18-Feb-2009
A Day in the Life of a Pre-Paid Legal, Inc. Attorney
Melissa Morris, Attorney
What Kinds of Questions do Pre-Paid Legal, Inc. Attorneys Answer?
Ever wondered what a day in the life of a PPL Attorney is like? You might be surprised at the immense variety of legal questions we get. Here is a summary of the legal questions that I was asked on just one day recently:
1. I have owned some property in the mountains for two years. I have two roads that I use to get into and out of my property. The man who lives next door keeps blocking one of them because it goes over his property, and he says I cannot drive over it. The previous owner of his property, who died years ago, gave an easement to the person who sold to me. Do I have a right to drive over my neighbor’s land?
2. I have a small incorporated business that is not doing well. I only signed personally on a few small debts of the business. How should I go about shutting down the business?
3. I have two sisters. Our mother died recently and left some money in trust for two of us, but named the third sister as the trustee. My other sister and I would like to have the money from the trust now, but our sister who is the trustee won’t let us. What can we do?
4. I own property in another state that I rented out for six months. Now the tenants have decided they don’t want to stay in the property. What rights do I have under that state’s law?
5. I am separated from my wife and our children are living with her. I don’t think the house they are in is safe because it has no electricity and is very dirty. What can I do?
6. I did some business with a company that doubled-charged me by accident. Before I could get a refund, the business was sold to new owners. The new owners are saying they are not responsible for refunding my money.
7. I work for a large discount business. I have requested a promotion for years, but have not gotten one, although others who started at the same time and who don’t work as hard as I do have. I have been told not to speak Spanish in the workplace, and have been called by racial epithets. What are my rights?
8. The tax stimulus check intended for me and my ex husband was sent to him. He took it to a local Walmart, got someone to forge my signature on it and cashed it. He is nowhere to be found. What can I do?
9. I loaned my car to a friend, who kept it longer than agreed, saying it had broken down and was in the shop for repairs. In fact, he was driving it and got into an accident. I don’t want this to become a claim against my insurance. What are my rights?
10. I have applied for SS Disability, but still can work at a part-time job. I have been told I have to quit my job to qualify for SS Disability. Is this true?
11. I had some work done on my house and paid the contractor. Later, when I sold my house, I found that one of the subcontractors had put a mechanic’s lien on the house and I had to pay $2,000 to get the lien released so I could close on the house. The contractor has moved to California.
12. I am a NM college student and my father purchased a car in NM six months ago for my use. I am making the payments. My father lives in another state. Now I have gotten a call from the dealer saying it was illegal for my father to purchase a car for use in NM and that the car will have to be refinanced in the state where he lives. This would increase my interest rate and payments. The dealer knew where my father lived when it sold the car to him.
13. I was divorced several years ago, and the divorce decree awarded me part of my ex-husband’s military benefits. He recently passed away, but when I applied for death benefits, I was told that because he had not listed me as his former spouse on his benefits, I am not entitled to receive death benefits.
14. My wife and I both have children from previous marriages. We want to draft our wills so that when the first of us dies, that spouse gets all of the deceased spouse’s estate to live on, but when the second of us dies, what is left is divided equally among all our children. Can we do that?
Your legal matter may be like one of those mentioned here, or it may be very different. Whether different or similar, we encourage you to call us to discuss it. One of the greatest values you get from the Pre-Paid Legal plan is that you can talk to an attorney for free (without any additional charges other than your membership fee). You may need to know what to expect, or how to approach an issue, or you may need to get actual advice or a letter written on your behalf. Also, you should call us before you undertake something rather than after the fact. It’s a lot easier for us to keep you out of trouble than to get you out of trouble.
Call today if you have questions 800-435-3290. We are here to help you with your legal needs!