Our Publications

FAQs

Family Law

Juvenile Delinquency

Child Protection

Immigration and Naturalization

Estate Planning

Asset Protection

Financial Planning

Insurance

Retirement Planning

Our Publications

G    Please click here to be redirected to our current list of free white papers, legal memoranda, briefs publications, and writing samples. 

FAQs

G    Please click here to visit our blog where we’ve posted several questions that are frequently asked by our clients.

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Family Law

Definition:  Family law encompasses marriage, adoption, divorce, custody, death, and estate planning. Laws on these topics vary from state to state. For purposes of simplicity, we have subsumed Juvenile and Child Protective Law under this broad category.

Useful Links

G      Adoption Proceedings Benchbook

G      Domestic Violence Benchbook

G      Friend of the Court DV Resource Book

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Juvenile Delinquency

Definition:    A juvenile delinquent is defined as a juvenile (in Michigan a person under 18 years of age) who has committed a delinquent act or is in need of care or supervision. A delinquent act is an act committed by a child that is designated a violation, misdemeanor, or felony offense under the law of a state or of another state if the act occurred in another state or under federal law or a violation of a municipal ordinance except violations of municipal curfew ordinances. The term usually does not include most traffic offenses committed by one 16 years of age or older.

Useful Links

G                 Juvenile Justice Benchbook

G                 Juvenile Traffic Benchbook

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Child Protection

Definition:    Child protective proceedings are designed for the protection of abused, abandoned and neglected children. Child protective proceedings are usually initiated by the prosecutor's office following a referral by law enforcement or the state's Department of Social Services.

Useful Links

G                 Child Protective Proceedings Benchbook (Revised Edition)

G               Michigan Foster Review Board Program

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Immigration and Naturalization 

Definition:    Federal immigration law determines whether a person is an alien, and associated legal rights, duties, and obligations of aliens in the United states. It also provides means by which certain aliens can become naturalized citizens with full rights of citizenship. Immigration law determines who may enter, how long they may stay and when they must leave.

Useful Links

G    The Immigration and Nationality Act (USCIS)

G    Search Immigration Regulations in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)

G    USCIS Federal Register Announcements

G    USCIS Adopted Decisions

G    USCIS Operations Instructions

G    USCIS Interpretations of Citizenship Laws

G    The Federal Register (Daily listing of Federal Regulations)

G    Immigration Federal Register Publications

G    Search the United States Code (Titles 1 - 50)

G    Search the Congressional Record

G    Government Studies on Immigration

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Estate Planning

Definition:    The term "estate" has different meanings in legal terminology. In one
usage, estate may mean all the possessions of one who has died and are subject to probate administration supervised by the court and distribution to heirs and beneficiaries. The Uniform Probate Code has shaped state law in this field. It includes provisions dealing with affairs and estates of the deceased and laws dealing with specified nontestamentary transfers (transfers not through a will), like trusts and their administration. Since its creation, over thirty percent of states have adopted the Code substantially in whole.

Useful Links

G         Rick Edelman.com

G         MSN Money - Estate planning for everyone

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Asset Protection

Definition:    Asset protection generally refers to strategies employed to (e.g., trusts) to protect money: a legal trust arrangement that protects assets from the claims of others that might arise through legal action.

                        Useful Links

G               Abusive Tax Shelters and Transactions

G               Tax Reduction Institute

G               MSN Money – Tax Center

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Financial Planning

Definition:    Long-term profit planning aimed at generating greater return on assets, growth in market share, and at solving foreseeable problems.

Useful Links

Rick Edelman.com

MSN Money – The Basics

Morningstar Personal Finance

Yahoo Finance

Social Security Administration – Retirement Benefits

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Insurance

Definition:    Insurance is a contract, called an insurance policy, in which the insurer, agrees to pay the insured party all or a portion of any loss suffered by accident or death for a fee called an insurance premium. The losses covered by the policy may include property damage or loss from accident, fire, theft or intentional harm; medical costs and/or lost earnings due to physical injury; long-term or permanent loss of physical capacity; claims by others due to the insured's alleged negligence, or the loss of someone's life.

Useful Links

Rick Edelman.com

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Retirement Planning

Definition:    Retirement planning describes the financial strategies individuals employ during their working years to ensure that they will be able to meet their goals for financial security upon retirement. Making sound decisions about retirement is particularly important for self-employed persons and small business owners. Unlike employees of some large companies, who can simply participate in the pension plans and investment programs offered by their employers, entrepreneurs must set up and administer plans for themselves and for their employees.

Useful Links

G    Rick Edelman.com

G    IRS Tax Information for Retirement Plans

G    ERISA.com

G    IRS Overview of the 403(b) Final Regulations

G    403b Compare

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Investing (e.g., 401k, IRA, ROTH IRA, 403b)

Definition:    In finance, it's the purchase of a financial product or other item of value with an expectation of favorable future returns. In general terms, investment means the use money in the hope of making more money. In business, investing refers to the purchase by a producer of a physical good, such as durable equipment or inventory, in the hope of improving future business.

Useful Links

G    Rick Edelman.com

G    All Financial Matters

G    CNBC Investing

G    Morningstar Personal Finance

G    Yahoo Finance

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General Legal Help

The following links point to other useful legal resources:

G     Small Claims Court Pamphlet - (PDF) Requires
Adobe reader download now

G    Michigan Compiled Laws

G    Michigan Law News

G    Michigan Court Rules

G    FindLaw (directory)

G    LawCrawler (search engine)

G    Michigan Supreme Court (Search Court Opinions)

G    State Bar of Michigan (Court Opinions)

G    Michigan Rules of Court:  State

G    Library of Congress

G    Federal Register Main Page

G    Michigan eLibrary

G    Supreme Court of the United States 

G    Search the United States Code

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