The CourthouseDirect.com Blog

A capital asset is property that a company possesses either for a useful part of business or an investment. Most often, these assets are tangible property that cannot easily convert to cash and will remain possessions of the business for a long time. Examples of a capital asset would be a piece of equipment or a piece of land with – or without - buildings.

Your business, like your personal finances, deserves the diligent oversight necessary to maintain financial health. There will be times when the frustration of an emergency could throw healthy maintenance out the window. Hopefully, sensible evaluation of the situation prevents that from happening.

The Color-of-Title Act, which goes by the impressive legal designation 43 CFR 540, Subpart 2541, refers to the right of a person, group, or corporation with evidence purporting appearance of having a title to public lands (even if only a piece of paper) administered by the Bureau of Land Management to file what is known as a “color-of-title” claim. Color-of-title refers to a document or other instrument that appears to be a legitimate claim to title of a piece of land but, due to a title defect, cannot transfer or convey ownership.

During your research into a parcel of land you have probably run across the term “plat” associated with it. We touched on plats in our discussion of legal property descriptions, but in this blog post, we'll dive deeper into what plats are and why they're important.

Most property owners are aware that their domains have been subdivided, set apart or otherwise separated from larger chunks of surveyed land. Although an individual who owns a quarter-acre lot in an incorporated city may have a very different relationship with his or her land than an individual who owns a 40-acre "quarter-quarter section" in a rural township, the basic means by which their properties have been delineated are likely to be similar. These delineations are responsible for producing the legal property descriptions that define land ownership in the United States.

Passed in 1974 as one of the original consumer protection statutes, RESPA ensures that home-buyers receive adequate information and guidance in the weeks leading up to closing and settlement. You may recognize it by its full name: the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act.

In certain parts of the country, recordable disclaimers of interest are a crucial means by which states settle land-related disputes with the federal government. Written and discharged by the federal government, these documents are the formal vehicle through which federal agencies like the Bureau of Land Management and the National Park Service renounce their claims of ownership to specific parcels of land. They're most commonly used in Western states that feature large tracts of federally managed lands as well as in water-rich areas in which jurisdiction over navigable waterways is not clear.

After falling out of favor during and after the crash of 2008, the market for derivatives like credit indexes is enjoying a heady run. Even if they don't plan on using their own money to invest in them, investors and financial professionals would do well to understand the basic characteristics and quirks of these vehicles.

Recent breakthroughs in horizontal drilling, fracking and other mineral extraction techniques have thrown the contrasts and conflicts between mineral rights and property rights into sharp relief. Relentless population growth in mineral-rich parts of the country has increased these issues' relevance for millions of Americans. Landowners everywhere have an obligation to understand their legal relationship with what's in the ground.

Under the terms of an unpaid seller's lien, vendors who haven't received full payment for the goods or services that they've promised to their buyers retain an interest in the property. Specifically, they can withhold shipment or repossess those goods in the event that they don't receive payment or have a reasonable expectation that such payment will never occur.