What is a Litigator

Litigator is just a fancy word for trial attorney.  Litigation is the fancy word for trial preparation and trial work.  Not all attorneys are litigators.  But all litigators are attorneys. 

What makes a trial attorney special is that they have been to trial. In todays multi-media fast paced world, most folks think trials happen all the time.  They do not.  And as less and less cases go to trial, fewer and fewer attorneys are actually litigators. 

If your case fails to negotiate/settle, then you want someone who has been to trial.  You don't want someone who is figuring out how a trial works when you have so much at risk.   Much like you would not give the keys to your car with your family inside, to someone who has never driven and tell them to take a spin on the freeway/interstate, you should not trust your business or your personal interests to someone who does not know what they are doing. 

When you are looking to hire an attorney, you should ask about their experience.  How many cases have they taken to jury trial and if not, why you should trust your case to them if they have settled all their cases.

What is Probate?

Probate is the legal process of administering the deceased's estate. Essentially, it is who gets what when someone dies.

Oregon has two means for an estate to go through the Probate process. 

There is the traditional Probateand then there is the Small Estate filings.

Small Estate filing is an estate of  the total value of estate may not be greater than $275,000, of which not more than $75,000 may be personal property and not more than $200,000 may be real property.

After someone has passed away, do you need to go through Probate and if so, which one?  This is something you should speak to an attorney about, so you can learn more about Probate and how it pertains to your particular situation.