General Interest

You’re cordially invited to our 2nd Anniversary Bash!

Wednesday, 04 November 2009 23:36 Monet Lu

It feels like only yesterday when I was frantically planning the opening of my new salon branch in Las Vegas. Would you believe it has been two years since that day?

I’m deeply humbled by this milestone. I feel very fortunate that despite the unfortunate economic climate, we continue to receive the patronage and support of the people of Las Vegas.

Debt settlement ‘scams’ you should be aware of

Tuesday, 03 November 2009 22:01 Atty. Raymond Bulaon

ARE you thinking of hiring a debt settlement company to help you get out of debt? Were you told that this was a better alternative to filing for bankruptcy? As the economy continues to decline, more and more people are turning to debt settlement companies for help in eliminating their debts. Warning: Be very careful. As a bankruptcy attorney, I have seen a lot of people who have become victims of deception and misrepresentation by unscrupulous debt settlement companies.

Don’t get me wrong, there are some debt settlement companies that are completely legitimate. However, a lot of them are also just out there to scam people. I have heard a lot of horror stories about them from people who have come to my office for advice. These fly-by-night companies misrepresent the nature of the services they are offering, don’t tell you what you need to know and are simply interested in taking your money without actually helping you. They often prey on desperate consumers who see no way out of their debt problems short of filing bankruptcy. But instead of seeing light at the end of the tunnel, a lot of their victims find themselves hitting a brick wall instead. Don’t be one of these people.

Converting bankruptcy cases

Tuesday, 03 November 2009 21:58 Atty. Lawrence Yang

A BANKRUPTCY petition filed under one chapter of the bankruptcy code may be converted into a petition under a different chapter of the code. The debtor himself can request the conversion, or the court itself by its own motion or the US Trustee or the trustee administering the bankruptcy estate, or any interested party may move to have a case converted to a different chapter of the code. § 706 states that the debtor may convert a case under chapter 7 to a case under chapter 11, 12, or 13 at any time, if the case has not been previously converted under § 1112, 1208, or 1307. Debtor’s right to convert case is almost absolute if there has been no prior conversion. However, there have been cases where the court has denied debtor the right to convert where debtor has been found to be in bad faith. Hence, the right to convert is not 100% bulletproof. But a debtor who has filed his original case in good faith should not see any obstacle to converting case if he so chooses as long as no prior conversions have occurred.

Grand view approach to business – your wealth potential

Sunday, 01 November 2009 22:39 Jenny Liu

ONE reason for building a successful business is to express yourself in the world, but another, undeniable reason is to acquire the money needed to create stability and security in your life. It is important to find personally meaningful ways to acquire wealth so that you are rewarded and are able to contribute beyond monetary means. Money is a powerful energy that comes with great responsibility for how to use it.

Very often, clients come to us with financial problems. More often than not, people struggle in their relationship with money. Too little money is a problem and too much money is a problem. Money is a form of power and control that can be used in so many ways. Money has a way of coming and going.

Employee remedies for overtime violations

Sunday, 01 November 2009 22:31 Atty. Conrado Joe Sayas

THE failure or refusal to pay proper overtime compensation is not simply a single violation of California’s labor laws. An overtime violation is generally accompanied by other labor violations. These other violations give rise to other damages that an employee may recover from the employer.

The first item of damage is, of course, the actual overtime compensation owed to the employee. This actual overtime compensation is computed at 1.5 times the employee’s regular rate (often called "time and a half") and is multiplied by the number of hours in excess of 8 hours per day. If the overtime hours exceeds 12 hours per day or exceeds 8 hours on the seventh day, overtime compensation is computed 2 times the regular rate (often called "double time"). For example, if an employee’s regular rate is $10 per hour, time and half would be $15 per hour and double time would be $20 per hour. These premium overtime hourly rates will then be multiplied by the number of overtime hours during the pay period.