Category: Business / Employment
Business “Divorce”
Unfortunately, like many marriages, businesses frequently end in “divorce.” The reasons for the demise of a business can range from petty disputes involving ego to deep seated financial problems. Deadlocks as to the direction and operation of a company can cause substantial emotional distress as… Continue reading
Think Like a Credit Manager to Avoid Bad Debts
In business, sooner or later customers or clients will owe you money and will be unable to pay. You can blame your customer, but in some sense, you may be partially at fault. Here are a few tips to avoid (or at least minimize)… Continue reading
Employment Law Update: Employees Having Direct Contact with Children
Prior to December 31, 2014, prospective employees of child-care service providers, day cares and the like were required to complete a three-part criminal background investigation and thereafter, based on those reports, be cleared by the employer before beginning employment. Beginning December 31, 2014 however, the… Continue reading
Know Your Customer
We handle a fair number of commercial collection cases for our business clients, and for many of them we offer suggestions to minimize the risk of nonpayment for goods and services. Some of these suggestions include: requiring personal guarantees from the principals of the business;… Continue reading
Quantum Meruit Claims: A Primer
One of the Hollywood moguls of the ’30’s coined the wonderful phrase: “An oral contract isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.” And that’s advice to be heeded. A well-drafted agreement (on paper, of course!) can cause parties to avoid litigation in transactions that fail… Continue reading
When is an Agreement an Agreement?
Contract law is the foundation for American business. Our contract law has evolved from the English common law system and establishes basic standards for formation of a contract – generally an offer met by acceptance. Contracts may be oral or in writing subject to conditions… Continue reading
Negotiating Commercial Leases
Our Firm often becomes involved with negotiating commercial leases on behalf of landlords and tenants (never at the same time of course!). There are several important areas which invariably become central to the negotiation. Here are some of the many questions which need to be… Continue reading
Business Debt Collection
We are sometimes asked to assist our business clients with collecting overdue receivables from their customers and clients – typically balances which are over 90 days past due. A collection case usually goes through several stages, each one ratcheting up the pressure on the delinquent… Continue reading
Careful with Installment Sales
In our estates practice we frequently find debts held in an Estate that are owed by a family member. Frequently these loans are forgiven or are distributed out to a debtor child pursuant to the terms of the decedents Will. Even when such debts are… Continue reading
What is At-Will Employment?
Most workers are considered employees at-will which means generally that they can be fired at any time and for any reason. The employment at-will doctrine evolved over many years and provides that an employer or employee can end the employment relationship with no legal recourse… Continue reading