demos, published a studied called “The Debt Disparity: What Drives Credit Card Debt in America.” The study was based on two groups, each consisting of 1,000 people. The people in the groups were of working age and lived in low- or middle-income homes. The two groups matched one another when it comes to age, marital status, income, homeownership, race, and ethnicity. The difference between the groups is that one group routinely carried credit card debt while the other group did not. The think tank then researched the 2,000 people’s backgrounds and financial experiences.
The conclusion the think tank reached is something bankruptcy attorneys already know. It wrote, in its executive summary, that “[c]ontrary to popular belief, we find little evidence that households with credit card debt are less responsible in their spending habits than households that do not have accumulated debt.”
Many Factors Contribute to Credit Card Debt
Instead, a whole host of other factors played into whether one person would wind up shouldering a heavy credit card burden while another would not. People who had the opportunity to obtain a college degree were less likely to be saddled with credit card debt than those who did not have the opportunity. People who lacked medical insurance (or who had household members who lacked coverage) were substantially more likely to have credit card debt. This makes sense, since in low and middle-income homes it’s unlikely that extremely large medical bills can be paid out of pocket. One trip to the ER can result in a huge credit card balance.
Unemployment, not surprisingly, is also a big factor. If a member of the household is unemployed for two months or more, credit card balances are more likely to rise. Bills do not disappear just because a person’s job is eliminated, so a credit card becomes a stop gap measure to pay those bills. As more people wind up having to take lower paying jobs than the ones they lost, getting out of that debt even once employment is obtained can be quite difficult. Savings is also a factor, which can work with unemployment—the more savings one has the longer he or she is able to stay afloat when tragedy strikes before he or she has to resort to credit cards. The final factor, of course, is that those who have been affected by underwater mortgages are more likely to suffer from credit card debt.
Speak with an Attorney
Being in debt is not something to be ashamed of. If you need help managing your debt though, speak with the attorneys at the Law Offices of Stephen B. Kass, PC to learn about options available to you.
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Bankruptcy Can Help With Overwhelming Credit Card Debt
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The Real Estate Frenzy
In the early years of the new millennium many people in Florida had big dreams of buying real property, fixing it up, and selling it for a profit. And many were successful. That is,until the bottom fell out of the real estate market fell out leaving many people who dabbled in real estate holding the proverbial bag. Some people tried to hold onto the properties and rent them out to cover the mortgage expense and other other expenses including property taxes, insurance, and in the worst cases condominium fees.
Florida Condominiums
Some of the hardest hit properties in Florida during the real estate crisis were condominiums. These properties generally lost their value at a greater rate than other types of real property. The declining values coupled with the condo association fees made making the required payments nearly impossible for a lot of folks who owned condominiums as investment properties or as their homestead. With the accrual of condo fees and non-payment of the mortgage, these property owners faced protracted litigation from both the mortgage holder and the condo association. Bankruptcy could be the answer.
In Re: Rosa
A decision in a Hawaiian bankruptcy court allowed the owners of a condominium to “vest” the property back to the mortgage holder in a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy. This meant that upon recordation of the confirmation order, the order would act as a deed of conveyance and the bank would legally own the property. The Reissman Law Group, P.A. has been successful in transferring real property in Chapter 13 back to mortgage holders. It should be noted that the bankruptcy court cannot force the mortgage holder to accept a deed under Florida law. However, upon the filing of a motion to vest the property back to the mortgage holder and if no objection or other response is made by the mortgage holder, several bankruptcy judges in the Tampa Division have granted these motions and transferred title to back to the mortgage holder.
If you would like to discuss your options about the possibility of transferring your property back to your mortgage holder in a Chapter 13 contact us today for a free consultation.
The Real Estate Frenzy
In the early years of the new millennium many people in Florida had big dreams of buying real property, fixing it up, and selling it for a profit. And many were successful. That is, until the bottom fell out of the real estate market leaving many people who dabbled in real estate holding the proverbial bag. Some people tried to hold onto properties and rent them out to cover the mortgage expense and other other expenses including property taxes, insurance, and in the worst cases condominium fees or homeowner’s association fees.
Florida Condominiums
Some of the hardest hit properties in Florida during the real estate crisis were condominiums. These properties generally lost value at a greater rate than single family homes. The declining values coupled with the condo association fees made making the required payments nearly impossible for a lot of folks. With the accrual of condo fees and non-payment of the mortgage, these property owners faced protracted litigation from both the mortgage holder and the condo association. Bankruptcy could be the answer.
In Re: Rosa
A decision in a Hawaiian bankruptcy court allowed the owners of a condominium to “vest” the property back to the mortgage holder in a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy. This meant that upon recordation of the confirmation order, the order would act as a deed of conveyance and the bank would legally own the property. The Reissman Law Group, P.A. has been successful in transferring real property in Chapter 13 back to mortgage holders. It should be noted that the bankruptcy court cannot force the mortgage holder to accept a deed under Florida law. However, upon the filing of a motion to vest the property back to the mortgage holder and if no objection or other response is made by the mortgage holder, several bankruptcy judges in the Tampa Division have granted these motions and transferred title to back to the mortgage holder.
If you would like to discuss your options about the possibility of transferring your property back to your mortgage holder in a Chapter 13 contact us today for a free consultation with one of our attorneys.
The post Transfer Property in Chapter 13 Bankruptcy appeared first on St. Petersburg Law Blog.