KalishLawTexas' legal blog The Woodlands

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30 Nov 2011

Important Information about your Texas Vehicle Title
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The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles has an informative pamphlet titled “Your vehicle title needs maintenance, too.” The pdf version of this pamphlet is downloadable.

Some of the information provided:
1. You can sign up for an email reminder that will come to you when it is time to renew your vehicle registration at www.TxDMV.gov
2. When transferring a car in a private sale, it is best for the buyer and seller to go to the DMV together and transfer the title.
3. As prior owner of the vehicle, you can file a Vehicle Transfer Notification when you sell, donate, trade-in, or give your vehicle to someone as a gift. This will remove you as legal owner and protect you from liability associated with use of the vehicle. Do this within 30 days.
4. Forms for vehicle transfer are found on the Texas DMV website
5. You can keep your license plates. Be sure to remove the windshield registration and don’t forget to take your EZ tag if you have one.
6. Buyers should make sure they are getting a clean title and that the vehicle gets titled in their name. Buyer has 20 days to apply for a new title without being charged a penalty.
7. A temporary vehicle transmit permit can be downloaded from the website if the seller took the license plates.
8. The website also contains information about title checks, lemon law, and other consumer information.
Kalish Law Office 281-363-3700 www.kalishlawtexas.com
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7 Nov 2011

Dispute Errors on Your Credit Report
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You can dispute credit report errors, on your own and you usually don’t need an attorney to do it.
The first thing that you need to do is to determine whether errors or omissions exist on your report, and if so, what they are. An “error” is false information and an “omission” is something which is not on your report that you wish were on it. (such as showing a debt that you paid off or other favorable information).

You can get one credit report free every year, from each of the major credit reporting companies. (you also are entitled to a free report if a company denies an application or denies you a job based on information in your credit report.), The three major credit reporting agencies are Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, and you can access all three of them online.

Once you have your report in hand, you should go over it carefully. Note the errors. You will need to gather any documents that support your position and make copies of them. There may be blatant errors and inaccuracies on the report, debts you dispute, or erroneous information (for instance, your ex-spouse’s present address may be listed as one of yours when you never lived there).

Write to the reporting agency to specify what you are disputing, or want added or changed. Follow up to be sure that you receive a reply, and compare the results to the request you made, and to your previous report.

Additional Advice: When you have a disputed charge, or settle a dispute with a company, you should keep proof in a file because you may have to correct your credit report much later (even years later).
The Federal Trade Commission website has more detailed information about this, as well as a sample dispute letter. http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre21.shtm

www.kalishlawtexas.com

“Passionate, Professional and Personal. We Make the Difference.” Since 1984

Serving Spring, The Woodlands, Conroe, Houston, Cypress, Waller County and Surrounding areas
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19 Jan 2011

Separating Your Marital Debts and Assets by an Agreement With Your Spouse
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What if you should have gotten a Premarital Agreement but didn’t do it prior to marriage?

Don’t despair, there are specific legal documents which can be drafted and executed that will divide a married couple’s assets and debts into “his” and “hers”.

These legal agreements may be called “Postmarital Agreements”, “Postnuptial Agreements”, “Partitioning Agreements”, or “Partition and Exchange Agreements” (I will refer to them as “Partitioning Agreements from this point on).

The partitioning agreement is used for the same basic reasons as the Premarital Agreement 1) To keep assets separate; 2) To protect one spouse from the other spouse’s separate debt 3) To account for a imbalance in assets between the spouses; and 4) For psychological or emotional reasons when it is better for each spouse to have his or her “own” property, rather than co-mingling it in one marital “pot”.

IMPORTANT** A Partitioning Agreement can not be used as a legal maneuver to defraud creditors. However, it is legal to use one in order to protect a spouse from separate debts owed by the other spouse. The separate debt may have already existed at the time the marriage was entered into. In other cases, the debt may not even exist yet. (For instance, only one spouse is embarking upon a financial venture and agrees to use or risk his/her own assets only).

In any event, the creditors will have full knowledge and disclosure. It is possible to take certain steps in giving legal notice to potential creditors and may be advisable to file Partitioning Agreements in county records (although care must be taken with personal identifying and financial information since such filings are public record).

The legal requirements for these agreements are very specific and the consequences of signing such documents are many; this will affect current and future finances, income taxes, affect the couple’s estate plan, and be important in the event of a divorce so it is essential that an attorney who is knowledgeable in these areas be employed to draft and complete the documents.

The family law attorneys and estate planning attorneys in The Woodlands, Texas can assist you by explaining the legal requirements of Marital Agreements and drafting documents tailored for your family and business situation.

The Kalish Law Office in The Woodlands, Texas has been representing divorce and family law clients for over 26 years. www.kalishlawtexas.com 281-363-3700
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3 Jan 2011

What Everyone Should Know About Paying "Old Debts"
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If a creditor wants to sue, they must do so within the time periods allowed by law. This time period varies from state to state. However, even if this time period has run, a consumer may “reactivate” the debt by taking certain actions. (Such as promising to pay, corresponding about it, making a small payment, or sometimes even discussing it with a creditor.)

Beware of speaking to creditors about old debts that have expired. The creditor has a certain amount of time to legally sue you, which is called the “Statute of Limitations”. When the time limit passes and the original creditor is no longer allowed to file suit, that creditor will often sell the debt to a third party. The purchaser of the debt may then contact debtors and attempt to collect.

If you know that the statute of limitations on a debt has expired, you shouldn’t speak to or correspond with the creditor. (Unless you have the desire and ability to pay the debt and are ready to do so.) If you choose to do so, you should be aware that you may be “reactivating” the debt and may open yourself up for a lawsuit.
Debt collectors that are attempting to collect debts beyond the statute of limitations have been known to get aggressive, and to misrepresent the facts. If you receive a call from a creditor involving an “old debt” you should be aware of the following:
1. The creditor may tell you that you will be sued, but may have no legal right to do so.
2. Paying a very old debt may not help your credit report score. The debt may be so old that it no longer appears on your credit report.
3. The “new” owner of this account may not have documentation about the original debt and may not be able to tell you the original amount of the debt, the creditor, or the date incurred. The amount may not be accurate. In fact, the debt may not even be yours.
4. Even if you get a letter from a “law firm” be sure to do your research online to see if there are complaints or allegations against the company or firm for fraudulent activity. Unscrupulous individuals have made a lot of money by misrepresenting themselves and presenting false information in order to receive payment.
5. A common scam: an individual or company contacts numerous people alleging a small, expired debt and collects many small payments from thousands of unsuspecting people. In addition, bank account information and credit card information is exposed, and may be used for identity theft purposes. Don’t be a victim!
6. This bears repeating: Don’t make a payment, or a promise to pay, or discuss an old debt, unless you don’t mind reactivating it.
7. Whenever you dispute an amount owed, keep documentation of that dispute in files that you can access later. Unlike tax returns, this information should be kept indefinitely. Third party purchasers of debt have been known to contact alleged debtors 20 and 25 years later.
8. If you do owe debts that are unpaid, you should keep this information in a file as well. You can use this information in your own plan to reduce and control debt, and also you will not be vulnerable to untrue allegations of amounts owed.
9. If you are being harassed by creditors, or need legal assistance in debt management, asset protection or to discuss bankruptcy options, contact an attorney for a consultation appointment so that you can understand all of your legal options.
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14 Nov 2010

Tips to Prevent Identity Theft | The Woodlands, Texas Lawyers
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There are several things that you can do to make yourself less of a target for identity and information thieves.

1. Be careful with your Social Security Number. Don't share your Social Security Number when you don't have to. Shred old documents, insurance cards, and medical records that contain your SSN when you are finished with them.

2. Don't put a lot of personal information online. Even if you must network online for business purposes or to keep up with family members who live far away, be careful what you post.   Before filling in your online profiles think about what information may compromise your identity or personal safety.

3. Have up-to-date programs that stop computer viruses and spyware that will catch intruders.

4. Don't conduct sensitive business in public. Don't shout your account number of even the last 4 digits of your social security number into a cell phone in a public venue. Don't pay your bills online while sitting at an internet cafe over an unsecured network.  Have a secure network at home. Doing banking over an unsecured internet network is like shouting your personal information to the world and hoping that no one is paying attention.

5. Check your credit report periodically and check your credit statements monthly. Promptly report any suspicious activity, even if the dollar amount is minimal.

6. Shred, shred, shred.... old bills, old credit cards, income tax returns, old medical records, even labels on your pharmaceutical bottles.

7. Purge old cell phones, pdas, laptops and personal computers of all information prior to donating or giving away. Use a reliable program for this or speak to the manufacturer of the item. Don't assume that just "deleting" will do the job.

8. Don't sign up for applications and games online unless you are aware of what you are sharing. Be careful who you invite onto your social networks. Don't accept "friend requests" from total strangers.

9. Don't open suspicious emails. If you do so accidentally, run your virus and spyware program right away. Remember, if it sounds like a scam, it probably is. If you have to reply for business purposes, do so with caution and demand evidence that the person is who they say they are.

10. Don't compromise other people's privacy. If you have a business, be careful with the sensitive information that belongs to your employees and customers.

Although these tips aren't foolproof, making them second nature will reduce the likelihood that you will be a target.
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