Jenntyng Chern, Esq. 陳振庭 律師

Jenntyng Chern, Esq. 陳振庭 律師 A result-driven law office focused on litigation, real estate, and estate planning.

事務所提供美式的專業，中文的方便。陳律師的主要執業範圍為民事訴訟辯護; 個人及商用房地產買賣和租約糾紛事宜; 資產規劃

03/30/2022

Recently there has been a lot of discussion in the Chinese-speaking community regarding 灣區渣男. This incident highlights two important caveats for estate planning: (a) the "I love you" will may not be appropriate for all married families and (b) the distinction between probate and non-probate assets.

The prototypical will for many married couples is the "I love you" will. In this will, the deceased spouse gives all the assets to the surviving spouse. This is the prototypical will for a reason: 灣區渣男incident is not the norm. However, if there is marriage instability or if there is a lack of trust in how the surviving spouse will manage the estate, then a trust should be considered. Simply put, a will is short term control, and a trust is long term control. If control will be necessary after death, then the trust would be more suitable.

In modern estate planning, many assets are not controlled by the will ("non-probate assets"). Generally speaking, any asset with beneficiary designation or survivorship are non-probate assets, and these assets will be distributed to the designated beneficiary directly. The remaining assets without beneficiary designation or survivorship will be controlled by the will ("probate assets").

In the 灣區渣男, a simple method that this dispute between the husband and her parents may have been to designate her parents as the beneficiary of her insurance policy and carving out a specific portion of her asset to her parents.

DISCLAIMER: This post is made available for educational purposes only about the general law, not to provide specific legal advice. There is no attorney client relationship between a viewer and this office. This post should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney.

最近在華人圈裡，灣區渣男事件引起廣泛的討論。這一事件突顯了兩個遺產規劃的重要警訊：（a）”我愛你”遺囑 ("I love you" will)可能並不適合所有已婚家庭，以及（b）遺囑認證(probate asset)和非遺囑認證資產(non-probate asset)之間的區別。

大多數已婚夫婦所規畫的遺囑是最常見的”我愛你”遺囑。在這遺囑中，已故配偶會將所有資產留給未亡的配偶。這是最典型的遺囑，灣區渣男事件並不是常態。但是，如果夫妻兩人婚姻已不穩固或對配偶將來如何管理遺產缺乏信任，則應該考慮設立信託。簡單地說，遺囑是對資產短期間的掌控，信託才是長遠之計。如果想要在死後資產也能受到保護，那麼信託會更合適你。

現今的遺產規劃中，許多資產是不受遺囑所控制（非遺囑認證資產）。一般來說，有指定受益人或生者(共同資產未亡的一方)的資產都是非遺囑資產，這些非遺囑資產在死後將直接分配給指定受益人。沒有指定受益人或沒有生者的剩餘資產才將由遺囑控制（遺囑認證資產）。

在灣區渣男事件中，丈夫與岳父母的糾紛有一個簡單方法可以預防，就是女方在購買保險時就指定她的父母為保險的受益人之一，並將她資產的特定部分分配給她的父母。

免責聲明：本文僅用於一般法律的教育為目的，不屬於任何法律建議。 讀者與本律師事務所之間不存在任何律師與客戶關係。 本文也不可用來替代有執照的專業律師所提供的合法法律建議

04/03/2020

Statewide Ban on Eviction of Residential Tenants

COVID-19 has wreaked economic havoc for our nation,especially in New Jersey. If you are a landlord, what can you do if your tenant cannot pay rent?

Initially, you should note that Governor Murphy through Executive Order No. 106 has implemented statewide moratorium on residential lockouts, and the Supreme Court has also suspended Landlord Tenant hearings through April 26, 2020.

Also, you should note that the tenant is still responsible for the rent during this time. As Executive Order No. 106 states, "This Order does not affect any schedule of rent that is due."

The best way to have the tenant continue paying the rent during these difficult time may be to accept a temporary rent reduction. Keep in mind that this is truly unprecedented times, and often sympathy goes a long way. This keeps the cash flow going and reduces the amount of your own loss.

If the tenant cannot agree to a reasonable rent reduction, then you should consider filing for an eviction. While lockouts are suspended and there will not be hearings through April 26, 2020 (which may be further extended), you can still file an action so you can get before the court as soon as possible for a judgment of possession and have a lockout scheduled after the statewide moratorium is lifted.

The moratorium is only applicable to residential evictions, not commercial. If you are a commercial landlord, you may still execute lockouts. In fact, just last week I obtained an order for the removal of a commercial tenant.

Additionally, the moratorium gives courts discretion to execute lockouts in the interest of justice. Therefore, if the tenant is damaging the property or conducting illegal activities on the premises, you can still pursue an eviction.

DISCLAIMER: This post is made available for educational purposes only about the general law, not to provide specific legal advice. There is no attorney client relationship between a viewer and this office. This post should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney.

03/18/2020

Quick Will for Bad Times.

This is unprecedented times. COVID-19 has and continues to cause such disturbance to our daily lives. As kids, I am sure we all wished that we didn’t have to go to school. As parents, I am sure we all want our kids back to school as soon as possible to regain our sanity. I digress.

While you are sitting at home, twiddling your thumbs watching the kids destroy the house, with the news/podcast in the background reporting increasing confirmed cases, at some point you might have a panic attack and start thinking “I never got a will prepared!”

Never fear. New Jersey recognizes holographic wills. “A will that does not comply with subsection a. is valid as a writing intended as a will, whether or not witnessed, if the signature and material portions of the document are in testator’s handwriting.” N.J.S.A. 3B:3-2(b).

This statue allows you to prepare a will on your own without the stringent requirements for witnesses and notaries. But the key is that it must be handwritten, which is required in order to avoid the possibility of forgery.

So if you don’t have a will, you can now use all the free time you have from “social distancing” to prepare a quick holographic will. This is in no way a substitution for a well-though out and prepared will with the guidance of an attorney, but it will provide some temporary relief. When our lives return to normal (hopefully soon), you should then consult an attorney to have a proper will prepared.

*If you have minor children, you should consider appointing a guardian for them in the event that both you and your spouse are unable to care for them. The will is the only instrument where you can make this designation.

DISCLAIMER: This post is made available for educational purposes only about the general law, not to provide specific legal advice. There is no attorney client relationship between a viewer and this office. This post should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney.

03/03/2020

Landlord-Tenant Update.

2019 was a very busy year. My office filed numerous landlord-tenant actions. New Jersey is very tenant friendly especially toward residential tenants. New Jersey protects residential tenants by imposing very tedious and technical requirements for evictions. At court, I often see landlords who are representing themselves have their case dismissed due to these technicalities.

Effective March 1, 2020, New Jersey has imposed even more protection for residential tenants. Let's see how protective the law is now.

Landlord files to evict Tenant for not paying rent. Landlord wins at trial and the court awards Landlord judgment. The court officer locks Tenant out of the premises. Finally, Landlord can relax and find a better tenant, right?

Not quite. Under the new law, a tenant has the right to pay the outstanding balance within three (3) business days after a lockout to pay the outstanding rent. Once paid, the eviction order will be dismissed and the tenant can continue to stay.

Clever landlords will say to themselves "I can just avoid payment." Remember the saying "if you play with fire, you get burned"? A landlord that violates the new law will be fined up to $500.00.

And this is why in New Jersey, lawyers call tenants "lifetime tenants."

DISCLAIMER: This post is made available for educational purposes only about the general law, not to provide specific legal advice. There is no attorney client relationship between a viewer and this office. This post should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney.

A small win but for a big cause. I was referred a matter last week. The mother flew form Taiwan to check on her daughter...
07/18/2019

A small win but for a big cause. I was referred a matter last week. The mother flew form Taiwan to check on her daughter, only to find out a week before Sheriff's sale that her daughter's house was being foreclosed. The daughter was suffering from a condition that prevented her from dealing with the foreclosure directly and the bank would not agree to postpone the Sheriff's sale. I filed an emergency application and was able to have the Sheriff's sale postponed for 2 weeks so the mother can keep her daughter from losing her home and becoming homeless.

A small win but for a big cause.

Won on an emergency application to have construction liens wrongfully recorded against my client's 7 properties discharg...
03/08/2019

Won on an emergency application to have construction liens wrongfully recorded against my client's 7 properties discharged! Client was facing imminent default on the loans on all 7 properties!

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