tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29309588971184488152024-02-07T20:01:37.681-05:00Guy Yudin & Foster Blog Blog for the Boating, Business & Real Estate Lawyers at Guy Yudin & Foster, LLP. in Stuart, FloridaUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-41898448555777167032018-03-26T14:35:00.001-04:002018-03-26T14:35:46.446-04:00Prevent a Boating Accident or Boating Injury<br />
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<u><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 20.0pt;">Prevent a
Boating Accident or Boating Injury <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For the boating
enthusiast there is no better place in the United States than Florida. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Florida offers access to the Atlantic Ocean
the Gulf of Mexico, the Intracoastal Waterway, Lake Okeechobee and numerous swamps,
streams, rivers, ponds and lakes. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Regardless
of where you are enjoying the waters in Florida, the first priority for every responsible
boater is to take all prudent measures to prevent a boating accident or boating
injury. The more you do to prepare, the safer you will be during your boating
excursions. These are some easy things you can do to help keep you, your boat,
and others safe on the water.</span><br />
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">1. </span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b>Leave the alcohol at the dock or have a designated driver!</b></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://coastguard.dodlive.mil/2015/05/bui-dont-be-that-guy/" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: blue;">Alcohol is even more hazardous on the water than on land.</span></b></a> </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">Drinking and boating can dramatically increase the odds of a
boating accident or boating injury, especially in Florida where the waters are
often crowded with inexperienced boaters. All it takes is one miscalculation by
an inexperienced boater to ruin your day and possibly your life. Aside from being illegal, the US Coast Guard
reports boating under the influence incidents result in a <a href="http://www.uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/boating-under-the-influence.php" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>34 percent higher fatality rate.</b></span></a> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;">2. <b><a href="https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtBoater" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Do</span></a></b></span><a href="https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtBoater" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: blue;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">n't turn
down your emergency radio.</span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></span></b></a><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><a href="https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtBoater" target="_blank"> </a>It
is very important to monitor Channel 16; <a href="http://wow.uscgaux.info/content.php?unit=095-45-01&category=radio-use" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>it may save your life or someone
else’s.</b></span></a></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="color: blue;"><a href="http://wow.uscgaux.info/content.php?unit=095-45-01&category=radio-use" target="_blank"> </a> </b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">You must also know how to use your VHF in the event of a <span style="color: blue;"><b><a href="https://www.boatingsafetymag.com/boatingsafety/mayday-how-call-help-during-boating-emergency" style="color: blue;" target="_blank">boating emergency.</a></b></span></span></span><br />
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">3.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Maintain
safe speed and lookout.</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">Overall,
operator inattention, operator inexperience, <a href="https://www.boaterexam.com/navigationrules/safe-speed.aspx" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: blue;">excess speed</span></b> </a>and <a href="https://www.boaterexam.com/navigationrules/proper-lookout.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>improper lookout</b></span></a>
were the leading contributing factors in boating accidents and boating injuries.
Know your boat’s limitations as well as your own. Take note of visibility,
traffic density and the proximity of navigation hazards like shoals, rocks or
floating objects. Don’t invite a collision by going faster than is prudent.</span><br />
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">4.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Make sure
your boat is properly maintained.</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> <a href="https://www.boatus.com/magazine/trailering/2016/october/boat-and-trailer-maintenance-checklist.asp" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: blue;">Make sure your boat is in good working order </span></b></a>before you take it out on the water with passengers. To help make sure your vessel is as safe as
possible the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and U.S. Power Squadron offer <a href="http://cgaux.org/vsc/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>Vessel Safety Checks</b></span> </a>at no cost. Their certified vessel examiners will check your
boat’s equipment and provide information about its use, safety procedures and
applicable regulations. <b><span style="color: blue;"><a href="https://www.boat-ed.com/abc/abc_specific_images/pdfs/fl_law.pdf" target="_blank">Florida also has certain requirements for boating.</a></span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">5.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="http://www.boatingsafety.com/why-choose-epirb/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Get an EPRIB!!!</span></a></span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><a href="http://www.boatingsafety.com/why-choose-epirb/" target="_blank"> </a> An EPIRB or PLB is used to alert search and rescue (SAR) agencies in the event
of a boating accident. It does this by transmitting a coded message on
the 406 MHz distress frequency via satellite and earth stations to the nearest
Rescue Coordination Center, which then notifies rescue personnel. If your
EPIRB transmits GPS coordinates, your position can be identified in as little as
2-3 minutes.</span><br />
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">6.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Know the law
about life jackets.</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">Florida has the
unfortunate distinction of being the national leader in annual boating
fatalities. A majority of <a href="http://myfwc.com/wearitflorida/" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: blue;">boating accidents and boating injuries </span></b></a>result when a
passenger falls overboard and drowns. These deaths can be easily prevented by
wearing a lifejacket. Don’t believe it could happen to
you? It happens in Florida to an average of one person each week who never
thought it could happen to them either. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">7.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://americanboating.org/lessons-learned.asp" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Know before you go.</span></a></span></b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"> </span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">Take a boating safety course. 80 percent of individuals who die in boating accidents have never taken a boating safety course. Along with making sure your safety equipment is in good
working order, make sure you know how to use it. Also, you can get a
<b><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://cgaux.org/vsc/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">free vessel safety check </span></a>.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></b></span>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">8.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Watch the
weather.</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">Monitoring the
forecast, as well as the </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 1pt none windowtext; color: windowtext; padding: 0in; text-decoration-line: none;">marine weather</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"> forecast, is crucial to boating safely because the
weather can often change quickly, leaving boaters in a precarious position if
unprepared. Tune your radio to the <span style="color: blue;"><b><a href="http://www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">National Weather Service</span></a> </b></span></span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; text-indent: -0.25in;">to listen for small-craft warnings, and heed them.</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">9.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Take a
boating safety course.</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> The
best way to ensure that you know the safest procedures for operating a boat is
to take the <b><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://myfwc.com/boating/safety-education/courses/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Florida boating safety course</span></a>.</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Here are some other links to helpful
information for preventing boating accidents and boating injuries</span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/accident-reporting.php" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: blue;">Accident Reporting</span></b></a></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> <a href="http://www.uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/boating-safety-courses.php" target="_blank">
</a></span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/boating-safety-courses.php" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>Boater Education</b></span></a></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; line-height: normal;"><b><span style="color: blue;">
</span></b></span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><b><a href="http://wow.uscgaux.info/content.php?unit=130-02&category=vessel-safety-check" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">VesselSafety Check</span></a></b></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</b></span></span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/life-jacket-wear-wearing-your-life-jacket.php" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>Life Jacket Wear/Wearing your Life Jacket</b></span></a></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: blue;">Going Paddling Know your limits!</span></b></a></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://floatplancentral.cgaux.org/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>File a Float Plan</b></span></a></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/carbon-monoxide.php" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>Carbon Monoxide</b></span></a></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><a href="http://www.uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/boating-under-the-influence.php" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: blue; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><b>BUI Initiatives</b></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> <span style="color: blue;"> </span></span><span style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; line-height: normal;"><b>
</b></span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="http://uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/shallow-water-boat-performance-faq.php" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: blue;">Shallow Water Boat Performance</span> </b></a></span></div>
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</b></span></span></span></span><!--[endif]--><a href="http://www.uscgboating.org/assets/1/Publications/USCG_prop_bro.pdf" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: blue; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><b>Propeller Safety</b></span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-73971273162113166172017-09-13T13:43:00.000-04:002017-09-13T13:43:08.240-04:00Navigating Hurricane Irma insurance claims<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Navigating
Hurricane Irma insurance claims<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">With Hurricane Irma finally gone,
Floridians are left with the sometimes daunting and exhausting task of cleanup.
If you are one of the hundreds of thousands
of Florida residents who sustained property damage during Irma, you are going to
have to file an insurance claim to help cover repairs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">So how do you get
started? Who do you call? How do you
make sure you get what you are owed from your insurance company? How do you
avoid being the victim of a scam? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">First, and foremost, DO
NOT SIGN ANY CONTRACT FOR REPAIRS WITH ANYONE WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF YOUR
INSURER. In recent months leading up to
Irma, Florida has been plagued by what has been termed “assignment of benefit
abuse”. This occurs when an insured
signs over, or “assigns”, its rights under an insurance policy to a 3<sup>rd</sup>
party vendor. In such instances, policy holders
no longer have the right to insurance payments.
Instead, those rights belong to the contractor. The problem has become so pervasive <a href="http://www.myfloridacfo.com/Division/ICA/News/Article09022016-02.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Florida’s Chief Financial Officer</span></a> has recognized that assignment of benefit abuse
is driving up the cost of insurance of every sector in the State of Florida,
and it seems likely the Florida legislature will soon be addressing the issue.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">That having been said, here
are some tips to make filing damage claims as simple as possible:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #373a3c;">1.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><strong><span style="color: #373a3c;">Locate all insurance policies.</span></strong><span style="color: #373a3c;"> This may include a homeowners’
policy, flood policy, umbrella policy boat policy or and an automobile policy.</span></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">2.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]--><strong style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="color: #373a3c;">Make an inventory of all damaged
property. </span></strong><strong><span style="color: #373a3c; font-weight: normal;">Either in writing or better yet, t</span></strong><span style="color: #373a3c;">ake photos or shoot
video footage before attempting any repairs.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">3.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Protect
your property any further damage. </b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">You have an obligation
to the insurer to take reasonable steps to prevent further damage.</span></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><!--[endif]--><b>Report your claim </b><b>as
soon as possible. </b>Believe it or not, many insurers handle hurricane
claims on a first come, first served basis. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">5.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><!--[endif]--><b>After you file the claim, </b><b>be
sure to write down your claim number.</b> You will need it every time you speak to the insurer or an
adjustor.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">6.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><!--[endif]--><b>Keep ALL your receipts. </b>Whether it be for
emergency expenses to secure your property
or any living expenses. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">7.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><!--[endif]--><b>Ask your adjuster</b><b> if he</b> <b>is an
employee of the insurer</b> <b>or an
independent adjuster.</b> Many times independent adjusters aren’t authorized to
make claim decisions so you will also need to get the name of the in-house adjuster
handling your file.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">8.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Document
each and every contact with your insurer.
</span></b>This may come in
very handy down the road if the actions by the insurance company give rise to
an claim against them for <span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in; text-decoration-line: none;"><a href="http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?mode=View%20Statutes&SubMenu=1&App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=bad+faith+claim&URL=0600-0699/0624/Sections/0624.155.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">bad faith</span></a><span style="color: #006699;">.</span></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">9.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Never
accept the Insurer's First Offer. </span></b>Everything is negotiable. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 31.5pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in; vertical-align: baseline;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">10.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]--><b>Never take the adjuster's word on anything</b>. You
can request a second opinion and importantly, you probably have the right to
mediation and/or an appraisal under your policy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 31.5pt; text-indent: -0.25in; vertical-align: baseline;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">11.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><!--[endif]--><b style="font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Stay On Top of Your Claim. </span></b><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Generally speaking, </span>insurance companies do delay is
commonplace in processing insurance claims. Remember, the squeaky wheel gets
the grease. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">12.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><b>If
you need</b> <b>disaster assistance it
is available from the</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: blue;"><a href="http://www.disasterassistance.gov/" target="_blank"> Federal Emergency Management Agency.</a></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">13.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> Be wary
of strangers who come to your door claiming to be insurance adjusters </b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">or
contractors. </b><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> If you suspect fraud, contact </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><a href="http://www.fldfs.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">the Florida Department of Financial Services</span></a></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">, or call the Division of Consumer Services Insurance
Consumer Helpline at 877-693-5236.</span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">14.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]--> <b>If your
insurance company has denied your hurricane damage claim</b> or has failed
to pay you a fair amount,<span style="color: blue;"> <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">contact Guy Yudin & Foster, LLP.</span>,</a></span> or if you prefer, call 772.286.7372 right away. Our <a href="ttp://www.guyyudinlaw.com" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Florida insurance claim attorneys</span> </a>can
help walk you through the process from day one ensuring your rights and
interests are protected every step of the way.</span> <o:p></o:p></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-60788512769959767792017-06-27T15:24:00.000-04:002017-06-27T15:24:08.347-04:00Murr v. Wisconsin: Another Blow to Private Property Rights<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<div align="center" class="selectionshareable" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-align: center;">
<b><i><u><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Murr v. Wisconsin</span></u></i></b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div align="center" class="selectionshareable" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Another Blow to Private
Property Rights</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqJhytlHSbVdQ5zbBa8S69J3a1NRN6dWJwlbTnqFXn_2qCvF9YRLtytR8I-l5vHnMNAGXYj3KjhYVpnunIyxa9lM8S8ed2bhh_160z4uNL61uRb8kScqzT0vdZc4BTev91TarbDcxQjhsK/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="174" data-original-width="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqJhytlHSbVdQ5zbBa8S69J3a1NRN6dWJwlbTnqFXn_2qCvF9YRLtytR8I-l5vHnMNAGXYj3KjhYVpnunIyxa9lM8S8ed2bhh_160z4uNL61uRb8kScqzT0vdZc4BTev91TarbDcxQjhsK/s1600/images.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="selectionshareable" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"> Last
week in an opinion that has been almost universally condemned, the United State
Supreme Court struck yet another blow to private property rights in this
country. In <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/16pdf/15-214_f1gj.pdf" target="_blank"><b><i><span style="color: blue;">Murr v. Wisconsin</span></i></b></a>, the constitutional
requirement that private property can't be taken for public use "without
just compensation" (ie. “<a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/takings" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>Takings Clause</b></span></a>”) was at issue. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"> Our founding fathers so feared the power
of the government to take private property that they included what is known as
the “Takings Clause” in the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution. The
Takings Clause made early America different from the rest of world, in that
finally it was no longer permissible for the sovereign to simply take a
citizen’s property without redress. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="selectionshareable" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"> For
the last century, the Supreme Court recognized when the government goes
too far in regulating property making it economically unusable, the government
has “<a href="http://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=gelpi_papers" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>taken property for public use</b></span></a>” and must compensate the
owner. The question in takings cases has always been how do you decide when the
government has gone too far. It was hoped that <b><i><u>Murr</u></i></b> decision would
once and for all, provide the clarity necessary to define when the government
has gone too far and taken private property. Sadly, <b><i><u>Murr</u></i></b>
accomplishes just the opposite.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="selectionshareable" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"> In
the late 1990’s the Murr’s took title to two separate, but adjoining lots which the
Murr’s father had purchased in the 1960’s.
One lot had a cabin, the second lot was vacant. The Murr’s problems began in 2004 when the
family tried to sell the vacant lot to pay for improvements to their cabin on
the lot next door. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="selectionshareable" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"> County
officials blocked the Murr’s sale of the vacant lot, citing 1976 regulations
that treated the two lots as a single parcel which couldn’t be
divided. The family claimed those rules stripped the vacant land of its value
and asked the government for compensation of $400,000.00 since they couldn’t
build on their vacant lot. In contrast, the government argued it's fair to view
both lots as a whole, despite the fact they were separate, and said the family
was owed nothing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="selectionshareable" style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"> In a 5-3 decision (Justice Neil Gorsuch did not participate
because he was not yet on the Court when the case was argued), the majority
ruled in favor of Wisconsin but rejected it’s position that courts should
simply treat contiguous parcels as one parcel anytime state law says they
should be. The majority also rejected the Murr’s position which was
that there should be a strong presumption in favor of analyzing each parcel separately. Instead,
the Court further muddied the waters regarding what constitutes a taking by
creating a new, and horribly vague multifactor balancing test which is sure to
create nothing but confusion, uncertainty, and more litigation. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="selectionshareable" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"> In
his dissent, Chief Justice John Roberts recognized the majority opinion did
absolutely nothing to clarify the state of takings law (as should be a guiding
principle of the Supreme Court), but rather undermined the Constitution's
protections for private property owners by giving government the ability to
expand its power. Roberts also recognized, “today’s decision knocks
the definition of ‘private property’ loose from its foundation on stable state
law rules.” He went on to excoriate the majority saying their
opinion “compromises the Takings Clause as a barrier between individuals and
the press of the public interest.” Roberts instead favored adopting
a presumption of treating each parcel separately contending there is no good reason for
concluding a regulation which qualifies as a taking for a one parcel shouldn’t
be a taking for another parcel right next door.</span></div>
<div class="selectionshareable" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 16pt;"> At
the end of the day, the majority forgot or ignored the real question which is
supposed to be asked in a takings cases, that being; what property rights has
the government taken away from the owner?</span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Not how much property did the government leave him. The plain meaning of
the text of the Fifth Amendment requires compensation whenever private property
is “taken,” and does not create exceptions for situations where the owner loses
only part of her rights. Sadly, <b><i><u>Murr</u></i></b> ignores the plain meaning of the Constitution
in favor of the ever increasing trend of judicial invention. As a result of </span><b style="font-size: 16pt;"><i><u>Murr</u></i></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">’s
judicial invention, government at all levels will now be emboldened to further
eviscerate private property rights in favor of the “public interest”.</span><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Property owners will be left with no choice
but to look to <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/property-rights.cfm" target="_blank">property rights lawyers</a> to become more creative in manipulating
their land holdings to avoid common ownership of property. </span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-8084666822583524122017-05-31T13:51:00.006-04:002017-05-31T13:51:58.442-04:00Jones Act Claim vs. Maritime Injury Claim<br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Jones Act Claim vs. Maritime Injury Claim</u></b></span><br /><br /> <span style="color: blue;"><span style="background-color: white;"> <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode46a/usc_sec_46a_00000688----000-.html"><b>The Jones Act</b></a></span> </span>is a comprehensive federal law passed by Congress in 1920 to protect United States ships and shipping interests from foreign competition. Among its many provisions, the Jones Act creates special rights for injured seamen.<br /> <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/46/30104"><b>Title 46 of U.S. Code §30104</b></a> of the Jones Act is the provision which allows an injured seaman to bring a civil action against his employer if the seaman was acting within the courseand scope of his employment as a crewmember. If a seaman is injured as a result of the negligence of his employer the employer faces liability for the seaman’s injuries. In contrast, under state workers’ compensation schemes employees are generally prohibited from bringing lawsuits against employers for injuries caused by employer negligence.<br /> Who is eligible to file a Jones Act claim? Only a “seaman.” Under the statute, a “seaman” is defined as an employee whose duties contribute to the function of a vessel in navigation or accomplishment of its mission, and the employee’s connection to the vessel must be substantial. For example, if you were hired by a freighter owner to be ship’s engineer for an island cruise and you were injured aboard the freighter, you would qualify as a seaman. However, if you were the employee of an electronics firm that installed an electronics package on the freighter while it was in port you would not be qualify.<br /> Another unique feature of the Jones Act is that it allows for comparative negligence, which means that your own negligence will merely reduce your damage award proportionately. For example, many state laws prohibit an injured person from recovering against another if his or her own negligence was a partial cause of the injury. In a Jones Act claim however, if your negligence was determined to be 60 percent responsible for the cause of action accident and your employer is found to be 40 percent at fault, you may still recover 40 percent of your damages against your employer.<br /> There is a common misconception that “maintenance and cure” is somehow connected to a Jones Act claim. “Maintenance and cure” however is a completely separate right from a Jones Act claim. “Maintenance and cure” guarantees injured seamen receive medical care, treatment and support during convalescence. Seamen are entitled to maintenance payments until they have reached the point of maximum recovery. In order to be entitled to maintenance and cure, a seaman must only prove his injury occurred while employed on a vessel and was not caused by willful misbehavior.<br /> Unseaworthiness is yet another type of maritime injury claim. Unseaworthiness however is not a statutorily created remedy, but is a common law right to damages which arises when an unseaworthy condition on the vessel causes injuries. Unseaworthiness claims are not just available to seamen, but are also available to passengers as well. For example, if an injury occurs to a seaman or passenger as a result of poorly maintained or worn out equipment there is likely an unseaworthiness claim available. <br /> Regardless of the specific type of maritime claim, the basic process to be followed should be: <div>
<br />1) Report any Injury no matter how insignificant if you there is any chance you might miss work to the captain or supervisor as soon as possible. If you don’t, you risk employers and more importantly insurers, assuming you were not really hurt. <br /><br /><div>
2) You will be asked to fill out an accident report by your company Unless you are on medication or not capable of accurately filling out the report go ahead and do so, but don’t be afraid to tell your employer you are not able to do so. In the report section that asks who was at fault, if you do not specify the company was at fault, you will have a problem pursuing a Jones Act claim later. At worst, if you hope to be re-hired you should at least specify you are not sure who was at fault. <br /></div>
<div>
3) If you have significant injuries, you may be asked to give a statement to an insurer. Do your <br />best to avoid giving any such statement, at least until you decide if your injuries are significant enough to where you will need to hire a lawyer.<br /><br />4) Get medical treatment as soon as possible. If you cannot obtain adequate medical treatment aboard the vessel, the ship should consult with a physician by phone or radio, and helicopter you out if need be. If you are in a foreign port you must be given proper medical treatment and sent home if necessary.<br /><br />5) Do not miss doctor’s appointments and make sure you follow all of the doctor’s orders, and make sure not to miss any appointments. Don’t be surprised if you find out an insurance investigator is following you around taking pictures and videos trying to show you are doing something inconsistent with your doctor’s orders<br /><br />6) <b><a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/boats-boating-injuries.cfm">Decide whether you need to hire a lawyer.</a> </b> As a general rule, you have no choice but to hire a lawyer if you have a Jones Act case, or if your maintenance and cure is not being paid, or if you can’t get medical treatment, or if your injuries are more than $15-20,000.</div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-34109005451964276572017-04-25T08:32:00.000-04:002017-04-25T08:32:46.354-04:00YES! YOU REALLY DO NEED BOAT INSURANCE<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">YES! YOU REALLY DO NEED BOAT INSURANCE</span></u></b></div>
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<b><u><br /></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Florida is
the #1 boating state in the U.S. by any metric.
With warm weather most of the year, Florida has more than a million registered
boats according to the <span style="color: blue;"><u>National Marine Manufacturer’s Association</u></span>.</span> <span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> This does not include the many, many
thousands more unregistered vessels or transient vessels that pass through state
waters every year. Considering the
sheer numbers of boats alone, it shouldn’t be surprising, and the statistics
will tell you, more boats on the water means more <a href="http://myfwc.com/boating/safety-education/accidents/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">boating accidents</span></a>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> For anyone
who owns a boat in Florida the magnitude of the accident</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">risk becomes apparent as
soon as you reach the boat ramp for your first 4<sup>th</sup> of July weekend,
Labor Day weekend or Memorial Day weekend.
On these busiest boating weekends of the year, boat ramps and waterways
are packed. On these
heavy boating weekends to say the least, there is a broad spectrum of competence of vessel operators ranging from
true experts to first time operators. With extreme differences in the competency of
vessel operators anyone, even the most seasoned navigators, can easily find
themselves in the midst of a bad event if they are in the wrong place, at the
wrong time, with the wrong person.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1FW0w4lYh-1xk0caNITVV4LiQbxz4n-A9uuqYRvoAhh4bs8-ls84ES0nSzGV_COv84mapdIK8rIFVbKe5cYYTeBly0bb2SMAnnJV9fIIMbJNKAb08X3U5cQwH9BlYC4m2oBTHA0XIcwjI/s1600/New+Picture.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1FW0w4lYh-1xk0caNITVV4LiQbxz4n-A9uuqYRvoAhh4bs8-ls84ES0nSzGV_COv84mapdIK8rIFVbKe5cYYTeBly0bb2SMAnnJV9fIIMbJNKAb08X3U5cQwH9BlYC4m2oBTHA0XIcwjI/s400/New+Picture.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> With the risk so apparent, <a href="http://www.bankrate.com/finance/insurance/6-things-know-boat-insurance-1.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">the need for boat insurance </span></a> would seem obvious. However, one of the
most frequently asked questions we get when working on the <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/boats-vessel-purchase.cfm" target="_blank">purchase or sale of any vessel</a> is "do I really need boat insurance?". <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">YES!!!!! <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> Let me be clear. Everyone who owns
a boat needs to have boat insurance!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Even though boat
insurance is not required here in the state of Florida (like automobile
insurance) banks holding your boat loan require it; marinas storing your boat require it; and many boating events are now beginning to require
proof of insurance for participation. And before you ask, no, your homeowners
policy does not provide any meaningful insurance coverage for your boat. For instance, homeowners policies do not
contemplate coverage issues like salvage, wreck removal, or pollution liability.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Here are
just some of the main reasons every boat owner needs adequate insurance for
their vessel:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0pt;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Accidents</span></b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">. With more than a million boats in
Florida, and with operators having varying degrees of competence, accidents
will happen. Some are minor, but
the truth is that many accidents every year cause serious injuries, and
even death. Vessel insurance can off-set medical bills and other property
damage.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Litigation. </span></b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Lawsuits arise in many
different circumstances. Passenger
injuries, injuries to other boaters, collisions, salvage claims, storms,
fire, etc., all can lead to litigation
Without vessel insurance you are left to fend for yourself in a
lawsuit and you will undoubtedly spend more in one lawsuit than you would
for years of boaters insurance.</span><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Theft</span></b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">. Boat insurance can help cover
the cost of replacing your boat if it, or the engine is ever stolen. <o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Property damage</span></b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">. Boat insurance can cover
repairs and/or replacement if your boat is damaged in a storm, or by
vandalism. <o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Unknown events.</span></b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> If your boat is moored at
a dock slip, or sitting idly in a storage facility, there is still a
chance your boat could be damaged by lightning or another boat crashing in
to it or someone could be injured as the result of some freak accident
when you are not around. Boat
insurance can protect you even if a loss occurs when you are not using the
boat. <o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Without insurance you face a terrible risk of losing your investment (ie.
your boat) and perhaps a significant chunk of your other personal assets if you
are involved in litigation resulting from an accident or other bad event.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> So how do
you know you are buying the right insurance? Boat insurance policies are normally
flexible and can be tailored to your needs to ensure you get the right policy
at the right price. The broadest policies available are <a href="http://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/all-risks.asp" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">all-risk policies</span></a>. These policies usually include coverage for
losses due to specific perils such as fire or sinking or failed parts. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <a href="https://www.boatus.com/insurance/liability-policy.asp" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"> Liability only policies </span></a>are normally much less expensive since they provide no coverage
for damage to your boat, but usually only provide coverage for liability to
others. Liability only policies are
frequently the best choice for vessels that are not worth that much.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: blue;"> <a href="http://www.boatus.com/insurance/glossary.asp" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Agreed value policies</span></a></span> give you the option to insure your boat for an agreed amount in the event of a total
loss, while <a href="http://www.boatus.com/insurance/glossary.asp" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">actual cash value policies</span></a> do the same but generally provide a lower payout.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> No matter what type of policy you choose, be certain you understand what your boat insurance
covers and what it doesn’t cover. Does
your policy cover your trailer? Your electronics? Your outboard motor? Towing
AND salvage? (there is a BIG difference) Your fishing equipment? Your coolers?
What are your navigational limits? Do you get a credit storing your vessel over
the winter? Are you covered for anyone, including children, operating your
vessel?<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> At the end
of the day the reasons for buying boat insurance are not that different from
the reasons for buying homeowners insurance. Yes, chances are good your house is not going to
burn down, your valuables won’t be stolen in a robbery, your house won’t be
washed away in a flood, but there’s still a chance something COULD happen. The same principle applies to your boat. Something COULD (and probably will) happen
and when it does hopefully you will be calling your insurance company to file a
claim, instead of calling<a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/" target="_blank"> <span style="color: blue;">our office </span></a>to find out what you can do to protect
yourself because you didn’t buy vessel insurance.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-9023245766901438802016-12-26T11:49:00.000-05:002016-12-27T06:57:21.501-05:003 Reasons To Fear the Quitclaim Deed<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3 Reasons To Fear the Quitclaim Deed<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<img src="https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRwHNnYwiaQ06PO5xU6nM_5TLV6KPtfgcCU9-NdqEQhGN32hNRg1Q" /></div>
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Title to real property is conveyed by a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deed" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">deed</span></a>. A <a href="http://www.investopedia.com/articles/realestate/12/property-deeds-and-real-property.asp" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">real estate deed</span></a> is a written and signed legal instrument that transfers
the ownership of real property from one owner to another. The “Grantor” on a deed is the “seller” or
current title holder of the property, the “Grantee” on a deed is the buyer, or
person to whom title is being transferred.</div>
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<br /></div>
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In Florida, there are three basic types of deeds, each of
which conveys a different level of protection for the buyer. “Quitclaim deeds”,
“Warranty deeds” and “specialized deeds”.
Warranty deeds provide the highest level of buyer protection, while
quitclaim deeds provide the least. Because
quitclaim deeds offer such limited buyer protection, it's important to
understand exactly what you're getting when you take title via a quitclaim deed.
Here, five things to watch:</div>
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<b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">1</span><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">. </span></b><b style="text-indent: -18pt;">No Guarantees</b></div>
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The overwhelming problem with quitclaim deeds is there are
no guarantees by the seller. In other
words, the buyer is receiving virtually no assurances the seller is delivering good
clear title to the property. Furthermore,
quitclaim deeds only transfer the ownership rights held by the seller. Why is this important? Since a quitclaim deed only transfers the
rights owned by the seller, in a perfectly legal transaction, a seller could
conceivably “sell” the Brooklyn Bridge a buyer via quitclaim deed. In this instance, the buyer would receive
nothing because the seller holds no interest in the bridge. For this reason, quitclaim deeds are seldom
used in real estate transactions where money is changing hands.</div>
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<b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">2. </span></b><b style="text-indent: -18pt;">Limited Uses</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The main instances where a quitclaim deed might be
appropriate is when there is a transfer property with no money involved, such
as from a parent to an adult child, between siblings or when a property owner
gets married and wants to add his or her spouse to the title. Quitclaim deeds are therefore most commonly
used when the parties know each other, and are more willing to accept the lack
of buyer protection. However, it cannot
be stressed strongly enough that even where a quitclaim deed might be
appropriate, the quitclaim still must be prepared and executed correctly. For instance, one of the many issues with
quitclaim deeds occurs when a parent who holds as trustee, conveys the property
to an adult child via quitclaim deed. If
the quitclaim deed does not clearly specify the property is being transferred
by the parent individually, and as trustee of the trust, there will almost
assuredly be title problems down the line when the child goes to sell the
property.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The other appropriate use of quitclaim deeds is to cure title
defects, such as a name that has been misspelled in a prior deed. </div>
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<b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><br /></b>
<b style="text-indent: -18pt;">3.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></b><b style="text-indent: -18pt;">Never used when a mortgage is involved</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Since quitclaim deeds are almost never used where money is
changing hands, they are never used when a mortgage is involved. Lenders require complete assurance and
guarantees that buyer holds good and clear title to the property in question,
thus lenders always require warranty deeds.
Furthermore, many people do not recognize that they cannot remove
themselves from a mortgage simply by executing quitclaim deed. In most instances, lenders will not agree to remove
anyone from a mortgage without payment in full.
In addition, most mortgages contain clauses prohibiting such transfers
thus by executing a quitclaim deed you subject yourself and your “buyer” to a potential
foreclosure action.</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>The Bottom Line</b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Quitclaim deeds are not the be all and end all, but they do have
a legitimate purpose. They provide a
valid and legal means of conveyance that can convey title as effectively as a
warranty deed<b> if and only if,</b> the
grantor has good title. However, quitclaim
deeds have also been called “the problem children of the real estate world” for
the problems they cause unsuspecting buyers. Regardless of whether you are
taking title under a quitclaim deed or warranty deed, the truth is that no real
estate transaction is simple. In order
to protect yourself and the person receiving title, when using a quitclaim deed
you should always consult with the <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/practiceareas-property.cfm" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">real estate lawyer</span></a> to guide you through the
issues involved. As a general rule, the
cost of assuring your transaction is done properly is very minimal compared the
cost which the buyer will incur to rectify a title problem created by a bad
quitclaim deed.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-50155052236211887782016-10-24T14:19:00.000-04:002018-03-27T09:40:51.866-04:00Florida Waterfront Property Buyers and Sellers Need a Real Estate Lawyer<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16.0pt;">Florida Waterfront Property Buyers and Sellers<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16.0pt;">Need a <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/property-real-estate-purchase-sale.cfm" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Real Estate Lawyer</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16.0pt;"> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgDQAr-glNOFCOowCHxdbkhufU0O-JqhOwUFQo0dIov2ti8AtWvtyqSyvwIAMgd_B-ysCAKJxw0W1telBdQHuuwzyYR_NV4uUchfeiOuoA98oD46OJZqmqL29k6pg2imuD5EPQb_QAkJa4/s1600/8048705527_e6784454c1_m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgDQAr-glNOFCOowCHxdbkhufU0O-JqhOwUFQo0dIov2ti8AtWvtyqSyvwIAMgd_B-ysCAKJxw0W1telBdQHuuwzyYR_NV4uUchfeiOuoA98oD46OJZqmqL29k6pg2imuD5EPQb_QAkJa4/s1600/8048705527_e6784454c1_m.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;">Waterfront Property issues?</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Buying and selling waterfront
properties can be a confusing path to navigate. If you are thinking of buying or selling
property that borders a body of water, you must understand the purchase and
sale of waterfront property involves more complex issues than purchasing property
which is not waterfront. The added complexity
of waterfront property normally centers around the location of the waterline
and riparian rights. <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/property-riparian-rights.cfm" target="_blank"> </a></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/property-riparian-rights.cfm" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">An attorney with experience in </span></a></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/property-riparian-rights.cfm" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">riparian rights</span></a> and </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">waterfront
real estate can provide </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">you with invaluable </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">counsel regarding whether your land
is</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
really waterfront as advertised, whether others may have rights </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">to use the land between your property
and the water's edge</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> or whether someone besides the State of
Florida owns the submerged land you want to put your dock on</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Significant
issues to consider when buying or selling waterfront property include:</span></div>
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<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: bold; line-height: 115%;">Does the property really extend to
the water's edge?</span><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;"> You might think this is a dumb
question, but I cannot tell you how many people have been in my office with “waterfront
property” that isn’t really waterfront property. Your deed only conveys the property described
in the legal description. In many
instances, we find filled lands in between the waterline and the platted or surveyed
lot lines. Or, in less frequent
instances, we find old easements, dedications, walkways etc. If the property being conveyed does not
extend to the waterline for any of these reasons, you may not have “waterfront
property”.</span></li>
<li><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Does someone other than the State own
the submerged land adjacent to your waterfront property?</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;"> The State of Florida owns the vast majority
of the submerged lands throughout Florida.
However, it is not uncommon to find instances where a third party owns
the bottom land immediately adjacent to waterfront property. Depending on the particular circumstances, third
party ownership could create a significant problem locating your dock, or worse
yet, how about if the submerged land owner tries building a dock on his
submerged property? </span> </li>
<li><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Are
there existing or potential riparian rights issues with the neighboring properties?</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;"> The main reason most people
purchase waterfront property is for riparian rights. These rights include the right to ingress and
egress by boat, the right to build a dock, the right to fish, and the right to view
the water to name a few. Is your
neighbor’s existing dock blocking your view of the water? Is your neighbor’s dock
located such that when he wants to add a boat lift, your ingress and egress will
be blocked? Does the location of your neighbors dock impact how you will have
to construct your new dock?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Are
your neighbors using your land?</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;"> Is there a path or
walkway across the lot that extends to the water? Does someone other than
the seller maintain a dock or moor boats on or adjacent to the property?
If so, further investigation is required before you buy, to determine what legal
rights, if any, such users might possess.</span></li>
<li><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Are there pre-existing issues with
neighbors or the association? </span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;">Buyers
always need to talk to the homeowner's association.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;"> Many waterfront areas have
homeowner's associations that may have valuable information regarding issues
that have confronted riparian owners. Are there current disputes, past
issues, that may remain unresolved or understandings regarding rights to use
waterfront areas? Owners of adjacent lots may have similarly valuable
information</span></li>
<li><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Will erosion or accretion be an issue for the property?</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;"> Erosion
and to a lesser degree accretion, are big concerns for waterfront property
owners. Over time, you can actually lose property (erosion) or gain property
(accretion) if the shoreline has not been appropriately protected and buffered.
If a sea wall or bulkhead of some type already exists, then you should invest
in an inspection to determine if it’s sufficient, has been properly maintained,
etc.</span></li>
<li><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What questionable documents are
contained in the title search or commitment.</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;"> If there are covenants, restrictions, declarations or
similar encumbrances to which the land is subject, they must reviewed and analyzed. Does you deed properly convey riparian
rights? Have they been severed by a
previous owner?</span></li>
<li><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What about the waterbody and future
permitting</span></b><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">?</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;"> How deep is the water adjacent to your property?
That will directly affect your ability to build a dock and/or determine how
long your dock will need to be. Are
there any water quality issues? Are the existing in water structures
properly permitted? What is the
likelihood you can add a slip, or a roof to a boathouse or bring in a larger
boat? Local permitting knowledge is
essential and all these questions need to be addressed before you buy
waterfront property.</span></li>
<li><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do any local ordinances restrict or
otherwise control the use of the waterfront?</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;"> Some municipalities have enacted ordinances to
regulate docks and the mooring of boats.<i> </i> Some areas have significant building
setback requirements on the upland. Some
areas don’t allow new seawalls. Aside
from regulating in water structures, most areas have specific engineering
requirements for waterfront property. </span></li>
<li><b style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What will insurance
cost? </span></b><span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-indent: -18pt;">Check
out insurance carefully, as there are different types of policies and coverage
that are important when purchasing waterfront property. Flood insurance and
hazard policies address different things and can be complicated. Be sure to
investigate wind damage to see if additional riders are required.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></li>
</ol>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There is no substitute for expert advice and specific
information when it comes to buying waterfront property. </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; letter-spacing: 0.1pt; line-height: 115%;">Due
diligence is the key, don’t let yourself down.
If you think you are buying waterfront property confirm that fact by
investigating BEFORE you buy. </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Equipped with the right expertise, guidance and knowledge,
you’ll be ready to turn to your waterfront dream into a reality. Call<a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/" target="_blank"> <span style="color: blue;">Guy Yudin & Foster, LLP.</span></a><span style="color: blue;"> </span>at 772.286.7372 for help with your waterfront property transaction.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-30362548111723113352016-10-11T14:52:00.000-04:002017-07-05T08:34:24.561-04:00Real Estate Lawyer Stuart, FL – 9 reasons why you need one<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Real Estate Lawyer
Stuart, FL –<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<b><u><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">9 reasons why you need one<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Buying
or Selling Real Estate in Stuart, Florida?</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For many people home ownership is their most
significant financial investment. In
order to protect your investment, hiring a real estate attorney is a smart
choice whether you’re buying or selling.
A real estate lawyer can protect your rights and interests in the
transaction; protect you against the unexpected; ensure a smooth and low-stress
closing; and is the only one involved in the transaction who is qualified to
provide you with legal advice.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What happens if the property has an illegal
structure, termites, lead paint, asbestos, or other potentially hazardous
conditions? What If there is an issue with your deal, what are your legal
obligations? Can you back out of the
contract? Can you get your earnest money back? Will you owe the other party any
money for changing your mind? Do you have sufficient time under the contract to
get inspections done? Are there mistakes in the contract documents? Are there
mistakes in the closing documents? And will that cost you money? <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Your <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><b>real estate attorney </b></span></a>will keep an eye on all
these different areas of concern and many more.
Knowing you have an independent, and experienced real estate attorney on
your side will give you peace of mind and help you get your through what is
often times a stressful situation.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">9 Reasons to Hire a <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/property-real-estate-purchase-sale.cfm"><span style="color: blue;">Real Estate Lawyer in Stuart, FL</span></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">
<br /> 1. Buyers need to know if the property has an unpermitted addition or improvements. If a seller has failed to obtain permits for an addition or other improvements to the property, it can be extremely difficult for a buyer to obtain any sort of satisfactory resolution after the closing. In order to protect themselves, buyers need to know if local codes and state regulations have been followed, and if they haven’t, what to do about it. <br /><br />2. No matter how experienced you are at buying or selling residential property, any commercial real estate transaction involves complications which do not arise in simpler residential real estate deals. A real estate lawyer is important in commercial transaction so that these additional legal issues such as easements, corporate ownership, leaseholds, environmental issues, structured financing, tenant claims can be resolved in a timely and satisfactory manner.<br /><br />3. Out of town buyers are particularly in need of a real estate lawyer. As a buyer you need someone local on the ground and familiar with the particular nuances of the area in which you are purchasing. Not only can your real estate attorney be your local point of contact for participants in the transaction, they normally are aware of specific municipal, county, state, or even federal regulations that may apply to the property. <br /><br />4. Are you concerned the seller and/or real estate agent aren’t telling you something about the property? As difficult as it may be to believe, not every seller or real estate agent is honest and above-board; if you are suspicious, then a real estate lawyer can help you get answer to questions or suggest contract language to address specific concerns.<br /><br />5. Are you buying or selling a property that is part of a trust or is in a probate administration? If so, it is not always clear who is representing the interest of the beneficiaries. Is the trustee or personal representative or perhaps one of the other heirs acting on behalf of the estate? Your real estate lawyer will help in jumping through the hoops associated with wills, trusts and probate courts. <br /><br />6. Your real estate attorney will read everything. The volume of paperwork is insane. It’s tempting to throw up your hands and stop reading after the fifth page of your contract but that’s the way money gets wasted. Your attorney will read through your paperwork and raise any concerns. Even if there are no obvious red flags, your attorney will know the details of your transaction and can easily deal with issues if questions come up.<br /><br />7. Do you want your attorney to hold your deposit just in case there is a problem with the transaction? Or do you want an unknown 3rd party holding your earnest money deposit? Real estate lawyers can act as escrow agents and most handle title insurance as well. <br /><br />8. Are you concerned that you may not qualify for financing and you may lose your deposit? Your real estate attorney can suggest contract clauses to address this issue, including returning the deposit to the buyer if the buyer is unable to obtain prevailing market financing.<br /><br />9. Do you what to make sure when you arrive at the closing you aren’t required to sign documents you are not obligated to sign under your contract? An experienced real estate lawyer will review the closing documentation before closing to be sure you only sign those documents called for in the contract. <br /><br />Your real estate attorney has no personal interest in the outcome of the transaction other than making sure you, the client is taken care of. All other parties assisting you in the transaction have a financial interest – namely, commissions and payments which are far greater than your attorney Don’t wait until you receive an offer to sell your property. <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/property-real-estate-purchase-sale.cfm"><span style="color: blue;"> Contact a real estate attorney today</span> </a>to discuss how they can protect your interests from the outset. Call Guy Yudin & Foster, LLP. (772) 286-7372.<br /><br /> </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-60927669391523635512016-09-12T11:27:00.000-04:002016-09-12T11:27:15.239-04:00The Ten Biggest Mistakes Made by Business Owners<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.2pt; margin-bottom: 6.6pt;">
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">10 Biggest Mistakes Made by Business Owners</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">The</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: white; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="https://www.sba.gov/"><span style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Small
Business Administration</span><span style="color: blue; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span></a>estimates at least half of all new businesses fail
within the first five years, and only about one third of new businesses last
ten years. The major factors which play in to the high failure rate of
small businesses include a variety of economic and operational risks which are
faced to one degree or another by every business. In cases where those
inherent risks of operating a small business are compounded with legal
mistakes, the chances of business failure rises significantly. Below is a
list of ten of the most common mistakes</span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/"><span style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">our firm</span></a> sees when we consult with new
businesses.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">1. Doing business without a corporate entity.</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">In more instances than you would believe, small business owners
start conducting business without first forming a business entity. Each
case is different, some are afraid of the expense. Some think they can
sidestep the tedious corporate formalities. Some don’t realize the
purpose of creating a business entity and some people feel like corporate
structure is only for “big” business. Like it or not, the reality is that
EVERY business doing business in Florida (ie. domestic and foreign) needs to register
a corporate entity with the</span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="http://sunbiz.org/"><span style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Florida
Division of Corporations</span></a>, if for no other reason, than to protect
your personal assets from your business liabilities. </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">2. Lack of a business plan.</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #252525; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Every business should have a business plan. Unfortunately,
the vast majority of business plans are hardly worth the paper they're
printed on.</span><span style="color: #252525; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> It is not uncommon to see plans that are sloppy, poorly
written or incomplete. </span><span style="color: #252525; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #252525; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">A good business plan presents an overview of the business in
both the short and long term. It should explain how you will get from
point A to point B. The plan should be a "roadmap" for your
business. It should contain attainable milestones and targets and layout the
steps you need to reach those goals. </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">3. Outside investors.</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Many small business owners
bring in outside investors when they are desperate for cash.
Shortly thereafter, the investor gets impatient and begins clamoring for a
return on his investment. This almost invariably leads into a dispute between
the owner and investor as to how to operate the business, which ultimately ends
up in a lawsuit. To a prudent business owner, the identity and character
of the investor is as important as how much money they are willing to invest.
The bottom line -- choose investors very, very carefully.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">4. Failure to do a shareholder or buy/sell agreement.</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Every small business with more than one owner needs a shareholder
or buy/sell agreement. This type of document specifically lays
out how the business will operate, how the owners will govern the
business, management, voting rights, profit-sharing, new owners or investors,
succession plans and perhaps most importantly, how dispute between owners will
be resolved. It is more likely than not the ownership group of the
business will expand or change and, much like a will that provides for an
orderly disposition of assets upon death, having a well-considered agreement
among the owners can head off or limit disputes down the road and promote
harmony among the owners.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">5. Treating Independent
Contractors as Employees</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Many startup businesses
make use of independent contractors, and with good reason. They provide
the ability to get tasks completed and don’t tie you to the requirements that
come with having employees. Use caution in how you deal with independent
contractors. The</span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p15a.pdf"><span style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">IRS provides detailed information</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">and a multiple point test to determine whether the independent
contractor you’ve hired is actually a W-2 employee in disguise. It is important
to review that test and understand the legal risk and consequences of not
complying with the rules related to independent contractors.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">6. Using Online Contracts</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Many
business owners seek to skimp on legal services using contract templates they
find online. For <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">small things like
maybe advancing an employee an extra week salary, online contracts can be
fine. However, for anything which could have more drastic consequences
down the line, contract templates are not a good idea at all. Worse yet
are those business owners who believe they are sophisticated enough to cut and
paste clauses from several different online contracts. In most instances,
enforcing these types of contracts is a very difficult and expensive
prospect. Online contracts are generic contracts. They do not take
in to account the unique circumstances which exist in almost every contractual
relationship, and such contracts almost always filled with legal
loopholes. The sad part is those legal loopholes can be closed by
an </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/practiceareas-business.cfm"><span style="color: red; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">experienced
attorney</span></a></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> for a couple hundred dollars. Instead,
the business owner winds up spending thousands of dollar litigating the meaning
of ambiguous terms. In short, the internet can make you feel like
you are an expert, but you aren’t. Find a local experienced attorney or
eventually you will be reminded of the old adage, “you get what you pay for”.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">7. Signing personal guarantees.</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">In almost any new business, access to credit is conditioned upon a
business owners personal guarantee for the loan. The reason for this
is simple, new businesses do not have the resources to repay a loan.
Unfortunately, many business owners do comprehend the potential negative impact
of guaranteeing their company’s debts, or personally guaranteeing other
contractual obligations. If you are one of the 50% of all small businesses
that fail within the first five years, you are on the hook for all the debt the
company incurred. The potential hardships are obvious, and drive many
people to bankruptcy.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">8. Failure to avoid costly litigation.</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">As a</span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/business-litigation.cfm" target="_blank"><span style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">business litigator</span></a></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">,</span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">take it from me, litigation is expensive and causes a
significant drain on the time and efforts of the business owner and any
involved employees. I always council my clients that business litigation
should only be considered as a last resort. Before getting involved in
litigation, any small business should try to temper the emotions that are
caused by a dispute and consider the costs and benefits of the litigation, just
like they would any other business decision, and determine any collateral
effects of the litigation as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">9.</span></u></b><b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></u></b><b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Talking trash about their
competition.</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">The temptation for small
businesses to talk trash about their competitors publically or anonymously on
the web is growing. Be careful not to libel them. What to do: Seek the advice
of an attorney for what is libel and what is freedom of speech.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">10. Failure to consult a lawyer.</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A bit of self-serving advice, to be sure, but sensible
nonetheless. Many business owners in general</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">resist working with attorneys mainly due to the expense — they
download contracts or incorporation documents, which is fine until there
is a problem. One a problem erupts you can generally count on spending
thousands of dollars to correct the problem which could have been averted by
spending a few hundred dollars working with an attorney who has practical
experience.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Keep in
mind this list is by no means an all-inclusive list of all the possible legal
mistakes business owners can make; just some of the most common. If you are a
business owner or have the dream of opening your own business and would like
some sound legal counsel from an</span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="http://www.hbwvlaw.com/our-attorneys/"><span style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">experienced team of
attorneys</span></a>, the lawyers at Guy Yudin & Foster, LLP. are here to
help! Feel free to <a href="http://www.hbwvlaw.com/contact-us/"><span style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">contact our business lawyers here</span></a>, or give us a call at (772)
286-7372.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-49476792341284045042016-08-17T13:50:00.001-04:002016-08-17T13:50:51.097-04:00Property Tax Time Again!<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Property Tax Time Again! <o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Its property
tax time again! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">TRIM Notices</span></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If they
haven’t done so already, all property appraiser offices around the State of Florida will
be sending out their Truth in Millage (TRIM) Notices in the next few days. TRIM Notices of course are the process by
which each county property appraiser’s office informs taxpayers about their proposed
ad valorem (property) taxes. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">TRIM
Notices are otherwise known to most of us as our “Notice of Proposed Property
Taxes”</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtonQIAsd8DAfgD5hPAL09NcmCIQv75ig4HgtFz4xpzDFjsMx7SY30u_QlmcrMpQmIspTV9vyFvA98KiuS3px-kUa0tCocDLAI2TWehh1PykGDg1GiLqdkHoPGHbzDb4W0R1gbkrLoAgBa/s1600/6766837495_f8ce259188_m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtonQIAsd8DAfgD5hPAL09NcmCIQv75ig4HgtFz4xpzDFjsMx7SY30u_QlmcrMpQmIspTV9vyFvA98KiuS3px-kUa0tCocDLAI2TWehh1PykGDg1GiLqdkHoPGHbzDb4W0R1gbkrLoAgBa/s1600/6766837495_f8ce259188_m.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Many property owners simply ignore their</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">TRIM Notice.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">If you are one of the many and ignore your
taxes until November you will lose your right to file an appeal of the
valuation of your property. Therefore it is very important for all of use to
review our TRIM Notices just to be sure nothing out of the ordinary.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In the event you do feel like the listed
market value of your property is out of line, you must act before the deadline which
should be noted at the bottom of your TRIM Notice.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Be forewarned. For the normal everyday homeowner, it is not usually
cost effective or practical to contact an attorney to contest your proposed
property taxes. Thus, in more cases than
not, a homeowner will be left to argue with the property appraiser’s office by
himself. Conversely, with many
commercial and industrial properties the dollar amounts are far greater and it
makes a lot of sense to contact an attorney with<span style="color: blue;"> <a href="http://www.guyyudinlaw.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">experience in dealing with the property appraiser’s office</span></a>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Informal Meeting<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The first step in contesting your
valuation normally consists of scheduling an informal meeting with the property
appraiser. However, given the fact there
is precious little time between issuance of TRIM Notices and the deadline to
file an appeal, you must act fast in order to schedule a meeting before the
appeal deadline. When you call to
schedule a meeting, you should always request a copy of any and all documents
which the property appraiser has prepared, or has relied on in setting your
valuation. Obtain this material as soon
as possible, as this will give you guidance as to where you can focus your
request for a reduction. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The next step is to either hire someone
or do your own research in order to document a lower valuation. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Surprisingly
enough, if you have done your homework and can provide the property appraiser
with appropriate documentation to substantiate an incorrect valuation, it is
not unheard of to reach an agreement reducing your valuation. The key to a productive meeting with the
property appraiser is providing documentation to support a reduction in your
valuation. Without adequate
documentation you stand little or no chance of success. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In the event you are unable to schedule
an informal meeting prior to the deadline cited on your TRIM Notice, it is
absolutely imperative you file an appeal before your informal meeting. This create a placeholder for your claim and
preserves your rights in the event you cannot reach an agreement at your
informal meeting. You can always
withdraw your petition after your informal meeting if need be.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">VAB Appeal<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="color: #494949; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">If
you were not able to reach an agreement with the property appraiser, your next
step is to pursue your petition with the value adjustment board (VAB). This is of course, assuming you have already
done your homework and can document an incorrect valuation of your property. If
you can’t provide documentary proof the property appraiser is wrong, you are
simply wasting your time. Petition forms
are usually available from the Clerk of the Court website or the property
appraiser office. Again, deadlines for
filing petitions are usually set forth on the TRIM Notices with the deadline
being the 25th day after the property appraiser mails the TRIM Notice. You are permitted to be represented by an
attorney at your VAB hearing, but it is not required.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #494949; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Parenthetically,
there is always the option of filing a lawsuit in circuit court, however, that
option really only makes financial sense for very few property owners. In the vast majority of instances, going to
the VAB is the only practical option. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #494949; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The
VAB is a five member quasi judicial board with two county commissioners, a
school board member and two appointed citizens.
In most counties, your hearing will be scheduled in front of a Special
Magistrate rather than the VAB itself.
Special Magistrates are hired by the VAB to conduct the hearing and
provide recommended orders to the VAB. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #494949; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Prior
to the VAB hearing, there is a mandatory exchange of evidence so again, you
must have spent the time doing your homework and have the ability to document a
reduced valuation.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #494949; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">On
the day of the hearing, the Special Magistrate will probably begin by going
over the rules. Petitioner then goes
first presenting his case, followed by the Property Appraiser, and Petitioner
then gets a final chance to reply. Plan
on having all witnesses attend and testify at the hearing as frequently you
find affidavits, letters and other extraneous documents will not be admitted in
to evidence without being authenticated by live testimony.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #494949; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">At
the conclusion of the hearing, the Special Magistrate will normally not render
his decision verbally, but will issue a written recommended order to the VAB
shortly thereafter. You will be copied
on everything that issued by the Special Magistrate or the VAB. In the vast, vast majority of cases, the VAB
will simply rubber stamp the Special Magistrates recommended order. After all, that is what the VAB is paying him
to do. If you do not prevail in the VAB
appeal, you always have the right to appeal that decision to the circuit
court. But again, going to the circuit
court in pursuit of a VAB appeal really only makes sense in a very few limited
circumstances, as there is no means to recover attorneys fees incurred to
contesting your property valuation.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="color: #494949; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="color: #494949; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">If it isn’t apparent above, the key to succeeding in contesting
your TRIM Notice (whether it be at an informal meeting, a VAB appeal or in
circuit court) is to be able to adequately document an incorrect
valuation. Without the appropriate
documentation to support your claims you might as well forget about contesting
you tax assessment. With the right
documentation however, it might just be worth your time.</span></span><span style="color: #494949; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-9615129723019142732016-07-15T13:26:00.000-04:002016-07-15T13:26:23.468-04:00Florida Worker’s Comp Costs Going through the Roof Next Month!<h2 style="background: white; line-height: 16.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt;">
<b style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 16pt; text-align: center;"> Florida Worker’s Comp. Costs </b><b style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 16pt; text-align: center;"> Going through
the Roof Next Month!</b></h2>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> In April of 2016, the Florida Supreme
Court issued two opinions which will, by themselves, cause the cost of worker’s
compensation insurance to go through the roof starting this fall. In <span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://caselaw.findlaw.com/fl-supreme-court/1733310.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;"><i>Castellanos v. Next Door Company</i></span></a> </span></span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;">the Supreme Court ruled that a law passed
in </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;">2009 creating a </span><a href="http://archive.flsenate.gov/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=Ch0440/SEC34.HTM&Title=-%3E2003-%3ECh0440-%3ESection%2034#0440.34" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">mandatory attorneys fee schedule</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;"> for workers compensation cases was unconstitutional under both the
<a href="http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?submenu=3" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Florida</span></a> </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;">and <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/overview" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">United States Constitution</span></a>.</span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16pt;"> Prior to the <i>Castellanos</i> decision, attorneys’
fees had to be commensurate with the damages received by the plaintiff in a
workers’ compensation case. </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;">In this case, Mr. Castellanos was seeking
benefits in the amount of $822.70.</span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;">His
attorney billed 107 hours and sought a fee of $36,817.50.</span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;">However under the 2009 fee system,
Castellanos’ attorney was awarded attorney's fees of only $164.54.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 16pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 18pt;"> Writing for the
majority, Justice Barbara Pariente said the law creating the fee schedule violated Castellanos' due process
rights under the state and U.S. Constitution because it prevents challenges to
the “reasonableness” of legal fees in workers-compensation cases. </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 18pt;">“Without
the likelihood of an adequate attorney’s fee award, there is little
disincentive for a carrier to deny benefits or to raise multiple defenses, as
was done here,” Pariente wrote.“Virtually since its inception, the right of a
claimant to obtain a reasonable prevailing party attorney’s fee has been
central to the workers’ compensation law.” </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 18pt;">By
replacing the former “reasonable” standard with a sliding scale of legal fees,
Pariente said, “the Legislature has thus eliminated any consideration of
reasonableness.”</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 24px;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;">In the second ruling, <i><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://www.floridasupremecourt.org/decisions/2016/sc13-1930.pdf" target="_blank"><u><span style="color: blue;">Westphal v. City of St. Petersburg</span></u> </a> </span></i></span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;">the Florida Supreme Court struck down the two
year cap on workers’ compensation temporary benefits, re-establishing the cap
at five years.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;">Mr.
Westphal was a firefighter who was seriously injured on the job, needing
multiple spine surgeries. Under Florida’s workers’ compensation system, Mr.
Westphal was barred from bringing a legal action for his injuries against his
employer, and instead was required by statute, to apply for workers’
compensation benefits. Under the workers compensation system, Mr. Westphal was
required to agree to his employer’s choice of physicians and to abide by those
physicians’ advice.</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;">After 104 weeks (2
years) of treatment by the employers physicians, Mr. Westphal’s temporary
disability benefits ran out.</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;">Despite the
fact Westphal was still unable to work the employers physicians opined Westphal’s
condition was still improving, and as such, he did not qualify for permanent
disability benefits. </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;">Thus, Mr. Westphal
was completely cut off from the ability to receive any workers comp benefits
until such time as he qualified for permanent disability.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;"> Based on the fact Westphal fell through the statutory cracks and
was ineligible for continuing benefits, the Supreme Court held the eligibility time limit in the workers'
comp law unconstitutional “as a denial of the right of access to courts.”</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="color: #222222;"> Then, rather than
invalidating the entire statute, the Court employed the judicially created
remedy of “statutory revival” replacing the 104 week temporary benefit cap with
a 260 week benefit cap which existed in a prior version of the statute. The Court further stated 260 weeks of
temporary benefits “passes constitutional muster”.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;">As a direct result of these two rulings, <a href="http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southeast/2016/07/05/418940.htm" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">i</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;"><a href="http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southeast/2016/07/05/418940.htm" style="color: blue;" target="_blank">nsurance industry analysts </a>a</span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;">re predicting a 20% increase in workers’
compensation insurance premiums beginning this fall. The increase being mainly to cover increased
attorney’s fee awards resulting from the <i>Castellanos</i> decision, and to cover three
additional years of benefits now allowed by the <i>Westphal </i>decision.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"> With an increase of 20% in worker’s comp
insurance, it goes without saying Florida consumers and homeowners alike can
expect to pay a lot more for goods and services starting this fall as many
companies, predominantly in the construction sector, go out of business. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;"> For instance, companies such as roofers
will see their premiums escalate so much that homeowners simply won’t be able
to afford to have the work done and work will dry up. </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;">With homeowners being unwilling to afford to
pay licensed and insured roofers, you can then expect unlicensed and uninsured
roofers to come in and fill the void at substantially lower prices.</span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;">Why is this a problem for homeowners?</span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;">Well, aside from the fact the quality of work
will suffer with unlicensed and uninsured companies, if a homeowner hires an unlicensed
and uninsured contractor there could be serious financial repercussions if a
worker is hurt on their property.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 16pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 16.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"> These
two opinions also expose the inherent problems with the current workers
compensation system. For instance, the Supreme
Court correctly recognized in <i>Castellanos</i> the current
system encourages abuse by insurers since, without the fear of large attorney’s
fee awards, there is no incentive for insurers to do the right thing on an $822
claim and just pay it. However, on the
flip side, I can think of no other court or administrative proceeding where
anything approaching $36,000 would ever be found to be a reasonable amount of
attorney’s fees on an $822 damage claim.
Thus, this ruling will only serve to encourage unscrupulous billing
practices and file churning by plaintiff's attorneys. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"> The
same sort of conundrum is also apparent in <i>Westphal</i>. Clearly, if a man is legitimately unable to
work due to a work injury, but has yet to qualify for permanent disability his
benefits should not be terminated.
However there is also no doubt that raising the time cap from 2 to 5
years will be another avenue of abuse of the system by workers, as there will
be no incentive for them to settle their claims and return to work.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 16.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">That all being
said, perhaps the most disturbing part of both of these opinions to me are the
legal red flags which are exposed. In
each of these decisions, the Supreme Court has yet again taken a judicial activist role,
ignoring the separation of powers which is key to the workings of our
government. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Under the
separation of powers, the legislature is empowered to make policy determinations and enact the laws of the
state. The judiciary is empowered to
interpret the constitution and laws of the state, not pass judgment upon the wisdom of legislature's policy decisions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 16.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">In both
<i>Castellanos</i> and <i>Westphal</i>, the Supreme Court has strayed from simply
interpreting the law but rather, has taken it upon itself to encroach in to
the legislature’s realm of deciding what constitutes good policy for the state. </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 18pt;">In fact, in <i>Castellanos </i>and
<i>Westphal</i> Justices Canady and Polston politely take
their colleagues to task for ignoring separation of powers and invading the
legislature’s authority to make policy determinations.</span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 18pt;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 16.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 18pt;">In the <i>Castellanos</i> dissent, Justice </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 18pt;">Canady
recognized that it was a policy determination, and the Legislature was fully within its authority to establish </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 24px;">a relationship between the amount of benefits obtained in workers’ compensation cases and the amount of attorney’s fees awarded.</span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 18pt; text-indent: 36pt;"> He went on to chastise the majority for declaring the law unconstitutional simply because they disagreed with the wisdom of the Legislature's policy determination.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 18pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 16.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 18pt; text-indent: 36pt;">Canady and Polston also penned a similarly themed dissent in <i>Westphal</i> because essentially the majority of Justices arbitrarily decided 260 weeks of benefits was constitutional, yet the 104 weeks of benefits authorized by the Legislature was not.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large; line-height: 18pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"> We know almost for certain that since this an election year, there will be no special session called to deal with the workers comp insurance. Thus, it seems likely the Legislature will deal with amending the workers comp statute as soon as the 2017 legislative session begins.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">We can only hope this time, when the Legislature comes up with its fix, the Supreme Court will respect the principle of separation of powers regardless of whether they concur with the wisdom of the Legislature or not. </span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-11909793144178052562016-07-05T08:12:00.000-04:002016-07-05T08:12:10.779-04:00"AN OUT AND OUT PLAN OF EXTORTION" <div style="background: white; line-height: 14.65pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #444444;">"AN OUT AND OUT PLAN OF EXTORTION" </span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;">As we
roll in to July, it has not been widely publicized but a new set of amendments
to the Martin County Comprehensive Plan are set to go in to effect later this
month. These amendments are numerous,
and will eventually prove shocking and troublesome to many residents of Martin
County. </span><span style="color: #1f1f1f;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 15.95pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #444444;">For
those having the patience to sit, read through and understand all these
amendments it becomes clear these latest changes are not part of a coherent
“plan” for Martin County. A “plan” would
clearly lay out the big picture with regard to how residents want Martin County
to evolve. The bulk of these amendments
do not address big picture items.
Rather, they are specific new local governmental regulations which are
being improperly injected in to a “planning” document.. What is the difference you ask? It’s simple, local ordinances and/or
regulations are the method by which the “plan” is implemented. Logically this makes sense since we want the
process of changing the “plan” to take longer so we don’t change the “plan” on a regular basis. To the contrary, we DO want the ability to
change regulations and ordinances in a timely manner because we may, from time to time, stumble
upon better or more appropriate ways to implement our “plan”. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 15.95pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #444444;">That
having been said, there is only one motivation for placing specific regulations in the “plan” where they don’t
belong. That motivation is………….wait for
it………………to make it as difficult as possible to undo the continuing and unabashed
assault upon the private property rights of the citizens of Martin County. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #444444;">For
instance, one of the more objectionable provisions in the amendments is laid
out in </span><a href="https://www.martin.fl.us/sites/default/files/151-505.pdf" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Policy 8.1C.1(1),</span></a><span style="color: #444444;"> providing for the creation of a new seventy five foot
(75’) shoreline protection zone (SPZ). This new 75 foot SPZ is, or will now be, required
for “all new development”. Thus, as of
the effective date in July, “no construction” will be permitted in Martin
County within 75 feet of the waterline on any waterfront property within the County. In other words, in Martin County no
waterfront real estate owner will be permitted to make any use of a 75 foot
wide strip of land which abuts the water. There is no scientific justification cited in the "plan" for this regulation, rather, the 75 foot SPZ is premised upon a generalization and presumption "that of course a 75 foot buffer will help water quality". </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">This
type of regulation, which denies a limited group of property owners the right to
use their property is not new by any means in Martin County. It is simply a perpetuation of the problematic
mindset which all to often goes unchallenged because citizens believe a burdensome regulation will only affect someone else. After all, why would any voter object when there is a governmentally identified "public purpose" that is being advanced solely by burdening a small minority of property owners? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> Looking at it purely from a
fairness perspective I think we would all agree if there is some truly
legitimate “public purpose” to the community, the cost or burden of achieving that"public purpose' should be borne by the entire community, not just by a small minority of property owners. So for instance, (leaving aside the issue of 75 foot SPZ being improperly injected in a planning document) if there truly is a “public purpose” to the community to be achieved in enacting a 75 foot SPZ, then Martin County
should pay all waterfront property owners for taking their 75 foot strip of
land. To be fair, Martin County should then turn around and assess all County residents their fair share of the cost of buying the land needed to achieve this "public purpose". <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">This type of governmental regulation which takes property without providing
just compensation violates the United States </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Constitution’s
Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause which states: “nor shall private property be
taken for public use without just compensation.”</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Uncompensated regulatory takings of private property have
become an immense problem not just in Martin County but all across the
nation. This, notwithstanding the fact </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #454545;">the US Supreme Court has recognized it is inappropriate for
governmental regulation to act as a substitute for the power of eminent domain,
calling it an“</span><a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/483/825" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">out and out plan of extortion</span></a><span style="color: #454545;">” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 15.95pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #454545;">With any luck however, the tide many be turning on
uncompensated regulatory takings. There
is currently pending before the US Supreme Court the case of </span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="background-color: #fcfcfc;"><b><i><u><span style="background: white; color: blue;"><a href="http://www.pacificlegal.org/file/Common-Sense-v-San-Juan-cert-petition-final-4-29.pdf" target="_blank">Common Sense Alliance v. San Juan County</a></span></u></i></b></span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="background-color: #fcfcfc;"><span style="background: white; color: blue;"> </span><span style="background: white; color: #454545;">w</span></span><span style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #454545;">hich is a case from San Juan County in Washington State. The most interesting factor in </span><b><i><u><a href="http://www.pacificlegal.org/file/Common-Sense-v-San-Juan-cert-petition-final-4-29.pdf" style="background-color: white;" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Common Sense Alliance</span></a> </u></i></b><span style="background-color: white; color: #454545;"> is that the unlawful regulation which precipitated this case is eerily similar to the 75 foot SPZ in Martin County. </span></span></div>
<div style="background: #FCFCFC; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #444444;">As is the case in Martin
County, San Juan County’s “growth management approach" to regulating land-uses
adjacent to environmentally sensitive lands relies almost exclusively on
presumptions and generalizations. <span class="apple-converted-space"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 15.95pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #222222;">In
2012, San Juan County enacted a regulation stating that as condition of obtaining local government approval, a
waterfront property owner must dedicate a portion of their
property as an on-site conservation area.</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; color: #454545;"> So, just as with Martin County’s 75 foot SPZ,
San Juan County </span></span><span style="color: #222222;">shoreline property
owners are required to set aside “water quality buffers” as a condition of
development. Again similar to the 75 foot SPZ in Martin
County, San Juan’s “water quality buffers” are not based on any harm the
proposed land use itself might cause, but based on the county’s general efforts
to reduce pollutants and improve water quality. </span><span style="background: white; color: #454545;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 15.95pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #222222;"> The San Juan regulation was challenged as a taking
without just compensation by a local property owners’ association called the
Common Sense Alliance. Unfortunately, at each level the Washington state courts ignored the Fifth Amendment and sided
with San Juan County finding the ordinance was permissible because it was</span><span style="color: #444444;"> a generally applicable ordinance instead of a case
specific regulation. Because the Washington State courts ignored well established federal precedent with regard to the federal Takings Clause, the case has been appealed to the United States Supreme Court.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 15.95pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444;">The
Washington State courts logic flies in the face of several U.S Supreme
Court decisions, such as </span><a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/483/825" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Nollan v. California Coastal Commission</span></a><span style="color: #444444;"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 15.95pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="color: #444444;">and
</span><span style="color: blue;"><a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/93-518.ZS.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Dolan v. City of Tigard</span></a>,</span></span><span style="color: #444444; line-height: 15.95pt; text-indent: 36pt;"> </span><span style="color: #444444; line-height: 15.95pt; text-indent: 36pt;">which hold the government may only demand property
from a permit applicant when necessary to mitigate a harm that the
proposed project would cause. Put
another way, p</span><span style="color: #1f1f1f; line-height: 15.95pt; text-indent: 36pt;">ermit conditions are legal
only when they mitigate identifiable development impacts caused by that permit
applicant. Permit conditions cannot be imposed to cure problems not created by
the permit applicant, or be disproportionate to the impact.</span></div>
<div style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 15.95pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #1f1f1f;"><span style="color: #1f1f1f;">In
2013, following along the rationale of </span><b><i><u><a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/483/825" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Nollan</span></a></u></i></b><span style="color: #1f1f1f;"> and </span><b><i><u><a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/93-518.ZS.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Dolan</span></a><span style="color: #1f1f1f;">,</span></u></i></b><span style="color: #1f1f1f;"> the Supreme Court said
in </span><a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/11-1447#writing-11-1447_OPINION_3" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District </span></a></span><span style="color: blue; line-height: 15.95pt; text-indent: 36pt;">t</span><span style="color: #1f1f1f; line-height: 15.95pt; text-indent: 36pt;">hat
government is forbidden from pressuring citizens into forfeiting their
constitutional rights by coercively withholding benefits (i.e., giving up
property to obtain a permit).</span></div>
<div style="background: #FCFCFC; line-height: 15.95pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: #1f1f1f;"> With any luck the Supreme Court will grant review to</span><span style="color: blue;"><span style="color: #1f1f1f;"> </span><span class="apple-converted-space"><b><i><u><span style="background: white;"><a href="http://www.pacificlegal.org/file/Common-Sense-v-San-Juan-cert-petition-final-4-29.pdf" target="_blank">Common Sense Alliance v. San Juan County</a></span></u></i></b></span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; color: blue;">,</span><span style="background: white; color: #454545;"> and
there is hope the case could be heard by the Court before the end of 2016, so perhaps by 2017 private property rights in Martin County and across the country can begin to be restored as the Constitution intended.. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-15508122690051314792016-06-21T10:27:00.002-04:002016-07-05T08:12:27.891-04:00LICENSED CAPTAIN OR NOT?<div style="background: white; margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">LICENSED CAPTAIN OR NOT?<o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
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<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I recently received a call from a long time marine business client
looking for some help resolving a problem that had arisen regarding the need
for a licensed captain.<o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">For the past several years, this particular client has operated a camp
for kids with cancer at his waterfront property. The camp is free
for all children who are referred through a particular well known local non
profit. The entire cost of the camp is
underwritten by this particular client so campers pay nothing. <o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Not surprisingly, one of the favorite activities for the kids is going on
their daily boat trip. Trips vary each
day taking campers fishing, water skiing, eco tours, trips to a waterfront restaurant
for lunch, etc. These boat trips have always
been conducted by volunteer (but very experienced) boat operators. <o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Based upon the outstanding feedback received from camp attendees and
their parents, my client decided this year he would offer a similar summer camp
for local kids. This summer camp
however, includes a minimal fee to cover expenses for the week. My client arranged to use the exact same
experienced volunteer boat operators whom he used for his free camp, but was
told by his insurer they would not issue an insurance policy unless licensed
captains were operating the boats taking campers out on their daily boat trips.<o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">His question of course, was why do I need a licensed captain for my
summer camp when I never needed one before.<o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I must admit I have never
encountered an insurance company refusing to issue an insurance policy for not
using licensed captains, but as a business lawyer in an admiralty and maritime firm, every year I do get the same basic question from
at least a couple of my clients, that being: am I required to have a licensed
captain operating my boat?<o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">The Coast Guard provides a very
good and <a href="http://www.uscg.mil/pvs/docs/Brocures/PAX4Hire_handout_SECSD.pdf" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">detailed explanation</span></a> </span><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">of when a licensed captain is required. <o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">Under Coast Guard rules, a
licensed captain is required for all charter operations. </span></strong>Charter boats are referred to
as <a href="http://www.uscg.mil/pvs/UPV.asp" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">uninspected passenger vessels (UPV)</span></a>. Coast
Guard regulations make it illegal for a UPV to engage in <a href="https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/USCODE-2011-title46/pdf/USCODE-2011-title46-subtitleII-partA-chap21-sec2101.pdf" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">“passenger for hire”</span></a> operations without a Coast Guard licensed captain. </span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">A passenger for hire is a “passenger for whom a consideration is
contributed as a condition of carriage whether directly or indirectly flowing
to the owner, charterer, operator, agent, or any other person interested in the
vessel is a passenger for hire.”
Basically, anyone who is <i>required</i>
to contribute something to get on the boat.</span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Thus, in my client's case I had to break
him the bad news. Coast Guard regulations demanded he get
licensed captains to operate the boats for summer camp because attendees
were <i>required</i> to pay a fee to attend camp. Conversely, since
attendees at his kids with cancer camp were not <i>required</i> to pay anything to attend, this would be classified as a
recreational excursion and volunteer boat operators were acceptable (I’ll leave
for another day a discussion of the propriety of volunteer boat operators from
a boating accident and boating injury perspective).</span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Aside from the importance of the
question for my client, locals up and down the east coast need to understand this
is an important issue for every weekend warrior. </span></span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">It's no secret the Coast
Guard has been cracking down up and down the east coast on what they perceive to be unlawful charter boats. It is not uncommon for a small center console type boat with several individuals aboard heading
in from a day of fishing to be stopped by the Coast Guard. Questions usually begin with an eye towards a safety check, but then quickly transition in to questioning the vessel operator
and passengers separately regarding how the voyage was financed. <o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">In fact, there appear to be instances where
the Coast Guard has determined an illegal charter to exist where a boat owner
basically said to one of his buddies </span></strong><strong style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">“</span></strong><strong style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">Hey Joe, if you pay for half the fuel, food and drinks we can go out
trolling for dolphin</span></strong><strong style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">”</span></strong><strong style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">. The logic presumably being that
Joe</span></strong><strong style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">’</span></strong><strong style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;">s buddy felt he was <i>required</i> to pay for half the fuel, food or drinks to go
fishing. Illegal charters can subject a
vessel operator to criminal and civil liability of up to $40,000.00 per
violation. </span></strong></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-weight: normal; padding: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Given the high degree of
confusion surrounding the issue, the Coast Guard has published guidance specifically stating it is not an illegal charter when passengers freely and voluntarily contribute
to the voyage. Thus, for anyone who fishes recreationally, the lesson to be
learned is if your fishing buddies don't feel they
are freely and voluntarily sharing the expenses of the fishing trip, an otherwise fun
day of fishing could end up as a very costly nightmare.</span><span style="color: #444444;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-34210061456723754572016-06-15T07:45:00.000-04:002016-07-05T08:12:38.083-04:00BOAT WAKE LIABILITY<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<b><u>BOAT
WAKE LIABILITY<o:p></o:p></u></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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While up in north Florida this past weekend, my in-laws were hosting a
party at their home which sits on one of the larger rivers up that way. Saturday was the first nice day of the week,
and all the crazies were on the water early.</div>
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As I was standing on the river bank with some family friends eating hot
dogs, we watched in horror as an exceedingly large sport cruiser passed the
property going way too fast. As you can
imagine this boat which belonged in the gulf, not the river, threw up a gigantic
wake in comparison to the minimal wakes created by the little “go-fast” boats
which usually populate the river. This
particular wake picked up my father-in-laws floating dock and deposited it on a
tree branch hanging over water. The
local real estate attorney who happened to be eating hot dogs with me, piped up
asking if boats on the river could be held liable for damage caused by their
wakes. He then proceeded to tell me his
tale of woe about one of his clients trying to sell a house on the river with
boathouse and dock having suffered significant damage from similar large boat
wakes. </div>
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The short answer I gave him was yes, all boats (including jet skis) are
responsible for any damage caused by their wakes, be it personal injuries or
property damage.<span style="color: blue;"> <span style="background-color: white;"> <a href="http://guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/practiceareas.cfm" target="_blank">Our firm</a></span></span> has litigated
several of these boat wake cases, but thus far they have always involved
personal injuries, not property damage. </div>
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That having been said, we find normally there are two big challenges presented
in boat wake cases. First, there is
frequently a problem identifying the owner and/or operator of the vessel who
created the damaging boat wake. The
second major issue that arises is that it is often difficult to prove the
damage (personal or property) in question was caused by the excessive wake rather
than being a pre-existing condition. </div>
<br />
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As more and more boats hit the water, more and more people are
operating boats without the requisite skill and experience needed for the protection
of everyone on the water. As a result, it
would seem boat wake cases are only going to continue to become more prevalent
as the years go on. If you don’t want
to find yourself on the wrong end of a boat wake case, go the extra step and make
sure you are a conscientious and courteous boat operator. Competent boat operators are something we
can never have enough of.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-38661931972818191632016-06-13T13:08:00.000-04:002016-07-05T08:12:49.652-04:00WHERE IS FLORIDA’S HOMEOWNERS’ BILL OF RIGHTS?<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<b><u><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">WHERE IS FLORIDA’S HOMEOWNERS’ BILL OF RIGHTS?<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Momentum is building around the nation
to finally say enough is enough when it comes to overly intrusive governmental
regulations. More and more citizens are
becoming aware of the fact that almost invariably each new, well intentioned governmental
regulation comes with far reaching unintended consequences. Not only do these unintended consequences usually
strip away property rights, but the accumulation of the unintended consequences
over time cause a financial drag on communities.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Most recently, two legislators in Wisconsin
rolled out their<span style="color: blue;"> <a href="http://www.newrichmond-news.com/news/government/4050466-tiffany-jarchow-roll-out-homeowners-bill-rights-wednesday" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">“Homeowners Bill of Rights”</span></a></span>.
The stated intent of their legislation is to protect homeowners from the
“creep of overbearing government at all levels”. Citing studies indicating nearly 25% of the
price of a new home is directly attributable to governmental regulation; the
legislation seeks to significantly reduce housing costs, which will in turn
lead to greater home ownership and a more invested community. </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Wisconsin
</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Homeowners'
Bill of Rights includes provisions to:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">1) Control property taxes<br />
2) Increase broadband access<br />
3) Make the supply and delivery system for propane affordable<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><br />
4) Provide property owners additional protections from "takings"<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><br />
5) Reform unreasonable regulations that threaten property rights<br />
6) Reduce regulatory barriers for home buyers<br />
7) Protect your "right to fly the flag"<br />
8) Require a warrant based on probable cause for any search of a property<br />
9) Broaden the concept of grandfathering<br />
10) Inject a private property rights element into the Smart Growth program<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Any such bill would obviously need to tweaked
a bit to conform to Florida’s peculiarities.
But wouldn’t it be nice to see our legislators in Tallahassee taking
concrete steps to proactively begin reigning in overzealous governmental
entities, protecting property rights, encouraging families to become homeowners
and fostering the American Dream?</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-61393797560069363782016-06-08T07:58:00.001-04:002016-11-17T07:55:22.370-05:00FLORIDA RIPARIAN RIGHTS ISSUES<div align="center" style="background: white; line-height: 15.3pt; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14.0pt;"><u>FLORIDA RIPARIAN RIGHTS ISSUES</u><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; margin: 0pt;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333;">Waterfront property in Florida is very desirable, be it
for boating access or an incredible view of the water. Despite the sometimes exorbitant price paid
for a waterfront piece, I am always amazed at how many prospective purchasers
fail to investigate the potential legal pitfalls that come along with owning waterfront
property. In far too many instances six
months or a year after closing, buyers will first become aware of an issue involving
the location of a dock or with their view of the water being blocked. Such issues involve what are known as
</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riparian_water_rights" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">riparian rights</span></a><span style="color: #333333;">. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;"><span style="color: blue;"> </span></span><a href="http://guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/practiceareas-property.cfm" style="color: #333333;" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Riparian rights disputes</span></span> </a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">come in many different forms and frequently result in costly
litigation between neighbors. It therefore
goes without saying just how important it is for potential purchasers to investigate
possible riparian rights issues </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333;"><u>before</u></b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">
they buy waterfront property. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;"><br /></span></span>
<img src="http://www.floridasportsman.com/files/2010/09/051258_c.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></u></b>
<b><u><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Who
has riparian rights?<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Title to all
non-deeded submerged land in Florida rests with the State of Florida, and is
held in trust for the public.<span style="color: #494948;"> </span>This is known as “the Public Trust Doctrine”, and is
codified in <a href="http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?submenu=3#A10S11" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Article X, section 11, of the Florida Constitution</span></a>. The
State of Florida therefore owns the submerged land water ward of the ordinary
high water mark. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #373739; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In order to possess riparian rights, an individual must own
upland property which extends to the ordinary high water mark.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Riparian rights extend water ward from
the ordinary high water mark. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Thus, a <span style="background: white; color: #373739;">conveyance of uplands bounded by
navigable waters carries riparian rights in the adjacent waters.</span> These riparian rights are derived from both
common law, and the Florida Statutes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt;">
<b><u><span style="color: #333333;">What are
riparian rights?<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">Riparian
rights are those rights incidental to ownership of land contiguous to and
abutting navigable waterways.</span><span style="background: white; color: #373739; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">Riparian rights include the
right of ingress, egress, boating, bathing, and fishing and such others as may
be or have been defined by law (right to view being perhaps the most
contentious). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Riparian rights convey no title to the submerged lands
beneath the waters and therefore are not “real property”. Riparian rights </span></span><span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">are
rights to use the water and nothing more.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> R<span style="background: white;">iparian
rights are merely a preferred right of purchase, and do not convey any title.<span style="color: #373739;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #373739; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Riparian rights are not owned by the riparian landowner, they
are an appurtenance to, and inseparable from, the riparian land.</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; color: #373739; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> <span style="background: white; color: #373739;">Riparian rights may only be severed from
the uplands by an "express bilateral agreement to do so."</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; color: #373739; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> Thus, </span></span><span class="ssrfcpassagedeactivated"><span style="border: none 1.0pt; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; padding: 0pt;">any
deed conveying riparian uplands carries riparian rights unless those rights are
expressly reserved. </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">How
are riparian rights delineated?<span class="apple-converted-space"><o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Some fifty years
ago, in<b><i><u> <a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/florida/supreme-court/1957/91-so-2d-795-0.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Hayes v. Bowman</span></a></u></i></b><span style="color: blue;"> t</span>he Florida Supreme Court declared:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 18pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“We
therefore prescribe the rule that in any given case the riparian rights of an <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">upland
owner must be preserved over an area "as near an practicable" in the <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">direction
of the Channel so as to distribute equitably the submerged lands <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">between
the upland and the Channel. In making such "equitable distribution" <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">the
Court necessarily must give due consideration to the lay of the upland shore<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">line,
the direction of the Channel and the co-relative rights of adjoining <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">upland
owners.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.0001pt 36pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #373739; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In
other words, when riparian rights issues are presented to a Court for
resolution the main goal is to make certain each neighbor receives “an equal
piece of the pie”.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><u>Conclusion</u><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Due
to the multitude of issues that can arise, this blog is not intended as legal advice
or to be a comprehensive discussion of Florida riparian rights law. Rather this blog is just a general outline of
the concepts and key elements of riparian rights law that are likely to command
attention. If you are looking at
purchasing waterfront property or are confronted with a riparian rights problem,
please do not hesitate to <a href="http://guyyudinlaw.com/cfiles/attorneys.cfm" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">contact me</span></a> to
discuss the specifics of your case.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-86269915313328233282016-06-02T13:51:00.001-04:002016-07-05T08:13:08.857-04:00U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; Masters of Disasters!<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<b>U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; Masters
of Disasters!<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
Well, they’re at it again! The U.S Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) is about to
get<a href="http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2016/corals-05-31-2016.html" target="_blank"> <span style="color: blue;">sued</span></a> for turning a blind eye to the destruction of endangered corals in
south Florida. A coalition of environmental groups cite a report from the
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) finding the Corps vastly
underestimated the extent of sedimentation from the recent Port of Miami dredge
project. The NMFS report indicates the Port of Miami
dredging buried two hundred football fields of endangered corals, killing 93%
of those corals near the dredge area.
Now, rather than demanding updated and accurate information which takes
in to account the failed Port of Miami project the Corps is about to issue new
permits to dredge Port Everglades based on the exact same old, inaccurate information
which was relied on to obtain the Port of Miami permits. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
Sound familiar?
It should if you live in Martin County.
For the past 50+ years, the Corps has been the main culprit allowing
freshwater discharges from Lake Okeechobee and the c-44 canal to pollute and
kill the St. Lucie River. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
Just do a Google search for lawsuits against the
Corps, and you will quickly see the Corps is being sued in just about every
state for causing, or being complicit in, some form of environmental damage. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
How
is it that the federal government in the form of the Corps, can be so
intimately involved in so many projects around the country that wreak so much
environmental havoc on the individual states?
No citizen or corporate entity or state for that matter, could ever get
away anything which begins to approach the level of environmental damage
inflicted by the Corps. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
The overly simplified answer is that government has become
way too big. There are way too many laws
on the books which result in too many conflicts at too many different levels. There is no “institutional control”, as
evidenced by the troubling problems at the Veterans Administration. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
While it is unfortunate, until there are systemic
changes to the structure of government which can ensure “institutional
control”, citizen suits will remain as
the best and only method of reigning in environmental abuse by the government. </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-87171707640794359832016-05-27T09:27:00.000-04:002016-05-27T09:27:59.255-04:00Private property rights are different 240 years later<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
In 1776 private property rights were one of the founding
principles of our nation. They were one of the freedoms that set our nation
apart from the rest of the world. During the time of the Declaration of
Independence citizens had the <span style="background: white; color: #252525;">unalienable right to acquire, possess, protect and dispose of
property. One of the purposes of our early government was to protect those
unalienable private property rights.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt;">
Fast forward 240 years
to 2016, and the idea of unalienable private property rights has been turned on
its ear! Today’s mentality is not that the government must protect
our property rights at all costs. Rather,
in today’s world a<span style="background: white; color: #252525;">ny rights
to property that a person has may be regulated, limited or revoked by government
in order to satisfy something which the government tells us is a “public
purpose.”</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt;">
Every day I read at
least one article from somewhere in the United States where some governmental
body is commandeering the private
property of the citizens it is supposed to be serving, all in the name of a
“public purpose”. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt;">
For
instance, today it was an<a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/energy-environment/281165-why-cant-congress-stop-the-epas-assault-on-private" target="_blank"> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">article</span></span></a><span style="background-color: white;"> </span>bemoaning the
fact Congress can't reign in EPA's assault on property rights with the new
"waters of the United States" rules. Yesterday it was an <a href="http://www.coastalreview.org/2016/05/14515/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">article</span></a> about
municipalities seizing beach front property for a "public purpose". Before that it was an<span style="color: blue;"> <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/instituteforjustice/2016/04/07/dallas-wants-to-destroy-a-popular-small-business-and-not-pay-him-a-dime/#703bf3575ca2" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">article</span></a></span> detailing how the
Dallas City Council was removing a small business owner from his own private
property where had operated his business for 30 years. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
It is happening here in Martin County as well.
Sometime this summer the Martin County Board of County Commissioners is
poised to approve a set of changes to the Martin County Comprehensive Plan
which will further erode the private property rights of our citizens under the
guise of furthering a “public purpose” (or as the catch phrase goes in Martin
County, “maintaining our quality of life”).</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
Unless you are one of the unlucky few who are adversely
affected by the “public purpose” <i>du jour</i>,
most of us in this crazy hectic world we live in simply accept government’s
spin as to why we should support a further erosion of our property rights. We nod out heads in agreement, feeling
content we are selflessly supporting a good and altruistic cause. We rationalize the “good” being done thinking
it won’t really affect that many of our neighbors or it’s not so bad to burden
a few for the good of the many.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
Then………..one day……….out of the blue………..WE become one of those
adversely affected by a good and noble “public purpose” getting cross ways with
the government. Then, and only then, do
we become indignant with a government trying to separate us from our property
rights. I can’t tell you how many times
I’ve heard “we have property rights in this country how can the government get
away with this!” or “since when does the government have the right to take my
private property?” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
This seems to be the rub with property rights. In today’s society the mindset is as long as
it doesn’t affect me, I don’t really care what the government does. I know far too many highly educated, kind and
compassionate folks who, for whatever reason, cannot bring themselves to
honestly ask the question “how would I like it if I was subjected to this
particular governmental burden?” If they
ever did ask the question, and honestly answer it I surmise they would not be
so complacent in their acceptance of these supposed good and noble causes. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<span style="text-indent: 36pt;">Absent a societal shift in the public’s expectations of government,
there is no reason to believe the governmental property rights grab will stop
any time soon.</span><span style="text-indent: 36pt;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 36pt;">The further away we move
from the roots of our colonial heritage, the closer we get to a more
feudalistic system where the sovereign (ie. government) controls all the land it
surveys.</span><span style="text-indent: 36pt;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 36pt;">With good reason, colonial
America rejected feudalism.</span><span style="text-indent: 36pt;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 36pt;">Perhaps we
are coming full circle. I hear Mars will available for colonization by 2020!</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0pt; text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2930958897118448815.post-34483518312293468582013-01-15T11:02:00.000-05:002014-03-11T13:17:48.133-04:00<div class="p402_premium">
<div class="entry postcontent">
Today the U.S. Supreme Court will consider <strong><em><u>Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District</u></em></strong>, a case which some legal observers have characterized as "grand theft real estate". <em> </em>Aside from being the most significant property rights case the Supreme Court will consider this term, the decision in <em>Koontz</em> will in all likelihood, have a direct impact on property rights in Martin County.<br />
<br />
In <em>Koontz</em>, the St. John's Water Management District (SJRWMD) refused to grant the applicant a permit to use his property without deeding 75% of his property to conservation AND funding unrelated of improvements to 50 acres of public land several miles away. The applicant agreed to place his property in conservation, but refused the fund the unrelated improvements to public land. SJRWMD denied the permit and <em>Koontz</em> filed suit alleging a regulatory taking by SJRWMD. The trial court and the Fifth District Court of Appeal found in favor of the applicant, while the Florida Supreme Court reversed the lower court rulings.<br />
<br />
The issues before the Court today are whether SJRWMD's permit condition violates the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment, which requires the government to pay just compensation for taking private property. In addition, the Supreme Court will decide whether SJRWMD violated two prior Supreme Court decisions which placed strict limits on conditions the government can impose when issuing permits.<br />
<br />
Hopefully, the Supreme Court will once and for all, provide much needed clarity as to when the government must pay property owners for taking their private property.<br />
<br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">UPDATE – Last summer the Supreme Court issued its opinion in </span><em><span style="background: white; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><u>Koontz v. St. Johns River
Water Management District</u></span></em><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">. While the opinion is
being deemed a victory for Mr. Koontz and property rights advocates in general,
the Court’s opinion did little to bring any clarity to defining when or how
much, the government must pay property owners for taking their private property.
Instead the opinion, which presumably was intentionally drafted in complex
legalise to avoid putting the issue to bed once and for all, essentially held
that when <span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">approval
of a permit is conditioned upon the dedication of property or paying of money, the
government must show a nexus and rough proportionality of the demand to the
impacts of the proposed land use. That having been said, the Court took
no position on whether SJRWMD’s actions were lawful with regard to Mr. Koontz,
but instead punted the ball back to the trial court to resolve the issue of the
legality of SJRWMD’s actions. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The effects of the opinion are still
being deciphered and debated in legal circles, but in the end, all sides seem
to agree this case broadens a property owners rights to challenge governmental land
use decisions. Broadening the rights of property
owners is always a good thing. However,
what would have been far better would have been a decisive opinion definitively
laying out a bright line test identifying exactly when a governmental taking of
private property occurs. The obvious
benefit of such a definitive decision would be to level the playing field between
property owners and governmental entities thereby serving to actually prevent the
next </span><em><span style="background: white; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><u>Koontz</u></span></em></span><em><span style="background: white; font-size: 12.0pt; font-style: normal; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> case. By continuing to rely upon vague and
subjective concepts rather than definitive requirements, the groundwork has unfortunately
been laid for the next great “landmark” property rights case. </span><o:p></o:p></span></em></div>
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