Wakefield Law Blog

At Wakefield Law, we have been practicing personal injury law in Northern Virginia for over thirty years. We’ve seen a lot and worked with many clients, and there are a few persistent misconceptions about the practice of personal injury law that we want to clear up.

Many of you have had experiences with attorneys. Often, these experiences are not remembered fondly, and we understand why! Getting an attorney involved with a legal matter can often be extremely stressful because you do not know if they can be trusted, and even worse – how much the whole thing is going to cost you. When our clients are faced with breaches of contract that often lead to non-payment of money and a debt collection legal matter, they don’t worry at all! That’s because we do a vast majority of our contract litigation and debt collection cases on a contingency fee basis. Keep reading to figure out why that can be a terrific option for getting an attorney involved.

Often, the estate planning conversation is all about money. We talk about transferring money and property from one generation to the next and how to save as much as possible. While all that money stuff is still true, there is an even more immediate aspect of estate planning that we have to talk about: what happens before you die, if you are injured, ill, or otherwise incapacitated?

We also help clients every day with enforcement of their contracts. This can mean lawsuits, negotiation, and other forms of conflict. Since we are constantly handling disputes like these, we have deep knowledge as to what provisions must be in any contract that we see. When we see these provisions in our clients’ contracts, we breathe a deep sigh of relief because they allow us to advocate more efficiently and effectively for our clients’ interests.

There are all kinds of reasons why a committed couple may decide not to get married. Maybe you have been married before, and it’s not a ritual you are eager to repeat. Maybe you and your partner have been together for years, and it’s just something that hasn’t happened yet. Maybe you like keeping things like assets, debts, and the “business side” of couplehood separate. Whatever the reason, choosing to remain unmarried does not mean that you are any less committed to your partner. And it doesn’t make you any less interested in providing for them in the future.

Losing someone is always a devastating experience – even when someone has been ill for some time, and their passing is expected, we need time to grieve and process the loss of our loved one. The last thing we want to focus on when we have lost someone is court, probate, inventorying of assets, deadlines, and the stress of serving as a “fiduciary.”

Contracts are everywhere! Whether you’re signing a lease, purchasing goods or services, or you are an employee or employer – most likely you’ve got a contract. Contracts can be oral agreements or can be written. They do not even need to look official – someone could send you an email with an offer of terms, and if you respond to that email accepting those terms, you’ve got a contract! Clients hire us all the time to write their contracts or review the contracts they have been provided. There are so many red flags and important considerations when dealing with contracts, but this week’s blog is going to cover one of the simplest, and often most overlooked issue with contracts – WHO ARE THE PARTIES?

2022 is here! With the pandemic that seems never ending, couples have been finding unique ways to tie the knot. Virtual wedding ceremonies, outdoor services and receptions, and courthouse step weddings are more and more common. Newly married couples, or those who are planning on getting married, are frequent clients of our firm. The prospect of joining together and starting a family always goes hand-in-hand with thinking about assets and estate planning topics. This is not just a conversation about who gets what assets. Those considerations are important, but younger couples are often much more concerned about making sure their fiancé or spouse is solidified as their agent to make financial and medical decisions. There can be horror stories in blended families or families where there are different surnames where the right person is not permitted to act. Planning to avoid these situations is really important.