Top Legal and Financial Services in Lexington, KY 40509
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Spencer Law Group
By Nancyking August 20, 2019
Spencer Law Firm has represented me in not one but two different cases. I can't say enough how pleased I am with this firm. I'm very grateful for the manner in which they respresented me. This firm has a true passion for their clients. They are great in regards to communication, listening to clients wants and needs and fighting for the best interest of the client. If you are seeking a firm that will go that extra mile to fight and listen to what you want, pushing to ensure that your case is properly handled in every manner possible in/out of court room Spencer Law Firm is for you. I would highly recommend this firm to anyone in need of representation. I can't say enough how pleased I was not how grateful I am I found this firm. I actually fired the first attorney I had and hired Spencer, which was the best decision I ever made. The current listed address is correct 2224 regency Rd Lexington KY I have met with attorneys in this address many times. ...read more
Goeing Goeing & McQuinn PLLC
By BillyH January 22, 2018
These attorneys and their staff are super. The communication is what it needs to be. That has been my biggest complain with attorneys. Not here, they are available whenever you need them. Also I had multiple attorneys helping with my case ...read more
Heather A. Hadi, PSC
By Lexington Real Estate sold by elias October 14, 2015
We paid Heather to do some simple legal work. we were completely disappointed. Phone calls weren't returned , the paralegal constantly made mistakes and at one point began yelling at us. Wes her paralegal was completely incompetent in his work. They were completely unprofessional. I would highly recommend looking else where for legal help. Pagamos Heather para hacer algún trabajo legal simple. estábamos completamente decepcionado . Las llamadas telefónicas no fueron devueltos , el asistente legal en constante cometió errores y en un momento comenzó a gritar a nosotros. Wes su paralegal era totalmente incompetente en su trabajo. Estaban completamente profesional . Yo recomendaría buscar otro lugar en busca de ayuda legal. ...read more
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Insurance Service, Lexington,KY - Shelter Insurance - Linda Fugate
You can get life insurance does not have to be hard. The Shelter Express Termâ„¢ policy simplifies the process. If the winter weather sends you sliding, make sure you have the right amount of collision coverage. From jewelry to antique guns and golf equipment, we have just the coverage for you. We can help you that how to set clear goals and how an action plan can help you achieve them. We also accept digital insurance cards. We cover Auto insurance, Home Insurance, Renters Insurance, Business Insurance, Life Insurance, Motorcycle Insurance, Boat Insurance, RV Insurance, Personal Articles Insurance, Farm Insurance, and ATV Insurance. ...read more
By Shelter Insurance - Linda Fugate February 05, 2015
Choosing a Court Reporter: 101
Choosing a Court Reporter: 101 What Law School Didn't Teach You During a deposition last month, I had the fortunate opportunity to be the reporter on a young attorney's first ever deposition. I asked the young man why he chose our reporting firm over the many other options available in Louisville. (Admittedly, I was hoping to hear some high praise about our company but was surprised to learn he had no real input in the process.) Instead, he informed me that he had no idea how to schedule a deposition or a court reporter, had no idea what reporters really do, and was just focused on the substance of the questions he was going to ask. Accordingly, he asked a secretary in his office to set up the deposition for him. Had he asked a different secretary, I thought, I probably would not have even been scheduled. The reality is that “Choosing a Court Reporter: 101” is not taught in law school. While most of you have been taking depositions for quite some time, you know as well as I do that our industry is rapidly evolving, so let's evaluate what is important in choosing your court reporter. Keep in mind there are different types of reporters with different technological capabilities. As a litigator, consider the type of case you are handling, your client's budget, and your courtroom strategy when choosing a reporting format. Evaluate each court reporting firm's technical abilities and its production department. Ask good questions, like, does the firm have both stenographic and digital court reporters? Full disclosure: I am a digital reporter and have the utmost respect for stenographers (like my boss). My purpose is to explore the advantages of both. Evolution of Court Reporting Over the millennia, court reporting has evolved from scribes to shorthand, shorthand to stenography, and now stenography to digital court reporting. Both stenographic and digital court reporters have different capabilities. The best way to explain the differences between the two is to first define stenographic court reporting. Stenography works by using a specialized machine to phonetically record speech. In other words, a stenographic reporter writes testimony in a shorthand code (so as to type more quickly) and her machine will translate most of that code into readable English. Keep in mind that no stenographer is capable of typing the speech of two people simultaneously and must interrupt the speakers or choose which speaker to follow. It is also true that even the best stenographer is incapable of catching every word. That is why they rely on audio back-up to proof their work. Stenographers offer some services that digital reporters cannot. For example, stenographers can provide real-time court reporting services that allow the attorneys to read the transcript during the deposition. The best analogy would be that of closed captioning. Like the words you see across the bottom of your television screen, a qualified realtime reporter can put the deponent's words directly onto a laptop or tablet for your viewing while the deposition occurs. It is not a perfect transcript, but it serves as an accurate rough draft to utilize as the deposition proceeds. This service is justifiably more expensive as it requires substantial training on the part of the reporter. It can also require a realtime scopist (the individual who corrects machine translation errors) who is off-site and assists as the deposition is streamed to her location. Realtime is crucial in many complex litigation cases. It is rarely needed for simple car wreck claims or other types of straight-forward personal injury suits. Usually paid per transcript page, stenographers may not want to take short depositions, like workers' comp depositions, because fewer pages translate to lower per-day earnings. Likewise, there is an economic disincentive for stenographers to travel long distances to depositions unless they charge high appearance fees. The Affordability of Digital Reporters A digital reporter uses modern recording equipment to capture multiple recordings of the testimony while annotating the proceedings. The reporter's annotations are time-linked to the corresponding audio so that one can instantly go to that point in the record and re-listen to the actual testimony in realtime. Multiple audio recordings are taken simultaneously and can be downloaded to secure cloud servers in realtime. When the deposition is complete, the audio and annotations are given to professional transcriptionists. The transcript is then proofed twice, once by a proof reader and usually once again by the production department. Such a system is faster, is usually error-free, and less expensive. Digital reporters rarely, if ever, need to instruct speakers to slow down their speech due to accent, or because complex medical or technical terminology is being used. The recording process captures the words exactly as spoken so the transcriptionist can slowly review for verbatim accuracy after the deposition instead of during the deposition. Because each speaker has a separate microphone, a digital reporter does not need to interrupt the proceeding when more than one person is speaking at the same time. Instead, both can be recorded at the same time. Most electronic reporters are hourly or salary employees. As a result, digital reporters are often a much more affordable choice for short depositions and those that require travel. Secure Storage and Synchronization Both a stenographer and digital reporter can and should take advantage of the numerous online applications which allow their data to be downloaded to a secure server as the deposition proceeds. This is absolutely critical. Earlier this year a Florida man convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison was given a new trial because the stenographic courtroom reporter had accidentally deleted her copy of the courtroom transcripts prior to appeal. This is the danger that comes with any reporter who only saves their work to a desktop. Downloading to a cloud-based server ensures an accurate record is preserved. Let's face it, there are numerous instances of stenographic machines breaking or being damaged (just like digital machines can), and the only way to ensure the shorthand notes and audio is preserved is to download as soon as possible. A secure hard drive and cloud server virtually guarantees that a record is preserved in perpetuity. Court reporters can now synchronize the audio and video from a deposition to their transcribed text. These services allow attorneys to play back the video of the deponent at trial and have the deponent's testimony appear in writing across the bottom of the screen. Even if video is not taken, the jury can still hear the deponent's testimony from the reporter's recording. Jurors are then able to hear the speaker's tone of voice which often reveals more than the actual words spoken. Both stenographic and digital reporters are capable of implementing this technology, but not all have done so. In the legal workplace, technological advances are assisting us in achieving goals of greater efficiency, reliability and reduced costs. A more fair and just trial can be had with interactive monitors and projectors. As Judge McKay Chauvin puts it, “We're seeing more and more of our juries comprised of millennials who are audio and visually oriented.” Kentucky's courtrooms have been on the cutting edge of such advances by implementing synchronized digital court reporting systems in the vast majority of our courtrooms. The LBA has raised over $400,000 to upgrade Jefferson County's Circuit Courts and further take advantage of the benefits provided by digital court reporting and synchronization. While touted by Judge Chauvin as “the most technologically advanced courtroom with integrative technology in the United States,” litigation attorneys can only take advantage of this new courtroom if they choose a reporter who can create a synchronized CD which can play a deponent's voice and video along with the text of the deposition. Educate yourself about reporting options and choose a firm or reporter who can supply you with the tools needed to be successful at trial (like Big Blue Reporters). In the meantime, I will be tracking down and thanking the secretary who referred the young attorney. Ten quick questions that every trial lawyer should ask their reporter (and get a "yes"): (1) Do you offer both digital and stenographic reporting? (2) Is each transcript reviewed by an independent proof reader prior to production? (3) Do you store shorthand notes and audio on a secure server and a secure cloud server? (4) Do you provide DVDs with the audio/video synchronized to the text? (5) Are your DVDs compatible with new courtroom technology? (6) Do you travel within the state for no extra charge? (7) Is scheduling available 24 hours per day? (8) Do you have a production department which can assist with courtroom technology issues? (9) Can you produce a transcript within a week for no extra charge? (10) Do you offer realtime reporting services? ...read more
By Big Blue Reporters November 13, 2012
Business Sellers: Don't Underestimate Your Power!power
The majority of business owners sell a business only once in their lifetime. The same can be said for someone buying a business...they typically only do it once. But, a strategic, corporate or equity buyer, is likely to have been involved in quite a few transactions - some that worked and some that did not. What does this mean for the seller? It means buyers that express interest in buying a business could have an experienced team of mergers&acquisitions; advisors helping them or, have been through the business transaction process more than once. This can result in a lopsided negotiating arrangement - the amateur (the seller) versus the professional (the buyer). Should a seller find themselves in this situation, the topics addressed below can go a long way in evening the playing field. Selling a business is not like selling real estate. Confidentiality is, in all cases, critical. A seller does not want employees, suppliers, and customers/clients to be aware of a possible sale. Go to great lengths to protect the confidentiality of your information. When potential buyers inquire about a business, the seller should error on the side of sharing too little information rather than too much. The sales process also cannot distract the owner(s) from managing the day-to-day operation of the business. Sellers should plan ahead how they will manage their time with the added responsibility of selling their company. Delegate tasks if necessary. It is safe to assume selling a business could easily consume 20% of a seller's typical work week. Some deals come unraveled late-stage because a buyer "thinks" they have adequate financing only to have that not be case when they try and obtain the proper funds. Sellers should ask early-on for proof of financing and make sure they are comfortable with the buyer's arrangements. All acquirers should be able to show the seller they have the financial resources to make the deal. Unless the company is a large and successful company where acquisition funds are not an issue, the buyers financial statements should be made available. A credit report is also important. Buyers that are financially capable of making the deal should not have difficulty supplying this information. Although due diligence is typically initiated by the buyer, it's important that sellers do their own due diligence. Is the buyer a good fit? Do they have experience in your industry? What are their goals in purchasing your company? It is extremely important the buyer be screened as much as the seller. Since a potential buyer will likely employ qualified advisors to assist them with their due diligence, it is important that the seller do the same. Sellers should hire professional help (such as a mergers&acquisition advisor or business intermediary) to insure their business's best interested is protected & considered adequately. Sellers should also retain legal and accounting professionals. A seller should also check for information about any prior purchases the buyer might have been a part of. This would include any previous financing contacts. Talking to a previous seller can reveal how their deal went; how the acquirer was to work with; whether they did everything they said they would; etc. Talking to managers of previous acquisitions by the buyer can tell a seller how employees were treated, etc. Chemistry between a buyer and a seller is important. Do you communicate well? Is information comfortable shared? Are questions openly asked and answered by both parties? If the seller is staying with the company for an extended period of time, it's also critical that he/she is comfortable not only with the buyer, but also with the new management team if it's not the people who are doing the deal. There have been cases where a successful business sale or acquisition occurred that did not involve a business intermediary or a mergers and acquisitions advisor. I hope this could always be the case. It is very important to carefully consider the skill and knowledge a professional can bring to the table. Without utilizing their services, less-than-ideal circumstances can take place. Sellers may receive less than fair value for their company, be involved in a difficult selling experience, or may not receive all of the monies due them. Professional advisors such as mergers & acquisitions advisors, business intermediaries, lawyers (only those with deal experience) and accountants can bring much value to the whole process. http://www.fortunebta.com ...read more
By AMERICAN FORTUNE Business Sale & Acquisitions September 19, 2012