Losing It

Last week, a very wonderful friend of mine sent me a message about a family they knew locally. Matter of fact, the son was a student in the private school where my friend's husband is the Headmaster. According to the link that was enclosed in the email, this man was the target of a civil lawsuit over a real estate venture that went terribly wrong. He and his wife were named as defendants in a civil lawsuit for a large sum of money plus damages and punitive damages. A civil court judge entered a judgment against the defendants in a sum in excess of $45 million dollars.

I was able to look at a snapshot of the case and noticed that the lawsuit was filed in Cook County, Illinois, and plaintiff's attorneys were able to chase the defendants half way around the world to obtain a judgment. What is really sad about this entire matter is the fact that the defendants, who where people of means (legalese for having personal assets that are worth X number of dollars), however, they failed to protect their personal assets from attachment from business debts and lawsuits. Yes, if you own a business and a disgruntled customer, associate, partner decides that you wronged them, and they take legal action against you, prevail in civil court and win a judgment against you, they can seize your business assets and property, plus move on to your personal property and assets. My tort law school professor aptly stated "what a civil court judge and a plaintiff's lawyer can see, they can seize". True, and for many, their lives are literally torn apart.

There are many different ways to protect yourself against having your personal assets and property seized by a litigation attorney for business matters, business debts and divorce matters. For more information, please contact me at New Century Legal Center, nclawcenter@att.net. Asset protection is a must for business owners and folks with a net worth of $200,000 or more. All messages are confidential.


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