It’s that time of year again for that annual tradition – The New Year’s Resolution. Whether yours is losing weight, quitting smoking, or paying down debt, resolutions typically involve subjects that are unpleasant and sometimes difficult to achieve. In our practice, the most common unpleasant topic that is delayed involves estate planning. Who really wants to discuss guardianship issues of young children in the event of a catastrophic car crash? Or end-of-life issues if one person becomes seriously ill or incapacitated? At Price & Keir, we try to make the process as easy as possible. We have developed a detailed estate planning questionnaire that navigates our clients through the most common issues for persons contemplating an estate plan. The questionnaire not Read More
All posts by Edward G. Price
Does Your Company Have a Sexual Misconduct Policy?
There is no time like the present for companies to review their sexual misconduct policies. The first step in such a review is to take a look at your employee handbook (assuming your company has one). In the handbook, among other things such as vacation and sick time procedures, your company’s sexual misconduct policies and reporting procedures should be clearly explained. It simply isn’t enough for an employer to have a blanket policy prohibiting sexual misconduct in the workplace (which should be a given). You must also have clear procedures for handling workplace harassment claims. What should be included in your policy? -How sexual harassment would be handled within the company. For example, a confidential investigation, no retaliation on the Read More
Renting Out a Room in Your Home? Read This First!
Renting out a room in your house sounds like some easy extra income. And it can be fairly easy, if you take the right precautions. We had someone call us recently. They were a landlord who advertised a room for rent on craigslist. They signed up a tenant, with no background check. Their first mistake. They took a security deposit, but never created a written lease. Their second mistake. Four months later, the tenant is destroying the property and the landlord of course wants them out of their home. And they want them out today. If you do not have a written lease, you have to give your renter up to 60 days’ notice before even beginning the eviction process. 60 Read More
What the Heck is Ground Rent?
According to The People’s Law Library of Maryland, “Ground rent is a periodic monetary payment by a tenant to a ground lease holder who holds a reversionary interest in the property or “ground” underneath a home.” But what does that actually mean in plain English? Basically, for certain properties (most of which are located in Baltimore City), homeowners are required to pay a small sum of money (typically $50.00-$100.00 per year) to a person or company known as the ground rent holder. This concept, which dates back to the 18th Century, still causes confusion to homeowners and mortgage companies unfamiliar with the practice. If it’s that simple, why is it so confusing? Ground rent is an unfamiliar Read More
Trademark Basics
A trademark is a word, name, device, symbol or even a combination of these used to identify one’s goods, the source of the goods, and to distinguish such goods from those of another manufacturer or seller. When one typically thinks of famous trademarks, they might recall Apple Incorporated’s “Apple” logo or the propeller spinning against a blue sky attributable to BMW. These are symbols or icons that we associate with particular products and the qualities that they possess. We all have a basic understanding of what a trademark is; we know one when we see one, but do we know what it takes to infringe on another’s trademark? As I learned more and more about trademark law through my studies, Read More