Bob is a licensed New Jersey attorney at law and is supported by Kathy, an experienced paralegal. Bob provides individuals and small businesses with advice and legal representation in the areas of:
We are participating members of five employer-provided
legal services plans. Members of these plans get covered legal services
at no cost. Midwest Legal Services, now known as ARAG
Group is the carrier for companies such as Kraft General Foods,
Microsoft, and Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG). Prudential
Legal Care, now Signature Care provides coverage for employees of Prudential,
FMC, United Parcel Service, Sears, Engelhard, and Northrop Grumman. Hyatt
Legal Plan covers employees of AT&T(non-mgmt), Lucent Technologies,
Pitney Bowes, and Nabisco . LawPoint covers General Electric employees, and LegalWise covers AT&T management employees.
Valuable Links
If you are looking for legal information including recent New Jersey
legal cases, Rutgers Law Library
is
a great site.
Bob represents small businesses in industries such as consulting, construction, ballroom dancing, printing & graphics, radio broadcasting (visit WTBQ Radio ), and computer products and services.
Our services include:
Limited Liability Companies
New Jersey enacted legislation to permit the formation of Limited Liability
Corporations (LLC) which combine some of the best features of corporations
and limited partnerships. Recent changes now permit a one-person LLC. This
may be a good choice for a self-employed consultant or professional. Information
on LLC's is at www.corporate.com
. Click on " Everything You Need To Know" then "Types of Corporations".
CAUTION: This is NOT a New Jersey-specific site. Each state has some differences.
Bob provides individuals and small businesses with legal services involving negotiation and settlement of tax-related problems with the Internal Revenue Service and State of New Jersey.
We represent clients in Debtor/Creditor problems including debt workouts and collection of business debts.
The Bankruptcy Law changes of October 2005 severely restricts bankruptcies. We can still give you advice and recommend a bankruptcy specialist.
Chapter 7 bankruptcy for an individual or small business involves a complete discharge of most debts and a "fresh start". Unfortunately, the debtor cannot keep much of value. A house with significant equity must be sold. This type of bankruptcy is most suitable where most of your debt is owed to unsecured creditors such as credit card companies, doctors or hospitals, or stores. Some debts, such as taxes, fines, child support, and student loans are not discharged in bankruptcy. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy is usually faster and cheaper than a Chapter 13 bankruptcy.
Chapter 13 bankruptcy is essentially a long-term payoff plan in which
the debtor keeps his house and pays off most debts to some degree over
3 to 5 years. You will have to live on a Court-supervised budget for several
years. You must be a "wage earner" with a "regular income".
Real estate legal services also include landlord/ tenant problems, and mortgage foreclosures.
We can provide guidance on investment realty management and the tax consequences of real estate transactions.
If you are considering buying a home or refinancing your present real
estate, visit please contact us.
Every adult who owns something should have a Will. Bob provides his clients with advice concerning guardianship and trusts for children, death tax issues, and "what if" problems. He then generates their Wills.
When you consider getting a Will, you should also think about getting documents to protect you if you become seriously incapacitated. These are a Durable Power of Attorney (someone can handle your financial affairs), a Health Care Representative Appointment ( someone can determine medical care if you can't), and a Living Will (right to die).
If your net worth is over $ 2,000,000 you should consider a Family Trust, Credit Shelter Trust, or Revocable Living Trust. Working with your trust company, Bob can create the necessary trust documents to minimize the heavy Estate Tax burden.
If you are responsible for someone with special needs( such as handicapped or incompetent), Bob can create the Special Needs Trust documents to insure that they receive full public assistance and still retain their trust proceeds.
Lastly, at time of death, Bob can help the family deal with the issues
of estate administration and Probate.
Our Family Law practice concerns Adoption, DYFS, and Matrimonial matters.
Bob handles New Jersey agency (DYFS) and step-parent adoptions.
Divorce and it's issues of custody, support, and equitable distribution need not be a "War of the Roses". Bob can help settle the issues by providing advice, guidance, and understanding through the legal process.
Bob is a Court-approved Family Law Mediator. In mediation, he does not represent either person, but instead works as a neutral facilitator to help the husband and wife reach an acceptable settlement. This greatly reduces the legal costs to both parties.
Some cases do not need formal mediation. If the parties have substantially
agreed, we can reduce costs. See
Mediator or Attorney .
Bob volunteers some of his time and expertise to serve as a Public
Defender on Child Abuse and Neglect (DYFS) cases. He also handles DYFS cases for parents, grandparents, and relatives on a private basis. His experience in family
law enables him to help resolve the difficult issues of foster care, custody,
and parenting.
Bob provides services at very low rates to a number of nonprofit organizations, including churches, theater groups, trade associations, community associations, and youth recreation associations.
We provide:
Contact us if you would like our guidelines for setting up an exempt organization.
One of our most cherished clients is The New Hope Baptist Church of the City of Newark in Newark, NJ. This inner city church is a shining example of the power of faith and community spirit. With 4000 parishioners, 3 services every Sunday, and broadcasting on two radio stations, New Hope's choir has been the early training ground for Whitney Houston and Dianne Carroll. Dr. Emily Cissy Houston , Whitney's mother, has been the Minister of Music for 40 years. New Hope operates a day care center, a food and clothing ministry, a subsidized housing project, and a charter elementary school.
In the early 80's, Bob provided legal services to structure and close
a $ 1,100,000 mortgage with a consortium of Newark banks to allow New Hope
to build a magnificent new church. Kathy and Bob are proud to provide legal
and tax services to the church, it's day care center, and it's subsidized
housing project in Newark and to help them achieve their vision for the
new millennium.
Bob also provides legal services and advice to our own Rockaway Presbyterian
Church in Rockaway, NJ and the Rockaway Food Closet, Inc.
We also represent theNew Jersey
Museum of Transportation, which operates the Pine Creek Railroad, Allegro
Productions theatre group, and are doing work for the NJIT Enterprise Development Center ,a small business incubator.