Ask A Lawyer

  Atty. Kashoua Yang Q: I don’t have legal custody of my daughter. I tried to request for school records from her school but was told by the school that I need to get the custodial parent’s permission first.  Is this true? A: It depends. Irrespective of whether a parent has legal custody of a child, school records are available to the parent upon request. Legal custody is the right and responsibility to make major decisions for the child. However, the child’s school records may not be released when the requesting parent has been denied periods of physical placement. When periods of physical…

Q. Am I allowed to view my employee file?   Atty. Randy T. Enochs A. Employee rights to view their personnel files. Probably one of things employees often do not know about, at least in Wisconsin, regards their right to view their employee/personnel file. A lot of employees wonder what happens with those yearly reviews, disciplinary write-ups and handbooks and often never see these materials unless they are terminated. In Wisconsin employees are allowed, under law (Wis. Stat. sec. 103.13), to view their personnel file twice per year within seven working days of a request. There are some exceptions to…

Q: Can I file for Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits if I am receiving worker’s compensation or sick leave benefits?   Atty. Kashoua Yang A: Yes. You should file for SSD benefits while you are receiving sick leave (short or long-term disability) or worker’s compensation benefits, if you expect to be unable to work for at least 12 months. You do not have to wait until these benefits end to file for SSD. It is best to file a Social Security Disability claim as soon as possible. Otherwise, there may be a gap between the time your sick leave or…

Q: I have some legal questions but do not want to invest any money into a lawyer at this point until I know it is something worth moving forward. Where can I get some basic information for free? A: Although there are many lawyers in the area who will give free consultations, it is difficult to know where to begin.  A lot of lawyers devote most of their practice to one area of the law.  If a particular case does not fall into their practice area, they usually cannot be of much assistance.  Sometimes a person needs to talk to…

Q: Can my employer fire me after I sustain a work related injury?   Atty. Kashoua Yang A: No and Yes. After you are released from treatment to return to work without permanent restrictions, the employer must offer you work or risk having to pay a penalty. Similarly, if you are assessed with permanent restrictions by your doctor and your employer has a job within your permanent restrictions then the employer must offer the job to you or risk having to pay a penalty. This penalty may be up to one year’s wages. A permanent restriction is a work restriction…

Q: Who pays for health insurance and uninsured medical expenses, and how is it calculated into a child support order?   Atty. Kashoua Yang A: In making an order of child support, courts must make an order as to who will pay for medical insurance and who must pay the medical expenses not covered by insurance. Child support under Wisconsin’s percentage guidelines is not intended to be used for health costs for the minor child(ren). Either or both parents may be ordered to provide health insurance coverage if the service providers are accessible and the cost of enrollment is reasonable. …

Q: I am 45 years old and have serious back pain, which caused me to lose my job.  Why did the disability determination bureau deny my claim? A: The regulations dictate that in order to qualify for disability benefits under title II or title XVI, you must not only be unable to perform your past jobs, but you must be unable to perform any job in the national economy 20 CFR III § 404.1505 (a). People at the disability determination bureau have looked at your medical records and assessed limitations caused by your impairments.  Then they determined that there are…

Q: My Ex and I have our children the same amount of time, so neither of us should have to pay child support to the other, right? A: The answer to this question (similar to the answer to many law-related questions) is “it depends.” First and foremost, it should be noted that there are at least two circumstances when the answer to this question is “yes”: (1) if you and your Ex have similar incomes and/or (2) if you and your Ex agree to hold open child support.* The term “hold open” means that neither of you are paying support,…

Can I be fired because of what I write on Facebook? Anytime there is a breakthrough in technology it is almost certain that legal implications and challenges will arise, leaving lawyers, judges and legislators with the problem of discovering whether any laws have been violated and how to adapt to the changing technology. With the advent of social networking websites like MySpace and Facebook, we have seen a variety of lawsuits arise ranging from privacy law to labor law issues. In the last several months labor lawyers across the country have been keeping a very close eye on a case filed…

Q. Can I be fired for calling into work because of the snow/blizzard? A. A curious question that always pops up whenever severe weather sweeps through town is whether or not an employee can be fired for calling into work due to inclement weather or whether they are to be paid for missing work due to mother nature’s wrath. As I write this post, the Milwaukee area is getting hit hard by snow, wind, and freezing temperatures. It would seem illogical for employers to require their employees to have to drive into work in this weather but there simply isn’t…