Areas of Practice
Automobile Injury
Business Law
Business Law is a branch of civil law that governs business in both the private and public sectors. It provides a legal framework within which businesses are created and organized as well as how business is conducted. Business law covers a wide variety of topics relating to the law of agency, corporations, partnerships, limited partnerships and limited liability companies. It involves such issues as fiduciary relationships, closely held corporations, shares and stockholders, directors and officers, dissolution and receivership, franchise relationships and management duties and liabilities.
Christian Conciliation / Mediation
This area of dispute resolution typically involves resolution of disputes between professing Christians outside of the secular legal system. Mr. Long is a certified Christian Conciliator with Peacemaker Ministries.
Criminal Law
One typically becomes involved in a Criminal Law case after they (or a friend or relative) have been arrested for allegedly committing a crime. The term Criminal Law encompasses the rights of an accused and the criminal justice process which includes arrest, preliminary arraignment, preliminary hearing, formal arraignment, Grand Jury proceedings or trial. One can be arrested and charged with violating either Federal Criminal Statutes or State Criminal Statutes. If an individual commits a federal crime, they will be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office. If an individual commits a state criminal offense, they will be prosecuted by the District Attorney of the county in which the crime was allegedly committed. In order to prove that an individual committed the crime charged, the prosecution must prove each and every essential element of each offense beyond a reasonable doubt. Since that is a very high burden of proof and innocent individuals are sometimes charged with crimes they did not commit, one must act quickly to retain a criminal defense attorney to protect his or her rights. Both Messrs. Long and Ramsay are former Chester County Assistant District Attorneys and have been successfully defending individuals charged with federal and state criminal offenses for over the past two decades.
Litigation
A controversy before a court or a “lawsuit” is commonly referred to as “litigation.” If it is not settled by agreement between the parties it would eventually be heard and decided by a judge or jury in a court. Litigation is one way that people and companies resolve disputes arising out of an infinite variety of factual circumstances.
Family Law
Personal Injury
The term Personal Injury encompasses the branch of tort law relating to any “damage” done to an individual’s physical person, property or reputation which is typically caused by the negligence of another. One can sustain a personal injury at work, in a car accident, due to a faulty product or faulty repair of a car or household device (furnace), negligence of a doctor during medical treatment, or in a slip and fall on a wet floor or icy pavement. In order for one to recover damages (money) the injury must occur due to the negligence of an individual who owes you a duty of care. The most common personal injury actions arise due to injuries sustained in automobile accidents or due to the negligence of a doctor during the course of medical treatment or a surgical procedure.
Wills, Trusts and Estates
In a will, a person or “testator” expresses in writing what he (or she) wants done with his property after he dies. Most states require wills to be signed by the testator and witnessed by two people. “Probate” is a court proceeding in which final debts are settled and legal title to property is formally passed from the deceased person or “decedent” to his heirs. Probate proceedings take place in the probate court or surrogate court in the county of the decedent’s legal residence at the time of his death. If a person dies “intestate”, meaning “without a will,” state law determines how to distribute his property. Trusts are instruments created to supervise assets for certain beneficiaries (such as minors or incompetents) or for tax reasons. Mr. Long assists with creating estate plans with wills, trusts, or both as well as administrating them.