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DUIs and drugs in Florida: Zero tolerance

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns on Tuesday, June 11, 2019.

You're probably familiar with DUIs and drug-related DUIs. They both can get you into deep trouble with the law, especially if you are behind the wheel while impaired.

What people often forget about is that alcohol and drug use can also result in BUIs for boating under the influence. Alcohol specifically played a role in at least 28 of the boating crashes that happened in Florida last year. Drug use and drinking alcohol is suspected to have been involved in around 19 percent of boating fatalities in 2018.

When smartphones cause harm: Traffic stops

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns on Monday, May 20, 2019.

Technological innovations have made our lives easier. Applications are available to help navigate to restaurants, keep in touch with work at all hours of the day and even monitor our children. These advances are part of our everyday lives. Most own a smartphone with many of these apps, but are they helpful?

There are two contentions to the thought that smartphones make our lives easier. First, the ongoing debate about constant distraction and the expectation to always be available. Second, privacy concerns.

Why do divorce filings spike in January?

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns on Tuesday, January 8, 2019.

There is now a national day for just about everything. Consider that the first full week of January, includes bobblehead, bubble bath, Law Enforcement Appreciation and bittersweet chocolate days. In some parts of the world, the first Monday of the year has gained the moniker Divorce Day.

While we do not have an American equivalent national day, January is one of our leading months for divorce filings. And many divorce lawyers come back to a busy calendar after the holidays. In this post, we cover some common reasons along with a couple tips for those starting the process.

Stimulant misuse: Not only students seeking a cognitive edge

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns on Friday, September 28, 2018.

It is no longer only high school and college students who struggle under the constantly increasing pressure to perform. Many professionals and members of the armed forces are also sleep-deprived, overwhelmed and struggling to hit their performance metrics.

Stimulants – Adderall and Concerta – for instance enhance the effects of chemicals already in your system such as norepinephrine and dopamine. The misuse of these drugs may help sustain productivity, but when used in combination with caffeine they can become dangerous. In its latest survey drug use, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration approximated that 1.7 million Americans misuse stimulants and the highest rate of misuse was in young adults.

Can I get my field sobriety test thrown out as evidence?

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns on Friday, June 15, 2018.

Imagine you got pulled over by a police officer while driving home from work late on a Friday evening. Although you haven't had anything to drink, the officer asks you to get out of the car and blow in his Breathalyzer device. You pass the breath test with flying colors, but the officer still wants you to perform a field sobriety test.

At first, you weren't worried because you know you were sober, but it was late, you were tired after a long day of work, and the field sobriety test was a lot harder than you thought it would be. The next thing you know, the officer is putting the cuffs on you and reciting your Miranda rights. The officer says you're being arrested for driving under the influence.

3 ways to look for hidden assets during divorce

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns posted in blog on Tuesday, March 20, 2018.

You chose to get a divorce recently, and you know that you need to detail your assets for your attorney. Your spouse already left the home, so you're not sure of what he took with him. You need to make sure you remember as much as you can in case he's not honest, which you think you may have to worry about.

Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to make sure you find as many assets as possible. While it's not always easy to find everything, working with a professional can help you find out new ways to look for missing or hidden assets. Before that, take a look at these ideas to find assets you may not know about.

3 common types of white collar crime

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns posted in blog on Tuesday, December 19, 2017.

The scope of white collar crime is broad and inventive individuals are creating new forms of white collar crime on a daily basis. However, in the vast majority of cases, these crimes happen through deceit that leads to someone's financial enrichment.

If you've been accused of a white collar crime, you may want to aggressively defend yourself against the charges to reduce the chances of conviction and/or the severity of punishments.

Supreme Court weighs in on division of military benefits

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns posted in Military divorce on Tuesday, September 26, 2017.

The military offers gold-plated benefits tied to the sacrifices of frequent relocation and deployments served far from family. In divorce, these benefits are a common point of contention.

What portion of retirement benefits is each spouse entitled to? Is an ex-spouse guaranteed to receive an offset if retirement benefits are waived? These military divorce questions involve federal and state laws.

Are drunk driving checkpoints legally justified?

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns posted in blog on Wednesday, September 20, 2017.

In the state of Florida, police frequently set up drunk driving checkpoints where they randomly stop drivers to determine if they might be too drunk to drive.

These checkpoints have caught many intoxicated drivers. However, some opponents to the use of DUI checkpoints claim that they are a violation of privacy and unlawful. So the question is, what's the legal justification for drunk driving checkpoints?

Consider this when making your Florida parenting plan

On behalf of The Law Office Of James M. Burns posted in blog on Friday, July 28, 2017.

If you and your ex-spouse can work together and come to peaceful agreement on important issues, you could be excellent candidates for shared 50-50 parenting plan arrangements.

These days, Florida courts are eager to support parents in creating 50-50 plan arrangements so that their children can benefit from spending as much time as possible with both parents.

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