by Dennis Beaver | insurance, insurance claim, victim rights
August 30, 2019 • By Dennis Beaver You may have heard advice from your insurance agent: “If you ever have a burglary or your property is vandalized, please report this to me at once.” But is this always good advice? Southern California longtime reader, “Anne” had...
by Dennis Beaver | contracts, homeowner's insurance, insurance claim
May 7, 2016 • By Dennis Beaver You might not have heard the term “Disaster Restoration Company,” odds are you have seen the excellent television commercials for three of the largest, Servicemaster, ServPro and DKI. All have high Better Business Bureau ratings, and...
by Dennis Beaver | divorce, lawyers
August 08, 2007 (Original publish date) • By Dennis Beaver The last thing a client wants is to change lawyers in the middle of a difficult case. Recently, two readers — from different parts of the state — wrote in with similar complaints about their attorneys. What...
by Dennis Beaver | auto repair, business, warranty
April 1, 2025 • By Dennis Beaver A few hours after Betty-Ann, 85, one of my readers in Louisville, took her 2020 luxury car to the dealer because the brakes were loudly squeaking, a service writer (aka a service adviser) phoned and said, “We fixed the problem under...
by Dennis Beaver | animal control, family law
December 27, 2019 • By Dennis Beaver “They want to kill ‘Cozy,’ our office emotional support dog!” were the first words spoken by “Chris,” who sounded just seconds away from crying. “Can you stop them? You’ve got to help me stop them,” he kept repeating. He found my...
by Dennis Beaver | education, family law, lawyers
July 1, 2022 • By Dennis Beaver There are times when the greatest help your lawyer can provide is in not doing what you request. In a recent article about suing for defamation, we looked at the “Streisand Effect,” calling attention to something no one...
by Dennis Beaver | trusts
March 01, 2008 (Original publish date) • By Dennis Beaver There is no instruction manual for being a parent. Done properly — with strength and determination — it is a difficult job. Done poorly — by weak parents who cave into a child’s every demand — it may be...
by Dennis Beaver | contracts, landlord/tenant
July 29, 2022 • By Dennis Beaver “Terry” was my first hoarder client. About 50 years old, he worked as a custodian at a high school in a small town not far from where I was living at the time. He was a genuinely nice guy and proud of his collection of washing machines...
by Dennis Beaver | debt collection
December 28, 2018 • By Dennis Beaver Chances are that you have never heard of the terms Zombie Debt, or Zombie Debt Collectors. Neither had former United States Marine, Charles Lay, until, the first week of October, 2018, receiving this phone call: ‘Superior Court...
by Dennis Beaver | auto insurance, auto repair
August 19, 2006 (Original publish date) • By Dennis Beaver In our legal system, before you can be found liable for someone’s injury or damage to their property, negligence-causation-has to be shown. For example, before my auto insurance company has a legal...
