Common Law Versus Civil Law: Societal Safeguards or Personal Responsibility? | CuencaHighLife

Common Law Versus Civil Law: Societal Safeguards or Personal Responsibility?

Published on January 3, 2015 by: CuencaHighLife |Comment

by David Morrill and Deke Castleman

....By contrast, Ecuador, along with all of
Latin America, most of Europe, all of Asia, and most of Africa, 150
countries in all, operates under “civil law.” In civil-law societies,
laws are written, collected, and codified by legislatures and are rarely subject to co-creation by the outcomes of lawsuits and the opinions of judges and juries. As such, the court system is inquisitorial, unbound by precedent.

Courts are composed of specially trained magistrates with limited authority to interpret the law. Court officers examine evidence and, often with the help of legal scholars, develop the arguments for both sides of a non-criminal dispute. Then they rule on
the issue.

In effect, a magistrate is an investigator, prosecutor, defense attorney, judge, and jury all rolled into one. He’s also a mediator; after a ruling, he helps resolve the disagreements that led to the lawsuit, about such issues as contracts, property ownership, divorce, child custody, personal injury, property damage, and
the like....<read more> http://cuencahighlife.com/common-law-versus-civil-law-societal-safeguards-or-personal-responsibility/

Event Horizon Chronicle: The Passing Of An Age: Great Men I Have Known

Event Horizon Chronicle: The Passing Of An Age: Great Men I Have Known:

The Passing Of An Age: Great Men I Have Known

Keith Lampe died earlier this week, in Vilcabamba, Ecuador, at the age of 83. Keith was also known as Ro-Non-So-Te, and affectionately as Pondo, short for ponderosa pine. And indeed he was strong and sturdy like a stout, towering pine tree.



I came to know Pondo
only in the last months of his life, through the agency of a mutual
friend, and then only by e-mail, though we both lived in Ecuador and had
a number of friends and acquaintances in common.



Pondo was a Korean War
veteran who subsequently took a radical turn towards peace, and spent
the last 60 years as a radical advocate for peace and environmentalism.
His commitment even extended to multiple acts of peaceful civil
disobedience that resulted in his arrest and incarceration. Pondo was
well known for his widely circulated, e-mail newsletter that dealt with a
wide variety of environmental and political issues.  



Though he had been in
declining health for some time, I cannot help but feel that his
transition somehow presages great changes that lie just ahead....read more-
http://eventhorizonchronicle.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-passing-of-age-great-men-i-have.html

Why do expats go home? Why do they seek new overseas ‘havens’? Interviews with departing and relocating expats reveal the reasons | CuencaHighLife

Why do expats go home? Why do they seek new overseas ‘havens’? Interviews with departing and relocating expats reveal the reasons | CuencaHighLife

--"Here are comments from my interviews with those who have relocated within Ecuador.

“I thought I would like the big city
life in Quito and I did enjoy the classical concerts, the festivals, the
restaurants, and all the rest. After two years, however, I knew I
wanted a slower pace and land to grow a garden, so I moved to a farm
between Otavalo and Cotacachi.”--  C., Otavalo ...<read more>  http://cuencahighlife.com/why-do-expats-go-home-why-do-they-seek-new-overseas-havens-a-long-time-expat-takes-a-hard-look-at-the-reasons-why/

Why Ecuador?: Rumy Tola Casa #9 For Sale- Cotacachi, Ecuador

Why Ecuador?: Rumy Tola Casa #9 For Sale: This house is less than two years old!  Beautiful fenced in yard with lots of fruit and ornamental trees and plants.  Approximately 200 squa...



...We love this house and would gladly keep it and continue to live in it. 
However, we have decided that for our children's education and our
careers we need to return to the United States.   We are offering this
house for sale by owner in order to avoid paying a commission.  This
allows us to price the house lower than other similar houses on the
market and share that savings with the buyer as well...<read more> http://www.why-ecuador.com/p/blog-page_30.html 

Christmas Confessions… Ecuador 2014

Christmas Confessions… Ecuador 2014

Bless Me Father, For I’m About To Sin

Ecuador 2014

Part One       (Jack and Paula)


We’ve decided to leave the country and retire in South America. It’s the place that seems to be the most affordable.


Dammit, I thought there would be more in our savings account, but things didn’t work out like I had hoped.



The equity in our home is gone. Not sure if there is even enough value in the property to pay the realtor fees.


We could just walk away. I hear of people doing that all the time.


Our retirement savings is just a smidge over $20,000.



I think by selling all the furniture, we could afford the airline tickets without touching the savings.


We don’t show enough income for a residency Visa… Our Social Security is all we have, and it’s off the mark by $32...<read more> http://www.ecuadorgeorge.com/ecuador-2014/#comment-168221

Expat Family: "All Together Now"

Expat Family: "All Together Now": Our last week before Elizabeth arrived was busy, but Christopher and I had a lot of fun. We managed to get some Skype time in with Elizabet...

Why Retiree Expats Adore Ecuador- MSN Money 26 NOV 2014

Why Retiree Expats Adore Ecuador- by Amy Fontinelle- 
MSN Money 26 NOV 2014 

  Do you have less money saved for retirement than you’d hoped? Is your pension or Social Security check too small for you to live out your retirement years comfortably in the United States? Or maybe you have saved enough, but want to do something more exotic than strolling the back nine in your newfound free time.

  In Ecuador, your money will stretch much further – perhaps even allowing you to afford things that would be considered luxuries in the United States –....

....The Realities of Life in a Developing Nation- When doing your research on whether to move to Ecuador, seek out the negative reports as well as the positive ones to get a more complete picture of the new life you’re considering. A good source of information from an American who knows Ecuador well is the book “100 Points to Consider Before Moving or Retiring in Ecuador” by Nicholas Crowder.: http://www.amazon.com/Points-Consider-Before-Retiring-Ecuador-ebook/dp/B00DZTZ4HC

The Bottom Line
Ecuador offers retirees a scenic backdrop, low cost of living and beautiful weather. It also has English-speaking expat communities, World Heritage sites, Amazon rainforests and miles of beaches. If you’re not on a tight budget, you can upgrade your lifestyle; if you are, you can stretch your dollars much further.

To enjoy retiring in Ecuador, you’ll need to have patience and a sense of adventure to overcome the culture shock and frustrations that can accompany life in a different and developing nation where you perhaps don’t speak the language. But plenty of American expats will attest that retiring in Ecuador is one of the best decisions they’ve ever made.

For more on retiring in another country, read Plan Your Retirement Abroad, Things To Consider Before Retiring Abroad and What Does Retirement Abroad Cost?
 <read more, original link>...http://www.msn.com/en-ca/money/topstories/why-retiree-expats-adore-ecuador/ar-BBg3AFN