Being June, I thought I should throw my hat into the ring and post something about love, marriage and babies. Wait, babies?!? Sure. First comes marriage, then comes love, then comes baby in a baby carriage. Turns out most people get that backwards.
For example, young woman came into the library the other day. Seems she was in love with her beau so she decided the best way to cement the union was to consent to having sex. Unbeknownst to the guy, she was not on the pill like she said she was. Subsequently, woman got pregnant (i.e. baby). Guy starts to freak the freak out! Of course, guy could have refused to have unprotected sex - but what self-respecting guy would refuse consensual relations over a little thing like unprotected sex?
Woman is now angry that guy is not happy with her decision to have a kid (or encourage marriage). No surprise there. Woman decides that since guy was not forthcoming with a ring and marriage proposal that she needs to take steps to support herself when the kid is born.
After doing some research, I have found that most all states allow you to file for support before a child is born. We're talking child SUPPORT (not child custody). However, courts will generally stay proceedings until either the child is born or until paternity can be established. In woman's case, she can file for support but until either guy says it's his kid or the kid is actually born and a test can be administered, well, woman is pretty much SOL.
Of course, why take my word for it? Might I suggest (as I did to woman) to take a look at:
So, whether you've got your act together or are a little backwards, know that your local county law library is the place to be to help you set things right (or righter).
Rare is the day that I read the newspaper and not get a chuckle. Today's chuckle came from the Daily Journal. Seems a law school grad filed a lawsuit against Thomas Jefferson School of Law. Seems (plaintiff alleged) that the law school inflated 1st year employment rates to suggest that 80.1% of students who graduate (and pass the bar) are hired in their 1st year. Plaintiff claims that since she didn't get hired in her first year that the law school lied.
Now, I could go on and on about the possibility that plaintiff is just not hire-able or she just does not come off as someone someone would like to work with (not everyone is able to do great interviews). I'm not going to do that because the point to THIS blog post is a quote by defense counsel which was uttered during their opening statement to the jury:
...the evidence will show she attended Thomas Jefferson at the end of the day because it was the only [law school] she was admitted to...
Uh, huh. I sat there thinking about this line for a while until I realized what I think defense counsel was trying to say was:
...at the end of the day, the evidence will show she attended Thomas Jefferson because it was the only [law school] she applied to...
That makes a bit more sense. I mean, why would a person attend two or more schools at the same time?! Also, if you're going to use a cliche phrase like "at the end of the day," pay attention to how you use it so that you don't sound like a tool. I mean, do you even think defense counsel knew what he was saying? I'm hoping not and blamed the newspaper for getting his quote wrong.
Maybe you're staring down the barrel of a lawsuit and you're looking to make a strong impression with the jury. If this is the case, then might I suggest you head over to your local county law library and bone up on the "how to" of opening statements with great stuff like:
Opening Statements (Thomson Reuters)
Trial Communication Skills (Thomson Reuters)
Trying Cases to Win (Stern.)
Successful Trial Techniques of Expert Practitioners (Thomson Reuters)
So, whether you are a seasoned litigant or a pro per in small claims, know that your local county law library has what you need to help you bone up on what to say (or what not to say) in court.
You ever noticed that when people get caught doing something they shouldn't be doing they always say they're sorry? Always. Remember Jimmy Swaggert? One day he's sitting on top of the evangelical world. Next day he's doing the tube steak mambo with some hottie (I mean, his wife was hot but Rosemary Garcia was smokin for a prostitute), lied about it, then, when the evidence became overwhelming, he begs forgiveness (no doubt to save his evangelical empire). Yeah, didn't work out so well for him.
Then there was Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. Remember those cigars? Apparently, a cigar (at least one) was inserted in Monica's nether regions shortly before she performed services on Bill's nether regions. After an embarrassing impeachment hearing, Bill finally fessed up and apologized for boinking a woman other than his wife in the oral, uh, I mean oval office (no doubt to save what was left of his political career). Yeah, it was pretty much down hill, after that, for poor ol' Bill.
Other politicians who said they're sorry AFTER the fact include:
The entire IRS
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius
Gov. Mark Sanford
Anthony Weiner
former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry
Jessie Jackson
The list goes on and on and on and ONLY after they get caught. This thing about saying "sorry" was brought to my mind when, the other day, a young woman came into our library. Seems young lady had a "friend" who, had a thing for extramarital affairs. 37, to be exact.
While she said she was sorry and that she really loved her husband and kids, I caught a hint of disingenuinity in her voice. The thing is, I'm not a priest and nothing you say to me is privileged. That said, who am I to judge? I'm not here to judge. I'm here to help people find legal resources and in young lady's case, she was looking for the how to get a divorce (as a preemptive strike in the event husband ever found her out). So, with that in mind, I lead young lady over to:
Yep, as sorry a state of affairs as family law is, most people get more sorry over time and are really sorry when they get caught. So don't get caught with your pants down (around your ankles, or otherwise) and head on over to your local county law library and get help, or you'll be sorry.
One of the reasons I went to law school was I was tired of seeing little people get beat-up. OK, OK, I'm not completely all altruistic - I also saw it as a way to make a ton of money. While it didn't work out that way, I'm still an advocate for the little guy.
For example, the other day, a young-ish lady came into the library. Seems she had taken a loan for $5,000 for 80 months at the rate of 150%. You heard right - one hundred and fifty percent interest on a $5,000 unsecured loan for 80 months. Paid out over the entire 80 months, lady will have paid (on the initial loan of $5,000) about $630,000. YIKES!
Of course, this all brings us to our word of the month: USURY. Blacks Law Dictionary notes that:
historically, usury was the lending of money with interest. Today, it is the charging of an illegal rate of interest as a condition to lending money; an illegally high rate of interest
In lady's case, lady is looking at a couple of things. First is this a "usurious" amount of interest? It depends on the State you live in. In California, for example, the maximum interest that can be charged is 10% - unless....you're dealing with California Financial Code section 22250 which exempts certain personal property loans of $5,000 or more from the 10% maximum rate.
Uh huh. While lady's loan may not be usurious, it might still be classified as unconscionable. Black's Law Dictionary defines UNCONSCIONABLE as:
Having no conscience; affronting the sense of justice, decency, or reasonableness. Shockingly unjust or unfair.
Certainly 150% is a shocking amount of interest to be charged. The problem here is that any adult is free to contract for anything. As long as lady is aware of the consequences and lender didn't try to slip something funny past lady when she signed the contract, lady may (there's that word, again) be stuck.
In any event, as the dutiful law librarian that I am, I suggested lady take a gander at:
Yep, there are never any easy answers when it comes to law and legal stuff. Good thing your local county law library is right around the corner to help you find what all you're looking for.
