Legal Talk

        If you have primary or equal custody of your child and you plan to move – and bring the child with you – you must notify the child’s other parent. The law provides for how and when notice must be given, and what must be included in the notice. You must give notice at least 60 days before you intend to move. Failure to give notice may be a factor in whether the move is allowed. The parent that fails to give notice may be ordered to pay the other parent’s expenses and attorney fees in objecting to the relocation.  More

One of the first (and most important) decisions a start-up business owner must make is deciding the type of business entity that best fits his or her business. This article provides a brief summary describing the most prevalent forms of business entities in Louisiana, as well as their advantages and disadvantages.    More

Employee embezzlement of any kind reeks of moral bankruptcy.  But when that employer is a church, our heads shake with disapproval and our opinions of the perpetrators drop to a whole new level.  Despite the stigma associated with this crime, religious institutions are not immune from this threat and are often victimized by the employees they trust the most. From 2004 to 2007, a local church experienced this first hand when one of its employees and her husband embezzled over $380,000 before moving out of state.     More

If you make payments under liability insurance or self-insurance, don’t rely solely on the claimant or his attorney to take Medicare’s interest into account. If the government is not repaid the medical bills fronted by Medicare, then the feds can pursue the Medicare beneficiary, his attorney and the liability payer for repayment. That is a message reiterated in a recent federal court opinion from Arizona, Haro v Sebelius (D. Arizona May 5, 2011), No. 4:09-cv-00134-DCB:  More

$150 MILLION CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT IN FAVOR OF LOUISIANA HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS APPROVED BY LOUISIANA FOURTEENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT  More

This article provides a short summary of current Louisiana law on wills and testaments, reflecting a few changes that have occurred over the last several years. Louisiana does not recognize oral or verbal testaments. As such, there are only two (2) valid forms of Louisiana last wills and testaments, both of which must be in writing. One form is an olographic testament and the other is a notarial testament. The author must intend for the writing to be his or her last will and testament.  More

From classic employee embezzlement to outright theft and forgery, the number of incidents of dishonest and illegal activity related to checks and other negotiable instruments has increased in recent years in southwest Louisiana.  Generally, the perpetrators of these activities are eventually identified and prosecuted in some fashion.  While these individuals may pay a debt to society through the criminal system, they frequently contribute little or nothing to the civil damages which resulted from their willful acts.  The money acquired from the fraud was usually eaten, drunkor gambled away.  Regardless of the cause, the money simply disappears over a very short time and tangible property worthy of seizure almost never remains.   More

As we the attorneys and staff at the Stockwell Sievert Law Firm unveil our new and improved website, we also found it appropriate to discuss the business and legal uses of some of the new technology we are employing.  As evidenced by the fact that, according to statistics, the number of social networking users has doubled since 2007 and now exceeds 55.6 million in the United States alone (or almost 1/3 of the US population), businesses must either get connected or get left behind.  We chose the former.  More