Section 4-401 of the Uniform Commercial Code provides that a bank may charge the account of a customer if it is presented with a "properly payable" check or other item "authorized by the customer," and "in accordance with any agreement between the customer and the...
Year: 2015
International Bar Association Annual Conference in Vienna 2015
The International Bar Association is the world's foremost organization of lawyers, bar associations, law firms and law societies. Its membership includes more than 55,000 lawyers from over 160 countries, in addition to nearly 200 bar associations and legal...
MERS Requires No Authorization to Assign Mortgage
A Judge of the Massachusetts Superior Court, relying on earlier Massachusetts Appeals Court cases, has held that Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. ("MERS") does not need authorization from the holder of the promissory note secured by a mortgage before...
Things to Look for in a Home Improvement Contractor
Most people don't realize that there are a series of important facts they should know about their building contractor before hiring them to build or renovate their home. First, make sure that the contractor you are dealing with is registered with the state as Home...
“Divorce Selfie” Explosion Bucks Trend of Damaging Use of Social Media in Family Law Cases
With the explosion of social media over the last decade, evidence from Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and Instagram is now routinely used in divorce cases, shedding light upon critical factors such as a party's spending habits, irresponsible behavior, or failure to make...
Offering Testimony By Videoconference In International Arbitration
Testimony by videoconference in international arbitration offers the disputants both a fair means for assuring that relevant evidence is heard and an effective tool for cost reduction.It is hardly surprising that lawyers frequently encounter challenges in obtaining...
Tenth Circuit Upholds Refusal to Stay Court Proceedings due to Arbitration Default
The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed a district court's decision to lift the stay in federal proceedings due to the arbitrator's decision to terminate proceedings based on a party's failure to pay the arbitration fees. It reached this decision by...
Section 35A Imposes No Time Limit on Completion of Foreclosures
The statute providing borrowers with a right to cure mortgage payment defaults before acceleration and foreclosure can occur imposes no deadline on completion of foreclosure proceedings once commenced, according to two very recent Massachusetts decisions. G.L. c. 244,...
Partitioning Real Estate Owned By A Trust
Trustees sometimes face beneficiaries disagreeing about how to maintain real estate owned by a trust, such as a family vacation home. But does a trustee have standing to bring a partition action to sell Massachusetts real estate? Likely not. Under Massachusetts's...
Financial Stress and Divorce
Financial stress is often cited as a leading cause of divorce. Financial stress can have an extreme impact on a relationship. It can eventually wear away at the love and affection that one has for another because of how consuming the issue can be in someone's life -...
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