DIVORCE

THE COLD GETS COLDER

In Volume 3, Number 4, “Come in From the Cold” (March 29, 2009), I discussed the IRS Voluntary Disclosure Program specifically as it relates to offshore bank accounts. On my website STEINBERGTAXLAW.COM is an updated version of the article including coverage of the Frequently Asked Questions published and later updated by IRS.

The phrase “Come in from the Cold” refers to John Le Care’s novel turned into a 1965 movie, “The Spy Who Came in From the Cold.” Richard Burton is Alec Leamas who is drawn in from the cold by his love interest, Clair Bloom. The phrase comes from the screenplay: Control says to Leamus: “We have to live without sympathy, don’t we? We can’t do that forever. One can’t stay out of doors all the time. One needs to come in from the cold.” Leamus goes back behind the Iron Curtain for one last mission only to find he has been duped by his own handlers. In the end, he chooses freedom of the soul over an emotionless life.

Roughly 14,700 taxpayers came in under the ...

How to collect judgment in America

Parties residing abroad have the same rights to collecting judgments in the United States as citizens of this country.

There are two ways to collect a judgment in the United States:

First, the creditor should determine which state has jurisdiction over the debtor.

The creditor should contact a lawyer in that jurisdiction.

Thus, if the judgment is in New York, the creditor should contact NY attorney.

If the judgment is in California, he should contact Californian attorney.

The judgments can be divided into several categories

1. Child support

2. Other matrimonial – arising out of marriage

3. Personal injury (if you were injured in NY)

4. Contract

Say, your judgment is based on a contract. Say, the company you are suing is in New York. Now, you have contacted an attorney in New York.

You should make sure you give him all information, all documents.

Remember that you may have a claim even if you do not have a written contract. An oral contract is enou...

A WORLD OF SHADOWS

In Franz Kafka’s disturbing novel “The Trial,” Josef K one morning having done nothing truly wrong finds himself under arrest. No one will tell him the charges. No one seems to care if he is guilty or innocent. No one will say when his trial, a series of bizarre hearings and confrontations, will conclude. He is powerless, confounded by impatient bureaucrats and onlookers, while the powerful remain obscure. Joseph K, a bank CFO, had until his arrest felt safe and secure. In Kafka’s world, life is transacted beneath a disquieting shroud of uncertainty.

In the world of tax law, there is likewise an unsettling ambiguity about whether certain conduct is to be viewed as criminal or merely careless or negligent. Rather than a bright red line one encounters a large gray continent traversed at great risk. Like Josef K having come under scrutiny one becomes somewhat powerless in the grip of a baffling process.

TAX EVASION

The crime of tax evasion involves a willful attempt to ...

About annulment of marriage

Pursuant to Article 39 of the Family Code of Ukraine, marriage registered with a person who is still in a pre-existing registered marriage is invalid.

Article 39 of the Family Code of Ukraine permits convalidation of marriage registered in violation of the principle of monogamy where the first marriage is dissolved, in which case the new marriage becomes legally valid from the date of dissolution of the first marriage.

Pursuant to clause 5, section 3 of the Regulations for Registration of Acts of Civil Status approved by the Order of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine on October 18, 2000, No. 52/5 as amended as of December 26, 2008 and registered by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine on October 18, 2000 with No. 719/4940, the persons who were previously married may only get a new marriage registered upon production of the documents to confirm termination of the previous marriage (a certificate of dissolution of marriage, a certificate of death of the other spouse, a judgment on i...

Ukrainian Divorce

A marriage registered or dissolved in the USA is recognized in Ukraine. However, Divorce is not declared valid automatically: to declare it valid, an American court judgment of Divorce should be apostilled and translated into Russian, with the translation certified by notary, where after one should apply to the Ukrainian court which, upon considering the judgment of the American court, will pass a decision that will be effective in the territory of Ukraine.

Yes, you can rely on our assistance in issuing documents both in the USA and Ukraine. We can issue apostilles, provide translation certified by notary and represent your interests in the Ukrainian court if necessary.

An American court judgment of Divorce, as I stipulated in the reply to the first question, will be accepted in Ukraine. Any other court judgment can be admitted by the Ukrainian court and enforced in the territory of Ukraine if the said judgment of the American court complies with the Ukrainian standards of law ...