The Living Will
In this edition of The People's Law School, Florida Attorney Keith R. Taylor explains the basics of The Living Will for your Estate Planning. Learn how a Living Will works, whether you need one, and when you should get one. Learn more at http://keithtaylorlaw.com/People'sLawSchool.htm.
Showing posts with label Lawyer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lawyer. Show all posts
Friday, September 23, 2011
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Are You Insuring Defensively?
We’ve all heard how important it is to drive defensively; but what about insuring defensively? A recent study by the Insurance Research Council found that one in every four Florida drivers may be driving without insurance. With a strong correlation between uninsured driving and unemployment, that number only grows as we continue to face tough economic times. Florida law requires every driver to have automobile insurance, and a driver who doesn’t may be fined, lose their license, or lose their registration or vehicle tag. However, drivers who are facing tough situations like unemployment or underemployment may take the risk and break the law that requires they have automobile insurance before operating their vehicle. This is a big risk not only for themselves, but for other drivers on the road as well.
To protect yourself against this risk, it is important to have adequate insurance coverage in case you are ever in a collision with an uninsured or underinsured driver. In order to protect yourself, you should purchase uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage as part of your insurance policy. This will protect you if you are in a collision with an at-fault driver whose own insurance cannot cover your vehicle damage or your bodily injury. Our firm regularly evaluates claims that involve at-fault drivers who have no, or not enough, insurance. Florida’s laws on debtor protection often make it difficult or impossible to collect against an at-fault driver if they are uninsured. There are many lawyers who don’t understand the intricacies of Florida’s insurance law, so it is important that you find an attorney who has experience and expertise in accident cases involving insurance. Our experienced attorneys have spent years working within Florida’s system to get recoveries for injured motorists. If you or someone you know has been in an accident and is faced with the daunting task of sorting through the intricacies of our insurance system, please feel free to contact us to get more information on how we can help you recover for your losses.
To protect yourself against this risk, it is important to have adequate insurance coverage in case you are ever in a collision with an uninsured or underinsured driver. In order to protect yourself, you should purchase uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage as part of your insurance policy. This will protect you if you are in a collision with an at-fault driver whose own insurance cannot cover your vehicle damage or your bodily injury. Our firm regularly evaluates claims that involve at-fault drivers who have no, or not enough, insurance. Florida’s laws on debtor protection often make it difficult or impossible to collect against an at-fault driver if they are uninsured. There are many lawyers who don’t understand the intricacies of Florida’s insurance law, so it is important that you find an attorney who has experience and expertise in accident cases involving insurance. Our experienced attorneys have spent years working within Florida’s system to get recoveries for injured motorists. If you or someone you know has been in an accident and is faced with the daunting task of sorting through the intricacies of our insurance system, please feel free to contact us to get more information on how we can help you recover for your losses.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
New Edition of the Legally Speaking Newsletter
In our newest edition of Legally Speaking, find out how to keep your home secure while you're on vacation, learn whether you should be insuring defensively, and find strategies for negotiating in your daily life. Also, learn more about Attorney Fichtman's induction as President of the local Bar Association, learn about changes to Florida Alimony, and consider whether you're adequately protecting your finances. Finally, look Jury Duty, why it is important, and how it affects individuals in litigation today.
Visit the Newsletter section of our website to see this and all previous editions of Legally Speaking, or sign up to receive the newsletter by mail or email in the future.
Visit the Newsletter section of our website to see this and all previous editions of Legally Speaking, or sign up to receive the newsletter by mail or email in the future.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
The Firm Heads Out On The Town
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The Law Office of Keith R. Taylor at The Key Training Center's Reach for the Stars Dinner Auction July 15th, 2011 |
Pictured Left to Right: Julie K. Taylor, Account Manager; Keith R. Taylor, Senior Attorney and Litigation Specialist; Scot Brantley, Former Gator and Buccaneer Linebacker; Adam A. Czaya, Legal Clerk; Jessica K. Czaya, Legal Clerk; Kristen Fichtman, and Steven D. Fichtman, Associate Attorney.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Coming Soon - New Edition of The People's Law School
We are excited to bring you a new edition of The People's Law School, a free web seminar series that helps you understand and handle your own legal issues without the need to hire an attorney. With the success of our most recent episodes on handling your own small claims case, we want to continue to provide you with the information that matters to you. To make sure we do, we want to know what topic you would like us to cover next. Visit our facebook page to take a quick survey on which topic we should use for our next episode (Understanding Florida's No-Fault Insurance; Dissolution of Marriage in Florida; Basic Estate Planning; or something else) or leave a comment on this post! Thanks for your input!
Monday, June 13, 2011
Things to consider before handling your own small claims case:
Attorney Keith Taylor is a Board Certified Civil Trial Attorney in Florida. The People's Law School is a free seminar program offered by The Law Office of Keith R. Taylor, designed to help you identify when you can handle your own case without a lawyer, and how to handle those cases.
Visit our website: www.keithtaylorlaw.com to see all our installments of The People's Law School.
Visit our website: www.keithtaylorlaw.com to see all our installments of The People's Law School.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Spring Newsletter
We are excited to announce that The Law Office of Keith R. Taylor is publishing a quarterly newsletter! This is our Spring 2011 edition of Legally Speaking. Previous issues will available on our website (www.keithtaylorlaw.com) soon. If you would like to receive the newsletter either by mail or electronically, please click here. Thanks for reading!
Friday, October 8, 2010
ADVERTISING LAWYERS
Question:
SHOULD I HIRE A LAWYER I ONLY KNOW FROM A BILLBOARD OR TELEVISION AD? Tammy, Inverness, Florida
Answer by Attorney Keith Taylor:
Lawyers in Florida are regulated by The Florida Bar. The Florida Bar attempts to regulate lawyer advertising, but the standards are not easy to identify and are inconsistently applied. All advertising should carry a warning that tells potential clients that they should not base their decision to hire a lawyer solely on advertising, and that they can request written information related to the lawyer's qualifications. Most people don't pick a doctor because of a billboard or yellow page ad, but for some reason, many choose their lawyer that way.
The best way to find a qualified lawyer who will represent your interests in any legal matter is to speak with friends, family and other professional community members (accountants, clergy, doctors, etc...) and find out what they know about any particular lawyer or law firm. Being referred to a lawyer by someone you trust is usually the best way to ensure a positive relationship and experience.
Most billboard and television (even yellow page) advertisers do not have an active office in the rural areas in which they advertise. When a prospective client calls the "1-800" number, the intake clerk will usually take some information and offer to send someone to you (because they don't have a local office). Usually, that person who comes to you is NOT A LAWYER, and if he or she is, they are not likely to be the lawyer who will handle your case. Just because you call the lawyer's office and someone comes to your home, you are not committed to hire that person. You should feel comfortable that your interests will be adequately represented by a qualified lawyer who will keep you properly informed about your case.
Your legal case may be one of the most significant things in your entire life. You should not put this very important matter in the hands of someone you only know from a billboard.
SHOULD I HIRE A LAWYER I ONLY KNOW FROM A BILLBOARD OR TELEVISION AD? Tammy, Inverness, Florida
Answer by Attorney Keith Taylor:
Lawyers in Florida are regulated by The Florida Bar. The Florida Bar attempts to regulate lawyer advertising, but the standards are not easy to identify and are inconsistently applied. All advertising should carry a warning that tells potential clients that they should not base their decision to hire a lawyer solely on advertising, and that they can request written information related to the lawyer's qualifications. Most people don't pick a doctor because of a billboard or yellow page ad, but for some reason, many choose their lawyer that way.
The best way to find a qualified lawyer who will represent your interests in any legal matter is to speak with friends, family and other professional community members (accountants, clergy, doctors, etc...) and find out what they know about any particular lawyer or law firm. Being referred to a lawyer by someone you trust is usually the best way to ensure a positive relationship and experience.
Most billboard and television (even yellow page) advertisers do not have an active office in the rural areas in which they advertise. When a prospective client calls the "1-800" number, the intake clerk will usually take some information and offer to send someone to you (because they don't have a local office). Usually, that person who comes to you is NOT A LAWYER, and if he or she is, they are not likely to be the lawyer who will handle your case. Just because you call the lawyer's office and someone comes to your home, you are not committed to hire that person. You should feel comfortable that your interests will be adequately represented by a qualified lawyer who will keep you properly informed about your case.
Your legal case may be one of the most significant things in your entire life. You should not put this very important matter in the hands of someone you only know from a billboard.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
LAWYER WON'T COMMUNICATE WITH ME ABOUT MY CASE
Question:
WHAT SHOULD I DO WHEN THE LAWYER I HIRED TO HANDLE MY PERSONAL INJURY CASE WON'T DO ANYTHING OR TELL ME WHAT'S GOING ON WITH MY CASE? Tampa, FL
Answer by Attorney Keith Taylor:
The failure to communicate with a client is the number 1 complaint against lawyers, followed closely by the lack of competence. You may be suffering from both in this situation. Often times lawyers who do not have experience in handling significant personal injury cases take them on, only to find that they are not as easy as they thought. At times they get to a point where the unexperienced attorney may not know what to do next; and you can guess that speaking with you about their lack of competency is not high on their list of things to get done today. Sometimes at the early stages of these cases there may be little or nothing to report by way of "progress" of your case, but at a minimum, the lawyer should communicate that fact to you.
Our office is often contacted by people who are frustrated over the lack of action and communication by their other lawyer. Since these cases are almost always handled on a contingency fee basis, we know that there is certain required paperwork which must be completed by the lawyer and the client at the beginning of the attorney-client relationship, including the signing of a Statement of Client Rights For Contingency Fees. We will routinely direct the disgruntled client to that Statement where it tells them that they, the client, have the right to ask the lawyer at reasonable intervals how their case is progressing, and to have those questions answered to the best of the lawyer's ability. This is a Right of the client. You, the client should remind your lawyer of your right to have your questions answered, and if your lawyer refuses to act or communicate, you should consider whether you want to continue to use the services of that lawyer. Sometimes it may also be necessary to obtain the assistance of the Florida Bar; the agency which oversees and licenses Florida attorneys.
WHAT SHOULD I DO WHEN THE LAWYER I HIRED TO HANDLE MY PERSONAL INJURY CASE WON'T DO ANYTHING OR TELL ME WHAT'S GOING ON WITH MY CASE? Tampa, FL
Answer by Attorney Keith Taylor:
The failure to communicate with a client is the number 1 complaint against lawyers, followed closely by the lack of competence. You may be suffering from both in this situation. Often times lawyers who do not have experience in handling significant personal injury cases take them on, only to find that they are not as easy as they thought. At times they get to a point where the unexperienced attorney may not know what to do next; and you can guess that speaking with you about their lack of competency is not high on their list of things to get done today. Sometimes at the early stages of these cases there may be little or nothing to report by way of "progress" of your case, but at a minimum, the lawyer should communicate that fact to you.
Our office is often contacted by people who are frustrated over the lack of action and communication by their other lawyer. Since these cases are almost always handled on a contingency fee basis, we know that there is certain required paperwork which must be completed by the lawyer and the client at the beginning of the attorney-client relationship, including the signing of a Statement of Client Rights For Contingency Fees. We will routinely direct the disgruntled client to that Statement where it tells them that they, the client, have the right to ask the lawyer at reasonable intervals how their case is progressing, and to have those questions answered to the best of the lawyer's ability. This is a Right of the client. You, the client should remind your lawyer of your right to have your questions answered, and if your lawyer refuses to act or communicate, you should consider whether you want to continue to use the services of that lawyer. Sometimes it may also be necessary to obtain the assistance of the Florida Bar; the agency which oversees and licenses Florida attorneys.
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