Douglas A. Turner, P.C.

Have a dispute with your beloved homeowner association? Thinking about withholding your dues or assessments in protest? Well, be careful. You may lose your real property in the process.

When it comes to horses and owner liability, two recent Colorado court cases underscore just how limited the exemption from civil liability is and the importance of liability waivers for anybody who owns a horse. A well-written liability waiver is a must for anybody who qualifies as an equine professional. And, surprise, you may be just that – an equine professional.

Most people who ride or own horses are aware of the Colorado law limiting civil liability for injuries caused by participating in equine activities. That statute is 13-21-119, C.R.S. In a very broad summary, those that ride horses assume the risk of injury and cannot recover from others when injured.

Avoiding ancillary probate is easy. By putting real estate into something called a nominee trust or living trust, ancillary probate proceedings and the associated expense can be avoided. As an alternative to a living trust, a limited liability company can be created, the real estate transferred to the company and then ownership in the company can be transferred to the heirs through the primary probate proceeding…

Well, times have changed since I first wrote about the disposition of dead bodies. It used to be that an individual could not control what happened to his or her body after death. Well, that has changed. Colorado’s Disposition of Last Remains Act Several years ago, Colorado enacted the Disposition of Last Remains Act. In [...]

Many tax planning wills and trusts have a little secret hidden deep down inside – the up front expense of long-term estate tax planning. There is a cost to a will or revocable trust that creates irrevocable, tax planning trusts at death. A person should always review that plan and ask himself or herself, is [...]

Understanding Local Colorado Real Estate Law Thinking about buying real estate in the Bahamas? Maybe a timeshare in Barbados? A quaint villa in the French West Indies? Well, before you do, you may want to research the local real property taxes, think about how this little piece of paradise fits into your overall estate plan [...]

Hurray! The federal estate tax exemption is 1.5 million this year. Hurray! A married couple with a tax planning estate plan can shelter up to 3 million from federal estate tax. Hurray! The federal exemption will go even higher in the year 2009. But … what about STATE estate tax? Oops! Well, listen up and [...]

With more and more people buying residential real estate for investment purposes, many novice landlords learn the hard way that keeping a security deposit can result in big trouble. Landlords must comply with Colorado’s Wrongful Withholding of Security Deposits Act (the “Act”). Read on and save yourself (or collect!) treble damages and attorneys fees. Colorado’s [...]

There is more to a commercial lease than just the cost per square foot. The written terms of the lease can be critical to a tenant’s rights should a problem arise sometime during the lease term. The time to negotiate those lease terms is before the lease begins. Here are just a few tips when [...]

Yes, he owes child support, and he owes a lot. Can that child support judgment be collected? For many single mothers in Colorado or other states, the answer is yes, but it is going to take some work. Here are some suggestions for turning that debt into hard currency…