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Real Estate and Mortgage Law |
Our managing partner, Adam Klauber, and his associates represent buyers and sellers in all aspects of real estate transactions, including the purchase, sale and leasing of residential and commercial real estate. As part of our representation of a buyer, we educate those clients about their mortgage options to help them make informed loan decisions. We will deal directly with your lender or, if you don’t have one, we can draw on a network of mortgage brokerages with which we have established relationships. Our experience will help ensure that you obtain competitive interest rates without paying excessive fees commonly associated with mortgage loans. One of our real estate lawyers will act as your closing agent so you can be sure that every detail has been addressed and you can also be certain that you’ll have a lawyer present at your closing. Buying or selling real estate is a complicated process that requires the watchful eye of an experienced real estate lawyer. We provide that service and absent any unusual circumstances, there is no additional charge for it. |
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| Corporate Law |
Klauber & Shields assists many large and small corporate clients in a variety of transactions, including the formation of a corporate entity, corporate dissolution, business asset purchases, contract drafting and interpretation, drafting and negotiation of commercial leases, partnership and shareholder agreements, employment agreements and stock transfers. We take pride in paying meticulous attention to every detail involved in making business transactions run smoothly. In any corporate transaction, our focus is to address every detail so that we get it right the first time. |
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Short Sales and Foreclosure Defense
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Since the modern real estate and economic downturn began, new and existing clients have come to us in numbers all saying virtually the same thing: I am upside down in my property, my lender is foreclosing, and I am not sure what to do. The good news is that you have options that many people are not aware of. With more than a decade of experience in real estate, title insurance, civil litigation, and collections we have a unique ability to implement a comprehensive strategy in each case. Our knowledge of the law related to real estate finance and title issues is what gives our clients a distinct advantage. We identify all of the issues that need to be addressed and we understand the mentality of creditors and the lawyers that represent them.
Important Points About Short Sales
1. Collection of the remaining balance / tax consequences - Negotiating a short sale requires that we communicate with your lender or lenders in order to negotiate a discounted loan balance due to your economic or financial hardship. If you can find a buyer for your home, it may be possible to get the lender to agree to satisfy the mortgage for less than the outstanding balance. With this arrangement, you must be aware that the lender will not always forgive the remaining balance of the debt unless that term is specifically negotiated with the lender. Frequently, they will require either a reaffirmation of the remaining debt, a payment plan to get it paid off, or both. Even when the debt is forgiven, there may be tax consequences that should be addressed with a CPA before you agree to a short sale.
2. Maintain realistic expectations – There are currently no programs in place that compel a lender to negotiate your loan balance, nor is there any legal theory that would require them to do so. The lender is making a decision based, in part, on whether or not allowing the short sale will result in a smaller financial loss than foreclosure.
3. Know your goals and communicate them to us - You may have certain goals at the time you retain us and it is possible (and even likely) that those goals change over the course of the case. In addition to negotiating a short sale, there are three other general goals when facing a problem meeting your current mortgage obligations:
• Keep the Home – this requires a plan to get current on the mortgage and an agreement by the Lender to work with you in that regard.
• Mortgage Modification – Lenders can not currently be forced to renegotiate a loan. Modification may result as part of the process of defending a foreclosure, but banks are increasingly less cooperative in that regard. This is especially so if you are seeking a reduction in the principal amount of your loan.
• Stay in the home and defend the foreclosure – The foreclosure defense process has many possibilities. It is likely that a foreclosure case will move more slowly if it is properly defended and that may give you the time you need to make future plans or find a buyer for the property. In some cases the foreclosure case may be dismissed (albeit temporarily) but keeping the home without the burden of any debt is highly unlikely if not impossible. If that is your goal, we will decline to represent you.
3. If you do not pay off your loan, you will likely lose the property - While we will aggressively negotiate for a short sale to the best of our ability, no one knows the precise method by which your lender will make its determination and, therefore, we can’t predict the outcome with any reasonable degree of certainty. If you do not come to an agreement with the Lender or continue to make mortgage payments, the lender will eventually file for foreclosure of your mortgage. Our acceptance of your case is in no way a guarantee or representation that your request for a short sale will be granted.
Important Points About Defending a Foreclosure
1. Maintain realistic expectations – There are currently no programs in place that compel a lender to renegotiate your loan, nor is there any legal theory that would allow you to completely free yourself of your mortgage debt and keep your property at the same time. There are, however legal procedures that a lender must follow in order to obtain a foreclosure and our goal is make sure that they have adhered to all of those procedures and that they are required to properly prove their case before obtaining a judgment against you.
2. Know your goals and communicate them to us - You may have certain goals at the time you retain us and it is possible (and even likely) that those goals change over the course of the case. There are four basic goals when facing foreclosure:
• Keep the Home – this requires a plan to get current on the mortgage and an agreement by the Lender to work with you in that regard.
• Short Sale – If you can find a buyer for your home, it may be possible to get the lender to agree to satisfy the mortgage for less than the outstanding balance. With this arrangement, you must be aware that the lender will not always forgive the remaining balance of the debt. Frequently, they will require either a reaffirmation of the remaining debt, a payment plan to get it paid off, or both. Even when the debt is forgiven, there may be tax consequences that should be addressed with a CPA before you agree to a short sale.
• Mortgage Modification – Lenders can not currently be forced to renegotiate a loan. Modification may result as part of the process of defending your foreclosure, but banks are increasingly less cooperative in that regard. This is especially so if you are seeking a reduction in the principal amount of your loan.
• Stay in the home and defend the foreclosure – This foreclosure defense process has many possibilities. It is likely that your foreclosure case will move more slowly if it is properly defended and that may give you the time you need to make future plans or find a buyer for the property. In some cases the foreclosure case may be dismissed (albeit temporarily) but keeping the home without the burden of any debt is highly unlikely if not impossible. If that is your goal, we must decline to represent you.
3. If you do not pay off your loan, you will likely lose the property - While we will aggressively defend you to the best of our ability, if you do not pay off the loan encumbering your property or come to some other agreement with the Lender, you are likely to lose your property at the end of the foreclosure process. Our acceptance of your case is in no way a guarantee or representation that your property will be saved. |
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| Family Law/Family Law Mediation |
Klauber & Shields represents clients in family law matters including dissolution of marriage, child custody and visitation issues, child support disputes, child adoption, and – when necessary – the procurement of restraining orders to protect children and adults endangered by domestic violence, and to enforce court decisions. Our family law practice, under the leadership of firm partner Johanna Saxton Shields, boasts the combination of an aggressive approach, with an ever-vigilant eye toward the constant protection and ultimate welfare of the innocent victims of family law disputes – the children. We are always focused on the end result because in family law cases it is not uncommon for the parties to exhaust their financial resources fighting over money, which effectively does nothing for anyone other than the lawyers involved in the case. |
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| Criminal Defense |
Klauber & Shields protects the rights of those clients arrested and accused of misdemeanor and felony offenses ranging from minor traffic infractions to driving under the influence, drug possession and sales, theft, and grand larceny. We understand the stress inherent in any criminal prosecution and, therefore, strive to educate our clients on applicable law, explain our analysis of a particular case, and help to make the decisions that minimize clients’ exposure to undue prosecution or unnecessary expense. |
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| Landlord – Tenant Disputes and Evictions |
Klauber & Shields represents clients in commercial and residential real estate eviction actions and disputes between landlords and tenants. We represent both commercial real estate companies in disputes with their tenants, and tenants – both residential and commercial – who are threatened with eviction by landlords. State and local laws regarding landlord-tenant disputes are very specific, and require strict compliance. We take pride in knowing how the law can work to our client’s benefit and, whenever possible, work to educate our clients so that they may avoid similar disputes in the future. |
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Family Law Mediation
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Personal Injury |
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Klauber & Shields represents clients who have been injured as a result of someone else’s negligence. We handle all aspects of the personal injury matter, from the initial insurance claim through settlement negotiations with insurance companies, to lawsuits in Circuit Civil Court, when necessary. Accidents that result in serious injury will involve complex legal issues. Insurance companies can delay or, in some cases, be unresponsive to your claims. Since those companies have high-priced lawyers on retainer, the playing field is not level for an individual trying to negotiate a claim. Our job is to remove that burden from you by using our knowledge and experience to help you get just compensation for your injuries.
Klauber & Shields has successfully litigated cases involving bodily injury sustained in auto accidents and slip-and-fall accidents, and has fought insurance companies for wrongful denial of benefits (including personal injury protection and uninsured/underinsured motorist protection). Our personal injury practice works to effect payment of clients’ outstanding medical bills for accident-related care, negotiates medical balances not paid by insurance, and interfaces with medical billing services and creditors to help preserve your credit rating. |
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COMMON QUESTIONS AND OTHER THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW IF YOU HAVE
BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT
What do I do if I have been injured in an accident?
THE TOP 5 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW
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Call 911. If you leave the scene without contacting the police, it may be more difficult to prove how the accident occurred and who was at fault. Cooperate fully with the police, explain the situation to the officer completely and ask that they prepare a report. We will be able to obtain a copy of that report for you and it may be critical to proving your case.
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Get medical attention immediately if you have any reason to believe that you might need it. We know from experience that many people don’t feel the effects of an accident for days, weeks or months after it has occurred. If your head or other parts of your body suffered an impact, you should be examined by a doctor immediately. A doctor will be able to determine the extent of your injuries, document those injuries and advise you on the need for follow-up care.
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Do not speak to the insurance company or any investigator who works for the person at fault – These people, and in some cases even your own insurance company, are NOT looking out for your best interests. Avoid discussing anything with them, because you are not required to do so and, in most cases, it won’t help your case.
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Gather as much information as you can about the accident – names, places, dates, times and photos are all good things to collect right away. Pictures of the accident including the vehicles and the scene are important and pictures of any visible injuries or bruising are also helpful.
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Call a lawyer to assess your case and give you details on what you can do right away to preserve your rights – this step is critical. To learn more about your case and determine if it is one that we are able to help you with, please contact Klauber & Shields by phone at 954-424-9666, or online so that we can help you understand the law and evaluate your claim. If you respond using our online contact form, a lawyer will call you right away, typically within an hour.
Do I have to pay to talk to a lawyer?
No. There is never any fee to talk to us and hear our opinion about your case. In fact, even if we take your case, you don’t pay us anything unless we recover something for you. If we don’t recover anything for you, you pay us nothing.
Do I have to report the accident to my insurance company if it wasn’t my fault?
Yes. Regardless of whose fault it was, the accident should be reported to your insurance company as soon as possible. We do, however, prefer that you talk with us before discussing the details with anyone. Also, remember that you have no obligation to talk with the other party’s insurance company. If they call you, the best thing to do is take their information and then contact us before doing anything else. It is perfectly proper to tell them that you are seeking the advice of a lawyer and that you prefer not to speak about the accident until you talk to your lawyer.
What is a Personal Injury case?
“Personal Injury” is a term that covers a lot of things. Generally, it refers to a situation in which harm was caused to a person by the negligent or intentional acts of another. It includes car accidents, slip and fall accidents, workplace accidents, wrongful death claims and injuries that result from a defective product, just to name a few. When a person or entity is found to be legally responsible for injuring another person they may be made to pay for the damages they have caused. There are typically two kinds of damages that we may recover. The first, and most common, are compensatory damages, which are meant to compensate you for your actual losses and attempt to put you back in the position that you were in before you got injured. The second kind of damages is punitive damages, which are meant to punish the wrongdoer and deter them from similar conduct in the future.
Why should I retain a lawyer?
You should retain a lawyer because the insurance company will not necessarily offer you the money that you deserve and, in some cases, they won’t offer you anything at all. An insurance adjuster can try to find ways to claim that there is no coverage under the policy or that your claimed injuries are not as severe as stated or that they don’t exist at all. Their job is to pay nothing, or as little as possible on every claim and they are trained to do exactly that. Remember that their top priority is to make sure that the insurance company makes money by paying out as little as possible on each claim. It isn’t fair, but that’s how it works and our job is to make sure that doesn’t happen to you. We have to properly demonstrate that the insured party was at fault and, using medical evidence, that your injuries are real and worthy of compensation.
What does insurance cover?
Insurance may cover a lot more than you think. Below is a list of the items that we can try to recover on your behalf and a brief explanation of each one.
- Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Coverage – In Florida, every driver with an automobile must have PIP coverage. In most cases, PIP covers 80% of your medical bills and 60% of lost wages up to $10,000 regardless of who was at fault. Because Florida is a no-fault state, Florida Law requires that you carry a minimum of $10,000 of PIP if you own a vehicle in Florida. In some cases, the driver who hit you may not have enough insurance coverage to properly compensate you for your injuries. In those cases, uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage may pay additional amounts to cover those injures.
- Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist (UM) Coverage - Underinsured and uninsured motorist coverage protects drivers when the other driver either doesn't have enough auto insurance or none at all. UM insurance is especially good to have in Florida as the state does not require motorists to carry bodily injury coverage. Many people in South Florida travel with no bodily injury protection or only $10,000 in coverage. If one of those people causes an accident, it may be difficult or impossible to recover more than the $10,000 no matter how severe your injures are. In such case, you can rely on a UM policy to pay for the damages that exceed to policy of the party at fault.
- Medical Payments Coverage – Aside from PIP, which can pay all or a portion of your medical bills, you may also have separate coverage for medical bills (Med Pay). If so, that part of your policy will cover related medical expenses with no deductible.
- Health Insurance – If you have health insurance, it may be useful in covering the parts of your medical care that PIP doesn’t cover. Your health insurance should cover the 20% of your medical bills that PIP doesn’t cover and it should pay for any care over the $10,000 PIP limit once the PIP coverage is used up.
- Lost Wages – Your PIP coverage will pay up to 60% of your lost wages if you have that particular coverage. Most people have it, but if you don’t know to ask for it, the insurance company may not tell you.
- Property Damage Claims – If you have been in an accident that was severe enough to cause injuries, there is a good possibility that you have some damage to your property (most likely your vehicle). If you go through your own insurance to get it fixed, you will have to pay a deductible and you may not have coverage for a rental car. For those reasons, it is important that you look to the policy of the driver at fault to repair your vehicle and get you one to drive while those repairs are being done.
- Prescriptions –100% reimbursement.
How do I select a doctor that has familiarity with accident cases?
There is no specific type of doctor or specialty that focuses on accident cases, but there are a lot of doctors that regularly treat accident victims. You are free to select a doctor of your choice, but we can provide you with some recommendations if you don’t already have someone to treat with. If we make a recommendation and you chose one or more of those doctors that does not mean that we have any control over your medical treatment. We do not make suggestions about your treatment to any doctors nor do we recommend any doctor based on the type of care he or she is likely to suggest. If we take your case, there is no requirement that you must use a certain doctor and we only recommend one if you ask us to. One of the things that you can ask us about is whether or not we can recommend a doctor that will work on a Letter of Protection (LOP). An LOP is our promise to the doctor that in exchange for providing your care while the case is pending with us, we will make sure that they get paid from the proceeds of a settlement, if there is one at the conclusion of the case.
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