Clay Serenbetz – YouTube Video

A presentation by Clay Serenbetz

I Have No Money, How Can I Hire an Attorney?

Frequently, the people who need an attorney the most are also the ones who can least afford to pay for one. Whether accused of a crime, injured in an accident, or facing the possibility of losing your children, there are many situations where the stakes are so high that you might desperately need an attorney even though you have no way to pay. So, how do you hire an attorney when you have no money?

In some situations, attorneys may be provided to you. These are generally in cases where the stakes are quite high -- so high that the Supreme Court found that you have a constitutional right to an attorney. The most common situation for court-appointed legal counsel has always been criminal cases. Anyone who has watched a TV show or movie featuring law enforcement of any kind probably recognizes the famous Miranda Warning:

You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided to you.

This right to an attorney, even if you cannot afford one, grew out of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution and was cemented in the law by the case of Gideon v. Wainright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963). In that case, a poor defendant was unable to obtain legal counsel and thus, grossly outmatched in court by the State Attorney. On appeal from his conviction, the Supreme Court held that the right of an indigent (i.e., poor) defendant in a criminal case to have the assistance of counsel is a fundamental right essential to a fair trial. Thus, the conviction was overturned and the right to legal counsel in a criminal case was finally and firmly established.

If arrested, a criminal defendant must be advised of their right to legal counsel. An attorney is typically appointed at the first hearing the defendant attends (usually a first appearance that occurs within 24 hours of arrest). Most commonly, the defendant receives the services of a Public Defender, an attorney paid by the state to represent clients with no means of representing themselves. These are overworked and underpaid civil servants that often receive an unfair reputation as being less skilled or less concerned than a private attorney. In reality, most Public Defenders do everything they can with the budget and time they have to put on the best possible case for their clients.

Bankruptcy Exemption - Clay Serenbetz

Bankruptcy exemptions can make a dramatic difference in your bankruptcy proceeding whether you are filing Chapter 7 or Chapter 13. While the result for having an exemption is different for each type of bankruptcy filing, both help the consumer keep more – either property or money.

Definition

Bankruptcy exemptions keep certain assets away from the bankruptcy trustee. Some exemptions exist to protect specific property, such as an automobile. However, other exemptions exist to protect an asset’s entire value or a portion of the asset’s value. The more exemptions a person can receive, the better off they usually are. Additionally, consumers do not have to worry about this asset or its value affecting their bankruptcy case.

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Exemptions

Chapter 7 bankruptcies take the property that consumers currently own, sell it off and pay down as much debt as possible. In a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, a bankruptcy trustee has the power to sell assets in a consumer’s bankruptcy estate.

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Exemptions

Chapter 13 bankruptcies permit consumers to retain their property while they reorganize their debts. However, the amount that they are required to pay each month to creditors is dependent on, in part, the property that they can exempt. Then, the consumers must pay the value of their nonexempt assets to unsecured creditors. Having more exemptions allows consumers to reduce the amount that they have to pay to these creditors.

Clay Serenbetz

Car Repossession Laws

Whether leased or finance, your creditor has important rights to possession of the vehicle in the event of a default. These rights are established in both the lending documents signed at the time of purchase and in the laws of the state in which you live. Most commonly, when a buyer fails to make timely payments on a vehicle, the lender will have a contractual and statutory right to take possession of the vehicle without going to court or giving you advance warning. This is what is known by most as a “repossession.” Your creditor may also be able to sell the right to take possession of the vehicle to a third party, called an assignee, who would then have the same right of repossession. It is also worth noting that in some jurisdictions, failing to carry adequate insurance may also be a trigger for repossession.

When Can a Creditor Repossess My Vehicle?

In many states, your creditor can take possession of your vehicle as soon as you default on your loan or lease. That could mean missing your first payment, failing to carry adequate insurance on the vehicle, or violating another condition of the lending documents. Your contract should state the specific circumstances that constitutes a default.

However, simply because the creditor is entitled does not mean that it will exercise its right in every situation. It is often possible to work with your creditor to change your payment date, roll payments to the end of your repayment term, reduce payment amounts during times of financial hardship, etc. If your creditor agrees to such a change, make sure they do it in writing. Most lenders are big organizations and it is possible for things to get lost in the shuffle. If your car gets repossessed despite an agreement, you will need the written proof to protect your interests in court.

What Happens to My Personal Property in the Vehicle?

The personal belongings inside of a vehicle belong to the owner and may be retrieved at a reasonable time and place from the creditor or its agents. Some states require the creditor to provide an inventory, but not all. If your creditor cannot account for possessions left in the vehicle, you may want to speak to an attorney and/or local law enforcement. You can find an attorney in your area able to help you with both your repossession and the missing property by visiting HG.org and using the attorney search functions.

Law Enforcement

 

An officer detains an active parolee gang member for questioning, and during the detention, the grabbing into his shorts pocket. The suspect yells out to the officer that he is armed and will shoot the officer. The officer tackles the suspect, there is a violent struggle for the weapon, and the officer shoots and kills the suspect.
An officer attempts to affect an enforcement stop on a motorist for a hit and run accident. The driver fails to yield and stop at the first available opportunity, drives to a park and then suddenly foot bails into the park. The lone officer chases after the suspect into the park where the officer is subsequently shot and killed.
Foot pursuits by their very nature are highly emotionally charged and dangerous events that occur frequently in police work. Police officers must balance their obligation to enforce laws and arrest perpetrators with their personal safety. Unfortunately, this rarely happens.
Officers need to remember that at the same time that they are catching up to the suspect, they are also reducing the "reactionary gap" between themselves and the suspect. Reactionary gap is the distance between the officer and suspect, compared to the officer's ability to defensively react to something the suspect might do to them. Shorten the distance and the officer shortens his/her reaction time. This is almost always dangerous for the officer.

Expunging or Sealing a Criminal Record

Expungement refers to the process of sealing arrest as well as conviction records and virtually every state has enacted laws that allow the people to expunge arrests and convictions from their records. Though the details can vary from one state to the next and most states laws provide that once an arrest or conviction has been expunged it need not be disclosed which also includes potential employers or landlords. Since an expungement can offer a fresh start of sorts but one of the most important actions that people who have been arrested or convicted can take is to investigate their jurisdiction's expungement procedures.

Ask the following questions about the eligibility for expungement and the procedure that's involves the following questions such as is a particular offense eligible for expungement, when is a person eligible for an expungement, what does the expungement process involve, what are the consequences of expungement, etc.

Drug offenses: Many people arrested for the drug offenses are eligible for the diversion programs and these programs typically provide for the expungement of records which follows the satisfactory completion of a program.

Juvenile offenses: People which were arrested or convicted as juvenile offenders may have an easier time getting their criminal records expunged or sealed.

Clay Serenbetz

Financial or White Collar Crimes - Clay Serenbetz

When anyone hears the word crime immediately he/she think of something such as robbery, assault, murder, drugs, etc. but people have found a way to commit a crime which does not require a gun, knife or fighting, a way to abuse their position as well as status to gain a large amount of other people’s money without being known as thieves or criminals. These crimes typically involves some form of deceit, man oeuvre or the abuse of a position of trust that distinguishes them from the common theft or robbery and this type of crime does not involve violent, drug related or visible illegal activities.

They have serious and long term impacts on their victims and these crimes that are conducted through a variety of mechanisms are continually evolving as well as vary in levels of sophistication. They also involve activities that defraud people of their money but robbery involves the threat of violence, crimes of financial fraud tend to be stealthy and nonviolent. They are often known as white collar crimes and although these crimes donor cause physical harm but they are still serious and carry penalties. They also affect private individuals, companies and organizations and have a negative effect on the entire economic as well as social system through the considerable loss of money incurred.

Clay Serenbetz