Westminster Law Blog

Drinking and then driving can certainly lead to high-impact car accidents. So too can testing while driving. There is, however, another major form of distracted driving that is equally as dangerous yet is rarely as talked about. This is no doubt due to it high prevalence amongst the general population (indeed, one might argue that auto manufacturers even encourage it with some of the features they include in their vehicles). This distraction is eating while driving, and it's a risk that few appreciate. 

Just how dangerous can eating while driving be? In a joint data collecting venture between the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the Auto Alliance, it was revealed that those who eat behind the wheel are 3.6 times more likely to be involved in an accident than those who do not. And yet this is activity that most engage in while driving. 

The process of estate planning is meant to provide people with control over both the disposition of their assets once they are gone as well as (if necessary) the management of their end-of-life affairs. Yet people cannot plan for the unexpected, and few anticipate never being able to make decisions for themselves. Yet if you have a loved one that has reached that point it may in their best interest for you to step in and seek that they be placed under the care of a conservator. 

A conservator is one empowered with the authority to make important decisions for another individual. Some may wonder how this particular type of authority differs from power of attorney. The main difference is that in the case of power of attorney, a person delegates decision-making authority themselves, whereas a conservatorship is created at the request of another. 

Thanksgiving is one of the most travel heavy holidays in America. Families use their extended weekend to get together to celebrate by driving to a relative’s house or going somewhere new for the holiday. The larger cities in California such as San Francisco, San Diego and Anaheim tend to be some of the most popular cities for families to travel to around this time of year.

Unfortunately, California’s popular cities also lead the state to being one of the deadliest states for Thanksgiving travel. Recent studies show that in the last couple of years, 9 percent of the nation's fatalities during this holiday were in the Golden State. While drunk driving continues to be the leading cause of traffic fatalities, distracted driving has also been increasing the death count in the last decade. If you plan on driving through the state during your holiday weekend, you should be aware of the potential distractions that can impair the driving ability of you and the thousands that will be on the road with you.

For all of the struggles you have encountered as a small business owner in Westminster, protecting your business from your spouse likely was not one that you anticipated. Yet that is exactly the position that many of those that come to see us here at The Law Firm of Lan Quoc Nguyen & Associates are placed in when they choose to divorce. If and when you and your spouse dissolve your marriage, each of you is entitled to an equitable share of your marital assets. Your business may be included among them. 

Yet if you started your company prior to marrying your spouse, you might wonder how, then, could it be viewed as a marital asset? Technically speaking, any asset or property from which both you and your spouse benefit from is considered to be part of the marital estate. So, in the aforementioned case, your business itself may not be viewed as a marital asset, yet the profits that you make from it during your marriage (plus any increases in value it experiences during that same time) are subject to property division.