Wolves at Last Resort's Door

Shredding Day

2008-07-16T13:41:00.008-05:00

I just got back to the office from my "storage facility," where it took a truck from Shred-N-Go about 15 minutes to chew up 1,204 pounds of old files. Most of that was from the 1990s, although I did throw in a few things from as recent as 2002. OK, maybe even a few things from 2003 that I was sure were not worth saving. About a fourth of it was my own old financial and billing records.

I am feeling some emotions about seeing that stuff go. At the time that I generated those files, they were top priority in my life. I practically sweat blood over some of them. They represented skill, art, valuable lessons; important help provided to many people, whose lives were improved as a result. I believe I practically walked on water in a few of those cases, and perhaps performed a few near miracles. Or so it seemed at the time. And of course in a few of the cases, notwithstanding my best efforts, everything seemed to turn to crap.

I feel a certain sadness about it I suppose. Also relief.

The paper files are not nearly as important as they used to be. The fact is that I still have electronic copies of most of the paper I shredded on a disk or portable hard drive. All bankruptcy documents are available on line going back at least ten years. A summary of what's in the state court files is available on line too.

Last time I did this was five years ago. That would mean that on average I generate about 240.8 pounds of paperwork per year. I wonder what the cost of the printer ink for all this is. No wonder my office supply cost is so high. In the next life will I meet the angry ghosts of all the trees I am responsible for killing?

Bankruptcy Petition Filed in Bad Faith

2008-07-09T10:56:00.005-05:00

Can't help myself. I have to share this.

I'm on an email list where I get all sorts of updates concerning bankruptcy law. My email this morning brought me news of a North Carolina bankruptcy court decision where the case was dismissed as having been brought in bad faith. What was the bad faith?

It seems that the petitioner, a woman who had just finished a divorce process, was filing the petition in bankruptcy primarily to make her attorney fees for the divorce go away. Through the divorce process she had obtained exempt assets in excess of $250,000 in value; and the lawyer's bill was about $42,000; but the lawyer had already expressed a willingness to settle for $20,000.

The court appears to have reasoned that as this person went ahead with her contentious divorce, the lawyer had a reasonable expectation to be paid from the "equitable distribution recovery" of assets in the divorce case, and the filing of bankruptcy right after the divorce was in bad faith.

This is an example of what I hear referred to as the "smell test." There is probably no specific provision in the bankruptcy code that says you can't list your attorney fee bill in a bankruptcy right after the divorce. But under these particular circumstances, the bankruptcy court judge clearly did not like the way it smelled.

I have had several clients who have listed attorney fees in their bankruptcy petitions. However, that was not the only debt they had and that was not the reason why they filed. In addition, there had been a respectable period of time that had passed since the divorce was final; and it would have been something my client felt bad about and only listed because my advice was that all debts had to be listed.

Typically I find that my clients are very reluctant to list a debt that was for a personal service, where they have a relationship with the provider of the service. They really hate to list their doctor, dentist or plumber. If they need a bankruptcy, however, there's no choice. All debts must be listed.

Another Drunk Driving Crack Down

2008-07-01T15:18:00.002-05:00

Today's Star Tribune reports - as is often the case right before a major holiday - that starting today and continuing through the month of July there will be extra law enforcement on the roads and streets of this State specifically looking for drunk drivers. I recommend that you take a look at the full story. There's information there about a new "safe and sober" web site that the state has put up as well.

Creeping Debt and Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Debt Limits

2008-06-28T13:04:00.004-05:00

Not long ago it seemed that $20,000 of credit card debt was a lot. I would file a bankruptcy for a person who had that without giving it a second thought. Now, however, as things go in my world, that's not a lot of debt for most people. Unless the debtor is sick, disabled or hopelessly low income, I would be reluctant to file for someone with such a small debt.

What's happening is that I rarely see anyone who's not more than $50,000 in debt, and over $100,000 of consumer credit card debt is common. Once the total of the debt tops $100,000 I tend to ignore how much higher it goes, as my software keeps a running tally of the total. The fact is that for me, and I'm afraid for the whole country, the amount of credit card debt that seems normal is creeping steadily upward.

So the other day when I was reading my mail on a bankruptcy lawyer listserve, I had a bit of a start. One of the emails reminded me that for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, there is a limit as to how much debt one is allowed to have. I quickly pulled out the most recent Chapter 13 I had filed and checked the balances of the debts, to make sure we had not exceeded the legal limit. Up until that moment it never occurred to me that one day someone will probably walk into my office with consumer debts in excess of the Chapter 13 limits. All of a sudden, those limits don't seem as high to me as they used to. A lawyer who files a case where the limits are exceeded is subject to sanctions. If I did that it could cost me thousands of dollars. I must start paying more attention to those limits.

In order to qualify for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the person's secured debt must not exceed $1,010,650 and the unsecured debt must not exceed $336,900. The way things are going right now, I would not be surprised to meet someone within the next week whose debts are over those limits. From my perspective the current economic downturn has been frightening and unbelievable.

I don't mean to imply that I have never met a person with debts that high. Back in the early 1980s, during a serious recession we had in those years, I did a Chapter 7 bankruptcy for a real estate developer who had gone out of business and who had millions of dollars in debt. There's no limit to the amount of debt you can run through a Chapter 7. I have also done Chapter 7 work for small business owners who's debts would have exeeded the Chapter 13 limits.

But now people I see with consumer debt are actually starting to push those Chapter 13 limits, and that is something I have never seen before.

Burnt Out License Plate Light and DWI

2008-06-11T20:23:00.004-05:00

Recently I had a case where the reason the officer stopped my client was a non functioning license plate light. The only problem was that the light in fact was working, and there was a witness to that fact besides my client.

I got excited. I had gotten arrests thrown out for similar reasons in the past. I thought this one would be easy. Naturally, I dug into the case law looking for the case that would say I win. To my surprise, what I found was the opposite. This past January the Minnesota Court of Appeals said, if I was reading it right, that if the officer THOUGHT that the light was out, the stop was valid even if the light was actually working. What kind of deal was that?

It seems the police can stop you for a perceived equipment violation, even if they are mistaken about whatever it is. Once they have you stopped, if they find you have been drinking, you get a DWI ticket; and it makes no difference if you can show later that your equipment was fine. The bottom line is that there is no sure way to not get caught if you are drinking and driving. Being careful isn't good enough. There's no way you can possibly control all the factors that might lead to a stop and an arrest. The only answer is to just not do it.

I have suspected for some time that there are officers who stop drivers because they just have a feeling that something is not right. Then later they make up something to legally justify the stop. On one hand I suppose you could say that these are good officers and a value to the community. But I really think that they should be required to stay truthful and not just be making up stories.

Bankruptcy and DWI, Judge Arrested

2008-06-03T11:37:00.005-05:00

I have been practicing bankruptcy law and DWI defense for some time now, and it always seems a bit difficult to explain why those two areas of the law seem to mesh for me. So when I saw a story about a bankruptcy judge being arrested for DWI, I woke up and took notice.

Massachusetts bankruptcy judge Robert Somma won't be returning to his job. Why? He has "agreed" to leave his job to pursue other endeavors. Seems he has been off work since his arrest for DWI in February. When I first read the headline I was surprised, because lots of public officials get DWIs. At least one of the Hennepin County judges currently on the bench has received a DWI while in office. They have to take their punishment, but they are not removed from their jobs.

There were other complications in Judge Somma's case, however. Seems that when he was arrested, he was wearing a dress. That in itself, while a bit unusual, doesn't seem to be justification for losing his job either. Apparently he was a good judge and well liked by those who practiced in his courtroom. There's nothing illegal or unethical about wearing a dress that I know of, although I suppose I have to concede that it could have been inappropriate.

Here's a link to the Boston Globe story.

"Click It or Ticket" May Mobilization: May 19 to June 1st

2008-05-24T14:19:00.005-05:00

This holiday weekend and for the rest of this week, there is once again enhanced law enforcement on our streets and highways in Minnesota. This time the emphasis is "designated nighttime seat belt enforcement periods to prevent unbelted deaths ..."

This "Click It or Ticket" mobilization program is one of a series of "Safe and Sober" mobilizations which has been in progress for the last few years. It is specifically aimed at looking for belt non-use and for improper child seat use.

The bottom line, however, is that for the next few days there will be extra law enforcement on the roads. Whenever this happens I know it's time for me to stay close to my phone. My office phone is forwarded to my cell, and I'll be answering that all this weekend. I just got back from a nice trip to Hollywood, so I don't' feel bad about staying in town this weekend.

If you hear from someone who has just been stopped or arrested, you might want to do a quick review of the tips I have posted on my First Arrest First Aid page. I wrote up the materials on that page after receiving a call one night from another lawyer who had a client who had just been arrested. This other lawyer did no criminal defense work at all, and wanted to pick my brain about what to tell his client, who he had on the other line. Before that call I had assumed that there was no use writing that topic up on my site, because someone who has just been arrested would not have web access. Since then I have heard from several spouses and parents who have referred to the contents of that page over the phone when they were called by a family member who was in police custody.

With the onset of cell phone web access, I guess a person could access that page directly after being arrested. Nobody has reported to me that they have done that, however, at least not yet.

Out of the office until May 21st.

2008-05-14T15:31:00.008-05:00

I'm am on my way to Hollywood. That's where the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys is having a big three day seminar. I'll be gone between May 15th and May 20th. I'll be back in the office on the morning of Wednesday May 21st.

I wish I could say I was going to be on American Idol, but that's not it. There are things I can learn at this seminar that would be hard to find anywhere else. What it comes down to is that I can't afford to not go. The law of bankruptcy has been in a hard to track state of flux since the new legislation became effective in late 2005. It seems that every few days a judicial decision turns up that changes the landscape. I need all the help I can get in keeping up with this stuff.

Of course, I am planning on seeing a few sights as well. I'm allowing one day in the trip just for that. Right now I would say that the beach could be a priority.

So email me or leave me a message. I will probably be checking my email. I no longer travel without my laptop. The wireless Internet for the hotel where I'll be did get a poor review, but I expect I'll figure it out. I'll be returning my calls on Wednesday, May 21st.

Debtor Audits in Bankruptcy Cases Resume Today

2008-05-12T16:59:00.004-05:00

My email today brought me a notice that the U.S. Trustee's office is resuming debtor audits as of today. They stopped in January because Congress didn't fund it.

An audit in this context involves the U.S. Trustee's office hiring an outside accounting firm to go over the debtor's records. Previously the policy was that one in 250 cases would randomly be audited. Now the policy is one in a thousand will be audited. That's a 400% improvement, but I'm still sad to see this stuff starting again.

Minnesota Bankruptcy: The Income Limits

2008-05-10T23:38:00.006-05:00

Since the passage of the "new law" in October of 2005, there have been rules based on level of income about who can file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. Unless you are at or below the median income for the State of Minnesota based upon your family size, you can only file a Chapter 7 if you pass the so-called means test. The means test is a whole other topic, which I will have to deal with some other time. For now, however, here's a video I posted recently on Youtube where I discuss the median income levels for Minnesota by household size.

The numbers are subject to change every few months, but I have them posted on my site on my Chapter 7 page under the subheading of "Qualifying for Chapter 7 in Minnesota."

David J. Kelly, Attorney
Kelly Law Office
1013 Ford Rd.
Minnetonka, MN 55305
952-544-6356
http://www.mn-bankruptcy.com/
http://www.mn-dwi.com/
http://www.kelly-law.com/

Bloviating about Short Sales on Youtube

2008-05-04T14:39:00.003-05:00

The topic of short sales is hard to understand, and also hard to explain. In this video I spoke without a script, which I think was a mistake. I was trying to be clear, but I don't think I got close to that goal. If I would have written a script first, it would have read about like what follows.

The term "short sale" can mean that:

1) The mortgage company will accept less than full payment and will release both the property and the debtors from the remaining balance of the debt; or

2)The mortgage company will accept less than full payment of the debt, will release the property from the mortgage, but will NOT release the individual debtors from the remaining unpaid balance of the debt.

I hear from lots of people who are trying to do a short sale, but don't know which one they are trying to do or which one they want to do. The first kind leaves you in the clear, but the second variety brings you into my office in need of a bankruptcy.Most short sales are of the second variety, and they are worse than just doing nothing and letting the bank foreclose. Worse yet, often the realtors and mortgage companies involved in these transactions seem to purposely keep the sellers/debtors in the dark as to exactly what kind of deal it is.

If you are doing a short sale, you better consult an accountant about the tax consequences. Under certain circumstances, the amount of the debt forgiveness can be taxable income.This video and these comments are for general information purposes only and are not intended to be legal advice. Viewing these materials does not create an attorney-client relationship. I recommend that you consult the attorney of your choice concerning the details of your case.

David J. Kelly
Kelly Law Office
952-544-6356
http://www.mn-bankruptcy.com/

Out for Blood in Dakota County

2008-05-03T15:59:00.007-05:00

I just got off the phone with a gentleman who was arrested for DWI in Hastings, which of course is in Dakota County, Minnesota. The police had asked him to take either a blood test or urine test, but he refused. He asked for a breath test, but the police would not give him that.

I explained that I have heard that the judges in Dakota County for the most part have stopped accepting breath test results, at least when asked to throw out the evidence in a proper motion. So now the police in that county have stopped offering breath testing, at least that is what I am hearing from my contacts.

The Dakota County judges - or many of them at least - have lost faith in the reliability of the breath test, because the manufacturer of the machine has refused to produce the computer programming source code. In my opinion they are right to do this. Without that code, nobody really knows how the machine works. The law seems to be way up in the air over this, which is why there is so much variation from judge to judge and county to county.

Here in Hennepin County, where I do most of my work, however, about 90% of the judges still put their faith in that breath machine. As a result, I find myself very reluctant to jump into the fray - since there is a high probability that after laughing at me, the next emotion the judge will express will be anger. I have been telling my clients that we can try doing that if they want to, but here in this county it is probably not that good of a gamble. My fee would be high, and the odds are better at Mystic Lake.

The gentleman I just spoke with is now charged with refusing the test. This is a gross misdemeanor - more serious than the usual first offense DWI - and with this comes a one year revocation of his driver's license.

I'm just putting this out here as a warning. If arrested for DWI in Dakota County, and perhaps elsewhere now in Minnesota too, you are more likely than ever to be offered a blood test but not a breath test. My understanding is that refusing the test under those circumstances is the same as refusing a breath test when that is offered. If it happens to you, take the test. You would also be well advised to have an additional test taken at your own expense.

I am watching the development of this issue as closely as I can . Right now the State of Minnesota is suing the manufacturer, and the manufacturer has counter-sued the State. The State in this case is also the customer. My Dad used to say that the customer is always right, but I guess that manufacturer doesn't fee that way.

David J. Kelly
Kelly Law Office
952-544-6356
http://www.mn-dwi.com

Youtube Video Bankruptcy Update Part IV

2008-04-25T21:00:00.003-05:00

Rambling in front of the video camera the other day, it was not long before I got on the subject of how unethical, illegal, fraudulent and criminal it is to attempt charging attorney fees for a bankruptcy on a credit card - with the intent of getting rid of the credit card debt in that bankruptcy. If you run up a debt intending to list it in a bankruptcy, that is fraud. It can be grounds to have a particular debt not discharged in your case; or it could be grounds to have the entire bankruptcy thrown out. Worse yet, it's fraud and could be prosecuted as a felony. Here's what I said about it on Youtube:

Walking with a friend and mentor

2008-04-18T21:22:00.005-05:00

Yesterday I got a call from my office-mate and friend Emanuel Serstock. He's a former Minneapolis Assistant City Attorney, a former Ramsey County Assistant County Attorney, and a former Assistant Hennepin County Public Defender. We call him "Em."

Em knows that I try to go for a good long walk most days, and that I have my favorite places to do this. In particular, he knows that I like to go to the Westwood Hills Nature Center, which is only about a half mile from our office. After an apparent heart attack last fall, he is under doctor's orders to walk at least three times a week. When he called, he wanted to know if I would be walking that day and where would I be going. I said that I had been thinking in terms of a swim at my health club, but that I would be honored to walk with him if he was up for it.

An hour later he was at the office in his walking shoes, and we jumped in my Toyota Highlander. I drove the half mile or so to a back door entrance to the Westwood Hills Nature Center. After deciding whether we would take the track in a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction, we were heading down the trail. I had anticipated that he would have trouble keeping up with me, but the reverse was true. He's a bit taller than me, so his legs are longer. I had been a bit worried about his health, but I'm not anymore. He was robust, vigorous and hard to keep up with.

We found that the ice is finally out and the water is open on the lake. We saw a loon, who was obviously migrating to somewhere further north. We also saw a colorful adult male turkey, which Em said reminded him of certain people he knows.

Em has been a good resource and mentor, helping me with many of my criminal defense cases. Compared to how much help he has given me, I have felt for some time that I owe him something. Going on this walk was an opportunity for me to show him something he had not known about, which I hope to some extent was a down payment on my repayment of my indebtedness to him.

Fraudulent Federal Subpoena Email

2008-04-14T12:28:00.003-05:00

This morning I received an email which purported to come from the federal court in San Diego. It appeared to be a subpoena requiring that I appear in federal court May 9th in San Diego before a grand jury.

It also contained a link which I assume would have downloaded a virus onto my computer.

I called the court in San Diego and they confirmed that it's a hoax. I have also spoken with a lawyer a the law office that is mentioned on the false document. He tells me all they have done there all morning is sit on the phone answering questions about the email. I lost a little time on it, but it's really messing them up. So in case you get it, now you know.

Bankruptcy Update Part III - Spring 2008

2008-04-12T19:56:00.005-05:00

Here's another clip in the series that I have been working on. In this one I talk about how the Senate has eliminated a section of the pending mortgage relief legislation which would have allowed a bankruptcy judge to reduce the balance owing on a mortgage. The idea was that in those situations where the mortgage is more than the value of the property, the bankruptcy judge could reduce the balance of the mortgage to be equal to the value of the house. The rest of the balance of the mortgage would be discharged in the bankruptcy. Sounds like a wonderful idea to me. But the Senate committee didn't think so. Too much lobbying by the banking industry.

So for the time being there is no provision in the bankruptcy law for an option to discharge the part of the mortgage that exceeds the value of the house, while allowing the balance of the mortgage to be a lien on the house. I feel as if I may be doing a bad job at explaining this. It's the kind of thing that many non-lawyers might not understand. As a result, the Senate gets away with not passing a really beneficial piece of legislation, because nobody quite understands what it is they didn't pass.

Lots of court time this week - sorry if I missed your call

2008-04-11T17:32:00.002-05:00

I had some unexpected court time this week, especially yesterday. When that happens, my usual discipline of keeping up with returning calls and responding to emails goes to heck. I've made an effort to get back to everybody before saying I'm done for the week - which I am - but if I did not get back to you, please call me or email me again.

I usually am pretty good about actually looking at what my spam filter catches before I delete that mailbox, but on a week like this one I may have been more likely to miss a real message that got caught there. If I did not respond to your email, please send me another one.

Youtube video Bankruptcy Update Part II

2008-04-08T21:24:00.004-05:00

Here's the second in the series of videos where I update my earlier comments about the current state of bankruptcy law and practice. In this video I talk about how Congress has withdrawn funding from the U. S Trustee's office for the hiring of outside accounting firms to conduct audits of debtor's records.

Youtube video Bankruptcy Update Part I

2008-04-06T14:23:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, before that walk at the nature center, I spent a few hours in the office. I had brought a shirt, tie and jacket, as well as my Flip Video camera. I have been posting to a Youtube channel for almost a year, and I felt yesterday that I might be motivated to record a few new comments on video. Once I got started, I surprised myself about how much I had to say. I grabbed a few I items that were loose on my desk, and found that these made a more than full agenda of things to talk about.

I set up the Flip Video, punched record and walked around to sit in front of it. When I reviewed what I had when I was done, it was almost half an hour of stuff. This time it was all on the subject of bankruptcy. My idea was to supplement and update what I've already said on earlier videos. Now what I recorded is so long that I will have to edit it down into manageable pieces. By the time I'm done editing it will be a whole series of clips. The first of them is embedded here:

Goose Poop on the Trail at Westwood Hills

2008-04-05T18:15:00.000-05:00

I'm inspired. I just finished my first walk of the year around the Westwood Hills Nature Center. It has been a gorgeously beautiful day. This nature center is maybe a half mile east of my office; at least that's how far it is if I go to a back door I've found. It might be more like a mile and a half if I drive all the way to the main gate. Weather and time permitting, I try to make a point of walking there every day. Obviously, weather and time don't always permit - such as during the unusually long winter we just finished. I suppose I could have gone in there during the past winter with my cross country skis, but I never did.

A couple of eagles were circling over the lake this afternoon. At first I thought maybe they were hawks; but then I saw some hawks - they were there too - and concluded that the eagles were really eagles. Hawks look quite a bit different. The ice is still on the lake, except for a little bit of open water around the edges. I watched a poor mallard try to come in for a landing on a small patch of open water, only to find that it was only about two inches deep. He made a bit of a splash, and then seemed surprised to be standing on his feet after coming to an to an abrupt stop. I could swear that he looked at me with an embarrassed expression, but that had to be my imagination.

The City of St. Louis Park does an excellent job of maintaining the hiking trails. Today there were some patches of snow and some muddy spots. There were spots where streams of water from the melting snow were flowing across the trail. And yes even this early in the year, there were parts of the trail where one had to be very careful to not step in what the geese had left behind.

CREDIT CARD CASH ADVANCES TO PAY FOR BANKRUPTCY

2008-04-03T21:18:00.000-05:00

I just got off the phone with a gentleman who is in extreme debt, lives with his parents, and is essentially unemployed. He works part time odd jobs from time to time. His credit is apparently still good, since he is borrowing from one card to pay for another, even though his debt exceeds $50,000. I told him that he certainly qualifies for a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, and probably needs one; but with no income and no assets, what was his plan to pay for the bankruptcy?

"I have been told that I can do that with cash advances," said he without hesitation. I questioned him more trying to determine exactly who had said that or where he got that idea. He side-stepped and never really answered my questions. I explained that if a lawyer had told him that, it was a violation of every code of ethics I ever heard of. It would also be fraud if not theft, and if it preceded the actual filing of a bankruptcy, it would also be bankruptcy fraud. Bankruptcy fraud, I explained, is a federal felony. It is investigated by the FBI. I would like to stay as far away from that sort of thing as possible.

I would not have thought much of this call, and would not find it worthy of mentioning, except that this was the second such discussion I have had in the last ten days or so. Since it has now come up twice, I am wondering if someone on a web site, blog or other media source has been either promoting or at least discussing the idea.

Let me see if I can spell something out. If a creditor can show that a debt was incurred at a time that the debtor intends to not pay it, but intends instead to run it through a bankruptcy, that is bankruptcy fraud. The person who does that will at least be subject to an objection to the discharge brought by the creditor, and at worst possibly be subject to criminal charges. If the debt is more than $600 or so, and it is incurred within 90 days before filing, it will be presumed to be for luxury goods - which also makes the debt nondischargeable if the creditor objects. Even if all the specific rules for the bankruptcy filing are satisfied, there is still a possibility that the case won't pass the "totality of the circumstances" test. Essentially it's a smell test. If it doesn't smell right, the court can dismiss it.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2008-03-17T14:48:00.000-05:00

I've been asked if my office would be open today. The answer to that is yes. I've been invited to a corn beef and cabbage lunch, but I have not been able to make it. My office phone, which I had forwarded to my cell phone, started ringing at about 7 am this morning. One caller after another described various scenarios involving being arrested for DWI over this past weekend. I wrote earlier about how a reporter from New Brighton had tipped me off that the police would be out in force this past weekend and today. I guess she got that right. This morning I had so much trouble getting off the phone that I almost missed my first appointment at the office.

So I'm wearing a bright green tie today, but that might be about as far as I take the St. Patrick's Day thing; except to warn you all that tonight is not the time to take any chances with drinking and driving. No night is, but lots of extra officers will be on duty this evening. What I believe I have learned over the years about nights like this is that some of those officers would rather be partying themselves, or they may be missing an event that they were invited to. A bit of resentment about that can lead them to want to be harsher than they might ordinarily be on an ordinary night. Definitely think in terms of a cab or designated driver.

Based upon how my own phone calls seem to indicate that the party has already started, and considering the snowy weather forecast for the Twin Cities, I fear that by tomorrow morning I will be looking at a local news report of at least one fatal, alcohol-related accident. Let's pray that no such event takes place.

The Cost of a DWI

2008-03-10T10:38:00.000-05:00

About Thursday of last week I received a call from a reporter for a weekly newspaper out of New Brighton, MN. I didn't make a note of the name of the newspaper; and now when I run a Google to find it, I find that there seem to be two of them. The reporter said she was working on an article that they were going to publish in their St. Patrick's Day edition on the subject of the cost of having a DWI. The topic was coming up because the local police in that area were letting it be known that they would be out in full force over St. Patrick's Day (Monday, March 17th) and the weekend leading up to it.

The reporter wanted me to run through with her a list of the expenses that a drunk driver can expect to pay as a result of being arrested. What that would come to depends on quite a variety of factors. I said the easiest place to start would be with the case of a first time offender who we presume has a relatively low breath test reading. The reporter indicated that she thought she would limit her article to the first offense, and not even get into what might happen on subsequent offenses.

I indicated that the arrested party could expect, among other things, expenses for the following:

getting the car out of impound,
reinstating the driver's license,
an alcohol assessment interview,
a class,
a meeting of Mother's Against Drunk Driving,
a fine with surcharge,
perhaps a probation fee,
and of course an attorney's fee.

When added up, using about the lowest and most optimistic numbers possible, the total came to about $3,000. That number does not include all sorts of additional items one might run in to, such as increased automobile insurance cost. I told the reporter that in my experience, a surprisingly large number of my first time offender clients report to me that their insurance did not go up. The reason for that is apparently that the insurance company never noticed it; or by the time they noticed it, the DWI was really old news.

I usually recommend that my client try to go at least three years without doing a thing that might attract the attention of his or her automobile insurance company. That can be difficult or impossible for many people. I say don't sell or buy a car, don't be late on paying the premiums, don't have an accident or any claims, and don't change insurance companies. Besides that, it would be good to not move and not add or subtract any drivers.

The most obvious problem with just putting a number, any number, on the cost of a DWI is that this is an item that will be on the person's record for the rest of their life. How does one put a value on that? So looking back on that phone conversation I wish I had been more careful and said something like: The benefit of not having this on your record is really priceless, and the exact cost is impossible to calculate.

Kelly Law Office Temporarily (we hope) Evacuated

2008-02-28T11:58:00.000-06:00

A few minutes ago I heard my landlord and office mate, attorney Sid Brennan, yell to his secretary "Call 911!" When one hears that of course it tends to get one's attention. I came out of my office and found everyone in the reception area looking out the front window at an accident scene which was right next door to our building.

A couple of young women in a small economy car had managed to run off Ford Road right square into a tree; but on their way to the tree they seriously clipped a large natural gas pipe which rises out of the ground nearby. Even inside our building we could hear a loud hiss of natural gas, and in moments we were starting to smell it too.

Oddly enough Mr. Brennan was just starting a meeting with a client who had last been to our office on September 11, 2001. This particular client on that day had come in to meet with Sid saying that he had just heard something on the news and we had better turn on our TV. So today the same guy comes along and while he's there, this happens. What are the odds of that?

About ten minutes went by with no apparent response to the 911 call. The occupants of the vehicle headed across the street toward the General Mills Credit Union, and one of them fell in the snow on the boulevard. To their credit, the fallen woman was quickly attended to by either customers or staff of the Credit Union. I observed one of them run out to her car and get a blanket. Finally we heard sirens. One squad car, then two, then a number of fire trucks which I never did count showed up. By then I was on the phone to Center Point Energy telling them about the gas leak. My call seemed to be the first they heard of it. The person from Center Point suggested that we leave the building, which I have to admit seemed like a good idea at that time.

Leaving wasn't that easy, since by then the police and the fire department had the street blocked off. I turned off my computer and most of the lights in the building, forwarded my calls to my cell phone, packed up my laptop (which I am using now), and got out of there. In retrospect I do wish I had at least grabbed my portable hard drive where I back up most of my work.

While I was leaving a brave gentleman in a fire department uniform was heading toward our building on foot with some sort of device in his hand. I imagine that item was a gizmo for measuring the presence of natural gas. I certainly wish to say thank you to all those responders from the Minnetonka and/or St. Louis Park Police Department and Minnetonka and/or St. Louis Park Fire Department. Our building practically sits on the border between the two cities, and I will admit that in my haste to get out of there I didn't bother to read what it said on the sides of the emergency vehicles.

In a few minutes I have a lunch appointment. After that I'll try driving back to the office and see if I can get near the place. My next appointment is at 4:30 pm. I hope the crisis is over by then.

When people I know first learn that I have a blog they often ask what in the world a boring guy like me would ever have to blog about. I must say that there always seems to be something - such as the events of today.

Senate to Vote Next Week on New Mortgage Relief Bill

2008-02-22T17:12:00.000-06:00

I'm sitting here looking at an email I have received from the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Lawyers, of which I am a member. The Association has been pushing for legislation which would allow a bankruptcy court to order modifications in mortgage loans, something which would currently be entirely off limits. The bill is S. 2636, and the section of the bill with the mortgage modification provisions is Title IV. There is fear that before the bill is passed that this section will be removed. Now would be a good time to call or write your US Senator if you would like to see them do something about the current mortgage foreclosure crisis.

You can find the text of the bill here. I'm not sure I fully understand all the language, but it looks as if it would give the bankruptcy court authority to lower interest rates and extend the term of the loan to 30 years. I just met today with a gentleman whose mortgage balloons in less than two years. At that time he may have to just walk away from the house. If the term could be extended under the terms of this bill, the effect would be to save this guy's house. Links to both of Minnesota's senators can be found here, including info on how to contact them.