Did you know there’s such a thing as foreclosure fraud? Also known as a “mortgage relief scam,” this crime actually happens often. In fact, in October 2012, federal investigators charged 530 people for defrauding over 73,000 homeowners who’d fallen behind on their mortgages. The homeowners were financially vulnerable and they needed a solution to their crisis. Their situation made them ideal victims for fraud. In the October cases, criminals posed as financial service providers and offered to buy a debtor’s mortgage or negotiate on the homeowner’s behalf if the homeowner would pay them a significant fee. The federal government estimated debtors lost over $1 billion in the scheme. Don’t fall prey to the same fraudulent tactics! If you’re behind on
Winter will soon come to an end here in Memphis, or at least you would hope. While waiting on the warmer weather to roll into the Mid-South, go ahead and start practicing. “Practicing what?,” you may ask. Practicing your ability of consistently staying alert for bikers. Warmer weather in Memphis means more bicycle riders whether it be people riding on the Greenline for exercise, riders taking their bikes to work or children out playing in the neighborhood. Biking has become a popular hobby in Memphis’ recent years due to Mayor AC Wharton’s push for more bike lanes. This lead to Memphis receiving Bicycling Magazine’s recognition as “America’s Most Improved Bike City” in 2011. Riding your bicycle offers numerous benefits, like exercise and
Did you know OB/GYN is the one of the most sued medical specialties? By: Darrell Castle OB/GYN, or obstretics and gynecology, specialists are one of the most, if not the most, sued medical specialists. That’s one of the reasons why it’s so hard to get doctors to go into that area. We encourage you to present your medical malpractice case to hospital injury lawyers Memphis, TN families place their confidence in for an evaluation. From finding out you’re pregnant, to announcing it to all of your loved ones and friends, to baby showers, to painting your baby’s room and building his or her crib, to finding out whether it’s a boy or girl, to giving birth and then to holding
Bumbo South Africa has recalled roughly 4 million baby seats because of concerns over children falling out. According to the recall, babies have been able to maneuver out of the seat and fall on the floor, causing severe injuries. At least 50 falls from elevated places like tabletops have resulted in injury; and at least 19 young victims have suffered from skull fractures after falling from an elevated position. Falls apparently happen even when the chairs are positioned on the floor. At least 34 such falls have also caused injury; and two falls from the floor position have resulted in skull fractures. Here’s the description of the chairs, as written in the recall: The bottom of the Bumbo seat
Get SSDI for a Back Injury If you have a serious back injury, it might affect not only your ability to work in your current job, but your ability to take on new tasks in the future. Here’s what you need to know about back injuries and Social Security Disability Insurance. What to Include in Your Application As serious and debilitating as back injuries can be, they’re also very hard to prove. The SSA looks critically at applications that claim back injury. Descriptions of “chronic pain” in your paperwork may come across as relative and possibly exaggerated. If you have a back injury that has kept you from working and you apply for SSDI, make sure to include as many
Why are you scared to file for bankruptcy? Sure, you may be in debt right now and feeling a little embarrassed, but you shouldn’t be. It happens to the best of us. Sometimes, we feel invincible and feel like we won’t fall into the hole. We feel like we can spend how we normally do and everything’s going to be fine – it won’t catch up to you. You may even feel like there’s no reason to save because you have nothing to save for. These things happen. Sometimes we have to learn our lessons the hard way. But the good thing about living here in the United States is that we get a second chance. There are a multitude
By: Darrell Castle What to consider when considering Bankruptcy Are you at a moment in your life where a fresh financial start feels necessary? There are many factors to consider when determining if filing bankruptcy is the right solution for you. Take a look below at a few things to think about before filing. Chapter 7 versus Chapter 13 Chapter 7 bankruptcy is when all the debtor’s dischargeable debts are discharged without him or her making payments towards that debt. This type of bankruptcy can not be used more than once in eight years. Debts are generally discharged after this and are forgiven. By contrast, Chapter 13 bankruptcy allows debtors to keep their assets, and finance their debt into payments
If you’re considering bankruptcy after a heart attack or surgery, you’re definitely not alone. Medical debt is the #1 cause of bankruptcy for individuals, and heart problems play a big role in that. Open heart surgery starts at over $300,000 these days. Even a heart condition with no major attacks or problems can still require constant doctor visits, tests, and medication. Science shows time and again that lowering your stress will protect your heart health. But when the medical bills start coming in, and your insurance is denying services, who wouldn’t feel stressed? At my bankruptcy law firm in Memphis, we work hard to make sure you don’t feel stressed at all. We’re known for our customer service, for never
If you’re struggling with debt, the odds are you may have some back taxes on your record, too. And if you’re considering bankruptcy, you may have heard the myth that you can’t include back taxes in your case. In fact, most income taxes over 3 years old, and most inheritance and estate taxes can all be discharged through bankruptcy, assuming the taxes fit within certain time constraints and the taxpayer hasn’t knowingly committed fraud or tax evasion. These allowances also hinge on the debtor having filed a tax return in the first place. Bankruptcy lawyers Memphis, TN trusts will tell you Chapter 7 bankruptcy can often include your income taxes, allowing you a fresh start and essentially wiping out the
We continuously get questions in our office from clients and prospects and we find joy in providing the answers to those questions. At this time, we would like to take five of the most common bankruptcy questions we’ve received lately and answer them for you! Here we go… Can qualifying IRS debt be discharged? Yes, if it’s an ordinary tax debt and not a debt where someone had a business and withheld taxes from their employees’ income and didn’t pay it. As long as you’ve filed your returns on time, the debt is dischargeable once it’s three years or older. If you haven’t filed on time, then it’s not dischargeable. If your IRS debt turns out to be non-dischargeable, it