Tag Archives: judges

What Has Happened to States’ Rights?

Posted on by July 28, 2010
Republican John Bingham of Ohio, who introduced the 14th Amendment, said: “I repel the suggestion…that the Amendment will…take away from any State any right that belongs to it.”

Yet after the Amendment was ratified, activist Federal Judges have done just that, whittling down the rights which were once the domain of the States themselves.  Thomas Jefferson forewarned Charles Hammond of this probablilty in a letter in 1821:

“The germ of dissolution of our…government is in…the federal judiciary…working like gravity by night and by day, gaining a little today and a little tomorrow…until all shall be usurped from the States.”

The 14th Amendment soon became a door by which Federal Courts took responsibility for other rights, such as education, illegal immigration, and eventually even religion, away from States’ jurisdiction. read more

WHO WOULD ARGUE WITH GEORGE WASHINGTON?

Posted on by May 25, 2010

George Washington’s self made will had some wonderful features. I’m thinking of re-popularizing at least one of them. You see, he had a well constructed clause to direct the settlement of disputes in the event there should be any.

As an estate planning attorney, I have long been a proponent of using revocable living trusts in the process. They avoid probate, make the settlement go smoothly, and cost less money in the long run. And they generally avoid conflicts in settling an estate.

A living trust is a written document to perform the same functions as a Last Will and Testament. But it does so without probate, if properly written and funded. Thus keeping the estate out of Court. So in order to dispute the trust, a new lawsuit must be filed. This was often considered unworkable. read more