Dean Stephen C. Ferrruolo from the University of San Diego, School of Law has been appointed by Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauey to the Power of Democracy Steering Committee. Dr. Stephen C. Ferruolo is replacing Hon. Deanell Tacha, the Dean of Pepperdine Law School, as representative of a law school on the committee. View the California Courts Press Release Here.
Just Document Preparation Celebrates 20 Years
While most people in the community are familiar with the term paralegal, they may not be fully aware of the extend of their business model and what they can do for their clients. In California, the term paralegal is a commonly used term that either refers to one of two groups. The first would be an employee of an attorney who does more of the document processing for the attorney and their firm. The second, a bonded and registered Legal Document Assistant who works directly for the public. This article is about the later.
Legal Document Assistants in California are bonded and registered through local County Recorders. The recorders will verify education, current training, criminal record and also the presence of a bond policy for consumer protection. Currently this happens every two years where the LDA will re-verify to keep an active registration. This is a state law and requirement for any person or business who provides legal document preparation directly to the public. As opposed to a “paralegal” who works under an attorney and not to the public. So when people in California are looking to use a paralegal, it is usually a Legal Document Assistant they are looking for.
Legallistings.org has found what appears to be a perfect example of true professionalism within the legal industry in California. Just Document Preparation, with offices in Southern California (Riverside, Jurupa Valley, Murrieta and Rancho Cucamonga) is celebrating 20 years on business. From what we have seen, many others within the Legal Document Assistant industry typically do not have more than a few years, and couple their providing with other non legal services like taxes. Just Document Preparation has focused on legal document preparation exclusively since the start back in 1996. The majority of their work is with family law, divorce specifically, but they also provide living trusts and uncontested probate document preparation. You can read their recent press release here: Paralegal Service in Murrieta.
Just Document Preparation Murrieta
41690 Ivy Street, Suite B, Murrieta, CA 92562
951-696-5353 – http://justdocprep.com/
An Invitation from California Supreme Court
In San Francisco, California – while acting on behalf of Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye, of the supreme Court, has issued today an order that invites any entity or person wishing to comment on the State Bar’s Request to a letter of amicus curiae to the court by Tuesday, October 11, 2016.
This action follows receipt of the Request for the State Bar of California for Special Regulatory Assessment, today,, September 30, 2016. Any letter needs to include a reference to the court’s case S237081 and docket number, In re to Attorney Discipline System. Full text of the order states:
“On September 30, 2016, the court received the Request of the State Bar of California for Special Regulatory Assessment (“Request”). Any person or entity wishing to comment on the State Bar’s Request may submit an amicus curiae letter (referencing docket number S237081, In re Attorney Discipline System) to the Office of the Clerk, Supreme Court of California, 350 McAllister Street, San Francisco, CA 94102. The commenter must also send a copy of the amicus curiae letter to Vanessa Holton, General Counsel, The State Bar of California, 180 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA 94105. The letters to the court and the copies to the State Bar must be postmarked on or before October 11, 2016, or be hand-delivered to the designated addresses by October 11, 2016.”
The court’s further action is following the Legislature adjourned without passing a bill that authorizes the State Bar to gather annual bar dues for 2017. The Supreme Court of California holds the inherent constitutional power and authority to regulate the practice of law, including the responsibility to enact or impose an interim regulatory fee upon attorneys for the purpose of supporting an acceptable, functioning and adequate attorney discipline system that not only protects the clients but also the public. You can view the full article press release here.
AB 797 – California Law Allows You to Break a Car Window to Save a Dog
On Saturday September 24th, 2016, Former California Governor Jerry Brown signed a new law, AB 797, protecting citizens who break a car window to save a dog or other trapped animal from dying in a hot car. The new law makes it legal for bystanders to break the window of a car if there’s no other way to rescue an animal locked inside, without the fear of criminal prosecution. “The bill would exempt a person from civil liability for property damage or trespass to a motor vehicle if the property damage or trespass occurred while the person was rescuing an animal pursuant to these provisions.”
Is Breaking a Car Window to Save a Dog Legal?
Yes – In California it is legal to break a car window to save the life of a dog or animal in distress due to heat. In order to be relieved of civil responsibility and criminal prosecution, the good Samaritan who breaks the window must wait for authorities to arrive and it must be clear that the animal was in imminent danger with no other option of rescue.
Supporting Article: http://abc7.com/pets/new-ca-law-allows-smashing-of-windows-to-rescue-pets-in-hot-cars/1526441/
Photo Courtesy: https://www.flickr.com/photos/genewolf/
California DMV License Suspension for being a Negligent Operator
What causes the DMV to identify me as a Negligent Operator? Through an act of law, the California Legislature has empowered the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) with the broad power to ensure the safety of all California drivers. Through a policy of constant oversight, the DMV monitors the driving history of all California drivers to ensure that they play by the rules. If the DMV concludes that any driver has committed an act or a series of acts that demonstrate a disregard for public safety, the department will work quickly to remove that person’s privilege to operate motor vehicles in our state.
A person whose driving record indicates they do not practice safe driving habits may be labeled as a Negligent Operator and, as a consequence, may have their driving privilege restricted, suspended, revoked, or placed in a status of driving probation. Some of the most common reasons for the DMV to label a person as a Negligent Operator are:
- An accumulation of too many citations for moving violations in a specified period of time.
- An accumulation of too many “at fault” traffic collisions in a specified period of time.
- Involvement in any criminal act where driving is an element of the crime.
- Involvement in an act of highway violence more commonly referred to as “road rage.”
- Involvement in a traffic accident where the driver caused or contributed to the serious injury of another person.
- Involvement in a traffic accident where the driver caused or contributed to the death of another person.
Any person whose driving history, habits or mannerism suggest carelessness or disregard for others may be labeled as a Negligent Operator.
What does the DMV do to my license for Negligent Operation? The DMV’s reaction to a determination of Negligent Operation will be predicated upon the seriousness of the allegation. For example, the DMV may not be as aggressive with a person who accumulates too many traffic citations as with the person who has been involved in an act or “Road Rage.” It will depend upon the severity of the allegation.
Normally the affected driver will learn they have a DMV problem when they go to their mailbox and find a letter entitled, “Order of Suspension/Revocation” that tells them the DMV has already begun the process of suspending the driver license because they are a Negligent Operator. The letter will also advise the driver of what has prompted this action, such as too many points or a fatal traffic accident. Finally, the letter will offer the driver the opportunity to fight the suspension by scheduling a Negligent Operator Hearing. If no hearing is requested, the suspension or revocation of the driver license will be imposed without further notice. In most instances, the DMV only provides the driver a short window of opportunity (normally 10 to 14 days) to request a hearing. If no request is made, the driver will forfeit his right to a hearing and then suspension/revocation will be imposed.
Depending on the allegation that caused the DMV to label you as a Negligent Operator, your driver license may be suspended for 6 months to one year. If the allegation involves a fatal traffic collision or highway violence, the DMV has the option to revoke your driver license for an indeterminate period of time.
How do I defend myself against an allegation of being a Negligent Operator? First of all, understand that being labeled a Negligent Operator does not mean you are a bad person. It is not a criminal allegation and you cannot be put in jail for such a thing. This is an administrative sanction taken against your driving privilege. Even though the DMV will presume its information to be accurate and assume you must be punished for bad driving, these things CAN BE WON! Don’t allow the DMV to steal your driver license without a fight.
You should pick up the telephone and immediately telephone the DMV Defense Experts at California Drivers Advocates (CDA). We have been fighting and winning Negligent Operator hearings for many years and we may be able to win yours as well.
Quality DMV defense begins with a simple telephone call to our office. Once we are retained, we will step into the driver’s seat and begin guiding you toward the restoration of your driving privilege. Our work will include the immediate scheduling of your hearing and the request for a “Stay of Suspension/Revocation” so you may continue driving while we process your case. In most instances, a Negligent Operator Hearing can be conducted within 30 days, but if your case takes longer, you should be permitted to continue driving until a decision is made.
We will investigate the allegation against you and collect our own evidence. We will prepare you for testimony and will prepare our objections and legal arguments. When we enter the Negligent Operator Hearing we are completely prepared to do battle with the DMV and to beat them at their own game. If your driving privilege is important, don’t leave anything to chance. Put the best people on the playing field to win your hearing.
Call CDA today. We can make a difference. Learn more about our DMV Defense for Negligent Operator Hearings.
Southern California Businesses and Residents Have a New Legal Resource
If you live in Southern California and need to hire a lawyer where do you go? Most likely you go to Google, search for a practice area and find 1,000,000 results, many of which are national directories that display attorneys that are 100+ miles away. Making this more difficult is the under-represented area of Southern California not located in Los Angeles known as the “Inland Empire”. The Inland Empire is a region just to the East of Los Angeles and Orange Counties regarded loosely as the combination of Riverside County, and San Bernardino County. Although there are numerous reputable law firms that operate in this area, many firms from Los Angeles and Orange County tend to market here driving up the competition and cost of acquiring a new client.
InlandEmpireLawyers.com was developed as a legal directory and informational resource available to “locals only”, meaning that only attorneys located in the Inland Empire are allowed to market there. What’s unique about this value proposition is that an attorney must have an address in San Bernardino or Riverside County that is validated by the California Bar website in order to be considered for inclusion on the website. This limits the pool of advertising lawyers to only those physically located locally to serve the local population. The website creator, Doug Bradley, who is not an attorney, said “after nearly a decade of local legal marketing, I was tired of seeing lawyers from Los Angeles and Orange County scoop up clients who had no idea they were being represented by a law office two hours away”.
Bradley won the URL in an online auction and immediately knew what he was going to do with it, “After I took possession of the URL I knew that I wanted to create a local legal resource, but I had no idea that it would become so popular so quickly”. As of this writing the site now attracts over 5,000 “Unique Visitors” a month and locally competes well against the “Gorillas” in the industry: Lawyers.com, FindLaw and AVVO. “I certainly still have a long way to go and I’m never finished making improvements to the site and my organic rankings, but I feel that if you compare our price and value to the big players we always come out ahead” Bradley said.
Visit InlandEmpireLawyers.com or their Facebook page for more information.
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