As long as your dollar amount is less than $15,000 you can file your case in your county magistrate court. This is considered a small claim and something you can handle without hiring an attorney. You will file a complaint which will outline what you are suing the defendant for. ( You are the plaintiff since you are filing the suit, and the person you are suing is the defendant). You will then have the defendant served with the documents you filed with the court. Once the defendant is served, he will have 30 days to file what is called an “answer”, or his response, to what you filed. Thereafter, you will get a court date where you will present your case to the judge. In most cases, the judge will have you and the defendant go into a conference room and try to resolve it or try to make an agreement which the court will enter as final judgment. Of course, if you are not able to work it out, then the judge will rule on the evidence you present.

Filing a small claim is not difficult and you can get guidance as well as the forms you need to file by visiting beyourownattorney.net. You will be in touch with a licensed attorney who will make sure you are comfortable with the entire process. Good luck!

If you Live in The Atlanta Geogia area and you have more questions visit the website of:

Be Your Own Attorney

Many people want to know what a living will is and how to write a living will. A Living Will may also be called a health care directive.

It is a document that allows you to choose who you want to make health care decisions for you if you are incapacitated and cannot make the choices yourself. It varies by state but this person is most often called your health care agent.

In most states, this document also allows you to make health care statements and how to write a living will depends on these laws.

Usually these health care statements are split into two categories.

Your beliefs; and

Your desires for treatment or treatment withheld based on the circumstances.

Here are some common topics you can write about for beliefs.

• Goals for my health care:
• Fears about my health care:
• Spiritual or religious beliefs and traditions
• Beliefs about when life would be no longer worth living:
• Thoughts about how my medical condition might affect my family:

Here are the most common topics for health care desires.

• If I had a reasonable chance of recovery, and were temporarily unable to decide or speak for myself, I would want:
• If I were dying and unable to decide or speak for myself, I would want:
• If I were permanently unconscious and unable to decide or speak for myself, I would want:
• If I were completely dependent on others for my care and unable to decide or speak for myself, I would want:
• In all circumstances, my doctors will try to keep me comfortable and reduce my pain. This is how I feel about pain relief if it would affect my alertness or if it could shorten my life:
• Who I would like to be my doctor:
• Where I would like to live to receive health care:
• Where I would like to die and other wishes I have about dying:
• My wishes about donating parts of my body when I die:
• My wishes about what happens to my body when I die (cremation, burial):

These are the basics on how to write a living will. To make it legal, you will need to sign it either in front of witnesses, have it notarized or possibly both. Each state has specific requirements as to whether you signature needs to be witnessed and or notarized. Please check with your state statutes or an attorney licensed in your state for this detail.

I strongly recommend having a Living Will along with your last Will and Testament. Both can be drafted without an attorney if you conduct a little research.

Robert Olson is the lead attorney at DIY Lawyer [http://www.diylawyer.net/Drafting-Wills-E-Course.html]. A website dedicated to helping people do their own legal work including writing your last will and testament. We offer a FREE 7 day e-course that teaches you how to create a will. Each day you learn about a new section that should be included. You can sign up at DIY Lawyer [http://www.diylawyer.net/Drafting-Wills-E-Course.html].

Author: Robert Olson
Article Source: EzineArticles.com

How to guard against identity theft is one of the most searched for terms online today. Crime statistics show the reason for this, is the alarming ongoing increase of personal ID stealing every day, not just in the U.S., but worldwide. You cannot pick up a newspaper, watch or listen to the radio and T. V. news programs without hearing of someone being ripped off by these thieves. As you continue to read, you will discover some very simple steps which you can take to avoid becoming one of those statistics.

You may not be aware of this but some company’s make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year selling your personal information. That’s right your name, address and phone number are sold to telemarketing companies, insurance companies, credit card companies, to name just a few. That’s why so many people get a lot of junk mail and unsolicited preapproved/prescreened credit card and insurance offers. One of the simplest steps you can take to prevent this is to read through these preapproved/prescreened credit card or insurance offers and look for the opt-out instructions. By following these instructions you will stop getting these preapproved/prescreened offers. Talking about a simple step to prevent I. D. theft, the next one may well be the simplest of all.

On a daily basis you receive junk mail from various vendors and especially credit card companies. It is very easy for you to look at the outside envelope and determine its junk mail and drop it in the trash. You have just made a big mistake. From now on take the step of cutting up or shredding junk mail that has your name, address, social security number and all other forms of your personal information listed.

Another simple tip for how to guard against identity theft is avoid using your mail box to mail bills around the first of the month. Experienced identity thieves know they can steal your check which will provide them with not only your address, your credit card number, bank account number and possibly your social security number. To avoid this opportunity for the thieves to steal, drop your bills in the nearest official government mail box or post office. In addition, if you are computer savvy, many banks make it easy and free to pay your bills on line.

Because of the multiple ways to steal someone’s personal information it can be difficult to be 100% safe. Common sense and following the above, how to guard against identity theft, tips can go a long way in preventing you from becoming one of the 8 million victims of I.D. theft.

For more information about identity theft visit http://identity-theft.resourcesandinfo.net web site dedicated to providing tips on identity theft prevention and identity theft protection.

Author: Bob Cummins
Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Whether we like it or not, we live in a digital world where the security of our personal information is threatened every day. While it’s important to do everything possible to protect yourself, there’s a chance you could fall victim to identity theft. The most important thing you can do in this situation is to report it immediately so that the perpetrator can be punished and you can move on with your life. Fortunately, reporting identity theft is fairly easy:

Inform Your Local Authorities

As soon as you notice that your credit cards have been stolen, or if you find suspicious activity on your bank statements, you’ll need to inform the police. They’ll ask you about the details surrounding your situation and create a report. The police will also do whatever they can to apprehend the perpetrator. In addition, if you receive repeated threatening emails that ask you for sensitive information, it might be a good idea to file a complaint with the FBI.

Inform Your Bank and Credit Lenders

Chances are, you’ve been in a situation where you misplaced a credit card or have lost track of it for a short period of time. While you may feel embarrassed, the first thing you need to do is to call each bank that you received cards from. They will immediately put a stop on all transactions, and issue you cards with all new numbers.

If you actually do find suspicious transactions, you’ll need to call your bank and proceed with filing a report of fraudulent activity. Different banks have different policies on how to deal with these fraudulent charges – so it’s important to be aware of their policies before an emergency. As the digital revolution continues, many banks and credit card lenders are enacting specific policies to protect victims of identity theft – some even offer account monitoring programs designed to catch thieves in the act.

Alert the Social Security Administration

Unfortunately, once someone has access to your banking information, they may also find a way to gain access to your social security number. As a result, it’s crucial to have your social security number changed. Even though this may take a few months to accomplish, you will have peace of mind knowing that you have a new number that has not been compromised. Call the Social Security Administration as soon as you suspect someone has access to your number.

Alert the Department of Motor Vehicles

This is especially important if your driver’s license, registration, or auto insurance information have been compromised. In most cases, the DMV will issue you a new license for a fee. You may also want to ask your auto insurance carrier to issue you a new policy number. While it isn’t easy to use auto insurance policy information for direct monetary gain, it can still be used as supporting documentation of your identity.

Once the confidentiality of your personal information has compromised, it’s very important to notify the appropriate parties to minimize the amount of damage a thief can do. If you have been a victim of identity theft, keep an eye on your credit report for a few months following the event to make sure you’ve put a stop to the thief. The potential for identity theft will always exist in a digital world – especially when the computer hackers out there are smarter than the people working to protect us. Be diligent and be aware and you’ll prevent the worst of identity theft from happening to you.

Learn more about protecting yourself from online identity theft with the FREE Computer Safety Pro e-Course! Enroll now at [http://www.ComputerSafetyPro.com]

Author: Sarah Russell
Article Source: EzineArticles.com

How to write your own will is a very good question.  Before people ask me this question though, I get asked should I write my own will.  From my fifteen years of experience as an estate planning attorney and even though it may take clients away, I generally say you can write your own will if you meet certain guidelines.  If you do fall within these guidelines, then you can proceed to learn how to write your own will.

These guidelines are:

• You own property in only one state.  Owning property in more than one state does not prevent you from writing your own will, you just need to know that it will trigger a probate in each state.  It may be advantageous from a post death cost perspective, both dollars and time, to talk with an attorney to determine if there is a better way than using a will for your estate planning tool.
• Your total estate value is under $2,000,000.00 including life insurance death benefit proceeds.  This number is the federal estate tax threshold.  It is set to increase to $3,500,000.00 on January 1, 2009.  If your estate is greater than this you will need to incorporate strategies to minimize or eliminate this tax, unless you like paying taxes.  I suggest you talk with an attorney because this tax rate can be as high as 45%.
• You are willing to put in a little time learning what goes into a good will.  I recommend this because I do not think using software or an internet based will is a good route to go because of the limited capabilities of these products and the fact that you probably will not understand the finished product.

Your alternative to writing your own will is to pay an attorney hundreds and thousands of dollars.  To learn how to write your own will, look for free information on the internet.  Caveat: Make sure this information comes from an attorney with experience.

Author: Robert Olson
Article Source: EzineArticles.com