Legal advice, resolutions to keep in mind for the new year

No sooner than you have recovered from the holidays and eased back into a schedule, does life begin moving quickly and sometimes too quickly. Usually, at least for us, those moments always seem to be in conjunction with issues which had long been forgotten or ignored.

Sometimes, those issues are legal in nature. We thought it would be appropriate to share a list of issues which should be considered in advance, thus avoiding life overload.

 

1. Financial/Estate Planning – In South Carolina, an estate plan usually consists of three documents: (1) Last Will and Testament; (2) General (Durable) Power of Attorney; and (3) Healthcare Power of Attorney. Also, if you have not revisited your estate plan in the past five years, since a major life event (marriage/divorce, childbirth, etc.), or since moving to South Carolina, then there is no better time than now.  

 

2. Child Support – Are you owed child support? Do you owe child support? Or is your child support obligation financially smothering? Sleeping better at night will only come after any child support matters have been paid or properly resolved.

 

3. Divorce – South Carolina has a rule that no fault divorces can only be granted after one year of separate living. This rule and other rules governing child support and alimony result in couples living separately and otherwise acting as if they are divorced, when in fact the divorce proceeding was never commenced or finalized. There can be a myriad of reasons this type of “divorced, yet not technically divorced” arrangement is troublesome. 

 

4. Traffic Tickets/DUI – Hoping the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles and/or law enforcement will forget about your transgression is not a sound legal strategy. Putting these types of issues behind you will afford you many more restful nights.

 

5. Landlord/Tenant – The Daniel Island housing market includes a vibrant renter’s market. Whether you are the landlord or tenant, ensuring written lease documents with the terms is important. Otherwise, disagreements and misunderstandings regarding rent, maintenance, and vacancy of the property may arise. Even if you are already in a landlord/tenant relationship, a written lease can still be memorialized before disagreements arise. The cost of securing a proper lease is much less than the cost of a lawyer to handle the inevitable later disagreement.

 

6. Business Matters – Do you need to start a business? Do you need to document a business relationship with a written contract? Does your business have a registered agent (or for that matter do you know what a registered agent does)? Is your business properly licensed by local and state government authorities? A myriad of business formation, contract and organizational matters should be settled.

 

We hope this list was helpful for you or provided you with the encouragement you needed to once and for all knock off some of your legal needs. Like you, we understand the importance of peace of mind.

 

Chris Mingledorff and Michael Patterson are attorneys with Mingledorff & Patterson LLC on Daniel Island. For more information, go to mptrial.com.