Category: Consumer Columnists

“It is a misconception that ‘once you file bankruptcy, you will automatically lose everything.’ The truth is that most people keep everything they have (homes, cars, bank accounts, retirement plans, etc.) and they lose nothing at all.” PEOPLE with overwhelming debt problems during this difficult time are asking a lot of questions. Are you scared…

Time to bond with a new child or care for family Q: My spouse and I are expecting a baby in a couple of months and we are trying to figure out how much family leave we are entitled to so we can each spend quality time with our newborn. My spouse works at a…

WHAT is the means test in bankruptcy? It’s a method for calculating what your household income is to determine if you qualify for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 of the bankruptcy code. By household income, we mean the combined income of husband and wife, if the debtor is married, unless they are separated. The means…

ARE your debts keeping you up at night? Are you always worried about money? Are you barely surviving and can’t even keep up with minimum payments on your credit cards? Do you wish to reduce or eliminate your debts but don’t even know where to start? If you are searching for debt reduction solutions, you…

LUCAS Mejia was a stocker for Walgreens, a nationwide pharmacy retail store chain. He and many other employees worked as hourly non-exempt employees in a Walgreens distribution center in California. Mejia filed a class action lawsuit against his employer on behalf of himself and his coworkers, claiming that Walgreens violated several California laws by failing…

IF you are struggling with debt problems and are starting to feel hopeless about your situation because you are not getting anywhere in spite of your efforts, at what point do you consider filing bankruptcy as an option? Bankruptcy scares a lot of people, and that’s understandable because everything that they’ve heard about it from…

Friday marked Christmas Day as the the whole Christian world celebrated the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, 2020 years ago. Christians also celebrate the fact that God the Father, Yahweh, “I am who am,” who preceded all creation and who created everything chose a mere human, the Blessed Mother Mary, to be…

When a drug test may constitute disability discrimination “Under California law and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), an employee who is taking medication for a disability is protected from discrimination. Thus, if an employee’s drug test is positive for controlled substances but such substances are due to medication prescribed for a disability or medical…

THE young: Clients are in their late 20s, the epitome of youth. They have their whole life ahead of time. They married three years ago. Right after they got married, they spent all of their money to buy a retail business thinking that the business would flourish and provide their new family with financial security…

Bankruptcy has always been a last resort for people who are struggling with debts that they can no longer pay. Most people would do what they can on their own and will only consider doing it once they know they have run out of options. Unfortunately, by the time they get to the point of…

“The California Fair Pay Act (aka the Equal Pay Act) prohibits an employer from paying any of its employees wage rates that are less than what it pays employees of the opposite sex, or of another race, or of another ethnicity, for substantially similar work, when viewed as a composite of skill, effort, and responsibility,…

AS I write this article, the country’s economic outlook is grim. The governor just ordered another shutdown of “non-essential businesses” who have already suffered significant financial losses since the pandemic started early this year. A lot of workers are getting laid off again by business owners who must shut their doors until being told it…

Chapter 7 for senior No. 1 Senior one is 73. He has been separated from his wife for 30 years but not divorced. So, for all intents and purposes, he is single because even if his wife makes a ton of money, her income is irrelevant under the means test since client does not benefit…

ARE your growing debts starting to worry you and cause you sleepless nights? Are you trying hard to pay what you can every month but feel like you’re just running on a treadmill and not getting anywhere? Do you dread getting those credit card statements every month knowing that you don’t have the money to…

AMERICAN Income Life Insurance Co. sells insurance policies in California. It hires agents that it pays on commission. David Hamilton, Bridget Smith, and David Joh worked for American Income as agents. They each believed that they would be a salaried worker when they first applied, but later found that they would be paid in commission…

SURE, there are alternatives to bankruptcy. But bankruptcy is the only solution that provides viable debt relief for those who are unable to repay their debts. Some people sign up for debt settlement and find out after having paid into the pot that they have been sued by several creditors despite attempts by the debt…

“The law does not require payment of overtime or other special premiums for work during holidays, unless such work goes beyond 8 hours per workday or 40 hours per workweek.” Q: I WORKED on Thanksgiving Day and the Day after Thanksgiving. Am I entitled to holiday pay? A: Around this time of year, we get…

THE seniors are husband and wife aged 70 and 65. The wife is a young and healthy 65, while the husband is a healthy 70 who still looks strong. Both are still working with good income. The husband grosses about $100,000 a year and the wife grosses about $70,000 a year. With $170,000 gross for…

“Once you fall behind on your debt obligations, it is easy to ignore the situation and hope that things will get better on their own. But that will never happen until you do something about it.” MOST people who are struggling with debt problems for the first time are often confused and don’t know what…

EDGAR Orozco was an electrician working as an hourly employee for Ardent Companies, Inc., which provide services to drilling operations off the California coast, including on fixed off-shore oil platforms. Ardent Companies employees work on these oil platforms and travel between them. The workers are assigned to work in “hitches.” During their hitch, employees also…

THE first client is 82. He is married. “What’s the problem?” I ask. He says that he owes about $15,000 of credit cards and his wife owes about $10,000 of cards. Together they owe $25,000. He says he doesn’t know how much longer he has before he dies but it doesn’t appear like they can…

ONE common misconception people have is that if they file bankruptcy, they will lose everything that they’ve worked hard for. For this reason, a lot of people continue to suffer needlessly in debt when the law provides a solution to their debt problems. Not good. Don’t get me wrong. Bankruptcy is certainly not the answer…

Q: I WAS diagnosed with herniated disc and severe anxiety. I want to request leave but want to keep my privacy at work. Do I need to tell my employer about my medical or psychological condition? A: No. The employee is not required to disclose the nature of the employee’s medical condition or disability (i.e.,…

THE client is 50 and single but has a cousin who lives with him. The cousin has been employed on and off and has lived with him for 10 years. The cousin is also 50. The client does not own a house so he rents an apartment for $1,600. Unfortunately, the cousin is unable to…

Independent contractor status harm most workers With nearly $200 million in funding from app-based companies like Uber and Lyft, California’s Proposition 22 was voted into law by Californians. It is now legal for these app-based companies to classify their drivers as independent contractors (ICs). This means that these drivers are no longer covered by the…