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Recent news reports from the Twin Falls area highlight concerns regarding school zone safety for young students.  Parents living within the Rock Creek Elementary school district express the need for improvements on Grandview Drive North since a portion of the road does not have sidewalks.  Although bus routes have been changed to accommodate the students living in the Hometowne Place subdivision, many students prefer to walk or ride their bicycles to school.

Children walking or riding their bicycles to school can be unpredictable since they do not recognize the potential dangers involved in sharing the road with motorists.  The speed limit in school zones is 20 mph.   Drivers who do not obey the posted speed limit will be fined a minimum of $75 pursuant to I.C. §49-658.  In most jurisdictions, additional court costs and fees apply which increases the total penalty and costs from $116.50 to $151.50.

Nearly 1/3 of the pedestrians killed each year is between the ages of 4 and 14 and involved a pedestrian v vehicle crash.  It is important for parents to talk to their children and encourage safety by following simple rules, such as:  a) cross the street at intersections, never from behind parked cars or in the middle of the block; b) know what traffic signals mean; and, c) cross the street only when the “Walk” signal is lit up.  A number of school zones have yellow flashing lights when children are present.  However, children should be aware that not all drivers slow down for the flashing lights.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

I’ve had a number of both new and current clients who come to me just prior to leaving on a vacation or a trip abroad who are concerned about their estate plan. It seems that the idea of traveling, whether to a remote location or not, somehow creates a sense of urgency in my clients in making sure that their estate plan is complete. Based upon these experiences here are 4 things that you should do with your estate plan before you travel so that you can have peace of mind.

1. REVIEW YOUR PLAN FOR YOUR MINOR CHILDREN

By Nathan R. Palmer

Gamesmanship is common during a contentious divorce. One common example of gamesmanship is the hiding of marital assets in anticipation of divorce. Hiding assets can come in many shapes and sizes, including stowing cash from bank accounts, taking personal property items from the home, and going on a spending spree. Is the other spouse entitled to compensation when a spouse wastes marital assets during divorce?

Spouses owe each other certain fiduciary duties during the term of the marriage. These fiduciary duties include transparency regarding financial assets and all other property matters. Courts may consider whether a spouse has dissipated or wasted assets by spending marital funds in some improper manner, thereby reducing the amount of assets available for division. The burden of proving dissipation of marital assets can be heavy.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

By and large, most tenants are pretty good, but one bad tenant can give a landlord nightmares and cause him to question whether he should ever rent again. Sooner or later a landlord will be faced with the task of evicting such a tenant. However, even when a bad tenant exists, there are specific steps that a landlord must follow to legally evict a tenant from a rental property. When a landlord fails to follow this process and simply locks the tenant out, the landlord could be liable to the tenant.

A lease is a contract. As a result, the rights and obligations of both the landlord and the tenant are controlled by the terms of the contract. Our society and the laws that current exist determine that it is important that people have a place to live and that a person should have some protection from being immediately removed from their home. As a result, current law requires that even when a tenant has breached the lease agreement or is doing something illegal such as producing or selling illegal drugs, the tenant still has certain protections from being instantly kicked out of the leased property. In fact, unless a landlord has provided the required demands and notices, eviction of a tenant cannot occur.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (abbreviated as FLSA; also referred to as the Wages and Hours Bill) is a federal statute of the United States that changed employment relationships dramatically.  The FLSA introduced the forty-hour workweek, established a national minimum wage, guaranteed “time-and-a-half” for overtime in certain jobs, and prohibited most employment of minors in “oppressive child labor”, a term that is defined in the statute. It applies to employees engaged in interstate commerce or employed by an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, unless the employer can claim an exemption from coverage.

The FLSA was originally drafted in 1932 by Senator Hugo Black, who was later appointed to the Supreme Court in 1937. However, Black’s proposal to require employers to adopt a thirty-hour workweek was unpopular with employers who were used to working employees up to 12 hours a day. In 1938 a revised version of Black’s proposal was passed that adopted an eight-hour day and a forty-hour workweek and allowed workers to earn wage for an extra four hours of overtime as well. Children under eighteen were prohibited from certain dangerous jobs, and children under the age of sixteen could work during school hours.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

Once you are married, you stay that way legally until a judge signs a divorce decree. If you are separated from your spouse but not divorced and then you die or become disabled, your estranged spouse may still have legal control over you and your estate.  Worse, your estranged spouse may be legally entitled to receive your estate.  The good news is that you can change this.  Here are 3 things you should know about estate planning and divorce.

1. YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR ESTATE PLAN ANY TIME YOU WANT

By Heidi Buck Morrison

One of the assets that must be dealt with in divorce is the parties’ retirement accounts such as pensions, 401Ks and IRAs. Upon divorce, retirement benefits must be valued and divided.

With respect to valuing a retirement account, there are two valuation methods used by courts. First, the “Time Rule” is a valuation method that determines the community interest in a retirement by computing a ratio of the time of marriage, to the total years of service during which the pension or retirement was earned. Maslen v. Maslen, 822 P.2d 982 (Idaho 1991). Under this valuation method, the calculation must be determined by calculating the amount of benefits that would be due if the spouse were eligible for retirement then. Id., at 982.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

The world has become a much smaller place. It’s now very common for an individual to own real estate not only where they live but also in other states. If you own land, regardless of what state it is in, there are several things that you should know when it comes to estate planning.

The first thing you should know is that owning real estate in different states is not a real problem when it comes to estate planning. The probate of your estate will take place in the state you reside in when you die. The court proceedings and appointments of a personal representative will all take place there. More than likely your family will have an attorney help them through the probate process. However, your family will also have to hire an attorney in each state where you own real estate to help in the transfer of that property as well.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

In a perfect world an employer would never have to terminate any employee. All employees would work hard, be profitable and be worth keeping as an employee. However, the reality is quite different. There are often employees that are poor workers, or whose personalities are caustic in the workplace. Additionally, even if all the employees are good, sometimes the business is not doing well and can’t afford to keep the employees hired. Whatever the reason, there are often times when an employer must terminate an employee. Here are 4 steps to take anytime you are considering terminating an employee.

1. MAKE SURE THE REASON FOR TERMINATION IS LAWFUL.

By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

Several times a week our firm will get phone calls asking whether we have the will for a certain individual who recently passed away. Talking with other estate planning attorneys, this is not unique. It seems all too common that even after going to the effort to create an estate plan, many individuals make it hard for their families to find their estate planning documents because they simply aren’t organized.  Here are some tips that can help your family in the event you pass away.

1. ORGANIZE YOUR DOCUMENTS

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