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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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12-Mar-2015
The emotional trauma of going through a divorce is bad enough. But think about how your family would feel if your ex-spouse collected on a life insurance policy you had with your job--because you forgot to change the beneficiary! Concern about “estate” plans is not just for the “rich.” Many employees sign up for various insurance plans and products that are provided as a ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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27-Feb-2015
Colorado law says “buckle up.” Most know that failure to wear a seat belt in the front seats of a car will result in a traffic ticket. However, many do not know that if you are injured in a car accident your failure to wear a seat belt will also reduce the value of compensation for your injuries. Colorado statutes (C.R.S. 42-4-237) require that every driver of, and every front seat ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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23-Feb-2015
Colorado courts, especially in El Paso County, are swamped. Our state does not have a comprehensive family court system to handle matters of marital dissolution, child custody, child or spouse support and the like so all judges handle all kinds of cases, whether criminal trials, business disputes or family law matters. While Colorado law requires marriage and family law matters to be resolved only ...
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Posted By Victoria C. Swanson
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6-Feb-2015
By: Victoria C. Swanson Marriage rates in the United States are now the lowest in statistical memory. Multiple policy centers that collect and analyze the data have confirmed that U.S. marriage rates have reached historic lows—and probably will stay there or continue the downward trend even further. The group that should be getting married now, the millennials (ages 18-29), are not getting ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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2-Feb-2015
Think about all the federal government workers driving around in our community: the postal workers (including contract rural mail carriers), civilian employees of the many government agencies with offices here (Department of Defense, FEMA, U.S. Forest Service, etc.), and the many members of the Armed Forces who drive off-base in connection with their duty. If you are injured in a car accident ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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27-Jan-2015
We are proud to announce that Colorado Springs Style has included our very own lawyers, Matthew and Michael Clawson, in their feature of "Top Attorneys in Colorado Springs." Matthew was included on the list of lawyers in the family law field, and Michael was recognized for his work in personal injury and workers' compensation. Colorado Springs Style is a publication focused on ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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27-Jan-2015
A family in Colorado Springs recently credited their smoke detector for saving their lives. When an electrical fire started in the residential home's attic in the middle of the night, the smoke detector sounded loudly and woke up two people, along with their pets. Fortunately, everyone escaped without suffering injuries. Firefighters near the family's home responded quickly and showed up ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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22-Jan-2015
Parenting children in military families is difficult under even the best of circumstances. Parenting children through military divorce is even more challenging. Even if overseas combat missions are supposedly winding down, all serving in the military can expect to be transferred every two years, at best, and deployed to serve in short (or long term) combat/"advisory" missions at worst. ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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19-Jan-2015
Some people commit insurance fraud—just as some people commit other crimes that cost all of us billions of dollars each year. Apparently there has been an insurance scam racket in Colorado by one woman who made 25 claims for injuries from fake car accidents in the Denver area. This is one that has been caught—and hopefully stopped—by Denver area prosecutors, but there may be ...
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Posted By Clawson & Clawson, LLP
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8-Jan-2015
So you signed up for new health insurance, and then BAM—you are injured in a car accident. Why do you need a lawyer? Many car accident victims are surprised to learn that the other driver's insurance company will not pay for your medical bills as you recover from your injuries. Even though you were injured because someone else was at fault, you still have to pay for your medical bills as ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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7-Jan-2015
Colorado requires every car owner to carry car insurance. Most car owners shop for car insurance based on the lowest price. But looking for the lowest price can lead you to "waive" (decline) critical insurance coverage for your car. Declining uninsured motorist coverage is a big mistake —and you won't find out that you made this big mistake until after you have been injured by ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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9-Dec-2014
Stop the car in a safe place as quickly as possible – Pull over in a safe location as soon as possible. If you take to long to pull over the officer may think you are failing to yield and attempting to elude them. In the alternative, the officer may believe you are attempting to dispose of or hide contraband before stopping. Do not exit the vehicle unless requested by the Colorado Springs ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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24-Nov-2014
Colorado has recently joined the list of states which allow a court to consider a spouse's accrued vacation and sick time as marital property, under some circumstances. In the situation recently considered by the Colorado Supreme Court, the husband admitted that, as of the date both he and his wife filed for dissolution, he had accrued almost 452 hours of vacation and sick time. His employment ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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20-Nov-2014
When the roads turn to ice, cars will collide into each other. But how does the law determine who, if anyone, is at fault for a crash on icy roads? The rules of the road seem to be simple: an operator of a motor vehicle must operate that motor vehicle as a "reasonably careful person" would under the circumstances presented to the driver. We are all drivers. We are all "reasonably ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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17-Nov-2014
How many years can go by for the non-custodial spouse to collect unpaid child support—and what law applies to the unpaid child support? There is a twenty (20) year time limit for the custodial parent to sue the non-paying parent for back child support, but in that length of time the law regarding child support often changes. Does the enforcing court apply the current law for child ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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7-Nov-2014
By not asking the right questions it could cost you hundreds thousands of dollars. Men and women are not treated equally during a divorce National studies consistently show that women lose financially in a divorce. About one in five women fall into poverty after a divorce. Three out of four divorced mothers don't receive full payment of child support. About one in three women who own a home, ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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6-Nov-2014
Colorado courts handle hundreds of thousands of court cases each year. You may have heard political ads (or talking head TV shows) loudly claiming that personal injury cases (also called "frivolous lawsuits" by these folks) "clog" courts so that they are not able to handle other, apparently more important, court business. Well, it just isn't so in Colorado. The latest ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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31-Oct-2014
Colorado Legal Services (CLS) assists low-income Colorado residents with civil law issues. (Defense of those facing criminal charges who cannot afford an attorney is provided through the Colorado Public Defender's office.) Civil cases include any kind of court matter that is not a criminal case. Divorce, child support, child custody, landlord-tenant issues are all "civil" law ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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10-Oct-2014
Some couples who seek a dissolution of their marriage also decide to have their disputes over the separation resolved outside of the court system. Colorado law allows parties to a dissolution proceeding to agree to arbitrate the disputed parts of their separation rather than going through the court system. Arbitration is a private means of dispute resolution where the parties have the freedom to ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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30-Sep-2014
It is always satisfying to know that the negligent driver who struck, and injured you, got the ticket. On the other hand, when you strongly believe the police should not have given you the ticket in a car accident, don't give up hope of obtaining compensation for your injuries. Under Colorado law, the police determination of "fault" for a car accident is not conclusive in the claim ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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18-Sep-2014
Family law attorneys know that sometimes, especially at the beginning of a dissolution proceeding, a spouse needs to be protected from harassment—or even from any contact—by the other spouse. In such cases, the spouse can apply to the court for an emergency protection order or a temporary restraining order. These orders are particularly needed in cases of domestic abuse, stalking, ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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11-Sep-2014
Not many of us older than 30 have avoided a back or neck problem in our lives. Even young people who play sports often experience injuries in the neck or back or joints. Is it possible for a person who had a previous, or an ongoing physical condition, to make a claim for injuries from a car accident? How is compensation for such an injury claim determined? Fortunately, the law recognizes that not ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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3-Sep-2014
Little "A.M." (courts use only the child's initials in cases) had been taken by his parents to the emergency room a number of times in the span of three months, including for a lacerated tongue, a bruised cheek and a fractured elbow. X-rays revealed other fractures to the baby's ribs, leg bone and cheekbone. The County Department of Social Services was notified by the doctors and ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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29-Aug-2014
In the weeks following a car accident, and as the neck and back injuries begin to recede, those involved in a serious car accident may find that their hands start to hurt. It may start with some vague numbness and tingling that won't go away, then sometimes one or both hands begin to swell for no reason, finally the pain and discomfort becomes a burning pain, constant enough to interrupt a ...
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Posted By Matthew Clawson
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19-Aug-2014
About Whiplash The most common injury from a car accident is "whiplash," short for "flexion/extension cervical injury." Whiplash is the subject of bad jokes and sometimes, bad TV ads. But it is a very real injury for those who experience it. When an occupant of a motor vehicle is strapped into that steel compartment and that motor vehicle is struck (usually from behind) by ...
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