Update from Vieques

Thom Denton from the Bravos Boyz posed this on Facebook, and I thought it would be good for you to also take a look at what I can only describe as encouraging news from within Vieques.

* * *

“Another very helpful update from Vieques.

“Alvin Lee Gsmd gave an excellent and accurate update earlier post…I left on the last VQS – Fajardo 430 ferry yesterday. The boardwalk Malecon getting cleaned up really well and a good bit of manpower working on carpentry for all Esperanza….Morales & portales are very well-stocked of course with the exception of fresh vegetables and the Meats are spotty but then again aren’t they always on Vieques? The 2 o’clock meetings in the Square are very good…Jay Gonzalez, Mark Martin and his crew are doing an excellent job relaying information to resident and addressing concerns as they come up, compassionate understanding and listening manner. I went to 4 meetings and multigenerational as well as gringo residents walked away having any questions answered or a promise of being looked into. Extremely professional. Vieques Love is truly impressive beyond any doubt!!!!

“There are just a few spots on the hills without water mainly due to pipes. Kuhns sombrero & Yate are up and running, Als should be by today, Tsunami closed but green store, Mambos and lighthouse all good too.. the gas lines are long but NOT as angry / tense as I witnessed on mainland… VQS is showing their true colors and sense of community.. many small businesses and food trucks popping online every day. I think this is the first time in my life I’ve ever made a trip to see my parents in not had Lydia’s cheese bread 🙂

“the Val office downtown is not open yet you have to go out to the airport butCape areo taxi and Val all have someone downstairs ready and able to answer questions. The post office should have finished sorting out the backlog and I believe were beginning to distribute yesterday. The banks are slightly touch and go and I think you may be able to make deposits by now… I have a Verizon phone and was able to jump on Claro at the fort and make two calls to my wife…the temporary Tower downtown which will cover a 2 mile radius was in progress of being built… The entire island seems to go a little better as long as the ice plant can keep their generator up and going. It’s a big morale boost for a cold beverage at home as well as keeping the coolers cold… absolutely everyone is cleaning up their yards but also waiting for the hopeful convoys of electrical repair trucks which other than a half dozen guys I did not see unfortunately…

“ALL VQS residents continue to amaze me with resilience…

“TRAVEL- a flight VQS- SJU would be the least painful as always….taxis are tough to find in Fajardo at the 430 crossing… I befriended some locals that live in Condado and gave me a lift…there are zero hotel rooms in San Juan / isla verde due to FEMA and federales getting all the rooms…. on the way to VQS we slept outside in SJ until we found a ride to Cieba in the morning…on the way home I slept in SJU for 11 hours waiting for my flight which got out without a hitch at 10am however I noticed.. almost 90% of flights leaving SJU prior to 730 were canceled Just an FYI USDA opens up lines 5 o’clock and 6 o’clock… you can get cell service in the terminal but Wi-Fi was definitely a longshot. Plenty of food and stores open at the airport.. I suggest camping out near a wall outlet 🙂

“I’ve heard mixed rumors about the W, whether they’ll reopen again or not ( I only care due to tourism $$ and local employment) a new friend of mine Lalo (spelling?) a very hard Vieques worker was let go under the impression they wouldn’t reopen… driving by cosmetically other than the outside Wall, it ‘looked’ not bad at all… looks can be deceiving I know but for the island sake I hope they reopen… can’t believe their roofs held…

“I (my family) has been through Hugo, Georges, Irma & Maria on Vieques… if I know one thing it’s that Vieques is a survivor and it’s solely because of its residents sense of community and faith, both of which they have in spades. God bless Vieques!”

ViequesLove – Facebook

There is an initiative by well known Kelly Thompson called “ViequesLove” which has proven to be highly successful in bringing much needed help to Vieques.

If you are looking for a way to help Vieques search for “viequeslove” on Facebook.

Very truly yours,

Santiago F. Lampón

A brief note after hurricane María

Maria hit Puerto Rico very hard and the law firm was no exception.  While we did not suffer much damage, there is no electricity, Internet, phone and water services.  Our staff and families are all doing well, but most government agencies are closed and we do not have access to the information we need to move our matters forward.  Additionally, the court system remains closed and all hearings and processes have been indefinitely postponed.

Personally, I am doing my best to bring much needed help to Puerto Rico through the Scientology Volunteer Ministers program.  I am inspired by the unity shown by our people and the continued desired to flourish and prosper notwithstanding the circumstances.

If any of you need help in your homes, your areas or know someone that does, send me a note and I will channel it to the Volunteer Ministers who will do their best to help.

The Puertorican Spirit will continue to shine.  Puerto Rico is and will always be “La Isla del Encanto.”

Wishing you all the best,

Santiago F. Lampón

Latest from the Municipality after Irma

Below is the communication in Spanish circulated today by the Municipality and which I received through the City Council Facebook page. The translation into English is by me.

This was posted September 12, 2017.

I hope you find this helpful.

Yours, Santiago F. Lampón

MUNICIPIO INFORMA
MUNICIPALITY INFORMS

En este momento tenemos al Cuerpo de Ingenieros de la Marina, FEMA, Departamento de la Familia, Departamento de Vivienda y Cruz Roja los cuales están haciendo una inspección ocular en áreas de las comunidades afectadas, se atenderán estructuras críticas. La OMME y personal municipal se encuentran haciendo la ruta para estos trabajos.

At this time we have the U.S. Navy Corps of Engineers, FEMA, the Department of Family, the Department of Housing and the Red Cross which are conducting visual inspections of the affected communities, and will help with critical structures. The OMME and Municipal staff are preparing the route for this work.

Según información de la AEE se espera que entre la tarde de hoy y el día de mañana se restablezca el servicio de energía eléctrica por lo menos en un 80%.

Pursuant to information provided by the Puerto Rico Power Authority, it is expected that at least 80% of the electric service will be restored by this afternoon.

Las comunidades que aun no tengan agua deben pasar por las oficinas de el Sr. Wilberto Conde a la AAA.

Communities which remain without water, should be reported to Mr. Wilbert Conde at the AAA.

Al momento tenemos en espera la ayuda de alimentos por parte del Gobierno Central, solo hemos recibido artículos de aseo personal los cuales fueron provistos por la Oficina de la Primera Dama Beatriz Roselló. Bajo ninguna circunstancia el Municipio de Vieques ha recibido ALIMENTOS por parte del Gobierno Central. Los alimentos que llegaron a Vieques fueron a través del Banco de Alimentos y los mismos fueron despachados por la Iglesia Fe que Transforma y sus miembros para aproximadamente 150 personas. Pendientes para mas información.

At this time, we are waiting for food assistance from the Central Government, and we have only received personal articles which were provided by the Office of the First Lady, Beatriz Roselló. Vieques has not received food assistance from the Central Government. The food assistance received in Vieques came from the Food Bank and where distributed by the church Faith which Transforms and its members to approximately 150 persons. Please standby for more information.

END OF COMMUNICATION

How to Help the BVIs from Vieques

I read an interesting and encouraging post on Facebook which Kate Cole from El Quenepo shared.

The original post came from Jillian Anderson  and she is coordinating with Christian Evans the delivery of goods to Tortola and, miraculously, they are also airlifting Americans who are stuck on the island over to Vieques with the authorization of the US Boarder Patrol.

These individuals are magicians and are bringing true and effective help to the most needed.  This is how you and I can help them to continue to achieve their desire to help.

Here is the post from Jillian:

“Hello Everyone – It’s really hard for Christian Evans and the crew to accept monetary donations (PR Taxes ect are way to complicated) It would be best if you could donate physical supplies by either dropping them off at the Shanklin Farm in Esperanza or shipping them here to Vieques via Amazon or Ebay. PO Box 1262 or PO Box 1084. Vieques, Puerto Rico 00765.  I’ll be here at the Shanklins collecting supplies, emailing and coordinating all day.  Thanks so much!!!!”

This is all I have except for one tidbit more.

I believe I did see another post in which they were accepting money to pay for fuel.  This you would have to verify with Jillian herself, and she should be easy to find through Facebook.

Well, there you have it.  Another way in which you and I can help notwithstanding the distance.

Very truly yours,

Santiago

 

INHERITANCE IN PUERTO RICO

Good morning !

I hope you are doing great. I have more videos coming and this is the first.
This is a video about Inheritance in Puerto Rico so you have some stable datums you can use.

Have an amazing week!

Truly yours,

Santiago Lampon

Puerto Rico Forced Heirs Law – Transcript a

Hello!

I hope you are doing great!

I leave you with this transcript on this very important subject!

Enjoy!

Truly yours,

Santiago Lampón

 

Hello and welcome to Puerto Rico legal blog. My name is Santiago Lampón, a real estate lawyer and notary in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico forced heirs law. You’ve probably seen a couple, of my videos on the subject and I could probably do tens of videos more about what Puerto Rico forced heirs law has to do with assets that are located in Puerto Rico but that belong to individuals who do not reside in Puerto Rico. That is the first thing that you have to have in mind. If you are a resident of Puerto Rico, if you have made Puerto Rico your primary residence compared to anywhere else in the world, you have to, you better, it is highly recommendable that you become familiarized with Puerto Rico forced heirs law.

 

Now it is a little complicated but it is not impossible to manage. It is actually completely manageable once you know what it implies, what is involved and how you have to work with it. The other thing that you must know and it is number 2 in the list of importance, is that assets that are not located in Puerto Rico are not necessarily subject to Puerto Rico forced heirs law. There is a difference. Location, location, location in real estate, location, location. location in regards to application of law to assets, particularly fixed assets.

 

The other thing is movable assets, well, where are they ? Are they in Puerto Rico? Are they outside of Puerto Rico? The thing is that people who have made Puerto Rico their residence in comparison to people who are not permanent residents of Puerto Rico or should I just say residents of Puerto Rico should understand that there is a significant difference between having assets in Puerto Rico and not having assets in Puerto Rico and the application of Puerto Rico forced heirs law to the non application of Puerto Rico forced heirs law. For example recently and frequently I work with people who are not residents of Puerto Rico, who have assets outside of Puerto Rico, who do their state planning outside of Puerto Rico, but they have to include in that state planning the assets from Puerto Rico. I work together with a lawyer to make sure that everything is where it supposed to be, the way that it is supposed to be, and the number one resource you have is knowledge, if you know then you can control it. If you don’t know, then you are going to feel wabbely, shaky and concerned and worried. You don’t need to, just find the right information, apply to your situation and you will come out aware. Again my name is Santiago Lampón, a real estate lawyer in Puerto Rico. I am also a notary which means I also work with will and state so please if you have a question send me an email, give me a phone call and you are always invited to watch my videos or read my articles and I just hope you have a great day.

Puerto Rico Forced Heirs Law

Good morning!

I hope you had a great weekend and I wanted to wish all the fathers a happy father’s day!

I am sharing with you today a video on forced heirs that will clear up more this subject for you.

Let me know if you have any questions about it by email or put it on this blog.

Truly yours,

Santiago Lampón

Tittle Clearing in Puerto Rico – Transcript

Hello to you!

I am leaving you with this transcript on how tittle clearing works in Puerto Rico and how I can help you! It is not hard, but it becomes even easier when you have the data.

Truly yours,

Santiago Lampón

Hello, my name is Santiago Lampon, I am a real estate lawyer and notary in Puerto Rico and welcome to Puerto Rico legal blog.

If you have some questions after I speak to you you can send me an email or you can drop me a phone call. I am going to talk about title clearing in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico practice, the notary practice is quite different to that across United States but it does not mean that I cannot be done and that it cannot be understood. It is a matter of knowing the ins and outs of the system, how it works and how we make it work .

Let’s take for example , title clearing. Title clearing in Puerto Rico Obviously refers to the property registry in Puerto Rico. The difference is that the way we put documents in the property registry and the way we remove the liens is different to most of the united states. You need a notary to work on the removal of the liens. They are liens that you can remove without the help of the notary but the notary usually knows the ins and outs of the property registry and depending on the section of the registry has a direct working relationship with that register. The thing is that we know and need to know what needs to be done. The issue is how to get the lien removed, what documents you need , how to prepare them, how to file them, the rights that you need to pay. The thing is that it can be done, we just show you how it gets done . So if you have a title issue in Puerto Rico and it needs to be clear. Recoding of the title needs to be done correctly or a lien has to be removed so that the title is completely clean , we can help you. The point is that we need to know what the lien is ,why was the lien recorded, who was it recorded against because we have a lot of [Inaudible] in Puerto Rico. How do identify if that line belongs to that property , that’s the thing. So title clearing and lien removal in Puerto Rico is completely doable. If you have a question about how to do it , how to solve property foreclosing, give me a call or send me an email. Again my name is Santiago Lampon, a real estate lawyer and notary in Puerto Rico and I hope you have a great day.

Tittle Clearing in Puerto Rico

Good morning!

How are you? I hope you are doing very well and that you had a spectacular weekend.

I leave you today with this video on Tittle Clearing in Puerto Rico!
Enjoy!

Yours,

Santiago Lampón