What Have you Got to Lose?
 We live in an increasingly litigious society. Lawsuits abound and large judgments are not uncommon. When people experience financial pain, as in the current economy, they become even more litigious (a form of societal grouchiness as it were).
Medical practitioners are simply abandoning certain states like Nevada and Texas because they can't afford the malpractice insurance premiums. Skyrocketing malpractice insurance premiums are a function of the volume of cases being brought and the award amounts. In fact, a few years ago about 100 doctors in San Antonio Texas protested their insurance premiums in front of Bexar County Courthouse (this is a serious subject but for some reason that image is funny to me. I can just imagine them holding up their stethoscopes and chanting "Reduce our bills or no more pills").
Small businesses owners who do everything right can still be wiped out by something called vicarious liability where an employer is held liable for the negligent acts of an employee even when the employer didn't authorize the acts. Vicarious liability even applies to parents being held responsible for the acts of their teenagers (i.e., wrongful death suit because of a car accident).
Part of the reason for this proliferation of litigation is because it is profitable. A 2006 Institute of Medicine study surveying 1452 medical malpractice claims revealed that for every dollar awarded in damages 54 cents went to administrative expenses (i.e., a big chunk went to the lawyers). There is no meaningful penalty for a frivolous suit, so the theory is if there are assets worth going after why not try.
My view is that any asset that would take significant effort to replace is worth protecting. If your home or business were seized by a creditor, it could take years to recover. The problem is that most people are not trained to think in terms of asset protection and often confuse it with estate planning. For example, a revocable living trust is an excellent estate planning tool but has no inherent asset protection value. The other problem is that often asset protection is often associated with money laundering drug dealers with offshore account number tattooed on their forearm.
The truth is that most of us use basic asset protection (homeowner's insurance). We just don't use more sophisticated asset protection (family limited partnership). I will be hosting webinars from time to time on this subject because it is critical to an overall financial strategy. What's the point of working hard to build something only to loose everything in an instant?
Join me on the next webinar, bring your questions and feel free to invite your friends.
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LOL - Laughs OnLine
"I recommend 2 parts Pennzoil 10W 30 and 1 part Metamucil"
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Let's Get Real
by Dennis Duling
Reality TV is a producer's dream - hence the explosion of reality TV programming in recent years. Take a group of unpaid amateurs, combine that with low production costs (American Idol not withstanding) and charge advertisers the going rates for commercial spots. And while some of you may think reality TV is insipid and maybe even exploitive, I would argue that it has the ability to do good.
Reality TV can take something that is worthwhile or even good for us, and make it trendy. Who could argue that placing ballroom dancing (Dancing with the Stars) back into the pop culture mainstream is anything but a positive? (even if privately we know that sometimes the more appropriate name would be "Dancing with Former Stars").
The question is how far will they take a good thing? Here are some show ideas that might not be that far off: "The Biggest Boozer", which would follow the exploits of 12 big drinkers as they try to stay sober or "The Biggest Geezer", which would present a group of octogenarians trying to improve upon "challenges" such as trying to do a comb-over that covers more surface area. Don't laugh, I'll bet you a dollar that some of these shows are already on the drawing board in some production company back room with the name of some big network already inscribed on the combs.
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Share If You Care
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Sincerely,
Kwame J. Granderson
Equinaire
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