The death of a loved one is not only emotionally challenging but also often creates logistical challenges as well. Ideally, a person has collaborated with an experienced attorney to create a will which distributes assets to the decedent’s beneficiaries in accordance with his or her wishes. If that will exists, the family’s responsibility is often …
Month: April 2022
Business Disparagement in Texas
Texas law offers recourse if someone knowingly and falsely spreads information which causes harm. The focus of that false information, however, determines whether the false information is classified as defamation or business disparagement. While each can be damaging to a reputation, business disparagement differs from defamation in a critical way. Defamation occurs if an individual’s …
Small Estate Affidavits in Texas
Not everyone dies with a large estate requiring a complicated administration. Because a small estate generally has fewer complexities, Texas has created a Small Estate Affidavit, also known as a SEA. Those small estates that qualify are able to settle without the normal probate process. Despite its goal to simplify the transfer of assets, the …
Negligent Entrustment of a Motor Vehicle in Texas
In most cases, an owner of a vehicle has the right to entrust that vehicle to another person. However, the situation becomes problematic if the owner of the vehicle loans that vehicle to someone who should not be driving. While negligent drivers are usually held accountable for the damage they cause in an accident, when …
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Help! My HOA Says I can’t Airbnb My Property in Texas
Many Texas communities have deed restrictions designed to control situations which might adversely affect the neighborhood. Homeowners’ associations are the organizations that enforce those restrictions. While enforcement has often been a challenge, that challenge is significantly escalated by the fact that deed restrictions do not change with the times.  One of the more significant changes …
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Motions for Substituted Service in Texas
When conflict cannot be resolved, sometimes legal action is the only recourse. Once a client and attorney determine that the client has a viable reason to file a lawsuit, the attorney will draft and file a petition. Because that petition informs the defendant of the claims against him or her as well as the relief …
What to Know Before Filing a Lawsuit in Texas
When a business or other relationship sours, conflict often escalates, sometimes to the point of legal action. Before taking such drastic and costly action, it is wise to determine what exactly a lawsuit in Texas involves and to carefully consider whether the potential advantages of a lawsuit outweigh the costs. Even if a client and …
The Basics of a Texas Petition
Filing a lawsuit begins what is generally a long, costly process. After consulting an attorney to determine that the facts warrant a lawsuit, the attorney must then draft a document that outlines the claims against the defendant, including how exactly the plaintiff has been harmed by the defendant and the plaintiff’s claim for relief. Other …
Serving a Defendant with a Lawsuit in Texas
Filing a lawsuitis not an easy decision, and it often has long-term repercussions for all parties involved. After collaborating with an attorney to determine that a lawsuit is the best course of action, the attorney then drafts, files, and serves a petition to the defendant named in the lawsuit. Like other processes in litigation, the …
Motions to Withdraw in Texas
Since most people turn to an attorney when they need help with serious, often complex issues, the client-attorney relationship is an important one. Most often those relationships are cooperative and beneficial. For a number of reasons, however, attorney-client relationships may end before expected. More complicated than a simple verbal break-up, the attorney must adhere to …