The Causeway
The monthly newsletter for the Franklin County Bar Association
"The law is a causeway upon which, so long as he keeps to it, a citizen may walk safely" Robert Bolt, playwright
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Continuing Legal Education Offered by FCBA via Zoom |
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Student Loan Basics: Payment Plans, Forgiveness, Discharge, and more - March 10th @ noon |
Patrick Best, Esq. and Scott Brannan, Esq.
ARM Lawyers
Over 40 million student loan borrowers nationwide that currently owe over $1.5 trillion in student loan debt. At the same time, more employers are expecting undergraduate and graduate degrees and college is more expensive than it has ever been.
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How to Pay Less to the IRS: As a Small to Mid‐Size Law Practice, What You are Missing - March 24th at noon |
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Patrick J. Best, Esq.
Tax planning is a deep dive into your business which implements advanced tax strategies to reduce your tax liability.
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Tax Returns – What are all those forms for and what can be learned from them? - March 26th at noon |
Greg Crumling, CPA, ABV, CFF & Adriann H. Reed, CPA, CFE, CVA
Crumling & Hoffmaster
Business Valuation and Financial Forensics
Tax returns can provide a wealth of information needed for determining disposal income available for support and helping to determine the value of a business for equitable distribution purposes. There are many forms that may be relevant (Forms 1040, 1065, 1120, 1120S; Schedules C, E, F; and more). Members of the Crumling & Hoffmaster Team will provide some insights into what you can learn from a tax return and how to best prepare for presenting relevant information to the opposing attorney, Conference Officer, Divorce Master and Judge. With recent and continual changes in the look of many tax forms, even the experienced practitioner will benefit. As an added benefit, a portion of the presentation will discuss how a PPP Loan, EIDL Grant, or other stimulus program may impact a Company’s financials and what is (or is not) reflected on the tax return.
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Save the Date - April CLEs |
We are working on our April schedule of CLEs that will be held via zoom. More information will be sent out soon.
April 14th at noon - Landlord and Tenant Issues in Franklin County during COVID-19
April 16th at noon - Cybersecurity for Your Law Firm
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Sign Up for Pro Bono with Franklin County Legal Services |
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Please return this form to Gloria Keener at Franklin County Legal Services to sign for Pro Bono work in 2021.
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Bridge the Gap Divorce List |
Franklin County Legal Services is asking interested divorce attorneys to be a part of the new Bridge the Gap Divorce List. Please read the attached letter for information. FCLS Letter
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Proposed Changes for Domestic Relations |
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Domestic Relations Procedural Rules Committee rule proposal |
Below are links to four rule proposals that have been posted on the Domestic Relations Procedural Rules Committee’s webpage. The comment period ends on May 14, 2021.
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Proposed Changes to PA Support Guidelines |
The Domestic Relations Procedural Rules Committee is planning to propose to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania amendments to Pa.R.C.P. No. 1910.16-2, 1910.16-3, 1910.16-3.1, and 1910.16-6. All communications in reference to the proposal should be received by March 19, 2021. |
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FCBA Supports Community Call to Action re: COVID-19 |
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Franklin County is in crisis.
We are grappling with the devastating impacts of a global pandemic--on our economy, on our basic needs and resources, on our healthcare systems, and on our lives.
Unfortunately, it’s going to get worse before it gets better. Data shows an alarming increase of COVID-19 cases in our community which are predicted to continue rising rapidly.
We need all of us to work together to slow the spread of this disease and help protect the health of our neighbors, friends, co-workers, and loved ones. We need to help prevent our healthcare systems from reaching maximum capacity.
To do this:
- Wear a mask, properly, whenever leaving home.
- Wash our hands, often.
- Stay home whenever possible. When unable to stay home, keep 6 feet apart from others.
- If symptoms arise, get tested right away.
Each one of us here in Franklin County is affected by COVID-19. It has a rippling impact on every aspect of our lives and we are all struggling with the constant challenges this pandemic presents.
Franklin County Bar Association and many other organizations have agreed to support this worthwhile initiative.
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FCBA's 2021 Find a Lawyer Applications are being accepted NOW |
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You may have up to 5 additional listings (areas of practice) for a small fee. The Find a Lawyer directory is available to the public on our website https://www.franklinbar.org/find/ and by calling our office. It is a great way for potential clients to learn about your and your firm.
If you appeared in our Find a Lawyer directory in the past, a new application must be submitted for you to included in the 2021 directory.
Please note, all of our members are listed in our "for members" section of our website.
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PA Immigration Resource Center's 25th Anniversary Virtual Book Club |
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Press Releases, Memos and Important Notices |
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39th Judicial Memos and Information |
Prothonotary's Office Update:
Effective April 1, 2021 the $30.00 postage fee for filing a Higher Court Appeal has increased to $40.00. This fee covers sending the Notice of Appeal certified mail and sending the case to the Higher Courts certified mail. Due to the Postal situation we have had problems with the Higher Court's receiving the Appeals in a timely fashion.
Thank you for your attention to this matter and please contact our office should you have any questions.
Timothy S. Sponseller, Prothonotary
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The Disciplinary Board
of the Supreme Court of PA
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The Pennsylvania Judiciary has provided updates at the link below regarding county-by-county court operations and proceedings. They continue to monitor developments regarding the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and its impact on court operations.
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Guardianship Tracking System Online Workshops offered by AOPC |
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Please see below for a brochure regarding the next round of GTS Guardian Workshops for court-appointed guardians. This series offers sessions in January, February & March.
Guardians who participated in any of the prior workshop/webinar sessions will not need to attend since the material being presented is essentially the same. This series is again being offered exclusively as ‘Online Workshops’. The online webinars have been very successful and convenient for the guardians since various dates and times are being offered to accommodate their schedules, and also travel is not required.
The guardians will need to register online so that the trainers can appropriately plan and staff the sessions based on the number expected to participate.
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IOLTA Board Issues Annual Report |
The Pa. Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts (IOLTA) Board has issued its 2020 Annual Report, which details the awarding of grants of nearly $29 million to support the delivery of free civil legal aid to low-income Pennsylvanians.
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Coffee Corner
"Coffee Corner" is a periodic column in The Causeway by Bar members Annie Gómez Shockey, Brandon Copeland, and Victoria Beard.
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For this month’s article I was able to catch up with one of our Bar Association’s longstanding members, Timothy Misner. Tim is a solo practitioner in Waynesboro focusing on Estates, Powers of Attorney, Commercial Real Estate and Corporate law. Believe it or not Tim doesn’t use an abstractor for his Real Estate work, and instead does his own title searches. He truly enjoys reading those old titles and learning what was happening at the time the title was executed. Over Tim’s 45 years in practice he has worked in many other areas of law including family law, civil law and criminal law. In fact, at one point he had four criminal jury trials in four months. Thankfully for Tim he has reached the point in his career that he can pick and choose what he does; Tim no longer does litigation.
Tim is originally from Waynesboro and is the older of two siblings. His younger sister lives in Enola, PA and is a retired Registered Nurse. When Tim graduated from high school he went to Allegheny College. It was founded in 1788, which makes Allegheny the nation’s 32nd oldest college. After obtaining his bachelor’s degree in history, Tim then opted for more education which led him to law school in Birmingham, Alabama at Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law. When I asked Tim why he chose to go to law school in Alabama his response was that he thought he’d have a better chance of being admitted there since he was from Pennsylvania. In fact, he didn’t recall applying to any other law schools. I’m guessing Tim was right since there are only 55 alumni of the Cumberland School of Law currently living in Pennsylvania. In 1975, Tim graduated from law school and returned to Waynesboro to work at the law firm of Millard Ullman and Thomas Painter. He learned a lot from Mr. Ullman, and eventually became a named partner at the firm. Not long after Mr. Ullman passed away in 1988, Tim decided to strike out on his own and has been a solo practitioner ever since.
In addition to being an attorney, Tim is a family man; married to Mary Louise for over 43 years. They have two children and two grandchildren. Their son, Josh, lives in Waynesboro and has a daughter. Their daughter, Hannah, lives in a Denver suburb. Hannah is a partner at a large law firm in Denver and thoroughly enjoys city life with her husband and their son. Tim and his wife take time when they can to go out to Colorado. While there Tim relishes in the time he’s able to spend with his family and partaking in the great dining scene that the Denver area has to offer. It is his pleasure to pick up the tab when the family dines out.
Like all of us, Tim is looking forward to getting back to pre-COVID life. Some of his favorite places to go to eat then were Bistro 71 in Chambersburg, the Schmankerl Stube in Hagerstown, the Tasting Room in Frederick and Lot 12 Public House in Berkeley Springs. He enjoys life at home with the two family cats and he is an outdoors man who is outside as often as possible. He continues to do all of the yard work and takes long walks. On a daily basis, Tim likes planning and preparing home cooked meals with his wife, but they also enjoy those restaurant meals.
Near the end of our conversation I had to ask if Tim had any thoughts of retirement. To that I learned an interesting fact about him. He does not drink coffee. He doesn’t need it. For a girl who needs her coffee, I was floored to hear that. He truly has more energy than I had when I was 20 and because of that Tim will continue to practice law.
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Franklin County Bar Association
100 Lincoln Way East, Suite E, Chambersburg, PA 17201
717-267-2032
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