Snapshots from Darling Harbour, Sydney

2014 has been a year of constant travel and lots of work, professional tie-ups and networking. October-November has been all about traveling. 

A trip with family to Sydney kept us busy.In Sydney, one of our favorite hang-out spots was Darling Harbour.

Here are some snapshots taken by my son Jyotiraditya who had the camera strapped to him most of the time.

                         

If you liked seeing these pics, do drop a line. That would brighten up an eight year old's interest in photography!

Smart Tips for Smart Buyers: Don't let your Real Estate Developer or Builder trick you

We all look forward to getting our own homes but waiting endlessly for it is a real pain. In cities like Delhi, Gurgaon and Noida, home buyers have been waiting for more than five years to get their flats delivered! So, what are our rights, as home buyers?  Take a look.

Tips for Home Buyers: What to check before you book your new flat

1. Has your builder got all required permissions from the local authority? 

2. Can the builder share with you a copy of the Commencement Certificate? 

3. Have a host of other approvals that fall under the category of Intimation of Disapproval (IOD) been complied with?

4. Get an expert's opinion on the quality of construction and interact with other residents. 

5. Put in your request for any modifications in writing and explain your valid reasons for doing so. Keep your tone friendly and neutral. Your point is to get the home of your dreams, not to lock horns with the builder who is working on it.

6.  By law, you are entitled to get a free parking space but make sure you confirm this before booking your flat.

Tips for Home Buyers: What to incorporate in the Buyer-Builder Agreement

1. Incorporate a clause relating to compensation for delay in delivery. If the builder delays, you still have a water tight contract that safeguards your interests. Send your builder prompt gentle reminders of the delay and keep copies of your communication with you. The point is, if you ever have to take the matter to court, you can prove that you were not a dormant stake holder. 

2. Ask if your builder can offer maintenance-free period and state the duration of such period. If yes, the key members who form the housing society, should ask in writing for the builder to deposit the money in advance to cover the maintenance charges for the said free period.  

3. With technology at your finger tips, make collaboration the focal point of your communication. You can start a Google group to keep filing the latest updates and to get information from everyone else too. It's a great way to socialize with your 'would-be neighbors' but don't go overboard with sharing personal or financial information. 

Keep this tip in mind: The best way to safeguard your interests as a home buyer is to incorporate maximum clarity and transparency in your agreement with the builder, with each party's roles, duties and responsibilities clearly explained. 

Send your feedback & queries to sanram77@gmail.com. You can also follow Sanand on Twitter and ask your legal queries on Sanand Ramakrishnan's GooglePlus page.

Do What Makes You Happy

2014 began on a hectic pace for me and the year seems to have simply flown and we are already in mid-June. We at Axess Legal Corp welcome the change of government at the Centre. 

There is renewed vigor across sectors and particularly, a positive buzz among lawyers. There is scope for tremendous improvement in India's taxation laws. Amendments are likely to take place in several areas of law, such as taxation, land acquisition, judicial appointments and accountability and the Electricity Act, just to name a few.

You are justified in thinking, "What's the point of changing laws?" 

Changing laws corresponds to changing times and needs. Some of the areas mentioned above urgently require revitalization that can only come through legislation.

The ordinary man, companies that look to invest in India, start ups and other entities stand to benefit from the proposed changes. The debate and the details are being worked out but everything is happening quickly and decisively. 

This is the change we want to see in the country, besides opportunities for job creation, more investments and a tax friendly regime.

So, what has the first phase of 2014 brought you? How happy are you - that is the relevant question.

Leaving you with a happiness quote that I believe in. Do write in.

2013: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

It's been a whirlwind 2013 for me and for Axess Legal Corp. The first quarter picked up pace in March 2013. In fact, there were days and nights that the entire team worked without a pause. Difficult to forget the night when clients unexpectedly turned up with an emergency situation and I missed attending my son's seventh birthday celebrations and returned home at about 1 AM. 

This is my seven year old - Jyotiraditya. (Secret: He wants to change his name to Sanand Junior as soon as possible!]

Coming back to 2013, the year has been mostly good, particularly after August. Of course, there is always a tossing in of a few surprises here and there. But it's been a positive journey so far for Rajeev & me as we worked towards expanding our areas of legal expertise and experience. Somewhat, pushing the envelope and testing new waters, you could say.

Though the courts are closed since last week, the office is busy and running with several client meetings and trips scheduled in advance. We have good support staff with a strong client focus - a HUGE advantage for any budding law firm. And the good news is that the pace of work is increasing as we head to the New Year - a good sign for lawyers like me who aren't bullishly into marketing a law firm over the Internet. 

What has 2013 been like for you? What are your New Year resolutions for 2014? Do drop by and share your thoughts. Who knows - you may inspire me to contemplate and commit to some serious New Year resolutions.

Parenting Quotes: Having a child should be fun

You are looking at a moment when my son and I passed by the village areas behind the Fort Kochi backwaters. The place is surrounded by small homes parked right in front of the sea. Boats, fishing nets and other fishing equipments are clustered around the area. We stopped the car - my son and I - because the crashing waves caught our interest as did the fishing nets. I let my son play among the wild waves for a few minutes. Tossing, turning and catapulting. Kids know how to loosen up and have fun. They teach us to have fun too.

Sharing a quote here: To be in your children’s memories tomorrow, you have to be in their lives today ~ Anonymous

Another quote that I could connect to is this: One thing I had learned from watching chimpanzees with their infants is that having a child should be fun. - Jane Goodall

If you have any parenting quotes that resonates with you, share it here. We can learn a lot from each other.

Festive Season, Amritsar's Dhaba Food

Diwali's just got over. Hope all of you had a festive start to November. It's the month of festivals, holidays and for me, lots of traveling. The year 2013 didn't bring me too many tours but startlingly towards the end, it looks like I will be traveling a lot more frequently all the way till May 2014. Exciting challenges ahead for the entire team at Axess Legal Corp, lots of work coming up for us and many meetings to attend.

Flip side is this: Will be frequently away from home and especially from my son, who finds it very difficult (and vice versa) when I am not around to play cricket and other rough games with him. He's at that age when he wants to act like a man and idolizes all that I do. It's tough every time to leave him behind but there's no greater satisfaction than seeing his eyes light up with absolute joy when he sees that I am back home. Till the next weekend, that is! 

Travel, for me, is more like a culture and food trail. Amritsar is perfect for this. Here's one delicious Amritsar dhaba thali that I quite enjoyed.

What's the festive season been like for you? Are you all set to ring in 2014? Tell me about it...or better still, lets trade New Year resolutions next!

Free Legal Advice on Credit Cards: Are you liable to pay for your bank's mistake?

If you use credit cards for your transactions, this free legal advice may be useful to you.  Recently, a young IT professional came to me with a query regarding credit cards. He was issued a credit card by Bank X and a sum of Rs 8,000 was wrongly debited against the said card. Immediately, he informed the bank and the bank promised to reverse the debit. Following this mix up, he stopped using the card. So far, the story runs smooth. 

Here comes the glitch. Two years down the lane, he receives a credit card statement for Rs.32,000! He sought the bank's assistance to get the full credit card statement to understand how this happened, given that he hadn't used the credit card since the mix-up he had reported officially to the bank. 

Free Legal Advice for using Credit Cards

What's the way forward? Keep these simple legal tips in mind while using credit cards:

1.  If a wrong debit has been reversed as per the Bank's communication to the customer, the bank should have reversed the interest as well as other charges that was levied on the first amount. 

2. The important thing is that the customer should have conducted an immediate follow up to get a detailed statement of the reversal of charges. 

3. Simply not using the credit card was not enough - that didn't help, did it? Besides, where's the legal closure that one needs to show in terms of proof of communication and subsequent action from the bank?

Free Legal Advice: How to leverage Code of Bank's Commitment to the Customer 

 As a customer who feels wronged, the first point of contact is the bank's nodal officer whereby one can explain what happened and request the mistake to be rectified. If required, you have to go through the provisions of  The Code of Bank's Commitment to the Customer. This Code specifically states that it will provide a credit card statement to the card holder every month free of cost at the mailing address as per the bank's records. It also states that in the event of non-receipt of information, the bank will resend the details when a request is received from the card holder. 

Free Legal Advice: How to send copy of communication to RBI Customer Service Dept

In writing, bring this to the notice of the bank and send a copy of your communication with the timeline and details to the customer service department of the Reserve Bank of India. If you receive no reply or follow up, you can directly file a complaint with the Banking Ombudsman in your state.