An unemployment weekend is stressful in Minnesota because the unemployment website is closed.
Yes, an applicant is unable to access their account on the weekends and this causes stress. Luckily, I believe most unemployed applicants can use this time to prepare for their appeal or hearing.
If you are unemployed and browsing the web this weekend about unemployment issues, you are not alone.
Thus, I encourage you to stay positive and send me a message if you see the need.
A healthcare directive emergency doesn’t give us a warning. It just happens. For this reason, many of my Clients are keeping a copy of their healthcare directive inside their glove box.
Under no circumstances do I want to make it difficult to find my healthcare directive. When a healthcare directive emergency happens, I need my family to find it ASAP.
Estate Planning
Taking 30 minutes to look through an estate plan (which might include hundreds of pages) makes no sense when time is of the essence.
If I get into a car accident and the police are looking for documents specific to my car, they will find my updated healthcare directive.
Earlier in my practice, some of the healthcare directives I used included social security numbers. As we all know, our doctors use our social security number to keep track of us. Back in the day, I was fearful that my important health history would be difficult to find.
Speed ahead ten years and it appears our doctors have updated systems making this less of a fear. I agree, most healthcare directives include very personal information about our wishes, doctors, family members and health conditions.
Again though, hiding our document when we need it the most doesn’t seem helpful either. Also, when was the last time your car was broken into? The crime rate for motor vehicle theft in 2015 represented 142 per 100,000 population.
Like you, I dislike the idea of a bad guy having my healthcare directive. On the other hand, I dislike leaving my family stuck in a time of need even more.
When I represent a person needing a healthcare directive, I always encourage them to give a copy to their doctor(s) and dentist(s).
Now, we can keep copies of our important documents on our phone too! Even though I like this idea, the likelihood of my family accessing my phone in an emergency is unlikely. Even more so, the likelihood of them remembering or recalling the password on my phone is even less.
Again, keeping a document in an accessible folder makes sense. When I have a Client who commutes a long distance or is fearful of not being prepared for the worst, I encourage them to keep a healthcare directive inside their glove box too.
The informal probate Minnesota process is different in every County. Even though this topic can take a lot of twists and turns, do not despair.
Every informal probate Minnesota process should start by identifying a point person. The point person, also called a personal representative, is the person in charge of forms, notices, filings, administration, etc.
Yes, as long as the person is 18 years of age or older, the point person can be a spouse, child, parent, friend, sibling, or any person willing to accept the job.
No, a will does not exclude you from seeking the informal probate Minnesota process.
On the other hand, if your loved one had a will, the informal probate process in Hennepin County should be much easier because the first step of seeking a point person will likely be satisfied.
Keep this in mind, a creditor or any person claiming to have an interest can ask to be the point person or personal representative.
As a result, do your very best to pick a person to assist in this process.
The second step in seeking the informal probate Minnesota process is registering for e-filing. What?
Yes, the point person (if they handle this process without help from a lawyer) should consider registering for the e-filing process. Unfortunately, the e-filing process in Hennepin County is mandatory
If you are looking for forms to help you with the informal probate Minnesota process, consider these three resources:
Every application seeking approval for the informal probate Minnesota process needs the following information, which is outlined in Minnesota rule 524.3-301:
An application for an informal probate proceeding is accepted or approved by the County’s registrar.
If approved, the personal representative or point person can proceed with other duties and responsibilities associated with an informal probate process.
Again, if you need help with this process, contact this law office for help.
Unemployment legal objections can come from people who are non-lawyers. Legal objections specific to your unemployment claim apply in two areas:
(1) Documents submitted by DEED or the other party
(2) Questions asked by the other party
The following is a list of common legal objections a person can make during their hearing if they do not agree with a document:
The following is a list of common unemployment legal objections a person can make during their hearing if they do not agree with a question:
A person representing themselves should consider making your legal objections as soon as they believe there is an issue. In other words, do not wait.
After a person makes a legal objection, the unemployment law judge will make a ruling. This means the judge will decide whether your objection applies and if how it impacts your case going forward.
If a person does not make an objection, the issue of concern likely will become unrecoverable or may not be reviewed going forward.
Please contact this law office if you need help with determining whether an unemployment legal objection is applicable.
Unemployment for Independent Contractors in Minnesota is tricky. Independent contracting cases are strange because the laws in Minnesota keeps changing. Even worse, the rules change based on a worker’s occupation.
As you might expect, employers do not want to call you an employee because they will owe thousands of dollars in unemployment taxes and payroll taxes. One way employers try to get through this process is by conveniently calling a worker a contractor.
The reason this issue is such a big deal is that it impacts whether a worker is eligible for unemployment benefits. So, I wanted to quickly work through a few rules to consider.
The first rule is simple: independent contractors do not get unemployment benefits in Minnesota. For this reason, workers who are trying to seek this benefit should be arguing why they were an employee.
MN independent contractors are governed by dozens of statutes, rules and law cases. As a result, pinpointing the right law and rule is critical.
You must assume all of the laws apply and be prepared for the reasons that help your case. Generally, a worker will need to be prepared for the following issues:
Even more important, workers need to be prepared to combat what their employer might say too.
At first glance, the rules for defining a contractor are crazy, strange and all over the board. Luckily, you can help yourself by looking for two things:
Unfortunately, the Work Force Center, auditors, and field agents are not necessarily on your side. Thus, prepare accordingly.
Every employee and employer relationship is different. Some people believe they are following rules and guidelines defined by the IRS. Other employees have written contracts and some workers make verbal agreements.
In other words, protect yourself before the situation gets more challenging.
Do not quit. Together, anything is possible. Whether you need help from your family or a professional, I encourage you to keep moving forward.
When things are going bad, do not get bummed out or frustrated. Take your problem and turn it into something bigger and better.
Maybe we can work together. Or, maybe you find that we are not a good fit. Either way, do not quit.
If you hide from unemployment or Minnesota’s unemployment office, this generally means one of two things:
Luckily, you found me and the process of sending me a message or calling me directly is easy. On the other hand, maybe you will sleep better if you consider this short list of suggestions:
Every deadline is important. Do not hide from unemployment if you have a deadline. Even if their deadline is less than an hour, always always always take any identified deadline as gospel.
I agree, some of the unemployment deadlines in Minnesota are ridiculous if not a black and white breach of our Constitution. If you know about a deadline, abide by it. For those who didn’t know about the deadline, try to manage it going forward. If you forgot about a deadline, try to collect unemployment through a secondary process.
I wish unemployment was a vacation. If it were, things would be easier. Do not hide from unemployment because you know you are going to get a job.
Even the most talented people on the planet become unemployed. Eligibility in Minnesota requires searching for a job. As a result, I encourage everybody to keep a written log book of their job search process so they can prove their duty of looking for work.
Do not hide from unemployment because you are bad at estimating. If you don’t know, you will eventually find out that each week requires answering standardized questions. One of the questions asks about the hours and wages you earned for that particular week.
In my experience, estimating or guessing can become problematic. It isn’t necessarily impossible to overcome, but estimating is a weak strategy.
Do not hide from unemployment because you do not know the answer to a question. Your game plan for success requires you to find answers to a question before it is asked.
Flying by the seat of your pants or saying “I don’t know” is setting yourself up for failure.
Do not hide from unemployment if you get audited. Any answer or the lack of an answer can be construed against you. This plays into my theory of never giving a bad answer.
The alternative is one or the other:
Luckily, you are not going to let this happen.
Does a due on sale clause within a mortgage in Minnesota impact an estate plan?
Individuals and families wishing to fund a trust or use a transfer on death deed can reduce their risk of accelerating balloon payments by reviewing their mortgage and lending documents.
Unfortunately, every mortgage is different because mortgages are created by hundreds and thousands of financial companies. Nonetheless, here is a brief outline of the issues to consider.
First, what the heck is a due on sale or acceleration clause? To keep it simple, this type of clause is a condition found within a mortgage or contract for deed. In general, the clause requires full payment of a mortgage upon the occurrence of certain events.
Also, the National Housing Act helps define balloon payments as they apply to a mortgage under rule 1701j.3. As you can see, this law gives mortgage companies and lenders certain opportunities to seek money from a buyer if any or part of their property is sold or transferred without the lender’s written consent.
Whether you feel protected from local homestead rules or not, you can plan for your largest asset. The hard part is finding it or confirming a mortgage does not have a due on sale clause. Sometimes, a mortgage document will use big bold headings to help.
When in doubt, I always read the mortgage. If you misplaced your mortgage, you coud:
Minnesota has a chapter of statutes devoted to mortgages. If you are looking for help falling to sleep, look at Chapter 47. The rules specifically apply to financial corporations.
On the other hand, Minnesota statute 47.20 speaks to the lending authority of a bank. As a starter, most case law in Minnesota devoted to the discussion of a due on sale clause in a mortgage utilize subdivision 6 and 6a.
Every situation is different and unique. Assuming a piece of real estate is a person’s primary residence and they do not live in a housing complex, there are likely many exceptions to the acceleration of a balloon payment. Specifically, these exceptions can be found under the National Housing Act.
Unfortunately, lenders and homeowners sometimes disagree on the terms of a due on sale clause. Here are a handful of notable cases to consider, as we try to define what will happen or not happen with a due on sale clause: Viereck v. Peoples Sav. & Loan Ass’n, 343 N.W.2d 30 (Minn. 1984), Akopyan v. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Inc., Cal.App. 2 Dist., April 4, 2013, and a United States Supreme Court case called Cuomo v. Clearing House Ass’n, L.L.C., 129 S.Ct. 2710.
Therefore, before you fund a trust or transfer a piece of property using a transfer on death deed (TODD), make sure you know what, how and why.
Yes, you can avoid probate in Minnesota. On the other hand, you can encourage probate too. Being dead does not remove you from probate hell. Instead, it only makes it worse.
Luckily, I believe you and I can help our families avoid the probate process for our estate by doing three simple things:
Yes, you can find books at the library that help describe multiple ways to avoid probate. One option often described is the process of adding a beneficiary or Pay on Death (POD) to a checking account.
If this process makes you feel better, then fantastic. Unfortunately, people often add their spouse or children. This is unfortunate because if our loved one dies or becomes incapacitated in the same car accident, our loved ones are likely forced into probate.
Thus, trying to avoid probate by selecting a loved one by chance does not really avoid probate.
I cannot tell you how many times I am required to explain why a revocable trust is not exclusive to rich people. If you are rich, I mean no disrespect. If you are anything less than rich, please consider using a trust to help with:
Please note, I am not trying to be funny or cute when describing value ways to avoid probate in Minnesota. If you care about any person other than yourself, then helping your family and friends avoid the thousands and thousands of dollars generally required during the probate process is worth your time.
Here are some other fancy (or easy) ways to avoid probate:
If you conduct enough research online, you might see people suggesting a beneficiary for your car or owning property via joint tenancy. If you contact me directly, I will share more about why this is not necessarily the best strategy either.
Anybody who tells you that you can avoid probate 100% is dead wrong. Instead, the goal is to reduce the risk of probate and discouraging our pain in the butt family members (or creditors) from challenging our estates.
The easy way to avoid Minnesota probate is to never die. No, seriously – if you never die, then probate will not be an option.
On the other hand, if you think you might die someday, grab an adult beverage before you read the next line: nobody can avoid probate 100%. Instead, our goal is to reduce the risk of probate.
Now, I know what you are thinking….your friends told you they have a revocable trust and they are going to avoid the headache they experienced when their parents died.
I agree, a trust is an excellent way to reduce the risk of making your family stress over the probate process.
On the other hand, there are generally three reasons why your trust will not necessarily help your family avoid Minnesota probate:
In a class I teach, I stress one sure strategy on the cheap end (meaning it should not cost you any money) to reduce the risk of probate in MN: make sure your financial accounts have beneficiaries.
For example, if you have a bank account, please please please make sure you identify a beneficiary to acquire your account when you die. In my experience, most banks call this type of beneficiary a POD or Pay on Death.
Of course, I prefer transferring a bank account into a trust, but we are talking about the cheap way, not the right way.
In case you are stuck on who to choose, let me give you some fantastic examples:
I admit, naming the cable company is crazy talk. That said, it is crazy how many people fail at naming a beneficiary. Thus, get it done and come back to my article.
Just because you saved money in a retirement account doesn’t mean you need a heavy-duty financial planner to name a beneficiary for your 401(k) or 403(b).
Of course, if your beneficiary dies at the same time you die (in a car accident) or you want to assist your spouse and children in making the transfer of your retirement account a little easier, likely a revocable trust is strong option.
As you muster up time to think this through, please please please contact the financial institution holding your account and name a beneficiary for your retirement accounts too.
A popular method to avoid Minnesota probate is to create a trust and inside the trust have a clause that looks like this:
If any person or entity challenges my revocable trust and they lose, their interest in my estate will be expressly disinherited
Of course, there are better ways to do reduce the risk of having your estate challenged. None the less, this is one of many different options.
It wasn’t by accident that I chose a picture of people sharing a beverage with one another while sharing a laugh. In my experience, the strongest way to avoid Minnesota probate is to create a plan and share it verbally with your loved ones.
For example, share with your elderly parents who will be taking care of your children if you die and what to do first in case of an emergency.
Or, maybe this means sharing with your spouse tha your power of attorney document is kept on the book shelf or your health care directive identifies a list of medications you take on a regular basis.
The bottom line: talk about your plan as if you were going to die someday versus pretending everybody else other than you is doomed for a bad day.
If your employer said no unemployment, then you were misled. An employer does not have the power to deny your claim for benefits.
Yes, an employer can tell the unemployment office why you should not get benefits, but former employers are not the decision maker.
Luckily, you are going to out smart your former employer and show them why they are wrong.
Saying no is easier than saying yes. I believe employers tell their workers that they will not get unemployment because employers do not want employees to file a claim for benefits.
Any person believing they are eligible for benefits can apply for unemployment. The rule that governs eligibility in Minnesota is Rule 268.085.
I believe every worker should fight for their benefits. Here are three easy reasons why:
Often, I see Clients get stuck on what their former employer says when sometimes it can be a better use of their time to focus on why their claim will get approved (or overturned).
What I mean is this: is there a specific point when you, the applicant forced the unemployment office to say no?
Unfortunately, all of these things can be show stoppers. It doesn’t mean a person cannot receive unemployment benefits. The unemployment needs help to decide in a person’s favor.
Luckily, you can do the easy way (know what law supports your benefits) or the hard way (by guessing).
Instead of getting mad or spending silly hours stressing over the process of loosing your house, pony up to a lock solid process:
Unemployment said no, and you don’t know why. The stress of a job ending can multiply if the unemployment office says no.
Luckily, you are going to use your choice to appeal and show them why they are wrong.
Saying no is easier than saying yes. In the year 2015, Minnesota’s unemployment office improperly paid out $54 million dollars in unemployment benefits.
In other words, the unemployment office is almost forced to say no until applicants, workers or employees are able to prove the State wrong.
I believe every worker should fight for their benefits. Here are three easy reasons why:
Often, I see Clients get stuck on what their former employer says when sometimes it can be a better use of their time to focus on why the unemployment office said no.
What I mean is this: is there a specific point when you, the applicant forced the unemployment office to say no?
Unfortunately, all of these things can be show stoppers. It doesn’t mean a person cannot receive unemployment benefits. The unemployment needs help to decide in a person’s favor.
Luckily, you can do the easy way (know what law supports your benefits) or the hard way (by guessing).
Instead of getting mad or spending silly hours stressing over the process of loosing your house, pony up to a lock solid process: