With Your Family in Mind

“Knowledge of what is possible is the beginning of happiness” – George Santayana
You can’t change history, but you can create your future.
When couples decide to separate or divorce, some things change while others stay the same. 

Have you ever thought of becoming a foster parent or wanted to adopt a child in need of permanency? Koinonia Family Services is now serving the Santa Clarita and San Fernando Valleys, and is looking for families who want to provide safe, caring, and nurturing homes for children who are in need of short-term or long-term placement. Children in need of placement range from newborns to 18-year-olds.

When I first got my start as a lawyer in New York City, I was hired by a boutique real property law firm. Back in 1992, the economy was truly horrible.  I had these massive student loans and my starting salary was a whopping $26,000.  I was fortunate enough to receive two offers of employment. The one I did not take was for a criminal law firm. I had worked as an intern for the District Attorney’s office and also spent a summer working for the federal public defender.

Senate Bill 274 became law on January 1, 2014, allowing children to have more than two parents. Sen. Mark Leno, author of the legislation, said the Bill was designed for the unusual circumstance in which more than two people have legal claims of parentage, and a two-parent limit would be harmful to the child.
The Bill was drafted in response to a court case that left a child in foster care, despite the availability of a third person who had played a parental role in the child’s life. However, the Bill also includes expanding the definition of who may be responsible to financially support a minor child.

People typically buy long-term care insurance years before they need it.  As a result, they are taking a gamble that the company will still be around when it is time to pay out.  What happens if the company goes out of business?
Usually, insurance companies do not just suddenly shut their doors. 

Every child deserves to have a safe, loving and permanent family.  Children’s Bureau needs foster families who will care specifically for children during the reunification process with their parents.  There are also 114,000 children currently in foster care who are unable to return to their families of origin. 

Dogs make people happy! They make people smile.  Who doesn’t love to pet a dog or visit with a cute little puppy?  Pets are not only fun, they have also shown to improve senior citizens’ health, according to the American Animal Health Hospital Association.  Many Assisted Living Communities have begun introducing neighborhood pet therapy programs in their communities, and also allowing seniors to bring their companion pets with them into their new home. 

The primary purpose of a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing is for the debtor to get a fresh start by discharging debts they cannot afford to repay.  When a Chapter 7 case is filed, the debtor lists all of their debts in the bankruptcy schedules that are filed with the court.  The court clerk uses the addresses provided to mail notice to the creditors, which stops them from bothering or harassing the debtor during the case.  The case takes about four months to complete.

One of the most useful, flexible and cost-effective legal devices available is the Revocable Living Trust. If properly drafted and funded, a Trust can enable us to avoid probate and perhaps save hundreds of thousands of dollars of Federal estate tax. Its successful implementation depends not only on thoughtful planning and careful drafting, but also on the human factor, the people who are involved in the creation and administration of the trust.

It’s time for Dodger baseball and the City of Santa Clarita invites residents to cheer on the boys in blue as they take on the Colorado Rockies at the 37th annual Santa Clarita Valley Dodger Day on Saturday, April 26.
Like Clayton Kershaw’s fastball, tickets are going fast so be sure to get yours today! 

Do you want to change lives?  Do you love helping others?  If you have strong communication skills, enjoy working with your hands as well as your mind and want a career with responsibility, dental assisting is for you.  You could start your new career in just 10 weeks!

I am frequently asked what I do as a “Life Care Planning” attorney.  To answer these questions and help people understand the complexities that often arise when dealing with the elderly, a new video has been placed on our law firm’s website to address this.
One such challenge involved a woman who became a client a short time ago.

The most debilitative and indicative symptom of Alzheimer’s disease is the gradual loss of words and understanding that are crucial to even the most basic communication that most of us take for granted. Alzheimer’s patients realize there is a problem, even though they may not have the capacity to understand what is happening. This can cause instances of confusion, fright and frustration for the person with Alzheimer’s disease as well as for loved ones and caregivers of those with Alzheimer’s.

We all experience loss; whether it be in relationships through divorce or death or friendship - Loss of job or pet, career or job, house or hope.  Loss is a universal human experience.  Yet we are so ill equipped to handle it when it happens to us. 
“Grief is the normal and natural reaction to any type of loss in life.” 

If you’re like me, spring cleaning is right up there with doing your taxes. Similarly, taking an honest look at what needs to be done in your relationships can be challenging. No one wants to admit or face that their relationship needs work or reassessment, and yet doing so can be a refreshing start to a healthier you.

There is a relatively new modality being used to treat and help solve many of the most stubborn cases of personality issues, disorders, deficiencies and defects.  It is called “Motivational Interviewing”.  I was introduced to this by my uncle, a respected psychologist in Michigan.  I was very pleased to realize that this “new” method was something I had been intuitively doing as a counselor for many years already. 

Most parents figure whatever the schools ends up offering them is the best that they will get.
Let me tell you something... nothing could be further from the truth!
Let’s put it this way. When you went to purchase a car - did you accept the first offer they made you, or did you look at their price as a “starting point” for negotiation?
Why is college any different?

Have you ever thought of becoming a foster parent or wanted to adopt a child in need of permanency? Koinonia Family Services is now serving the Santa Clarita and San Fernando Valleys, and is looking for families who want to provide safe, caring, and nurturing homes for children who are in need of short-term or long-term placement. Children in need of placement range from newborns to 18-year-olds.