Last Sunday, March 30, 2014 at the newly renovated and meticulously refurbished Ramada Plaza Hotel along 160 Frontage Road in Newark, New Jersey, the Pan American Concerned Citizens Action League. Inc. (PACCAL) successfully culminated the international celebration of Women’s History Month with much aplomb and pageantry via an ostentatious and heavily attended dinner-dance cum awarding…
IF the Department of Homeland Security has initiated Removal Proceedings against you, an Immigration Judge will preside over your case in Immigration Court and a government attorney will seek your removal from the US. The series of immigration hearings, collectively known as “immigration proceedings” can take several years and can include four or more court…
In this discussion, we envision a situation where a person signs a declaration before he files a bankruptcy admitting that he has defrauded someone, and that if he should file a bankruptcy later on, the admission of fraud can be used against him to defeat his bankruptcy. To illustrate, A owns a business. He convinces…
Couples have different spending habits and different philosophy in handling marital finances. Some spouses are conservative in managing their finances and stick with a budget while other spouses do not even set budgets. What is your exposure if your spouse is a shop-a-holic and runs though his/her credit card like there is no tomorrow? What…
SAN FRANCISCO—State Senator Leland Yee has signed up a new lawyer to represent him with gun trafficking and corruption charges brought to him last week. Yee on April 2, chose San Francisco attorney James Lassart to replace Paul DeMeester. DeMeester said that the change was Yee’s choice and that there was no disagreement between them….
THIRD time’s a charm they say, and it came true for Mary Jean Lastimosa. MJ, as her friends and family fondly call her, was crowned Miss Philippines Universe 2014 during the Binibining Pilipinas pageant at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City last March 30. The other winners are Bb. Pilipinas-International Mary Anne Bianca Guidotti;…
Are you pregnant or thinking about becoming pregnant? Do you know someone who is pregnant? While you’re picking out tiny clothes and reading childcare books, remember the importance of your oral health! Pregnancy brings so many physical changes. You crave different things. Your hair feels different. In fact, just about everything feels different. And, your mouth is…
Although some same – sex couples, like many opposite sex couples, may think they can file and handle the case on their own, I would strongly suggest they seek the advice, assistance, and representation of an attorney. When the US Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), their ruling enabled same-sex…
Bar codes for commercial products and services are today a standard armamentarium of the business world. Its use has transformed daily transactions, inventory, record-keeping, accounting, auditing, budgeting, projections, etc. into simpler, more accurate, faster, more efficient, and time-saving endeavors. And even our smart cell phones can now read bar codes, to compare prices of various…
Average $35 credit the result of State’s program to fight climate change SAN FRANCISCO – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and California Air Resources Board today announced that millions of California households will see a credit averaging $35 on their April electricity bills thanks to a State program to fight climate change by reducing…
Average $35 credit the result of State’s program to fight climate change SAN FRANCISCO – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and California Air Resources Board today announced that millions of California households will see a credit averaging $35 on their April electricity bills thanks to a State program to fight climate change by reducing…
THE Philippine Constitution defines plunder “as taking undue advantage of official position, authority, relationship, connection or influence to unjustly enrich himself or themselves, at the expense and to the damage and prejudice of the Filipino people and the Republic of the Philippines.” According to Article 2 of the Philippine Republic Act No. 7080 or the…
WHEN it comes to the territorial row, China does not want the United Nations (UN) to intervene and demands that the Philippines should resolve the South China Sea/West Philippine Sea dispute with China alone, through bilateral talks. Should the Philippines just go with what China wants? President Benigno S. Aquino III remains undaunted with the…
ALTHOUGH attorneys take an oath upon admission to the bar to zealously advocate on behalf of their clients, I have heard an overwhelming number of stories in which potential clients depict their attorneys’ actions and statements in meetings as completely adverse to their cause. Instead of listening with empathy and compassion to a prospective client’s…
Gliding across the sea and passing by the picturesque St. Paul Mountain Range, its rolling terrain of lush forest and beautiful karst formations seem like a teaser to a movie as one journeys to the well-renowned Underground River (formerly known as the St. Paul Subterranean River) from the coastal town of Sabang. Excitement fills the…
LOS ANGELES – Filipinos cried ‘foul’ over the supposed inaccuracies of the Hollywood biopic, Cesar Chavez that premiered in Los Angeles . Directed by Diego Luna, the film tells the story of the heroic rise of United Farm Workers (UFW) movement leader, Cesar Chavez. Filipino protesters pointed out that there was a lack of representation of Filipino…
LOS ANGELES – The groundswell movement, urging the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to grant full Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to the Philippines, has become bigger and stronger. Recently, key politicians in the United States expressed their support for granting TPS to the Philippines, which is still recovering from the devastation caused by Super Typhoon…
One day, someone dear to you is going to get her heart broken. I dread it because she’ll be in such pain and I’ll be powerless to ease it. Everyone goes through this. It is inevitable, unless you never really care about another person and I don’t wish that for anyone. You think of streets…
YOU should have received Form W-2 (Wage and Tax Statement) from your employer by now. If you did not, here are 10 tips to help you file: 1. Employers have until January 31 to furnish your W-2. 2. If you have not yet received your Form W-2, ask your employer when the W-2 was mailed….
(Unfair does not mean Unlawful) Q: I WORKED in a company for more than 10 years. A new supervisor was recently transferred to my department. This person and I do not get along. Last week, our human resources director informed me that the company was letting me go and gave me my last paycheck. I…
WHEN people are going through financial difficulty and are unable to pay their bills, their first reaction is often to ignore their debts and avoid contact with creditors. They think that by doing this, somehow the creditors will simply give up and go away. Then one day the problem blows up in their face. Then…
ON MARCH 27, after 17 years of tumult and unrest, the Philippine government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) inked a historic pact for lasting peace in Mindanao through the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB). “Today, we celebrate the shared victory of the Filipino and Bangsamoro people. This is a fitting solution to the…
FILIPINOS in California are still in a state of shock and disbelief, after waking up to the news last Wednesday. After a series of raids in the Bay Area and Sacramento, California State Senator Leland Yee was arrested on March 26 for being implicated in an alleged corruption conspiracy, which involves arms trafficking and fraud…
THOSE of you who are waiting for a Freedom of Information Bill crafted to your full satisfaction should not hold your breath. You folks will pass out from lack of air circulating in your system and it still won’t happen. But Congress could pass a bill that will give the citizenry access to the business…
BEVERAGE LOBBY GROUP SAYS LOS ANGELES – According to a state-wide lobby group opposing the so-called ‘soda tax’ bill introduced in the State Legislature, consumer education and smaller serving sizes are more sensible solutions to the obesity epidemic instead of adding a penny-per-ounce tax on all sugary drinks sold in California. These sugary drinks include…
BURBANK – Women from all walks of life were honored on Tuesday, March 25, by Soroptimist International of The Verdugos (SITV) for being role models and trailblazers for women everywhere. Young and old, students and professionals, survivors and advocates — these women were recognized for their work towards the betterment of society. “March is International…
With its vivid communication of reality, a photograph is a powerful tapestry, which tells a story. Images of people and events are captured in the split second that they happened. Pictures speak a thousand words and deliver the complete message — bringing reality to life in a very special way. Photographers take pictures because they…
IN challenging and difficult times, how can we maintain peace? What we can we do to keep our minds sane and our spirits high? “We’ll just have to keep hoping that it will get better,” we would say. “We’ll just have to trust God,” we would add. Perhaps the drink from the bucket that the…
Dance, an art form that generally involves body locomotion in rhythmic beat induced by music, is as old and varied as many cultures. Considered a form of expression or even non-verbal communication, dance may be classified from functional movement such as folk or regional dances to virtuoso techniques such as ballet and related classical styles….
Dear Atty Gurfinkel: My American Citizen sister would like to petition me, but it would take many, many years to get a green card through a family petition. She also has a very successful business and would like to petition me as her employee through an employment based petition. Is there anything wrong or illegal…
