Suzanne Schaper Law Firm

Welcome to Suzanne Schaper Law Firm Divorce Lawyer in Beaumont, Texas

Texas Couple Living in N.C. Divorce

---v--- filed N.C. Court of Appeals, Nov. 2, 2010 (No. 09-1662).

The parties lived together in Texas before moving to North Carolina. The "wife" filed a complaint for divorce, post-separation support, alimony, and equitable distribution. She alleged that she and "her husband" were common law Husband and Wife under the laws of Texas. He responded to the complaint by denying that the parties were married. He failed to assert any Chapter 50 counterclaims; however, he did assert counterclaims for summary eviction, conversion, and claim and delivery related to real property that had previously been owned by the "wife", but that she had deeded to him prior to her filing bankruptcy. The trial court denied "wife's" claim for divorce finding that, based upon the North Carolina court's interpretation of Texas law, the parties were not common law husband and wife because they had no "present agreement to be husband and wife." The "wife" appealed the trial court's denial of her claim for divorce. The Court of Appeals dismissed her appeal as interlocutory because there was no evidence in the record that his counterclaims had been resolved. (Suzanne Schaper's note: Neither party addressed the interlocutory nature of the appeal in the briefs - the Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal on its own motion.)

Report: Insurers Calculate Premiums Based on Hyped-Up Hurricane Projections

Hurricane risk prediction methods that property insurers use to help calculate premiums were off by $34.8 billion to $53 billion the past five years, according to a new report. "Catastrophe models are relatively blunt tools with many simplifying assumptions based on limited scientific data" wrote Karen Clark, who developed the first hurricane catastrophe model and in 1987 founded the first catastrophe modeling company, Applied Insurance Research, which is now AIR Worldwide. Julie Patel, Orlando Sentinel 01/21/2011
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Makers of Mobile Homes for FEMA Near Settlement

Companies that manufactured mobile homes for the FEMA after Hurricane Katrina are nearing a settlement to resolve thousands of claims that Gulf Coast storm victims were exposed to potentially dangerous fumes, court records show. A proposed class-action settlement involving about two dozen mobile home manufacturers and their subsidiaries is expected to be filed Friday. MICHAEL KUNZELMAN, AP, The Washington Post 01/21/2011
Read Article: The Washington Post

Feds Checking Post-Vaccine Seizures in Children

The FDA is investigating an apparent increase in fever-related seizures in young children after they got a flu shot saying there have been 36 confirmed reports of seizures this flu season in children ages 6 months through 2 years. The seizures occurred within one day after they were vaccinated with Fluzone. Ten of the children were hospitalized, but all recovered. The FDA said it is investigating to see if there is any connection between the vaccine and the seizures, or if something else caused the convulsions. MIKE STOBBE, AP , Yahoo News 01/21/2011
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One Oil Pipeline Too Many for Texas?

A Canadian company, TransCanada Corp., has come forward with a plan to build a 1,700-mile pipeline to carry heavy, high-pollutant oil from the tar sands of northern Alberta, across the American heartland, through scenic ranchlands in the piney woods of east Texas and on to refineries near Houston and Port Arthur. Warnings that the pipeline could worsen the state's already potent refinery emissions and threaten water supplies have riled up people not normally inclined to cotton to environmentalists; TransCanada's heavy-handed approach to obtaining easements through rural property — a mix of dickering and threats of eminent domain — has populated the Sierra Club's recent meetings with rural residents whose political inclinations lean more toward the "tea party" movement than eco-activism. Kim Murphy, LA Times 01/24/2011
Read Article: LA Times