Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLCPersonal Injury Attorney in New Orleans | Plaquemines Parish Medical Malpractice Lawyer2024-03-15T22:34:45Zhttps://www.bbc-law.net/feed/atom/WordPressOn Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=468702024-03-15T22:34:45Z2024-03-15T22:34:45ZConsider the long-term business plan
One of the most important factors when deciding between a corporation and an LLC as the ideal business form is the long-term plan for the company. LLCs are simpler to start, but they may not be the right option if someone hopes to grow their company into a nationwide leader in a particular industry.
Those aspiring to publicly list their business when it proves successful may want to start a corporation instead of an LLC. On the other hand, someone who only intends to operate a single business location or to keep the company regional may find that an LLC suits their needs. Establishing a plan for how the company may grow and expand over time can help an aspiring business owner choose the right entity to create.
Think about funding and taxes
Another key consideration when choosing a business entity is the financial impact of the business structure. A corporation can involve numerous investors who serve on the board that helps run the organization.
Corporations are also subject to their own depending on the type of corporate entity someone establishes. S corporations and C corporations have different tax rules, and not-for-profit corporations are subject to different rules when compared with for-profit businesses. LLCs, on the other hand, can be ideal for someone hoping to maintain sole ownership or only aspiring to cooperate with a small number of direct investors. The tax rules for LLCs are also different.
Thinking about a company's growth, its overall business plan and the financial needs of the business both for funding and for minimizing tax responsibilities can help someone make the right choices about the structure they utilize when establishing a new company. Those who discuss their business aspirations at length with a professional may have an easier time choosing the right type of company to start.]]>On Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=468692023-11-10T01:56:20Z2023-11-10T01:56:20ZThe Jones Act protects offshore employees
The Maritime Merchant Marine Act of 1920 is an expansive law. Section 27, also known as the Jones Act, helped to create legal responsibility for businesses operating on the open ocean. Companies should prioritize worker safety whenever possible, which means providing training and safety equipment. Proper vessel maintenance and business practices that adjust to inclement weather are also crucial to limiting the number of worker injuries that occur in maritime environments.
If workers do get hurt while working on a boat, oil rig or other offshore location, they can potentially initiate litigation using the Jones Act. Workers have the right to seek maintenance and cure, which includes compensation for lost wages, medical bills and even their pain and suffering in scenarios where they can show that an employer's negligence contributed to their injuries. Unlike workers' compensation, Jones Act lawsuits can provide full reimbursement for lost wages.
Maintenance failures, improper safety practices and dangerous employment rules could all give workers the grounds they need to claim that an employer's negligence contributed to their injury in an offshore environment. When successful, lawsuits brought under the Jones Act can diminish the financial burden created by an unsafe maritime work environment that caused a worker's injury.
Learning about and making use of the systems in place to protect those in dangerous professions can take some of the risks out of offshore employment. Seeking legal guidance can help injured workers to take advantage of these systems whenever necessary.]]>On Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=468652023-08-03T18:23:20Z2023-08-03T18:23:20ZWhat does the law require?
Under the law, if a parent dies without leaving an inheritance to an adult child who is under 24 or who is “permanently incapable of taking care of their persons or administering their estates…[because of] mental incapacity or physical infirmity,” that child is required to receive a portion of their parent’s estate. If there are multiple children who meet the qualification, they must share a portion of the estate.
The primary exceptions to the forced heirship requirement involves a child who has a documented history of violence toward their parent. Further, if an adult child who would otherwise meet the requirement has already passed away, the forced heirship can then transfer to that adult child’s child(ren).
This is just a cursory review of the forced heirship doctrine. It’s important to know about it as you begin your estate planning if you have one or more young adult children. If you’re concerned about how a child would use such an inheritance, there are steps you can take to place their inheritance in a trust that would help protect the assets from being spent on frivolous things or – worse – on things like drugs that would cause them harm.
Every family is unique. That’s why it’s crucial to have sound legal guidance as you develop your estate plan. This will help you ensure that your approach meets your needs and goals – and that it complies with Louisiana law.]]>On Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=468592023-05-09T13:21:18Z2023-05-09T13:21:18ZDoctors are busy
One potential issue that doctors face is simply that they’re busy. Their schedule is often packed. They may only have a few minutes to see each patient. You may consider your appointment with your doctor to be the biggest event of the day, and maybe you’ve planned your whole day around it. But your doctor may see it as just one more 15-minute appointment among many of them. They may rush in and out of that appointment without giving you the attention you deserve.
Doctors interrupt their patients
Studies have found that doctors tend to interrupt their patients after just 11 seconds. They usually do not give them very much time to talk at the beginning of that appointment. Some doctors will interrupt after as little as three seconds. If your doctor quickly interrupts you, are you going to miss giving them important information? Are they going to make the wrong diagnosis because they didn’t listen long enough to get the information that they needed? Once again, you can see how a doctor who is in a rush may not give you the type of care you deserve.
In situations like this, you may believe that your doctor's negligence constitutes malpractice. They caused you harm because of the way they treated you. If you’ve suffered additional injuries as a result of their substandard care and you’re incurring high medical bills that go along with them, it’s time to seek legal guidance.]]>On Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=467372023-05-19T20:14:12Z2023-02-09T22:51:24Zthe most dangerous of all, often results in fatalities because it usually involves head-on collisions. Further, these accidents often extend to include other vehicles because they can easily cause a ripple effect when the two cars collide.
Oftentimes, the vehicles driving behind the car colliding with the one driving against traffic are also affected. The car driving in the proper direction will usually hit the brakes, shift to switch lanes to avoid the oncoming vehicle or move the car to the shoulder area of the roadway.
Can these accidents be prevented?
In many cases, yes. Driving under the influence of alcohol is the number one cause of wrong-way vehicle crashes. Additional risk factors include:
Drivers over the age of 70 years old
Teenage and very young drivers
Drivers under the influence of drugs
People who drive when it is dark
When we think of people driving under the influence of drugs, we think of illegal drugs. However, we usually don’t consider those who may be under treatment for certain medical conditions. Those people may be taking prescription medications that may impair their ability to drive safely.
It is critical for those who take any prescription medications to ask their doctors whether it is safe for them to drive.
Using your smartphone while driving?
Using technology devices while driving is a significant risk factor. People of all ages fall into this category because almost everyone has a mobile phone or smartphone. While some states have enacted legislation prohibiting cell phone use while driving, others have not.
Also, many drivers in states that prohibit the use of cell phones choose to use cell phones anyway, violating the law and putting themselves and others at risk.
Wrong-way vehicle accidents are dangerous, and the numbers are going up. This should concern all of us. We all must keep in mind how we can prevent these accidents from happening and drive accordingly.
]]>On Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=467342023-01-24T22:05:23Z2023-01-30T22:04:44ZA will may not be the best fit for your situation.
To qualify for benefits from some government programs like Medicaid or Supplemental Security Income (SSI), a person must meet specific income and asset limits. Unfortunately, this means that directly receiving an inheritance — as they would if you only used a will to build your estate plan — could put them over the limit for eligibility. This may endanger their access to these benefits.
Considering all of your options can be key.
Thankfully, there are estate planning options that can help you provide for your loved one while also protecting their access to these benefits. One especially important option to consider is a trust. Because assets placed in trust belong to the trust itself, those assets will not count toward asset limits and will not impact their access to benefits.
However, the assets you place in trust can improve your loved one’s quality of life in many different ways. By funding a trust for your loved one, you can provide money for medical expenses, transportation, a comfortable home and a rich life filled with activities.
Providing for a loved one with special needs may require additional consideration during the estate planning process. Thankfully, it is possible to create a plan that protects and provides for all of your loved ones.]]>On Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=467332023-01-24T16:47:14Z2023-01-26T16:17:05Zfour key driving skills:
Judgment. Safe driving requires you to constantly make decisions based on your past experience and knowledge. Alcohol impairs the parts of your brain that control judgment, leading you to make unsafe choices, such as driving too fast or other unnecessary risks.
Vision. Nobody can drive safely unless they can see clearly. Alcohol can cause double vision, blurred vision and poor focus -- all recipes for disaster on the road. It also affects your ability to judge distance and how fast other vehicles are moving.
Reaction time. In a dangerous situation, you might not have more than a second or two to react and avoid a collision. But alcohol slows down your ability to process information (such as a car heading toward you) and respond (such as by slamming on the brakes or swerving out of the way).
Distinguishing between colors. The ability to tell road signs apart and read traffic lights largely depends on how well you can distinguish colors, though most color-blind people can still drive safely. But for someone used to identifying a red light by its color, alcohol's impairing their ability to distinguish colors can lead to a grave mistake.
Even a couple of beers or glasses of wine can make someone too impaired to drive. But people in New Orleans drive drunk every day. If one of them hits you, the damage to your body, career and quality of life could be disastrous and irreversible. Louisiana law recognizes the right of car accident victims to seek compensation from the responsible driver, but you need to take action yourself. Fortunately, you can work with a personal injury lawyer for advice and representation when dealing with the insurance company and the court.]]>On Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=467312023-01-24T15:22:29Z2023-01-24T15:22:29ZFour extreme 'never events'
Of never events committed in surgery, four of the most common are:
Operating on the wrong side of the body, such as removing the patient's healthy kidney instead of the diseased one.
Operating on the correct side of the body but the wrong body part.
Performing the wrong procedure.
Mixing up patients and performing a procedure on Patient A meant for Patient B.
Surgical errors are relatively rare, and most mistakes in the operating room are mild and quickly corrected with little to no harm to the patient. But never events like those listed above tend to cause catastrophic harm. Imagine losing the wrong limb, organ or other body part because of a reckless mistake. Patients who survive such a profound error could be disabled for life -- if they survive. They might have to stop working, leaving their family without a vital source of income. They could need expensive modifications to their home, such as a wheelchair ramp and adjusted bathroom fixtures. Meanwhile, their independence and ability to enjoy life could be permanently affected.
Compensation from the hospital and medical professional responsible cannot undo what happened, but it can relieve you and your loved ones of the financial burden. A conversation with a medical malpractice attorney can help clarify your rights and legal options.]]>On Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=467272022-04-08T17:15:32Z2022-03-16T19:19:05ZYour spouse has community property rights
One of the reasons that spouses inherit so much of an individual's estate is that they share all of their assets and income as community property. Given the community property statutes in Louisiana, it is difficult if not impossible to prevent property from passing to your spouse when you die. Your spouse has a statutory right to inherit from your estate unless you sign a marital agreement with them where they gave up that right.
Your children also have inheritance rights
In most of the country, children only inherit property based on the goodwill of their parents. However, in Louisiana, children have a right to inheritance. Only when you have just cause to disinherit a child and they are over the age of 24 can you potentially disinherit them. The state has a strict legal standard for disinheriting children.
To establish just cause, you need proof that they have:
abused or physically harmed you
threatened you
pled guilty or gotten convicted of a crime carrying a life sentence or the death penalty
accused you of a crime resulting in a life sentence or the death penalty
tried to kill you
broke communication with you for at least two years
married without your permission if they are not yet a legal adult
If your circumstances do not meet these criteria, then your child could challenge your estate plan if you tried to disinherit them. Additionally, state law prevents you from disinheriting children who are not yet 24 and even adult children who have special needs and cannot independently support themselves.
There may be workarounds available. If you strongly feel like you need to limit what property passes to certain meet members of your family, there may be solutions, like putting property into a trust. Learning more about Louisiana inheritance laws can help when you create your estate plan.]]>On Behalf of Ballay, Braud & Colon, PLChttps://www.bbc-law.net/?p=466402021-11-05T18:51:46Z2021-11-05T18:51:46ZThe ease of creation and maintenance
More complex legal entities take substantially more effort to start and often involve multiple people rather than just the business owner and their legal representative. An LLC requires planning and thought before you start the business, but it is comparatively simple to form and also simple to maintain, typically requiring annual tax filings and state paperwork.
The protection from personal liability
When you own a business as a sole proprietor, someone with a judgment against your company might eventually make a claim against your personal assets. A judge could even garnish your future wages to help you repay a judgment. Creating an LLC establishes a layer of protection between the business owner and the company.
The owner's personal assets and future income have more protection in the event that the business fails or faces some kind of legal loss. Of course, ensuring these protections requires that a business has the right documents in place and that the owner avoids commingling personal accounts and assets with business ones.
The possibility for pass-through taxation
When you own a business as an LLC, you don't necessarily have to pay taxes on the business income directly. You can claim the profit, after deducting certain operating expenses, as an individual, making it subject to certain deductions and credits for which you qualify.
The tax benefits of an LLC are one of the big attractions to this business form, as it can result in substantially less tax liability than certain other business forms.
Determining the right form for the business you want to start is just one of the important early steps you will have to take as a business owner.]]>