Law Offices Of Steven H. Leahy - November 2017

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NOVEMBER 2017

LEGAL ANSWERS ALL THE ANSWERS TO YOUR LEGAL QUESTIONS

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ALWAYS ONE FOR COOKING Paying Tribute to Jim

Thanksgiving is all about traditions, but what do you do when the person at the core of your traditions is gone? After my brother died, that was the question I found myself asking. Jim was the cook in our family. Every year, he prepared an unbelievable Thanksgiving feast: a 20-pound turkey and accompanying dishes that made your mouth water. We were next-door neighbors, and our families always got together to celebrate. Because we also celebrate Thanksgiving with my wife’s family, we’d developed a two- Thanksgiving tradition. We’d go to Thanksgiving No. 1 with my wife’s family, then go to Thanksgiving No. 2 at Jim’s. While I enjoyed both, my brother always cooked my favorite dishes. Jim was always one for cooking. Everyone who knew him knew he would always overdo it with a huge feast and incredible food. Most of our neighborhood probably partook in the two-Thanksgiving tradition because his food and hospitality were so good. After he passed away, we started to create new traditions to pay respect to Jim. We’re still next-door neighbors with Jim’s family, but now, we have Thanksgiving at my house. And knowing we could never make a turkey as good as his, we’ve found another bird, or really birds, to serve: the turducken. Have you heard of this crazy concoction? It’s a stuffed and deboned chicken stuffed into a deboned duck, stuffed

into a deboned turkey. Jim and I always thought it sounded wild, and it is. I’ll tell you what, though, it’s also unbelievably good. Probably because of all the fat in the duck — it flavors the other meat as it cooks. As delicious as it is, I actually considered not doing a turducken again this year, until my nephew asked, “You’re going to have the turducken again, right?” I guess he’s just as wild about it. So I’ve already ordered this year’s odd bird, and we’ll be enjoying it with Jim’s family at my house. "After he passed away, we started to create new traditions to pay respect to Jim." In addition to Thanksgiving, Jim shared another tradition with me: making an incredible lasagna for my birthday. Every year, we would get together, and he and his wife would make me a lasagna. I loved it. Their kids are grown now, but this year, they all came back to celebrate my birthday, and Jim’s wife was generous enough to carry on the tradition of the lasagna. It was a special celebration and made us miss Jim all the more. This Thanksgiving, we’ll be gathering the family and taking part in a feast that reminds us to give thanks. It reminds me that I have so much to be grateful for. Most of all, it makes me grateful for the time Jim and I had together, as brothers, neighbors, and friends. These are memories of him that I treasure. I wish you and your family a happy Thanksgiving. Relish the time you have with your loved ones, because it’s never as much as you’d like. I hope you all have a day filled with good food and good company. Oh, and if you are planning the menu, I recommend the turducken.

-Steven Leahy

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IT’S PAYBACK TIME …WITH MONEY TRANSFER APPS How You Can Finally Get Cousin Joe to Split the Bill

Square Cash Square Cash functions similarly to Paypal

It’s the most wonderful time of year, when family reunites for meals, festivities, and nostalgia. You get to see loved ones a lot during this special time— sometimes too much. Between family dinners, gifts, and parties, there’s also a lot of money exchanged. Do your relatives always manage to get you to pick up the check with the promise that they'll “get you next time,” except they never do? If you relate a little too much to “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation’s” family dynamics and are one waiter's tip away from blowing a fuse, a money transfer app is what you need. Check out the pros and cons of these tools to avoid the awkward conversation and make getting your money back easy. Paypal One of the original money transfer sites, Paypal offers a user-friendly platform that thousands of businesses already use. Set up an account in a few steps and Paypal is ready to get you your money. It has a “Request Money” tab to send a friendly reminder to Cousin Joe that you’re waiting on the $50 you footed at Olive Garden. One drawback? If the person you request money from doesn’t have an account, they’ll have to set one up, which could be a deterrent to already reluctant debtors. Venmo Download Venmo on your phone, and after several account setup steps, you can add friends and send and receive payments. Venmo is fast, but not without cons. For one, there’s an automatic public setting that makes transactions viewable to anyone on Venmo — almost like a Facebook post of who is paying whom for what. You can make this information private; just be sure to change your settings.

and Venmo, but you don’t have to have an account, which makes it potentially the

best option to get procrastinators to send your money. No account, no excuses. The bottom line:

While all these money transfer tools can make payments easier, they still don’t guarantee people will follow through. To avoid stress and conflict this holiday season, each other when the check arrives. We all have our phones with us, so encourage tab-averse family members to hit download so they go to dinner with the mindset that they’ll get you this time. have conversations upfront about how the bill will be paid, whether it’s taking turns paying the sum or Venmo-ing

If you have been reading our newsletter, you know it was recently my 55th birthday and 20th wedding anniversary. You also knowwe planned on celebrating in Nashville, Tennessee. I had been to

Teresa and Jeannette did some cowboy boot shopping. I found out Nashville is famous for that, too. Teresa got herself boots and a hat. We also visited the Country Music Hall of Fame. Now, I have been to the Rock and Roll Hall

Cowboy Teresa

House of Cash

Nashville on business. But let me tell you, Nashville is a great place to visit just to have fun. The main street is Broadway, much like Rush Street back in the day. In addition to the bars, though, there is somuchmusic. Most bars have multiple floors, with a band on each floor. The music begins early in the day and goes late into the night. We saw some great bands, and I drank a lot of PBR (they don’t have Old Style). I included a picture of Teresa andme; our friends, Chris and Jeanette; and Johnny Cash (the magic of digital photography) at the Johnny Cash Museum. The Man in Black is such a fixture in Nashville. The museum is awesome.

of Fame. The Country Music Hall of Fame is far better —not because of the music, but because of the exhibits. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame seemed to focus onmemorabilia. The Country Music Hall of Fame focused on the music. It hadmore exhibits where you can clearly hear the music from all the greats. Plus, it had plenty of memorabilia. We have visited NewYork, Las Vegas, and nowNashville to celebrate my birthday and anniversary in recent years. I don’t knowwhere we will go next year. Maybe NewOrleans?Which city would you visit for a three-day adventure? Let me know.

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WHY BANKRUPTCY SOMETIMES GOES WRONG

When faced withmounting debts to the IRS, there are six things you can do:

1. You can pay them 2. You can get an installment agreement 3. You can file an offer in compromise 4. You can place your account in the Currently Not Collectible Status 5. You can do, well, nothing (not advisable)

There are several exceptions. For example, if you have back taxes that were due within the last three years, bankruptcy won’t be able to touch those debts. And there are other stipulations as well. To be dischargeable, debts have to be due more than three years ago; you have to have filed your tax returnmore than two years ago; and the tax must have been assessedmore than 240 days ago. Not only that, but you have to have a record clear of any attempt to defraud or lie about your finances. This makes timing an important consideration during bankruptcy. Sometimes, if you wait just 60 days, youmay have a large sumof money, which would otherwise not be dischargeable, completely erased. Bankruptcy may well be the perfect option to get out fromunder your crushing debt. But before you file, check out the exceptions to discharge in section 523 of the federal bankruptcy code. Or better yet, skip the legalese and give the LawOffices of Steven A. Leahy a call at 312-664-6649 today!

The sixth option, and the one I want to discuss today, is scary tomany people, but in the right circumstances, it can be the perfect move: filing bankruptcy.

Many people who are having problems with the IRS are havingmoney problems elsewhere. Maybe they can’t make their mortgage payment, can’t pay their bills, and the debt is just piling up on all sides. So, they seek out protection frombankruptcy laws to get out fromunder debt, assuming that once they eliminate the debt, those IRS problems will disappear.

Inmany situations, bankruptcy will work perfectly. But some of these people are in for a rude awakening. The fact is, not all tax problems are dischargeable in bankruptcy.

MEMES Don't forget to listen to the IRS Radio Hour every SUNDAY AT 5:00 P.M. ON AM 560 THE ANSWER

Ame r i can Bus ine s s TRIVIA

3. Which president is

1. Which president is on the United States $1,000 bill? A. GeorgeWashington

believed to be the first to pardon a turkey and start this annual tradition?

B. Grover Cleveland C. Andrew Jackson D. Zachary Taylor 2. What was the only product ever

A. President Lincoln in 1863 B. President Roosevelt in 1939 C. President Harry Truman in 1947 D. President Ronald Reagan in 1984

promoted by Elvis Presley in a television commercial? A. Guitars B. Suits

C. Radios D. Donuts

Be the first to call with all the right answers and win FREE movie tickets!

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Phone: (312) 664-6649 chicagotaxteam.com 150 N Michigan Ave #1120, Chicago, Illinois 60601

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Remembering My Brother Jim on Thanksgiving

It’s Payback Time ... With Money Transfer Apps

Our Trip to Nashville

Why Bankruptcy Sometimes Goes Wrong

Trivia

How Saunas Will Change Your Winter Health

The Life-GivingBenefits of Saunas

Sweat the Years Away

Colder weather is hard on our bodies for many reasons. The air dries and cracks our skin, freezing temperatures cause old injuries to flare up and joints to ache, and the conditions make it just plain hard to exercise.

Now, the health journal Age and Ageing has found evidence linking sauna use to a lowered risk for Alzheimer's disease and dementia. Men aged 42–60 who participated in frequent sauna bathing sessions were found to have lowered rates of dementia and Alzheimer’s. If feeling good and warming you up weren’t enough, a healthy mind is a great reason to sauna. And while the simplicity of the traditional sauna is part of what makes it great, some facilities have added a modern twist: infrared rays. Infrared saunas, already hot in NewYork City and Los Angeles, are starting to pop up everywhere. If you have trouble dealing with the heat of a typical sauna (average sauna temperatures are kept around 212 degrees F), this latest trend is for you. The average temperature of an infrared sauna is 150 degrees F, making it a more tolerable experience. One NewYork studio touts infrared’s ability to stimulate collagen production, an added anti-aging benefit. Need another bonus? Infrared saunas are said to release up to 20 percent more toxins from the body than traditional saunas. Whichever type of sauna you decide to visit, the potential health benefits speak for themselves. If you don’t get to escape to Miami or Cancun this winter (and even if you do), it’s a relaxing way to warm up and ease winter ailments. Treat your body and yourself to a sauna experience!

What’s a fair-weather bird to do? Head to the sauna! Sauna use has been popular in

Finland for thousands of years, and there are compelling reasons why. Not only are there many bodily benefits, but science is telling us it may also protect the mind. We’ve known for a long time that saunas can help with blood circulation, stress relief, and cardiovascular health.

Traditional saunas use heat to get your blood flowing and promote circulation, and the sweating that goes on during a sauna experience is said to purge toxins from your body. It’s a rejuvenating ritual that releases stress along with endorphins.

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