Scofield, Gerard, Pohorelsky, Gallaugher & Landry, LLC

When making plans for your estate, two of the most common vehicles worth considering are wills and living trusts. Both wills and living trusts are ways to distribute your property after your death, but they operate in different ways and have their pros and cons. Understanding the Basics A will also allow you to designate guardians for minor children and express any funeral or burial wishes. However, a will must go through probate, which is a time-consuming and expensive court-supervised process. In contrast, a living trust allows you to transfer your assets into a trust while you are alive. After your death, the assets pass directly to your beneficiaries. Since living trusts avoid probate, a trust typically leads to quicker distribution and more privacy. Living trusts are particularly valuable if you own real estate in other states, as they will prevent your estate from going through probate in every state where you own property. Cost, Control, and Complexity Wills typically re...

When businesses find themselves facing lawsuits relating to a toxic tort involving exposure to hazardous substances, such as chemicals pharmaceuticals, or pollutants, it is at this time that a legal practitioner will be involved to help defend the claims. A professional specializes in defending clients against claims of injury or illness based on the alleged exposure to toxic substances. The relationship between a toxic tort defense attorney and an expert client is vital, complex, and consequential as they will be faced with litigation containing advanced scientific evidence, while the financial stakes can be in the multi-million-dollar range. Understanding Toxic Tort Claims Toxic tort claims typically arise when individuals allege, in varying capacities, that exposure to harmful products, such as asbestos, pesticides, industrial chemicals, or drinking water, has caused medical problems. A toxic tort claim could be raised by one individual; by more than one person (mass tort); or...