How to Minimize the Impact of Divorce on Your Small Business - Divorce in itself is often devastating to the parties involved, but when one of those parties is a small business owner, the business can be affected as well.
Divorce Signs: 10 Signs Your Marriage Is In Trouble - We’ve all heard the dauntingly horrible statistic: 50 percent of marriages end in divorce. No one wants to be a cliché, and everyone wants to find themselves amongst the 50 percent that beat the odds.
Binding mediation: A way to end disputes quickly, cheaply - For many years, various alternative dispute resolution, or ADR, methods have been used to reduce costs and expedite resolution of civil disputes. The two most-used ADR methods have traditionally been arbitration (in which an arbitrator imposes an outcome on the parties after a formal evidentiary hearing), and mediation (in which a mediator assists the parties in reaching an out-of-court settlement through an informal negotiation process).
Bankruptcy and Divorce - Divorce is often the cause of serious financial stress, and many individuals going through a divorce wonder if they should file for bankruptcy. They wonder how they will be affected if a spouse files. They may hope that they can avoid paying child support or alimony if they are declared bankrupt. They have questions about the automatic stay and how it might protect them from creditors.
Mediation is the way forward… In early 2011, the Government published its consultation paper ‘Solving disputes in the county courts: creating a simpler, quicker and more proportionate system’ with a view to introducing a major overhaul to the current civil justice system in England and Wales. One of the ideals to this new reform was to envisage a system where “disputes are resolved in the most appropriate forum, with processes and costs being commensurate with the complexity of the issues involved.” Therefore, in the paper the Government suggested one way of meeting this goal by creating a requirement for all cases below the small claims limit to be automatically referred to mediation, before being considered for a hearing.
Separation or Divorce? What Each Means for Your Finances - Setting aside any personal or family issues that come to mind for many when they think of divorce, ending a marriage has major financial implications. That’s why for some, a legal separation may seem like the better route to take.
How Do you Manage Your Small Business Brand Reputation Online? - Managing your online reputation is something we’ve talked about before (check out this article) and certainly a topic that has others, such as the New York Times, warning you to step up and take notice, because, as they stated in their article, “Your Customers are Talking About You. And the Whole World is Listening”. Hard-hitting, but true!
11 metro areas have more than 100,000 small businesses - Eleven U.S. markets contain more than 100,000 small businesses each — and an additional 14 metropolitan areas have between 50,000 and 100,000 apiece.
Elder Law Mediation is an increasingly popular form of specialized mediation. It deals with the issues that can occur among families as their elderly parents, grandparents, or even aunts and uncles become less self reliant and look to their younger relations for support. Any change in the existing dynamic of a family carries with it its share of “stressors”. The following is a compilation of common issues that come up in elder meditation.
1. Guardianship
Deciding that an elder relative is no longer capable of taking care of themselves in one or more ways is seldom done by the senior themselves. Mediation with the senior can help determine to what degree the aging relative needs assistance and establish necessary guardianship to carry out this assistance accordingly.
2. Determining Suitable Residence
Whether or not a senior relative is capable of staying in their home and to what level they need assistance to remain there is a decision faced by elders and their descendants. Deciding if an assisted living facility or nursing home is necessary is a choice that few children want to make for their parents. If one of the adult children takes the aging relative to live with them, how should that be reflected in the senior’s finances? These issues frequently need to be worked out with a mediator.
3. Medical Care
Everyone agrees that they want to give their elderly loved one the best medical care possible but at times what constitutes that best care can be unclear. Should two or more siblings have conflicting opinions about which option for medical care is best, a dispute can arise amongst them.
4. Conflict amongst Siblings
This is an all encompassing problem that can show up in many of the other areas of elder law mediation. Here it refers to underlying disputes that have been around since childhood. These issues, while seemingly buried after childhood can often reappear when handling issues like estate settlements and elder care, making it difficult to reach a harmonious agreement.
5. Financial Decisions
Figuring out how to handle the family finances can be quite difficult, particularly in situations where the senior members of the family didn’t openly discuss their financial situation and/or financial plans for the future. Deciding how money will be spent or invested, and who will now be in charge of making these decisions is at the heart of a majority of family conflicts. Determining how to pay for insurance, medical care and nursing homes also fit in this category.
6. Inheritance Issues
Beyond financial management for the ailing elder are the expectation of their passing and the subsequent dividing of assets. Agreeing on inheritance terms can be quite difficult as the conflicts usually arise from two separate concerns, economic and sentimental. Sentimentality can make it much more difficult to split the estate evenly. Also at issue is whether or not a descendants’ current financial situation should impact the level of inheritance that they receive.
Involved in a dispute or difficult conflict with another person? If so, you might be handling things the wrong way and adding to the conflict rather than resolving it. Below are some of the top tips to having a difficult conversation with someone in order to minimize conflict as much as possible:
Divorce and Term Life Insurance: Avoid These Three Common Mistakes! - Most divorce agreements require that one divorced spouse, usually the one paying child support or alimony, maintain a certain amount of life insurance on themselves to protect the financial future of their ex should they die before their financial obligations terminate. But like many provisions, such as dividing retirement funds or selling the house, fulfilling the terms of the agreement happens after the divorce is already final. What if you discover that your ex can’t get life insurance because of his health or that the policy has lapsed? Since you can’t go back and renegotiate the property settlement, you could be out of luck.
Why Women are Financially Better Off After Divorce - For many, divorce signifies financial freedom. And, as a new study reveals, divorce can also signify great financial achievement.