Title: May 28, 2008
Q: My daughter, who just turned 18 years old, had a child with a man who has a criminal record. They never married. The baby is a little over 2 years old now. My daughter wants to have sole custody of the child, but this man insists that he wants joint custody of the child and wants to be involved in the life of the child. What should we do?
A: If your daughter just turned 18 and the baby is over 2 years old, this man committed statutory rape. Your daughter was only 16 years old when she gave birth to the child, and was probably only 15 when she was impregnated. She needs to file a Paternity action with the Court to establish who will have custody of the child and also to establish how much child support this man must pay to her. She could certainly also file charges against him for statutory rape. If he already has a criminal record in addition to the statutory rape charge, it is unlikely that he will obtain any kind of custody of this child.
Q: If older people with families from previous marriages get married again, how do they each protect what they want to leave to their own children or grandchildren?
A: By having a Revocable Living Trust prepared, called an A-B Revocable Living Trust. Each trustor basically sets up his/her own trust, although the A-B Trust is usually combined in one book. Each trustor can give his/her assets to members of a previous family, or friends, or a charity or church. Such a trust is very flexible and there are numerous ways of leaving one’s assets to beneficiaries. If one trustor dies before the other, that portion of the Trust becomes irrevocable, and assets from the deceased trustor can be distributed according to the deceased trustor’s wishes, right then and there. I highly recommend that everyone have a Living Trust. If you own a house in California, you should have a Living Trust. The threshold for an estate to have to go through the Probate process when one dies is $100,000. Even though the real estate market is in a downward mode at this time, it is unlikely that your house is worth less than $100,000. Do not think that only the equity is counted towards the minimum threshold. It does not matter that you have a mortgage still on the house. It is the value of your entire estate, i.e. bank accounts, stocks, bonds, cars, jewelry, art, real estate, boat, RV. All will be added up towards the minimum threshold. Having a Living Trust and transferring your assets into the Living Trust will protect your beneficiaries from having your estate go through Probate Court and will instead be transferred directly to them through a minimal process.
Maxine de Villefranche has been an attorney for 15 years and is practicing law in Tehachapi and Lancaster. Send your questions via fax at (661)825-8880 or e-mail at maxinedev@msn.com. She will answer your questions to the best of her abilities.
Showing posts with label statutory rape. Show all posts
Showing posts with label statutory rape. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Legal Eaze #56 Underage Father/New Management Rules/Fingerprinting Clients
Title: October 11, 2006
Q. My brother who is 17 years old had sex with a woman who is 5 years his senior. She is now pregnant. Is he going to be responsible for child support? Isn’t this adult woman’s actions punishable by law?
A. If the woman gives birth to the child, your brother is the father of that child and yes, he will have to support this child. It is not the child’s fault that he was born. Parents of a child are responsible for supporting their children. On the other hand, sex with a minor is considered a crime, statutory rape to be exact, and this woman should be prosecuted to the extent of the law.
Q. The apartment building I live in has gone through a change of ownership lately. The previous manager resigned and a new manager moved in. Some of my neighbors were told by the new manager they no longer can keep a dog over 15 lbs. and have 30 days to either get rid of the dog, move out voluntarily or be evicted. These people have lived here for a year or more, some as long as 5 years. Others have been told that their satellite dishes installed on the roofs were no longer allowed. Shouldn’t these new rules apply only to new tenants who moved in after the change of ownership?
A. The new owner needs to enter into a new Rental Agreement with all the tenants if he wants to enforce new rules on the “old” tenants. Otherwise he is stepping into the shoes of the previous owner and cannot change the rules already in place. In addition, Under an FCC rule promulgated pursuant to the Telecommunications Act of 1996, landlords cannot prohibit tenants from installing satellite dishes, antennas or other telecommunications devices on the property.
Q. Is it legal for a business to insist on fingerprinting a client for identification? And should the client refuse to be fingerprinted isn’t the business denying him service? Wouldn’t this be a temptation to the technologically savvy unethical employee to use this information to steal the client’s identity?
A. I do not believe there is a law against fingerprinting clients, however, I would certainly refuse to do business with anyone who insist on fingerprinting me before I buy something from them as an extreme invasion of privacy. You have the right not to patronize a merchant who insists on doing so. However, if this has to do with obtaining a deed, a notary must take your fingerprint, a requirement by law. Often, a bank will require a fingerprint on the back of a check being cashed if you are not a bank customer.
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 14 years of experience. She practices law from her Tehachapi office as well as her Lancaster satellite office. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers to the best of her abilities. Email your questions to maxinedev@msn.com or fax to (661)825-8880
Q. My brother who is 17 years old had sex with a woman who is 5 years his senior. She is now pregnant. Is he going to be responsible for child support? Isn’t this adult woman’s actions punishable by law?
A. If the woman gives birth to the child, your brother is the father of that child and yes, he will have to support this child. It is not the child’s fault that he was born. Parents of a child are responsible for supporting their children. On the other hand, sex with a minor is considered a crime, statutory rape to be exact, and this woman should be prosecuted to the extent of the law.
Q. The apartment building I live in has gone through a change of ownership lately. The previous manager resigned and a new manager moved in. Some of my neighbors were told by the new manager they no longer can keep a dog over 15 lbs. and have 30 days to either get rid of the dog, move out voluntarily or be evicted. These people have lived here for a year or more, some as long as 5 years. Others have been told that their satellite dishes installed on the roofs were no longer allowed. Shouldn’t these new rules apply only to new tenants who moved in after the change of ownership?
A. The new owner needs to enter into a new Rental Agreement with all the tenants if he wants to enforce new rules on the “old” tenants. Otherwise he is stepping into the shoes of the previous owner and cannot change the rules already in place. In addition, Under an FCC rule promulgated pursuant to the Telecommunications Act of 1996, landlords cannot prohibit tenants from installing satellite dishes, antennas or other telecommunications devices on the property.
Q. Is it legal for a business to insist on fingerprinting a client for identification? And should the client refuse to be fingerprinted isn’t the business denying him service? Wouldn’t this be a temptation to the technologically savvy unethical employee to use this information to steal the client’s identity?
A. I do not believe there is a law against fingerprinting clients, however, I would certainly refuse to do business with anyone who insist on fingerprinting me before I buy something from them as an extreme invasion of privacy. You have the right not to patronize a merchant who insists on doing so. However, if this has to do with obtaining a deed, a notary must take your fingerprint, a requirement by law. Often, a bank will require a fingerprint on the back of a check being cashed if you are not a bank customer.
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 14 years of experience. She practices law from her Tehachapi office as well as her Lancaster satellite office. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers to the best of her abilities. Email your questions to maxinedev@msn.com or fax to (661)825-8880
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