Bowie Maryland Legal Blog

If you and your spouse in Maryland have come to the conclusion that your marriage is no longer working and is beyond repair, you are now at a point where you have to make some major decisions. If you own a home together, what to do with your house will be one of those decisions. It is not uncommon for people to want to work hard to save their homes and stay in them, especially if they have young children. However, that may not be in your best interest.

As explained by Bankrate, there can be many gotchas if one person tries to stay in the family home without refinancing the mortgage into their name only. If you are the spouse who is willing to leave the home and let your former partner stay, you need to understand these.

It is true that divorce proceedings in Bowie can often get complicated, but there are times when that might be necessary. For as much as you do not want to drag out your divorce proceedings, you also want to ensure that whatever assets are shared between you are indeed divided fairly and equitably. One of these is your 401k. Depending on how long you have worked, this could be one of your most valuable assets. Many in your same position have come to us here at Reinstein, Glackin & Herriott asking for advice on how to best split this asset. Unfortunately, there may not be an easy answer to that question. 

The easiest course of action may be to obtain a Qualified Domestic Relations Order that gives permission to your plan administrator to pay out funds to an alternate recipient (your ex-spouse, in this case). He or she then would likely have to roll those funds over into another 401k or IRA account. This method may offer the fewest financial hurdles, yet it does not give your ex-spouse instant access to his or her money. 

It can be frightening enough to discover that cancer has been the reason behind health problems; this distress can become all the more magnified when a doctor gives a late diagnosis. Maryland patients deserve honest and reputable healthcare, but unfortunately, this is not always the case. How often do medical professionals miss serious diagnoses, and what happens when an error occurs? 

According to Live Science, the number one reason why patients sue doctors can be traced back to the failure to diagnose an illness. Using a study that spanned across the United States, Canada and other countries, Live Science goes on to state that up to 63 percent of claims involved missed diagnoses. Various types of cancer -- including breast, melanoma, colon and lung cancers -- were most frequently missed. The most common outcome as a result of these errors was death. While some mistakes can never be reversed, Live Science quotes a number of doctors who claim that close studies and analyses of medical errors can ultimately improve the quality of medical practice, no matter the special area. 

Do you feel like your doctor in Bowie gave you the wrong diagnosis? Questioning a medical professional's opinion is never easy given that they likely may know more about medical science than you do. You, however, know your own body better than anyone else, and if your ailment is not improving after having seen (and received treatment from) a provider, the question of whether his or her diagnosis was wrong must be considered. 

Perhaps an even better question is how he or she came up with your diagnosis in the first place? Technology has not yet advanced to the point of allowing doctors a complete and comprehensive view of the inner workings of your body. Thus, they are left to go off of whatever symptoms you describe and/or diagnostic test results available to them. That information often prompts them towards a certain predetermined care plan (which often called a "heuristic").