Author Archives: Jay Butchko
Ecology Services v. Clym: Feud Between Radioactive Waste Cleanup Companies Is a Big Mess
The Washington, D.C. metropolitan area arguably has more secrets than anywhere else in the United States. If you ride the Metro to work, chances are that the person next to you has a security clearance that prevents them from going into much detail about their workday. The District of Columbia also has more lawyers… Read More »
Difficult Decisions: Estate Planning to Provide for Troubled Relatives
You know you are officially an adult when you look at your pay stub and, instead of daydreaming about using what is left after your bills to splurge on purchases for yourself, you imagine saving it for your children, even if you do not have children yet. One of the happiest moments in a… Read More »
Paterakis Estate Dispute Highlights the Difference Between Probate and Non-Probate Assets
When a person dies, their estate goes through a judicial review process called probate, but the estate may not include everything the deceased person owned when they are alive. The main purpose of probate is to carry out the instructions in the deceased person’s will; if the person did not leave a will, then… Read More »
Reopening an Estate in the District of Columbia
Many people named as personal representatives of an estate feel some anxiety about the probate process, just because it is a legal process with which they do not have any experience. Once the estate settles and closes, they often feel a great sense of relief; later on, they might even enjoy comparing stories with… Read More »
Courts Can Pierce the Corporate Veil to Make LLC Members Pay, but Only in Extreme Cases
Most successful entrepreneurs have a series of failed business ventures in their past; trial and error are an essential part of the entrepreneurship process, and sometimes the process requires you to close an existing business entity and start over with a new one. If you are new to entrepreneurship, you might be surprised that… Read More »
Widow of Maryland Novelist Sues Executor of Husband’s Will Over Estate Taxes
The type of dispute over the estate of a deceased person that attracts the most media attention is the disputes between a wealthy man’s widow and his children from a previous marriage. The tabloid press and its successor, clickbait journalism, often play up the drama of the acrimonious relationship between a stepmother and stepchildren… Read More »
What to Do When You Suspect That a Business Partner Is Stealing from Your Company
A business partner does not have to be your best friend, but choosing someone as a partner when forming a company requires a high level of trust. If the business partner betrays your trust by stealing or misusing funds that belong to the business, it can throw your financial plans for the future into… Read More »
Estate Planning for the Recently Divorced
If you made an estate plan in which you provided generously for your spouse, or one in which you and your spouse mutually agreed to leave more assets to your children from previous marriages than to each other, the news that your spouse wants a divorce probably upends your world even more than it… Read More »
Which Business Structure Offers You the Best Protection in a Dispute Among Business Partners?
The first step in starting a business is filing for an employer identification number (EIN) for your business; an EIN is like a social security number, except for businesses instead of people. One of the first questions on the EIN application form asks you to choose an entity type, also known as a business… Read More »
Incentive Trusts: Proceed with Caution
You love your children, but they are terrible at managing money. When they were little, you dreamed of the day when they would be financially independent, but now that you are thinking about estate planning, you are starting to realize that the money you planned to leave to your children will be gone in… Read More »
