“IT ain’t those parts of the Bible that I can’t understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.” — Mark Twain It is the time I prepare myself for worship on Sunday — by reading beautiful and poetic stories from the Bible. Our knowledge of the Bible was limited to memorizing…
ONE of the goals of bankruptcy is to allow debtor-filers to start anew. This means that after filing bankruptcy and getting a discharge of their debts, these debtors will be in a position to move on financially. Allowing these debtors to keep certain basic assets despite a bankruptcy filing is one way of helping debtor…
Q:I WORK as a nurse at a hospital that has a strict policy of no unapproved overtime, and no going on breaks unless we are relieved by another nurse. We are forced to skip our breaks if there is no reliever (which happens a lot because we are often understaffed). As for overtime, we don’t…
GENERALLY, in California, property acquired by a spouse prior to marriage is considered separate property under family code section 770 while those acquired after marriage are considered community assets under family code section 760. How do you characterize real property purchased prior to marriage but with the mortgage principal paid down using community income or…
BE conservative with deductions if you want to avoid audits. Be aggressive and you increase your risk of IRS scrutiny. Play the odds and you invite an audit. The question then is—is it worth the risk? No, it’s not. Saving a few dollars compared with what could be a disastrous experience of dealing with the…
“ Let me get one thing straight, just because you can pay your minimum monthly payments each month doesn’t necessarily mean that you do not have a debt problem” WHILE credit can be a great asset when used wisely, a lot of people tend to misuse it and they acquire more debts than they could…
Generally, a sanctuary city is viewed as a place where individuals without lawful immigration status may reside without undue fear of targeted raids, harassment and mass deportation. So-called sanctuary cities do not provide immunity to those residing in the U.S. without status. Anyone who resides in the United States without authorization is at some risk…
DURING Pres. Trump’s candidacy, and after he was elected, he stated that among the ways he would combat terrorism would be through “extreme vetting,” which would include a “rigorous evaluation” of visa applicants to determine if they support terrorism. Recently, the State Department listed possible additional questions for visa applicants who have been determined to…
Providing a smoking area within the same building with one ventilation system is like designating a urinating area in a swimming pool HealthJustice Philippines, a vigilant think tank and advocacy group with legal expertise in tobacco control and health promotion and a Bloomberg Awardee for Global Tobacco Control, sent out a press release on May…
This month, Journey had a nine-show residency in Las Vegas at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino’s The Joint. The famed rock band is comprised of co-founders Neal Schon (lead guitarist) and Ross Valory (bass), longtime members Jonathan Cain (keyboardist) and Arnel Pineda (lead singer), and virtuoso drummer Steve Smith. This series of performances is…
To honor the extensive and often overlooked achievements of the Asian Pacific American (APA) community, the United States designated the month of May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM). Just as the U.S. celebrates Black History Month in February, members of Congress in 1977 decided to introduce resolutions to designate a period in which…
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte emphasized the need of eradicating drug impunity during the World Economic Forum (WEF) on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Thursday, May 11, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In his keynote speech, Duterte urged the international leaders to pursue a drug-free community to protect the younger generation from harm brought…
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s net worth went up by over P3 million during his first six months in the office, according to his latest statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) released by the Office of the Ombudsman on Friday, May 12. In his SALN, Duterte declared a net worth of P27.43 million as…
PART 1 CUSTOMER Service Dashboard: The goal is provide tools and resources in resolving tax matters. The “Customer Service Dashboard” was launched in March 1, 2017 with estimated time frames for your wait time. For more information go to: https://www.ftb.ca.gov Deductions for Taxes Paid or California Other State Tax Credit (OSTC) Legal Ruling 2017-01: California resident…
“HE is a good guy. I hope you can let this go,” was what President Donald Trump told his sacked FBI Director James Comey. This was documented by Comey in a contemporaneous memo on he wrote on February 14, 2017, to document the details of their one-on-one meeting after Trump asked VP Mike Pence and…
“SUFFICIENT in form but insufficient in substance,” the House of Representatives’ justice committee declared on Monday, May 15, as it formally dismissed the impeachment complaint filed against Pres. Rodrigo Duterte. A Philippine president is immune from lawsuits while in office, but he can be removed from office through impeachment. According to the Supreme Court, “form”…
FIRST client is 48 and married in the last 4 years. Husband was a foreigner who professed his love for her in so many ways. Unfortunately, his love for her was actually for her U.S. citizenship. Client, who had never been married before, fell head over heels for her newfound Romeo whom she met in…
“ There are circumstances though that allow a couple to have their marriage voided rather than dissolved.” MOST couples that want out of a marriage in California usually file for Divorce. There are circumstances though that allow a couple to have their marriage “voided” rather than “dissolved.” There is a big difference between the two…
“ Trump’s plan will help more low-income workers to avoid taxes, not to pay income taxes.” ACCORDING to the Tax Foundation’s Taxes and Growth Model, the Trump tax plan would increase the long-run size of the economy by 7% under a higher-rate assumption, or 8% under a lower-rate assumption. The larger economy would result in…
HAVE you heard the story of a poor, old beggar who died one day- and to everyone’s amazement, a money belt found wrapped around his waist contained thousands of dollars in cash? Apparently, he had found the money belt one day while rummaging through trash. He decided to keep it but never realized that it…
Mother sustains non-life threatening injuries A FILIPINO-American teenage girl was killed in a car crash in the Bay Area on Sunday morning, May 14, as she and her mother were on their way home from senior prom. At around 2:30 a.m., 18-year-old Shane Alexis Marcelino of Fremont, California was riding in the passenger’s seat of…
JESUS shows his concern and cares for us this Sunday by telling us, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me. In my Father’s house, there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a…
This Sunday, we are going to honor God’s wonderful gift to us, our mother. A mother is truly a special woman and deserves much praise and gratitude. I can’t help feeling sentimental during Mother’s Day. My mom, Catalina Francisco Lu, was born on May 19, 1920. She passed away at the age of 74. Though…
EACH month, the Visa Office of the State Department publishes, in the Visa Bulletin, the priority dates for that particular month, for the various family and employment based categories. A priority date is a person’s “place in line” for a visa, meaning immigrant visas (or green cards) would be available for persons whose priority date…
A STEPPARENT may file an immigrant petition for a stepchild even without the stepparent having to legally adopt the stepchild. However, before a stepparent may be able to file an immigrant petition for a stepchild, the stepparent – stepchild relationship should have been created before a stepchild turns 18 years old. This means that the…
(Part 2 of 2) Asylum applications are filed to avail of protection in the United States due to persecution or fear of persecution “due to race, religion, political opinion, nationality or membership in a particular group” in the country of origin. Asylum is sought by aliens already present in the United States. Aliens who…
Depression is a most significant risk factor in suicide. In today’s busy, impatient, materialistic, and fast-paced society, people are subjected to various stressors in life everyday. Encumbered by their personal circumstance, some are unable to adjust and cope, and develop depression. Suicide is a senseless option and a preventable alternative. What is depression? Depression is…
ONE of my very close friends is a single mother. After a failed marriage, she had an affair with a married man and unexpectedly got pregnant. I didn’t know about the affair — or her pregnancy, until I saw about seven months on the way, during a party. She told me about what happened,…
PART 1 THE focus of an audit is whether independent contractors should actually be treated as employees. The unpaid taxes for misclassified employees include income taxes, federal unemployment, and FICA withholding and you are on the hook. Here are some TIPS of what you can do now to help mitigate from worker classification audit: •…
Social media have been abuzz over a tweet attributed to Dr. Agnes Callamard, Special Rapporteur from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, who was recently in Manila as a keynote speaker at a forum organized by the Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG). The controversial tweet reads: “@AgnesCallamard – Prof Carl…
