We have heard about the data.  In 2015, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics published a study indicating that the average worker could expect to hold 12 jobs during his/her career.  More recently, another study indicates that among younger workers (ages 25-35), job changes are occurring once every 2.8 years. Many of these jobs are temporary or independent contractor arrangements.  Those folks are typically not eligible to participate in qualified retirement plans under the…

Divorce Complaints come in a variety of ways.  Most lawsuits require delivery by people in patrol cars and uniforms. In the divorce world, things are a bit more “loose.”  Your complaint can come by sheriff, or a constable without uniform, or by another adult.  It can be sent by mail if a return receipt is involved. The complaint itself is innocuous.  It says that a divorce is sought and specifies if economic claims for alimony,…

It has been a very long, if not a very good year.  We noted in an earlier post that one of the challenges reserved for 2021 would be to see how the IRS would address the dischargeable loans granted to hundreds of thousands of businesses under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).  Recall that those who “borrowed” under that program were eligible to have the loan forgiven if it was shown that the funds were deployed…

Imagine being a kid; any age over four.  Unless you are well north of age 100, you have never seen anything like this.  Adults fighting about everything and demonstrating some levels of rudeness not seen since the school bussing controversy in the 1970s where people fought in the streets over whether or how to promote integration. Kids can’t understand this.  Why are adults so angry?  From a child’s point of view, we just did the…

Family law blogs are usually not fertile grounds to write about criminal law.  Yet even family lawyers are not immune from situations where our specialty crosses paths with the dark side.  We have previously written about Pennsylvania’s tightly wound wiretap law, which requires that both parties consent before sound is electronically recorded.  Failure to get the consent of the person recorded may be a crime.  18 Pa.C.S. 5701. A recent article in the…

We have recently had inquiries about foreclosures.  Given the current economic climate, this is probably going to become more common.  The good news is that home prices are up, particularly in the Philadelphia suburbs.  But for those who have a house that’s underwater (debt exceeds sales price less commission/transfer taxes) there are things worth knowing. First, what we like to term a “mortgage” is usually two different legal documents.  A mortgage is actually a legal…

Back in March of this year when the first lockdown began, there were news reports of people electing to quarantine together, if for no other reason, than to avoid isolation.  In some instances, it was to give a forming relationship a “test run.” Living together, what my parents’ generation liked to call, “living in sin,” is the new normal.  The pandemic just caused some timetables to be advanced.  Nevertheless, as we know, cohabitation often breeds…