Trump loses lawsuit challenging subpoena for financial records

A U.S. judge on Monday ruled in favor of a U.S. House of Representatives committee seeking President Donald Trump's financial records from his accounting firm, dealing an early setback to the Trump administration in its legal battle with Congress.

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta in Washington also denied a request by Trump to stay his decision pending an appeal.

Last Tuesday Mehta heard oral arguments on whether Mazars LLP must comply with a House of Representatives Oversight Committee subpoena.

Mehta said in Monday's ruling that the committee "has shown that it is not engaged in a pure fishing expedition for the President's financial records" and that the Mazars documents might assist Congress in passing laws and performing other core functions.

"It is simply not fathomable that a Constitution that grants Congress the power to remove a President for reasons including criminal behavior would deny Congress the power to investigate him for unlawful conduct - past or present - even without formally opening an impeachment inquiry," Mehta said.

Mehta said Mazars has seven days to comply with the subpoena.

It was the first time a federal court had waded into the tussle about how far Congress can go in probing Trump and his business affairs.

Trump told reporters the decision was "crazy" and that it would be appealed.

"It's totally the wrong decision by obviously an Obama-appointed judge," Trump said.

Trump is refusing to cooperate with a series of investigations on issues ranging from his tax returns and policy decisions to his Washington hotel and his children's security clearances.

The standoff deepened on Monday when Trump told former White House counsel Don McGahn to defy a subpoena to testify about Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation before a different congressional committee.

Trump's lawyers have argued that Congress is on a quest to "turn up something that Democrats can use as a political tool against the president now and in the 2020 election."

The House Oversight Committee claims sweeping investigative power and says it needs Trump's financial records to examine whether he has conflicts of interest or broke the law by not disentangling himself from his business holdings, as previous presidents did.

Lawyers for Trump and the Trump Organization, his company, last month filed a lawsuit to block the committee's subpoena, saying it exceeded Congress' constitutional limits.

Mehta was appointed in 2014 by Democratic former President Barack Obama, who was often investigated by Republicans in Congress during his two terms in office.

Mazars has avoided taking sides in the dispute and said it will "comply with all legal obligations."

The ruling was "a resounding victory for the rule of law," Elijah Cummings, the House Oversight Committee chairman, said in a statement.

"Congress must have access to the information we need to do our job effectively and efficiently, and we urge the President to stop engaging in this unprecedented cover-up and start complying with the law," Cummings said.

A judge in Manhattan will hear arguments on May 22 in a similar lawsuit Trump filed to block subpoenas issued to Deutsche Bank AG and Capital One Financial Corp.

Mehta's ruling "will probably have considerable weight in similar factual contexts where the House is seeking other records," said Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Trump sues to block U.S. Congress subpoena for his financial records

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump on Monday filed suit to keep U.S. lawmakers from obtaining his financial records, the first salvo in what promises to be an escalating legal battle with Democrats in Congress.

The suit seeks to block a subpoena issued by the Democratic chairman of the U.S. House Oversight Committee for information about Trump's personal and business finances, alleging Democrats have launched "all-out political war" on Trump with subpoenas as their "weapon of choice."

The committee's subpoena sought eight years of documents from Mazars USA, an accounting firm long used by Trump to prepare financial statements, related to its investigation of allegations Trump inflated or deflated financial statements for potentially improper purposes.

Elijah Cummings, the House Oversight Committee chairman, issued the subpoena to the president's accountant after Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, testified to Congress in February that Trump had misrepresented his net worth.

"Chairman Cummings' subpoena is invalid and unenforceable because it has no legitimate legislative purpose," Trump's lawyers said in a filing, arguing it exceeded constitutional limits on the power of Congress to investigate.

"Its goal is to expose Plaintiffs’ private financial information for the sake of exposure, with the hope that it will turn up something that Democrats can use as a political tool against the President now and in the 2020 election," they said.

In a statement on Monday, Cummings said there was no valid legal basis to try to block the subpoena and accused the White House of "unprecedented stonewalling" in refusing to produce a single document or witness to the committee.

"This complaint reads more like political talking points than a reasoned legal brief, and it contains a litany of inaccurate information," Cummings said.

The filing was the first effort by Trump's legal team to quash multiple investigations of Trump and his finances by Democratic-led committees in Congress. His lawyers made it clear they would resist those efforts.

"Democrats are using their new control of congressional committees to investigate every aspect of President Trump’s personal finances, businesses, and even his family," Trump's lawyers said.

"Instead of working with the President to pass bipartisan legislation that would actually benefit Americans, Democrats are singularly obsessed with finding something they can use to damage the President politically," they said.

The Trump Organization, the president's privately owned real estate company, is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit. Trump is suing in his individual capacity, and is represented by a private law firm rather than government lawyers from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Republicans on the Oversight Committee also had objected to the subpoena from Cummings, arguing it was an abuse of congressional authority to target the private financial information of Trump.

"As a firm we will respect this process and will comply with all legal obligations," Mazars said in a statement. "As with all clients, we are precluded by our professional code of conduct and corporate policy from commenting further on inquiries of this nature."

Ross Garber, a Washington lawyer who focuses on political investigations, said the lawsuit might be dismissed because of the Speech or Debate Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which offers broad legal protection to members of Congress for actions they undertake as legislators.

But Garber also said there was some merit to Trump's argument that the subpoena was brought for the improper purpose of unearthing politically damaging information about him, rather than for a legitimate legislative purpose.

"Congressional authority is vast but it is not unlimited, and the complaint raises potentially legitimate questions,” Garber said, adding that Congress would have a stronger basis for the request if it had initiated impeachment hearings, when courts have said its investigative powers are heightened.

Garber said disputes between the White House and Congress over documents are often resolved through negotiation, rather than lawsuits, and that a compromise was still possible.

The filing said Democrats have issued more than 100 subpoenas and requests "to anyone with even the most tangential connection to the President." 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Bring financial order to your life in 2015

MANILA, Philippines - Have you ever felt that you are always at the mercy of circumstances where money matters are involved? For instance, are you always running out of cash? Do you feel that your bills are always piling with no reprieve in sight?

Perhaps, it’s time to bring financial order into your life. Financial order, in a nutshell, means being prepared to face your financial obligations without getting stressed to the point of anxiety. Although money matters are not exactly the easiest to think about and may cause you a measure of stress, they should not overwhelm you completely.

Financial order is important. At the very least, it gives you peace of mind. It also keeps you out of trouble and helps you avoid unnecessary expenses and losses. For example, if you missed funding a check you issued by only one day, you could be paying as high as P2,500 in penalties. Same thing holds true for credit card bills.

Creating financial order in your life is possible, but it entails careful analysis of your financial standing, your consumption and spending patterns, and your personal goals. It is both a process and a goal. You have to continuously work to keep financial order in your life, and you should always aspire to achieve or keep it.

Here are some concrete ways to achieve financial order:

Keep records.

By keeping records, you will be able to keep an eye on your bills’ due dates which allows you to plan accordingly. Over the longer term, your records will allow you to monitor your spending and debt levels. There are programs available online to help you do this. If you prefer to keep records the old way, you can get a large envelope where you can file your receipts, bills, credit card and bank statements. It would be helpful to organize these regularly.

Manage expenses.

Are you going overboard with too many expenses? If you keep financial records, you will be able to pinpoint areas where you can cut back or where you can better manage your expenses. Look at areas where you may be incurring unnecessary expenses like paying for too many cable channels you hardly tune in to or gym memberships you hardly have time for.

Have a savings plan.

Once you are better able to manage expenses, you can have a savings plan. Commit to saving a fraction of your income and to add to this regularly. As much as possible, try to allocate funds for savings before you spend your regularly monthly earnings.

Pay debt.

Try to keep your debt level to a level that is comfortable. To know how much debt you currently have, calculate your monthly disposable income. This covers your take-home pay, bonuses, and all other income coming from other sources. Next, compute your monthly payments on all loans. Then, divide this amount by your monthly disposable income and multiply by 100. This will give you the percentage of your disposable income that goes into debt payment.

Protect your income.

One source of financial stress is the fear of leaving your family and loved ones vulnerable if you pass away. This is why it helps to take out a life insurance, especially if you have young children or if you are the breadwinner in your family. Insurance will also protect your assets. If you own a car, consider getting an automobile insurance. If you own property, home insurance is a worthwhile purchase.

Know your net worth.

This is an exercise that everybody should do, regardless of economic status. To know this, add up the value of all your assets (property, stocks, etc.) and income. Deduct the amount of your debt from this amount. The resulting number is your net worth. Note that this may change every year, depending on the value of your assets (e.g. share prices may change) and the amount you owe.

Once your finances are in order, you will be better able to forecast your fiscal activities, and you will be able to create realistic goals that will lead you, eventually, to financial freedom. It’s never too late to start – and 2015 is as good a year as any.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Getting Rid of Private Mortgage Insurance

You can raise your credit score, save enough cash for closing costs, and maintain accurate financial records. However, if you don’t have at least a 20 percent down payment when buying a house, you’ll have to pay private mortgage insurance.

Private mortgage insurance is required on all mortgage loans with a loan-to-value ratio greater than 80 percent. The annual premium for PMI — which is between 0.5 percent and one percent of the loan — is added to each mortgage payment. Therefore, if you get a mortgage for $100,000, and your mortgage insurance premium is one percent, you’ll pay $1,000 a year for PMI, or about $83 a month.

For the most part, private mortgage insurance is a win-win for both parties. It protects lenders against loss if a borrower defaults on the loan; and PMI puts homeownership within reach for borrowers with less than a 20 percent down payment.

Private mortgage insurance is costly for borrowers — but fortunately, it’s not permanent. Here’s a look at two ways to get rid of private mortgage insurance.

    Borrower-requested cancellation

Since PMI is only required by lenders when a homebuyer has less than a 20 percent down payment, you can ask your lender to cancel mortgage insurance once your property has 20 percent equity — but there are no guarantees.

There are several ways to build equity faster. For example, you can submit extra mortgage payments to reduce your principal balance. There’s the option of paying one half of your mortgage payment every two weeks, which is the equivalent of one extra mortgage payment a year. You can also pay a little more each month, and apply the extra payment to the principal only.


Additionally, home improvements can quickly raise your property’s value and eliminate mortgage insurance sooner. Home improvement projects that pay off include kitchen and bathroom remodels, room additions, and exterior improvements.

To request PMI cancellation, you’ll have to submit a request in writing and follow your lender’s guidelines. If your mortgage is current and your home’s value hasn’t declined, the bank may comply with your request. However, your lender will require a home appraisal before eliminating mortgage insurance. Appraisals cost between $300-$400, depending on the size of your home.


    Automatic PMI termination

The reality is that some borrowers can’t afford to pay down their mortgages early or spend money on costly home improvements. Don’t overly stress about mortgage insurance if you fall into this category. Be patient, and in a few years, your lender will automatically terminate PMI.

The Homeowner’s Protection Act (HOPA) makes it illegal for lenders to unnecessarily charge borrowers mortgage insurance. As a rule, lenders must automatically remove PMI on the date that your “mortgage balance is scheduled to reach 78 percent of the original value of the home” based on the initial amortization schedule, says Sara Millard, senior vice president and deputy general counsel at United Guaranty Corp.
 
So, even if your lender rejects your request to cancel mortgage insurance once your property has 20 percent equity, HOPA stops PMI from becoming a permanent or long-term expense.

Bottom Line

Mortgage insurance isn’t cheap, and paying this premium every month will increase your mortgage payment. To avoid PMI, aim for a 20 percent down payment when purchasing a house. It’ll take longer to buy and you’ll have to make sacrifices, but it’s worth the effort. Besides, a 20 percent down payment not only eliminates mortgage insurance, it also helps you qualify for a better mortgage rate.

source: totalmortgage.com

How to set your financial records straight

MANILA, Philippines - Did you ever have to replace a malfunctioning gadget but couldn't claim a warranty because you've thrown away the receipt?

Have you applied for a travel visa and found yourself unable to produce bank statements because you don’t even know if you have those?

Have you had to avail of medical insurance but couldn't tell the hospital your account number?

Keeping financial records can be quite a chore, given the volume of papers that we have to track. Yet it is something you cannot avoid and will have to do. It is also one of the most important, yet often overlooked, aspects of personal finance management.

There are definite advantages to keeping and organizing your records. You save time, money and avoid inconveniences that may arise when you suddenly need documents to prove your identity or your financial capability for various reasons -- to get travel documents, use pre-need plans, apply for credit cards and loans. For financial planning purposes, having records are the first step to help you monitor your expenses, your spending behavior, and better understand or predict your cash flow.

Understandably, you wouldn't want to keep all records forever, so you need to think about what records you should keep, how you should keep them, and for how long.

There are some records that you instinctively know you should keep: proof of ownership of property, certificates of deposit, government-issued documents such as certifications, service warranties, tax payments, and the like. There are others that you may want to hold on to for a given period of time before disposing of these.

For instance, you can keep receipts of items you’ve bought using your credit card for reconciliation purposes until the statement arrives, then dispose of it. You can wait till you get the annual summary of your investments before throwing away your quarterly statement of accounts, and hold on to home, car, and medical insurance policies until they are renewed.

On the other hand, receipts for significant purchases like jewelry, appliances, and cars — along with corresponding service contracts and warranties— must be kept while these are in your possession. Tax records and their supporting documents should be retained for generally three years, coinciding with the 3-year statute of limitations, although some tax consultants have advised businesses to hold on to their tax records for as long as 10 years.

Here are some ways to help you with record-keeping:

Spend a few minutes every week to go through your records, paying special attention to those that are time-sensitive such as bills and payments. If you run a home office, make sure you do not mix your personal records and your home business records.

Have a temporary record storage area.
If you do not have time to check records daily, you can try to have an expanding envelope where you can temporarily stuff all receipts, statements or documents that you are unable to check or sort right away. It may be a good idea to have another smaller envelope specifically for important records in your bag. Put documents that you receive in the course of the day – at the office, for instance -- in this envelope, then transfer the contents of this to the expanding envelope you have at home. At the end of the week, go through the contents of this temporary file storage and sort out its contents.

Think of a filing system to categorize your records.

Make sure that this would fit your lifestyle and that you are comfortable with it. One way is to arrange your files according to date and category. Another example is to arrange them in four groups: Active File, Inactive File, Important Papers, and Throw Away.

The Active File consists of documents vital to the everyday operation of your household. These papers should include: appliance manuals, warranties, and service contracts (including their receipts); bank statements; bill payment receipts; billing statements (from utility and credit card companies, among others); credit card information; employment records; health benefit information; insurance policies (car, home, and life, among others); loan statements; safe deposit box inventory (and key); tax receipts

Inactive File. Documents from the Active File that are three years and older can be transferred to the Inactive File.

Important Papers are those that are irreplaceable or difficult to replace. These documents include: Certificates of deposit; contracts; deeds and property titles; life insurance policies; passbooks; Power of attorney; stock and bond certificates

Throw aways are those that have you have no need for . This would include expired insurance policies, receipts that are of no consequence, billing statements that have long been paid for, etc.

Label your records for easy reference.

For example, documents pertaining to your property could fall under “Real estate assets” while utility bills could be marked as simply “Utilities.”

Have back-up files of your most important documents.

Have photocopies or scanned copies of your passport, property titles, and investment certificates that you can store electronically. Alternatively, you may take photos of these using your smart phone. There are many apps that now allow you to store images of your records using the cloud.

Keep a list of the documents that you have.

Over the years, you may no longer remember what you have. This list will make retrieval easier and faster.

Originals of important records must be kept safe and secure in a secondary location like a safe deposit box at the bank, which you can avail of for a minimal fee. If you prefer to store them at home, then you must do so in a fireproof and waterproof safe. Place the documents in Ziploc bags or other airtight waterproof containers before putting them in the safe.

Let your spouse or closest next of kin know where to look for the most important records in the event that you are not physically present to retrieve these. If your original documents are in a bank safety deposit box, you might want to have a Power of Attorney left in an easily accessible place for them to access your safety deposit box in your absence.

When disposing of financial records, take the necessary precautions to protect your personal and financial information against identity thieves. Tear these documents into little pieces or get a portable paper shredder to help you dispose of stale documents.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Financial records: What to keep and throw away

MANILA, Philippines - Are you the type who misses payments because of misplaced bills? Do you often find yourself scrambling for older bank statements because you can’t balance your checkbook?

Well, it’s very likely that your financial records are in disarray with important documents strewn over different parts of your home.



Organizing your records in a professional manner can save you both time and money. Just as importantly, it will also give you a clearer picture of your financial situation. You’ll be able to keep track of your spending, monitor your borrowings, and manage your assets more efficiently—and it will only take you a few hours to set it all up.

Before you get yourself organized, here are three factors that you need to consider: what documents you should keep, where you should keep them, and for how long.

Gather all papers and documents detailing your financial affairs including billing statements, bank statements, and receipts as well as proof of ownership, certificates of deposit, and service warranties.

Arrange them in four piles: Active File, Inactive File, Important Papers, and Throw Away.

Active File

The Active File consists of documents vital to the everyday operation of your household. These papers should include:

Appliance manuals, warranties, and service contracts (including their receipts)
Bank statements
Bill payment receipts
Billing statements (from utility and credit card companies, among others)
Credit card information
Employment records
Health benefit information
Insurance policies (car, home, and life, among others)
Loan statements
Safe deposit box inventory (and key)
Tax receipts (e.g. donations to charity)

Set up a filing system for these documents at your home office. The ideal would be to arrange every piece of document according to date and category, and slip them in an envelope or folder labeled for easy reference. For example, all manuals and warranties must be placed in an envelope marked “Appliance Manuals.” Arrange billing statements according to the issuing company.

Spend a few minutes every week going through your Active File to make sure it’s updated, and that you do not miss any important dates, whether it’s a payment schedule or an early bird offer. It’s a good idea to orient your spouse and an older child about the mechanics of the Active File so that they can update the system when you cannot do so yourself.

Inactive File

Documents from the Active File that are three years and older can be transferred to the Inactive File. You can keep these documents, still arranged according to categories in an expanding file folder, under lock and key in one of your desk drawers.

Important Papers
Important Papers are those that are irreplaceable or difficult to replace. These documents include:

    Certificates of deposit
    Contracts
    Deeds and property titles
    Life insurance policies
    Passbook
    Power of attorney
    Stock and bond certificates as well as other certificates of investment

Important Papers must be kept safe and secure in a secondary location like a safe deposit box at the bank. If you prefer to store them at home, then you must do so in a fireproof and waterproof safe. Place the documents in Ziploc bags or other airtight waterproof containers before putting them in the safe.

Whenever possible, get official or certified copies of your Important Papers. Making electronic copies is also a good option. Because your safe deposit box is sealed, keep a copy of your will and power of attorney in a location that’s accessible to your spouse and loved ones.

Throw Away

Finally, there are documents that you can immediately throw away as they just add confusion to your files. However, do not just pitch them in the wastebasket. Take the necessary precautions to protect your personal and financial information against identity thieves. Tear these documents into little pieces or get a portable paper shredder to help you dispose of stale documents.

How long you hang on to a document depends on its importance.

Keep the original receipts of credit card payments until you get your monthly statement; if they match, then you can shred the receipts. If there are tax-related expenses involved, keep the statements for at least three years, a retention period suggested by the Tax Code. Do the same for other billing statements.

It’s okay to hold on to monthly or quarterly statements of investments until you get the annual summary. Your annual files should be complete until you close the account/s.

Bank records should be kept from one year onwards; checks related to home improvements, mortgage payments, business expenses, and taxes must be kept accordingly.

Receipts for significant purchases like jewelry, appliances, and cars — along with any service contracts and warranties related to them — must be kept until you have sold or disposed of them.

Tax records and their supporting documents under the Tax Code should be retained for generally three years, coinciding with the 3-year statute of limitations.

However, consider also reviewing on a case to case basis depending on your audit examinations.

Keep real estate deeds, home purchase, and corresponding records of improvement as long as you own the property.

Hold on to various contracts until they are updated.
Home and car insurance policies should be kept until they are renewed.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com