Canada’s Restrictions on U.S. Citizens with Prior Driving Under the Influence Offenses

At Petrella Brown, we regularly handle U.S. immigration legal issues between the U.S./Canadian borders, due to our location in southeast Michigan so close to our Canadian neighbors.  Recently, we have had several inquiries from persons wanting to enter Canada who have prior U.S. driving under the influence (DUI) offenses.  As U.S. attorneys, we cannot give Canadian legal advice, but are writing to warn people who live near the border to be aware (and to proactively beware) of Canada’s restrictions on U.S. Citizens with prior DUI offenses.

If a U.S. Citizen has one (1) DUI offense, and that offense is over ten (10) years old, the U.S. Citizen is deemed to be rehabilitated and is able to enter Canada (assuming that the U.S. Citizen is otherwise admissible to Canada).  Canada has established specific legal criteria to determine when a DUI offense has been completed, including examining the completed date of the sentence and/or fines imposed.

However, if a U.S. Citizen has more than one (1) DUI offense the U.S. Citizen “is never considered rehabilitated and would need to apply for rehabilitation status in order to enter Canada”, explains Canadian attorney Evan Green, of Green and Spiegel LLP in Toronto.

Additionally, Green explains that a U.S. Citizen with one (1) DUI offense less than ten (10) years old is “inadmissible to Canada and would also need to apply for a temporary resident permit.”  As Green points out, “the rehabilitation status is temporary, and an individual in this category would not be eligible for a permanent waiver until at least five (5) years have elapsed from the DUI offense.”

This information should not be construed as legal advice.  It is important to speak with a Canadian attorney for specific advice on your particular legal situation.

Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On Monday, January 19, 2015, Marisa Petrella and Sarah Brown had the privilege of attending a breakfast in tribute of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. held at Brightmoor Christian Church in Novi, Michigan.  The theme of the tribute was “We Are One…Coming Together for Faith, Unity and Service.”

We gathered with hundreds of others to enjoy music, guest speakers and drama.  All of the money raised from the event was donated to the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit.  Dr. Roberta Wright, the wife of Dr. Charles Wright (the founder of the museum) was at the event and accepted the donation on behalf of the museum.

Additionally, Brightmoor coordinated with Focus Hope to deliver food to seniors in Detroit and surrounding communities.  William F. Jones, Jr., the CEO of Focus Hope gave remarks at the event.

The event was inspiring and empowering…reminding us of how far we have come, and how we can continue to carry Dr. King’s legacy forward.  We were challenged to show love through action—to serve our families and the greater community.  We were encouraged that we can serve in practical ways, giving of our time, our talents, and through donations.  Even something as simple as cleaning out a closet and donating the items to a charity can make a significant difference in someone’s life.

In the words of Dr. King, “…Tell them not to mention that I have a Nobel Peace Prize, that isn’t important…say that I tried to love and serve humanity.”

U.S. Immigration Reform: New and Expanded Temporary Status

When President Obama announced his executive action for immigration reform in November 2014, he created and expanded programs to grant temporary status to individuals currently in the United States. 

NEW PROGRAM: Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (known as “DAPA”) will benefit qualifying undocumented individuals who have been continuously physically present in the United States since January 1, 2010 and who have U.S. Citizen or Legal Permanent Resident children of any age as of November 20, 2014.

EXPANDED PROGRAM: Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (known as “DACA”) currently exists for qualifying undocumented individuals thirty-one (31) years of age or younger who entered the United States before age sixteen (16) and are currently in school, have graduated or earned a certificate of completion from high school, have obtained a GED certificate, or who are an honorably discharged veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard or the U.S. Armed Forces.

Importantly, President Obama’s executive order expands the DACA category to individuals of any age if they have been living continuously in the United States since January 1, 2010. The new program will have the same educational requirements as the current program.

Both programs will grant temporary status and work authorization for a three (3) year period. Both programs have certain restrictions for individuals with a criminal background.

As of today’s date, the forms for these programs have not been released.  U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) estimates that individuals will be able to begin applying for the new program (DAPA) around May 29, 2015 and the expanded program (DACA) around February 18, 2015.

2015 Annual Exclusion Remains Unchanged

Did you know that estate planning may have tax implications?  The federal government imposes taxes on certain “transfers of wealth” during life and at death. However, there are important exemptions that you should know about.

The amount of the annual exclusion from gift taxes that was in effect for 2014–$14,000–is unchanged for 2015. That means that you can give $14,000 to any one person without incurring federal gift tax in 2015. And there is no limit on the number of recipients! The federal gift tax rate is 40% on gifts that exceed $14,000 in 2015; gifts greater than $14,000 require the filing of a Gift Tax Return. (The excess over $14,000 will be applied to reduce your lifetime credit of $5.43 million.)

The amount of your estate assets that is exempt from tax at your death is $5.43 million if you are single. Married couples need not pay estate taxes if they own double that amount ($10.86 million). For a married couple, if one spouse does not use all of his or her exempt amount, the balance is “portable” and can be used at the death of the surviving spouse to avoid taxes (provided that an Estate Tax Return is filed following the death of the first spouse to die). Amounts in excess of the exempt amount are subject to tax at the rate of 40%.

One transfer tax that is not “portable” is the generation-skipping transfer tax. Generation-skipping transfer tax is a tax imposed at the rate of 40% on transfers from you to a grandchild, if your child (who is the parent of your grandchild) is living. Special planning may be necessary to make maximum use of the generation-skipping transfer tax exemption.

As always, we are happy to discuss the tax aspects of planning your estate with you.

 

Avoid Immigration Scams

Since President Obama announced his administrative action on immigration, many individuals have contacted our office for the latest information.  It is important to know that no filings are being accepted yet for the new administrative action.  It is anticipated that no filings may be made until April 2015, at the earliest.

Scammers target vulnerable persons who want to obtain legal status as soon as possible and swindle money from them for applications that are not even available yet!  Do not take legal advice from anyone except a reputable lawyer.

Below is a consumer alert from the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

New Free App for Border Wait Times

Many residents of the Detroit metropolitan area travel to Canada on a regular basis for work and pleasure. Some friends regularly travel to their cottage on the eastern shore of Lake Huron near Grand Bend, others have family in Hamilton, while others trek to Sauble Beach, the second longest (seven mile) white sand freshwater beach. (Even though it is cold here today, I am thinking summer!) The last place you want to be is stuck in a back-up at the border when coming back home.

Yesterday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) introduced a new smart phone app that gives you an estimate of the time it will take to cross the border. For example, using the app will allow you to avoid back-ups and to choose either the Detroit/Windsor Tunnel or the Ambassador Bridge for quickest crossing time back into the U.S. Or let’s say you are heading home from Stratford, Ontario after seeing a Shakespearean play, and the border crossings are backed-up in Detroit, you may find crossing at the Blue Water Bridge between Port Huron and Sarnia is optimal.

There are other apps that monitor border crossing times but the CBP app seems more comprehensive and should be more accurate since it is coming from those working at the border. The app allows you to check border crossing times across the country, not just in the Detroit area.

If you want to get across the border quickly, you may want to download this app to avoid long lines of cars (and exhaust fumes) at the border. For more details see http://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/national-media-release/2014-12-16-000000/cbp-launches-border-wait-time-app

Your Health Records and Your Estate Plan

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, more commonly known as HIPAA, is a law that mandates that privacy and confidentiality be maintained between medical professionals and their patients. Even non-medically trained employees who have access to medical records must comply with the Act’s privacy rules.

So what does HIPAA have to do with estate planning?

The HIPAA-Estate Plan Connection

HIPAA protects your confidential health information with its Privacy Rule, which prohibits health care organizations and professionals from disclosing personal details about your medical condition or medical records. In your estate plan, however, you may want to provide a way for your loved ones to access these private records in case of emergency. By allowing for those close to you – even one person– to access this information, you may be able to help them make the right decisions for you if you are not able to make medical decisions for yourself.

Review your estate plan to make sure that there is specific wording that allows your medical patient advocate to access your medical records. Sometimes you may have a separate HIPAA release that gives very detailed and clear instructions about disclosure of medical information. If you are not comfortable with someone having access to all of your records, this HIPAA release can be very specific regarding what records can be accessed and by whom.

 Is a HIPAA Release Necessary?

 Our firm believes a HIPAA release is a vital element of an estate plan. Considering the stringent rules that medical providers are given for how information is conveyed and released, it is crucial that you specify exactly what and to whom you want to give access. Contact us if we may help you will your estate plan needs – including a HIPAA release.

 

Petrella Brown Supports “Alternatives for Girls”

On December 5, 2014, our firm participated in a special “Holiday High Tea” event at the Townsend Hotel in Birmingham to benefit the Alternatives for Girls organization.  The event featured a silent auction, delicious tea and other edible delights in a beautifully decorated holiday atmosphere.

Alternatives for Girls was founded in 1987, with the mission of helping homeless and high-risk girls and young women avoid violence, teen pregnancy and exploitation.  Based in Southwest Detroit, this organization also helps them access the support, resources and opportunities they need in order to be safe, grow strong and make positive life choices.

For more information, please check out their inspiring website:  http://alternativesforgirls.org/

President Obama Tackles Temporary Immigration Reform

On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced that he is implementing new temporary immigration reform on many levels, from business visa reform to temporary discretionary status for certain qualifying individuals living in the United States without status. The President’s action is executive, meaning that it has the full force of law under the powers vested to the President through the U.S. Constitution. However, because this reform did not pass through Congress to become law, it is temporary action subject to the discretion of a future president. The new actions have not yet taken effect, and have various implementation timelines.

The main points of President Obama’s executive order are the following:

1. Creating “Deferred Action for Parental Accountability” (DAPA): This will grant temporary status to individuals who have U.S. Citizen or Legal Permanent Resident children, if the individual has lived continuously in the United States since 1-1-2010 and meets additional requirements.
2. Expanding “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” (DACA): This will grant temporary status to individuals of any age who have been living continuously in the United States since 1-1-2010 and who meet certain additional requirements, including educational or military service.
3. Expanding employment based opportunities for certain high skilled workers: This is intended to benefit U.S. businesses and workers by growing the economy and will include modernizing the employment-based immigrant visa system, promoting research and development in the United States, increasing opportunities for workers to change from one U.S. job to a “similarly situated” U.S. job, expand opportunities for spouses of certain H-1B visa holders to work in the United States, reforming the “Optional Practical Training” for foreign student and graduates from U.S. universities, bringing more consistency to the L-1 Visa Program, and working with the U.S. Department of Labor to modernize the employment-based green card system.
4. Expanding Certain Family-Based Immigrant Visa Programs: With the goal of family unification, the President is expanding opportunities for family members to qualify for legal permanent resident status from eligible family members. This includes expanding the “Provisional Waiver Program” and reviewing enforcement priorities for deportation.

At PETRELLA BROWN, we are equipped and ready to meet your immigration needs. Please call us today at: 248.223.9883, e-mail us at: mail@petrellabrown.com or visit our website at: www.petrellabrown.com. We look forward to hearing from you!

“Recipe to Protect Your Elderly Parent” Seminar

Thanks to all who attended our seminar “Recipe to Protect Your Elderly Parent” this week at the Bloomfield Township library. One of the topics that we discussed was getting powers of attorney for health care and financial matters, a will and possibly a trust in place before a parent no longer has legal capacity to sign.

Elders want to know who is responsible to care for them and who will manage their financial affairs. Adult children also want the parents to decide so that there is less conflict between siblings. Even so, some people put off making these decisions. It is always better for the elder to consult with an attorney when he/she is in good health and is under no pressure to act.

When an elderly parent is beginning to experience some early-stage dementia and does not have documents in place, family members wonder if it is too late to have the elder sign estate plan papers. Whether someone has legal capacity to sign has to be decided on a case-by-case basis by the attorney who speaks to the elder about his or her wishes. For example, to prove legal capacity in Michigan, the person signing the will must:

1. Understand that a will disposes of property after death
2. Know the nature and extent of his or her property
3. Know the “natural objects” of bounty (able to identify family members)
4. Understand the general nature and effect of signing will.

Through questioning, an attorney makes a professional assessment about whether the elder has capacity.

When it comes to creating a trust, the legal capacity threshold is even higher, because it is a contractual document and the person creating the trust (grantor) must have a higher degree of understanding. In Michigan, the grantor must be able to communicate, understand and appreciate his/her rights, duties and responsibilities under the trust, the probable consequences of his/her decision and the significant risks of, benefits of and reasonable alternatives to his/her decision.

 If the elder does not designate who will act on his/her behalf and that elder no longer has legal capacity, family members may have to go to court to get authority to act as guardian and conservator for that person. This is especially the case when the elder’s spouse is deceased or unable to handle his/her affairs. When family members do not agree about whether the elder should stay in their home or go to assisted living, how monies should be spent, or many other issues, often times the conflict leads to an expensive battle in court. This is the last thing that an elder wants or needs in the last years of life.

As always, we are happy to help you sort out any question you may have about your parent’s legal capacity to sign or change powers of attorney, will or trust.