2053 Woodbridge Avenue - Edison, NJ 08817

Wednesday, April 01, 2020

E582 1. Kenneth Vercammen Law office now has Will and Estate Planning consults online, by phone or by Facetime effective March 15. [In office consults still available] 2. Reasons to sign a Power of Attorney now / Why a Power of Attorney 3. Municipal Court hearings and trials postponed . for next two weeks NJ Municipal Courts will be closed for Traffic, DP, and Ordinance contests until at least March 27 4. New lawsElimination of mandatory DL suspensions related to drugs and new Restricted Use driver's license endorsement 5 No Insurance Penalties NJSA 39:6B-2 No more mandatory suspension on no insurance 6. NJSA 33:1-81 Phony ID Misrepresenting age to induce sale or delivery to minor; disorderly person –No more mandatory DL suspension

E582
1. Kenneth Vercammen Law office now has Will and Estate Planning consults online, by phone or by Facetime effective March 15. [In office consults still available]
2. Reasons to sign a Power of Attorney now / Why a Power of Attorney
3. Municipal Court hearings and trials postponed . for next two weeks NJ Municipal Courts will be closed for Traffic, DP, and Ordinance contests until at least March 27
4. New lawsElimination of mandatory DL suspensions related to drugs and new Restricted Use driver's license endorsement 
5 No Insurance Penalties NJSA 39:6B-2  No more mandatory suspension on no insurance
6. NJSA 33:1-81 Phony ID Misrepresenting age to induce sale or delivery to minor; disorderly person –No more mandatory DL suspension

1. 
Kenneth Vercammen’s Law Office started online legal consults by phone or by Facetime effective March 15.  

   To assist potential clients who are unable to come into our law office or are staying home we now offer consults and document preparation remotely. We are concerned about your health and wellbeing.
1. For Wills, Power of Attorney, Living Wills, Deeds, we will email the short interview form.
2. type response/ Fill in details., email completed Will Questionnaire back
3. Ken V will call to discuss so you do not have to come into office [You can still come in if you want]

4. After you pay by credit card online or payment confirmed from legal plan, we will draft documents and send to you.
5. Ken V will call to answer further questions
6. Either sign documents in front of notary and two witnesses, or make appointment to come into office during business hours. 
[you may need to bring a witness since our staff has medical issue and doctor has advised to stay home
    Stay safe but still get your important documents done. We strongly recommend all adults have a Power of Attorney prepared if they are temporarily incapacitated or hospitalized. We do require interview forms be completed in full and emailed back so we can provide accurate advice. The doctor’s office similarly has patients fill out details prior to the consult.
2. Reasons to sign a Power of Attorney now / Why a Power of Attorney
A Power of Attorney allows your spouse, child  or another trusted person to administer your assets during your lifetime, either upon disability or now. The lack of a properly prepared and executed Power of Attorney can cause extreme difficulties when an individual is stricken with severe illness or injury rendering him/her unable to make decisions or manage financial and medical affairs. Any persons are calling now to have a Power of Attorney prepared during the world wide health issues. We can help
In the absence of a Power of Attorney or other legal arrangement to distribute property if you become disabled, your family or partner cannot pay your bills or handle your assets. The result can be lengthy delays. 
The term "durable" in reference to a power of attorney means that the power remains in force for the lifetime of the principal, even if he/she becomes mentally incapacitated. A principal may cancel a power of attorney at any time for any reason. Powers granted on a power of attorney document can be very broad or very narrow in accordance with the needs of the principal.  

If there is no Power of Attorney, the family has to go through an expensive and complicated Guardianship in the Superior Court. New Jersey has a detailed, expensive legal procedures, called Guardianships or conservatorships, to provide for appointment of a Guardian. These normally require lengthy, formal proceedings and are expensive in court. This means involvement of lawyers to prepare and file the necessary papers and doctors to provide medical testimony regarding the mental incapacity of the subject of the action. Court Costs and fees typically exceed $4,000. A $100 Power of Attorney avoids this aggravation.
The procedures also require the involvement of a temporary guardian to investigate, even intercede, in surrogate proceedings. This can be slow, costly, and very frustrating.   Advance preparation of the Power of Attorney could avoid the inconvenience and expense of guardianship proceedings. This needs to be done while the principal is competent, alert and aware of the consequences of his / her decision. Once a serious problem occurs, it is usually too late. 
Remember, you can’t get Power of Attorney over another person. They must sign the power of attorney while they are competent. Don’t wait until it is too late.  
The Power of Attorney can be effective immediately upon signing or only upon disability. 
Most people who give a Power of Attorney to someone else do it with the thought that if they should become ill or incapacitated or if they should travel, the Power of Attorney will permit the holder of it to pay their bills and to handle all of their affairs for them as limited in the Power of Attorney. 
Definition of Disability.  (N.J.S. 46:2b-8b)  A principal shall be under a disability if the principal is unable to manage his or her property and affairs effectively for reasons such as mental illness, mental deficiency, physical illness or disability, advanced age, chronic use of drugs, chronic intoxication, confinement, detention by a foreign power or disappearance.
         Clauses (A) and (B) below shall not be part of this Power of Attorney unless they are signed by the Principal(s).

A.  Takes Effect Regardless of Disability:  This Power of Attorney is effective now and remains in effect even if I become disabled (as defined above).
or B.  Takes Effect Only Upon Disability   This Power of Attorney will only become effective when (and if) I become disabled (as defined above)  [Only sign A or B, not both].

3. Municipal Court hearings and trials postponed for next two weeks NJ Municipal Courts will be closed for Traffic, DP, and Ordinance contests until at least March 27

   We are advising all clients if you have an upcoming Municipal court case, go online to determine when court date is.

   MUNICIPAL COURT CASE SEARCH

1.  The Municipal Court Case search is the tool we used to determine the municipal court hearing. The website is: https://portal.njcourts.gov/webe5/MPAWeb/index.jsp

See
Welcome to Municipal Court Case Search (MCCS) - the fast, secure and convenient way to look up Municipal Traffic or
Complaint information online. Please have one of the following available: 

  Ticket Number
  Complaint Number
  Drivers License Number
  Name

Press Search to continue. You do not need a password to login

Official Court Notice: MUNICIPAL COURTS - COVID-19 CORONAVIRUS - RESCHEDULING OF COURT SESSIONS SCHEDULED MARCH 16 - MARCH 27, 2020 
This notice announces a two-week suspension of all Municipal Court sessions as part of the efforts to contain the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. This suspension of Municipal Court sessions will begin MondayMarch 16 and continue through Friday, March 272020. 
Persons who are scheduled to appear before a Municipal Court to contest a traffic or parking ticket, or minor local ordinance violation should not appear and should await notice of a new court date.
The Municipal Courts will continue to handle certain mattersincluding calendars where a defendant has been detainedprobable cause determinationsand applications for temporary restraining orders, Extreme Risk Protective Orders, and search warrants; as well as other matters that implicate public safetyAttorneys and parties required to appear between March 16 and March 27 will be specifically notified of that requirement to appear
During this two-week period, Municipal Court offices will remain open (and filings and payments will continue to be accepted),except where the municipality has closed the Municipal Court buildingCheck the Judiciary's public website (njcourts.gov) for updated information about Municipal Court closures
Defendants also may continue to make payments through the Municipal Court online payment system at NJMCDirect.com.
         All NJ Bar seminar are webinars online until further notice.
April 20 Winning Strategies in Municipal Court NJ Bar 
https://tcms.njsba.com/personifyebusiness/njicle/CLEPrograms/NJICLEEventsCalendar/MeetingDetails.aspx?productId=49807166

May 4 Nuts & Bolts of Elder Law & Estate Administration NJ Bar $$
https://tcms.njsba.com/personifyebusiness/njicle/CLEPrograms/NJICLEEventsCalendar/MeetingDetails.aspx?productId=55217580

Unclear if other Libraries will have programs online

4.  New laws Elimination of mandatory DL suspensions related to drugs  
repealed 2C:35-16 - Forfeiture or postponement of driving privileges for conviction for a person convicted of or adjudicated delinquent for a violation of any offense defined in chapter  35 Drugs or chapter 36 Paraphernalia

NJSA 39:4-49.1 No more loss of license for the CDS in Motor Vehicle 39:4-49.1.  Effective: December 20, 2019
    

5 No Insurance Penalties NJSA 39:6B-2  No more mandatory suspension on no insurance

6. Phony ID Misrepresenting age to induce sale or delivery to minor; disorderly person NJSA 33:1-81 –No more mandatory DL suspension
39:4-56.5 Abandonment of motor vehicle revised 2019
No more DL suspension 

  The following sections are repealed:
Repealed N.J.S.2C:35-16 section 2 of P.L.1981, c.365 was Forfeiture or postponement of driving privileges for conviction for a person convicted of or adjudicated delinquent for a violation of any offense defined in chapter  35 Drugs or chapter 36 Paraphernalia
section 2 of P.L.1993, c.296 (C.39:5-30.13). No more licensesuspension

Repealed N.J.S.2B:12-31 Driver’s license suspension for Fail to appear for 
disorderly persons offense, a petty disorderly persons offense, a violation of a municipal ordinance, or a violation of any other law of this State 

Repealed 2A:4A-43.3.Suspension, postponement of right to operate motor vehicle [was with 2A:4A-43) for an initial act of graffiti ] section 6 of P.L.1995, c.251 (C.2A:4A-43.3);


Repealed 2C:33-3.1 Penalties for juvenile violating N.J.S.2C:33-3.
False public alarms. No more Driver license suspension section 2 of P.L.1999, c.195 (C.2C:33-3.1);


Repealed 39:4-203.2. Failure to comply with installment order; additional penalties -No more driver license suspension

39:5-30.13. repealed Suspension, revocation, postponement of driving privilege for persons convicted of certain drug offenses in any federal court or other states