Law Office of Omar S. Anorga

December 1, 2011 (Los Angeles, CA)– Downtown Los Angeles marketing agency, RAINDEO BEAUTIFUL and the

Law Office of Omar S. Anorga are proud to announce the “DTLA Holiday Toys and Tops Drive.” The holiday

drive is aimed to bring smiles, laughter and hope to Los Angeles’ children and families in need this holiday season.

For the week of December 12 to 16, RAINDEO BEAUTIFUL and the Law Office of Omar S. Anorga encourage

downtown businesses to participate in this worthy cause by donating new, unwrapped toys or clothing items. All

donations may be dropped off at the ANJAC Fashion Building located at 117 West Ninth Street, Los Angeles CA

90015. A designated holiday drop-off box will be found in the lobby. Your generous contributions will be donated

to children in need through The Los Angeles Clippers Foundation during the holiday season along with books

courtesy of the Clippers Ready To Achieve program.

“We are delighted and honored to team-up with the Law Office of Omar S. Anorga and The Los Angeles Clippers

Foundation in this worthy cause,” said Rainier de Ocampo, co-founder of RAINDEO BEAUTIFUL. “This partnership

along with the support of the downtown business community will help lift the holiday spirits of the less fortunate

families in our community.”

The items needed include board games, puzzles, dolls, action figures, stuffed animals and clothing items such as

shirts, coats, scarves, gloves, pants and shoes.

According to attorney Omar S. Anorga, “The holidays tend to be a financially difficult time of year for a lot of

people. Despite that, we believe it is also a time of joy for every child and we want to help ease that burden on

many families that are suffering this holiday season. We appreciate every donation and thank you in advance for

participating.”

For more information about the “DTLA Holiday Toys and Tops Drive,” call 213-973-9725 or visit

www.raindeobeautiful.com or www.anorgalaw.com.

ABOUT RAINDEO BEAUTIFUL

RAINDEO BEAUTIFUL is marketing and advertising agency that offers traditional and new media marketing for

minority and/or female-owned businesses. Based in Los Angeles, we deliver progressive creative and strategic

marketing to meet the contemporary needs and expectations of our valued clients.

Our competitive edge goes beyond the walls of marketing by building brand and maintaining enduring client

relationships and partnerships, something we take great pride in and deliver to our clients above anything else.

RAINDEO BEAUTIFUL’s most impactful work and areas of expertise have helped many client industries in:

manufacturing, professional services, education, food & beverage, entertainment, sports and non-profit.

ABOUT THE LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS FOUNDATION

The Los Angeles Clippers Foundation exists to foster and support community outreach programs and activities

with positive educational, civic, environmental and humanitarian values that benefit and enhance the quality of life

primarily for children in Greater Los Angeles. To meet these commitments, the Los Angeles Clippers Foundation

will seek, accept and donate funds and in-kind items to support community outreach programs and initiatives of

local children’s charities and organizations.

I recently wrote an article for the Daily Journal entitled Lost In Translation: non-English Fee Agreements.  The article focused in on California Civil Code ¶ 1632(b)(6), which requires attorneys to translate their fee agreements (i.e., the contract between the attorney and client) if it was negotiated in either Spanish, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog, and Chinese.

I understand that the article might have little interest if you’re not an attorney, or a potential client seeking to hire an attorney who speaks one of the languages mentioned above.  However, a closer examination of Civil Code ¶ 1632 reveals that the breadth of this law potentially affects a large part of our population.  Let me explain.

Section 1632(b)(2) states that the law applies to a “loan or extension of credit secured other than by real property, or unsecured, for use primarily for personal, family or

household purposes.”  The likely application of this law significantly affects foreign speaking individuals seeking, among other things, a credit card or a car loan.

It is not uncommon to hear stories of Latino immigrants financing the purchase of a motor vehicle in Spanish only to sign a one-sided, inconspicous dealership agreement that is written in English.  Some unscrupulous dealerships prey on the unknowing by inserting terms in the English written agreement when there was no meeting of the minds as to these terms.  I am sure these types of illegal practices occur in the Korean, Chinese, Tagalog, and Vietnamese communities, too.

Section 1632(b)(3) states that the law also applies to “a lease, sublease, rental contract or agreement, or other term of tenancy contract or agreement, for a period of longer than one month, covering a dwelling, an apartment, or mobilehome, or other dwelling unit normally occupied as a residence.”  This portion of the law has a tremendous affect on renters, landlords and real estate agents.  Let’s look at how this could play out in everyday life.

You, Korean speaking landlord, own an apartment building in Los Angeles County.  You negotiated a rental agreement for one of your units.  The renter and you did all the negotiating in Korean; however, you presented the renter with an English rental agreement.  In this scenario, you, landlord, should be happy, right? Wrong.  You have just violated the law, and given the renter an opportunity to rescind an agreement that was going to generate some honest to goodness rental income.

The remaining provisions of Civil Code ¶ 1632 protect against brokers facilitating reverse mortgage transaction, and conventional mortgages if they were negotiated in one of the languages mentioned herein.  Brokers, along with landlords, car dealerships, etc., should be careful to either provide the relevant documents central to the transaction in the translated language, or get around doing so by taking advantage of the exception set forth in Civil Code ¶ 1632(h), which provides, in pertinent part, that if the consumer/renter/legal client has his or her own translator over the age of 18, there is no requirement that the relevant documents be translated.

As you can see, Civil Code ¶ 1632 et seq., is a law, along with many others (Civil Code ¶ 2944.6 – translated loan modification documents), intended to protect foreign speaking consumers/renters/legal clients from entering into agreements that were not translated in the language that they were negotiated in.  However, it is completely short-sighted to think the law is a one-way street, and that it only protects consumers/renters/legal clients. No, it goes beyond to also protect business owners, landlords, attorneys, brokers, and financing companies from entering into agreements that can later be rescinded if they were not properly translated.

Sometimes certain written agreements have to be translated into specific languages.  If you or someone you know is seeking to enter into one of the transactions we have discussed, or someone who is seeking to get out of one of these transactions, please do not hesitate to call my office to discuss your legal options.

Lost In Translation

By: Omar S. Anorga

A bilingual or multilingual attorney can be a valuable resource to your law firm.  I have found that communicating with potential clients in their native Spanish language immediately promotes in them a sense of trust, comfort and confidence in my legal abilities.

Not only do language skills enhance the attorney-client relationship, but it also allows the attorney to increase his or her market-share by carving out a legal niche with a certain language-speaking community.  Additionally, the globalizing economy is making it imperative for California attorneys to be able to communicate with individuals from all over the world, especially those in the Asian financial markets.  More locally, Spanish is by far the most widely spoken language in California, other than English.  Without a doubt, California attorneys are, indeed, leaving money on the table if they cannot communicate with potential clients in a language other than English.

You probably already knew or suspected that  state law requires certain fee agreements be translated from English into a different language. If you did, great – you are ahead of the curve.  If not, let’s briefly review the requirements of Civil Code Section1632 et seq. before you sign up that next well-healed foreign speaking client.

Civil Code Section 1632 (b)(6) states that any attorney who negotiates legal services primarily in Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, or Korean, shall deliver to his or her potential client, a written translation of the fee agreement in the language in which it was negotiated prior to the execution thereof.  Say an exclusively Spanish speaking potential client walks through your door seeking legal representation.  During the client in-take, you and the potential client agree to the terms of the fee agreement.  You present the potential client with your tried and true English written fee agreement, which the client signs. Now your firm has a valuable new matter.  Under most circumstances, congratulations are in order; however, you have just violated Civil Code Section 1632, and potentially exposed yourself to a malpractice lawsuit affording the client the right to rescind the fee agreement.  Not good.

I know what you are thinking, there has to be away around the requirements of Section 1632 (b)(6) so that you do not have to translate your reliable English fee agreement, right? And there is, but be careful of the scope of Civil Code Section 1632 (h), which provides an exception to the translation requirement if your client negotiates the terms of the fee agreement through his or her own interpreter, defined as a “person, not a minor, able to speak fluently and read with full understanding both the English language and any other languages in which the fee agreement was negotiated, and who is not employed” by you.  So, your assistant who is fluid in Chinese or Korean or any other of the covered languages will not be able to assist you with interpretation, and, thus, circumvent the translation requirement.

If the above-mentioned exception is not in play, your next move is to have your fee agreement translated into the language in which it was negotiated.  Here are a couple of tips to keep in mind:

First, the most cost-effective way to translate a written fee agreement is by plugging into Google Translate, which is a free online resource that translates content in several other languages (except for Tagalog).  I recently cut and pasted my eight-page fee agreement into Google Translate, and I was astonished at how remarkably accurate Google translated my English fee agreement into Spanish.  There were minor issues with the translation, but I was able to rectify them without any problem.

There were some issues with Google Translate’s word choices. For example, my English fee agreement collectively refers to me as an attorney; presumably, the common translation of that word should have been abogado. Google Translate, for some reason, used the word fiscal, which means district attorney or prosecutor.  This word choice problem is a likely specific to the Spanish language, which is the official language of 21 countries, each having their own nuanced dialect.

Google Translate is probably best for those attorneys with a decent grasp of one of the covered languages under Civil Code Section 1632.  With some moderate editing, the attorney should be able to easily present the potential client with a properly worded and translated fee agreement.

Second, there is a thriving market dedicated to translating professional documents.  A simple online search for these types of services will bring up several different providers.  Legal document translation generally costs in between 14 to 26 cents per word, depending on the language.  Chinese and Spanish tend to be on the lower end of cost, while Korean and Vietnamese are middle of the road, and Tagalog being the most expensive.  Also, note that translating English into these languages can either expand or contract text.  Generally, all romantic languages, like Spanish, expand the text from an English translation.  This is also true for Vietnamese, but not necessarily so for Korean.  It varies with Chinese and Tagalog.

When selecting a company to translate your fee agreement, determine whether it is an accepted member of the American Translators Association, which establishes a high standard of translating competency.  Also, make sure to determine if someone other than the translator will review your document for accuracy. Two sets of eyes are better than one.

So for all you talented linguistic attorneys seeking to build your practice with non-English speaking clients, or for those attorneys who already are, make sure to comply with the requirements of Civil Code Section 1632, et seq., and have your fee agreement translated into the language in which it was negotiated.  Because after you have obtained that favorable result for your client and its time for them to pay up, you do not want anything to suddenly get lost in translation.

Omar S. Anorga is the principal of the Law Office of Omar S. Anorga located in downtown Los Angeles. His practice focuses in on civil litigation, and he can be reached at omar@anorgalaw.com.

The Law Office of Omar S. Anorga is pleased to announce its sponsorship and participation in the Manos Amigas / Helping Hands Celebration in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday, September 29, 2011.

The 5^th annual event is held by Centro Latino for Literacy, a non-profit organization founded to teach non-literate Latino immigrants how to read and write in Spanish as their first step in learning and mastering the English language.

“Our law firm is incredibly excited to participate in the literacy program,” said Omar Anorga, founder and president of the downtown law practice. “With our participation, we hope to continue to meet the goals of Centro Latino by advancing Latino adult literacy among the local community.”

Anorga will be donating his time and talent to Centro Latino for Literacy by teaching a class in Spanish to adult students regarding business formation. He will also contribute sponsorship funds that will aid the organization in meeting their goals.

To date, Centro Latino has made it possible for nearly 9,000 adult Latino immigrants to learn to read, write, compute and access ESL and computer skills. For well over half of these students, Centro Latino’s classroom is their first experience with formal education. By participating in these programs, the students have learned to develop important communication and job-related skills to use in the workplace. This year marks the organization’s 20^th year in operation.

“I met the executive director, Mari Riddle, at a recent business networking event and she told me all about Centro Latino,” continued Anorga. “I knew at that moment my law firm needed to play an influential role in this program. By participating and sponsoring the Manos Amigas/Helping Hands Celebration, we hope to make a difference by helping a group of inspired individuals who are seeking to better themselves in this incredibly tough world.”

The Law Office of Omar S. Anorga invites you to attend the Manos Amigas/Helping Hands Celebration on September 29th from 6:30 to 8:30 PM at the Crescent Arms Hall located at 1709 West 8^th Street in Los Angeles. For more information about the event and the Law Office of Omar S. Anorga, please visit www.centrolatinoliteracy.org and www.anorgalaw.com.

A California Court of Appeals judge once described the Small Claims Courts (limited to claims of $7,500.00 dollars or less) in our State, as a judicial forum yielding “speedy common sense justice without the need to resort to lawyers.” Indeed, the Small Claims Courts provide several benefits not generally offered by Courts of Limited (claims above $7,500.00 dollars but less than $25,000.00 dollars) and Unlimited (claims above $25,000.00 dollars) jurisdiction.

Those benefits include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Quick Resolution– Small Claims matters are generally resolved within two or three months from the date that the Plaintiff (individual initiating the lawsuit) files his or her complaint (document that sets forth the Plaintiff’s claims and request for relief, usually money). This is very different than the filing of a lawsuit in Limited or Unlimited Civil Jurisdiction, which, potentially, can go on for a year or two, sometimes even longer;
2. Affordable – The cost for the filing of the complaint varies depending on the amount of your claim. Filing fees start at thirty dollars and cap out at seventy-five dollars.  Additionally, attorneys cannot represent litigating parties (Plaintiff or Defendant) in Small Claims court. So, a litigating party can get their day in court without the expense of retaining a lawyer and, thus, making the Small Claims forum even more affordable. Win-win.
3. Preservation of Judicial Resources– The courtrooms dealing with Limited and Unlimited Civil matters, especially, in Los Angeles County (the largest trial court system in the United States), are simply swamped with heavy caseloads. In addition, in 2010, the County laid off over three hundred court employees, and implemented a monthly furlough day for an entire year, causing even more delays in resolving these matters.  Simply put, more cases, less courtroom staff and time to handle these matters equals longer periods of time before outcome resolution. As such, Small Claims Courts play a critical role in alleviating Limited and Unlimited courtrooms of matters that can be handled by a judge in a speedy and fair manner.

As you can see, the Small Claims Courts provide a tremendous public interest by providing us with an opportunity to resolve our grievances with little expense and delays. However, there are some perils in selecting the Small Claims judicial forum.  Chiefly among these dangers is the selection of the wrong forum.

As I mentioned above, Small Claims Courts can only handle matters in which litigating parties are seeking $7,500 dollars or less in damages.  What happens if your matter is worth more than this amount, but you, nevertheless, file in and are successful in obtaining a judgment in Small Claims Court?

Regretfully, you are more than likely limited to the amount of your judgment, which can be pretty painful as the example below will demonstrate.

I recently heard of a situation in which a litigating party, who speaks only Spanish and who has no legal background or education, filed a matter in Small Claims Court.  She alleged that a contractor had breached a contract and performed less than workmanlike craftsmanship on her home.  She paid him approximately $80,000.00 dollars to perform the construction, which he did not complete.  She had independent evidence that the work performed was shoddy, below the proper construction standard, and that it would cost her over $100,000.00 dollars to get what she initially bargained for – an acceptable addition to her home.

The judge ruled in her favor, and entered into a judgment against the contractor in the amount of $7,500.00 dollars even though she would have more than likely obtained a much, much larger judgment if she would filed in a judicial forum with no limitations on damages.

You must be wondering why this lady is precluded from re-filing her matter in a different judicial forum for the purpose of obtaining larger damages?  The law in California, and in most states, has a legal concept akin to the old adage – you only get one bite at the proverbial apple.  This concept is called Res Judacata, and this Latin principal stands for preventing the same litigating parties from re-filing their same claims in subsequent litigation.

In the instant matter, this principal seems rather harsh and unsympathetic to the lady mentioned above; however, you can imagine what would happen if this law was not in place.  Indeed, litigating parties who lost their respective lawsuits, or who did not obtain the damages amount they wanted, would simply go to another court and re-file their lawsuits.

This ability to go shopping for different courtrooms until you found one that ruled the way you wanted is simply unacceptable, and would be an absolute nightmare for our court system, and the litigating party on the other end of the lawsuit.  He or she would never know if the problem central to the lawsuit would ever go away.  Lawsuits should have a beginning and an end, and Res Judacata make sure that they do.

Next time you have a potential lawsuit, think twice about where is the best judicial forum to file it in.  Also, in some instances, you should consult with an attorney if you are unsure about where you should proceed with your lawsuit.  Remember, the Small Claims Courts can be the right place for you and your lawsuit, or it can be the absolute wrong place, too.

If you have any questions regarding this article, or questions regarding litigation counseling, please do not hesitate to contact the Law Offices of Omar S. Anorga to discuss.  Our telephone number is 213 489-1271, email address omar@anorgalaw.com, and website Anorgalaw.com.  Also, if you would like more information about Small Claims Court, please visit this informative self-help website: http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/smallclaims/

I have been reading the “The Essential Guide to California Restaurant Law” and I think it’s really good. I recommend it to any restaurant owner out there, or any attorney who services restaurant clients.

I know it’s been awhile since I last blogged, but I wanted to quickly post something about the California Hispanic Corporate Council Institute.

I was invited to attend one of its events last night at the City Club in Downtown Los Angeles.

The speaker for the evening was Gaddi Vasquez, the first Latino Director for the Peace Corps, and former U.S. Ambassador.  It was a delight to hear Mr. Vasquez talk about his experiences throughout life

I will be attending more events for the California Hispanic Corporate Council Institute.  Maybe you would like to, too.

Stay for more blogging starting next week.

Thanks!

Hi Everybody:

I am pleased to announce that for the second year in a row, the Law Office of Omar S. Anorga has been nominated for the Los Angeles Business Journal’s Latino Business Award.

The award ceremony will take place at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel, located in downtown Los Angeles, on January 27, 2011. For more information, please click here.

Wish us good luck!

Omar S. Anorga

Thank you to everyone who attended this morning’s workshop in Los Angeles. It was a pleasure to meet all of you and hope you took away some important points from our marketing presentation. If you have any questions or would like us to email you a copy of the Powerpoint, feel free to reach us at omar@anorgalaw.com

I will be speaking at the following seminar – How To Grow Your Business During Economic Growth.

My topic will be how to protect your business assets.

For more information, please go here: http://events.linkedin.com/How-Grow-Protect-Business-Tough-Economy/pub/463778

Thanks,