Family Law

• Child Support
  Some debts cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. These include most taxes, child support, alimony and most student loans. These debts will remain after the discharge is issued.
• Spousal Support

Business and Corporate Law

• Limited Liability Companies
  Chapter 7 is by far the most common form of bankruptcy. “Chapter 7” refers to the chapter of the United States Bankruptcy Code that permits the filing of these cases. Chapter 7 cases can be filed by individuals, married couples and businesses, whether they are proprietorships, partnerships, limited partnerships, limited liability companies, or corporations. In Chapter 7, the Federal Bankruptcy Court orders all creditors to cease all collection activities the moment the Chapter 7 case is filed. This order is known as the “automatic stay”…

Employment Law

• Sexual Harassment
  Of the all the celebrity bankruptcies, Anna Nicole Smith’S was perhaps the most interesting. Smith was a model and actress and the 1993 Playboy Playmate of the Year. She was a featured model for clothing companies, including Guess Jeans and Lane Bryant. In 1994 Smith, who was then 26 years old, married an oil tycoon who was 89 at the time. Many speculated that she married him for his money. Upon her husband’s death, Smith and her husband’s son, E. Pierce Marshall, began a fierce and protracted legal battle over her claim for half of her late husband’s $1.6 billion estate. The case went on for more than a decade. In 1996 an employee of Smith’s obtained a judgment against her for sexual harassment. The judgment was for $850,000.00. To avoid collection, Smith filed bankruptcy and listed her interest in her husband’s estate as an asset. The California bankruptcy court determined that nearly $500 million was owed to her from the probate estate. However, a Houston, Texas state court judge determined that she was entitled to nothing and ordered her to pay $1 million in fees and expenses to Marshall’s lawyers. The matter then moved into Federal court. In 2004 the Federal Court of Appeals in California reversed the bankruptcy court decision stating that a Federal court did not have jurisdiction to overrule a probate decision from a State court. The case made its way up to the United States Supreme Court which held that Smith did have the right to pursue a share of her husband’s estate in Federal court. Shortly after that decision, Marshall [the son] passed away. In 2007, Smith was found unresponsive in a hotel in Florida and later died at a hospital. The coroner determined that she died from an overdose of prescription drugs. Her bankruptcy case continued, however, and in 2011 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a Federal bankruptcy court could not make a decision on any issue outside of bankruptcy law, including the probating of an estate.

Trusts and Estates

• Probate

Finance Law

• Bankruptcy
  Many self-employed individuals operate their business as a separate legal entity such as a small corporation or limited liability company (“LLC”). Corporations and LLCs have legal existence of their own, which means that hey can be sued as though they were separate individuals. Sometimes self-employed clients wish to continue their business but file bankruptcy to get rid of debts that the business has accumulated. This presents some difficulty because corporations and LLCs cannot get a discharge in bankruptcy. Therefore, if the owner files personal bankruptcy and is relieved of his or her obligation to repay the debt, it may remain difficult to continue with the business because creditors will sue the business separately and garnish its assets and bank accounts.
• Foreclosure
  Nemeth & Associates, LLC concentrates on helping you through tough times. Whether it’s advising you through a home foreclosure, helping you to restructure your business’ debt or efficiently helping you through a financial crisis toward a fresh start, we can be there for you.
• Debt Collection
  Unpaid debts are often turned over to debt collectors. Debt collectors are third party companies that are in the business of collecting debts for others. Debt collectors use a variety of techniques to get you to pay. Some will send a series of collection letters. Some may call you at home or at work and demand that you make payments. Some may call friends, neighbors or relatives and ask them where they can contact you for the purpose of collecting the debt. Many debt collectors can be aggressive and even violate the law in their pursuit of debt collection. Debt collectors also file lawsuits to try to collect debts.