Posts written by buteralaw

Employee Claims and Bankruptcy

 We have seen an uptick in the number of employees or former employees of bankrupt companies that seek help filing “proof of claim” forms.   An employee who has been terminated either before or after the date that his employer has entered into bankruptcy should… Continue reading

Joint Ownership of Bank Accounts

In related articles in this and recent issues,  we have discussed the effect of joint ownership of bank accounts.  In one article we noted the general rule that the right of survivorship (which causes the ownership of the entire account to pass to the surviving… Continue reading

Cell Phone Records and the Fourth Amendment

On February 12, 2010, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral argument on what is, surprisingly, an issue of first impression:  can the federal government subpoena a person’s cell phone records from its mobile phone provider without a showing of probable cause that the… Continue reading

Haiti Charitable Contributions Deductible for 2009

Under legislation just passed by Congress, taxpayers who make donations for the Haiti relief effort during 2010 would be able to deduct those donations on their 2009 tax returns which are due to be filed by April 15, 2010.  The obvious purpose of the legislation… Continue reading

The Office Holiday Party and Legal Liability

Most companies host some sort of traditional holiday or end-of-year party in December as a chance for employees to relax and celebrate the festive season together.  Holiday parties are a great way for business owners to help employee morale and make employees feel appreciated. Employers,… Continue reading

Let the Litigant Beware

When a newspaper reports that a judgment has been entered by default against PepsiCo, Inc. for $1.26 billion in Wisconsin, you may tend to dismiss it as something that has no effect on you and skip to the next article. However, the lesson learned by… Continue reading

The Expanded and Extended Homebuyer’s Tax Credit

Congress and President Obama have recently extended and modified the “first-time” homebuyer tax credit.  The new credit is broader in scope than the previous credit, and now, in addition to the first-time homebuyer credit, there is also a “long-time resident” buyer credit.   For the… Continue reading

Lease Guarantees – How to Preserve Them

It is commonplace for landlords to ask for and obtain guaranties of their tenant’s lease obligations.  Such guaranties are useful to almost all landlords, whether the lease in question is for a large commercial space in a shopping center or is a much smaller transaction,… Continue reading

The Law of Broken Engagements

In case you were ever wondering about this, engagement rings are treated as “conditional gifts” under Pennsylvania law.  As a legal matter, the purchaser/giver of the ring is entitled to recovery of the ring, if the engagement is called off.  In case you were further… Continue reading

Estate Tax Watch (continued)

Ever since Congress modified the federal estate tax in 2000, we have been predicting additional changes because the provisions of the 2000 Act were (to be charitable) unusual.  The Act provided that the personal exemption for each person on death would gradually increase to $3,500,000… Continue reading