Category: Newsletters

What is Jurisdiction?

It seems you can sue anyone for almost anything these days – but you cannot sue them just anywhere. Before you can bring a claim against another person or entity the court that you are suing in must have jurisdiction. This seems simple enough –… Continue reading

Charitable Remainder Trusts

For many years the charitable remainder trust has been a popular vehicle for charitably minded individuals who are not quite ready to make outright gifts of assets. These trusts essentially provide for a lifetime (or other long-term) stream of payments to the donor (or other… Continue reading

Obtaining Liquor Licenses

The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (“LCB”) issues, renews, or validates over 21,000 liquor licenses per year.  A retail license (providing for sales directly to the public) can only be issued when there is both an owner (which can be either an individual or an entity)… Continue reading

Latin Lovers: Amicus Curiae

Courts and judges are required to be impartial – they cannot be “friends” with the litigants before them. But sometimes the court can really use a friend. An amicus curiae is literally a “friend of the court” – a person or entity which is not… Continue reading

Spring 2018 Auction Notice

An invitation for bids is now open for the award of 30 expired restaurant licenses; this is the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board’s fifth license auction since Act 39 became effective in August 2016. The auction format will use the sealed bid process which the LCB… Continue reading

Tree Liability

With the recent severe winter storms, the issue of tree liability comes up.  If a tree on your property falls on your neighbor’s property, who is responsible for the damage and clean up?  As with many issues in the law, the answer depends. . .… Continue reading

Protecting A Business Entity’s Limited Liability

The most common and compelling reason to form a corporation to operate a business is to provide limited liability. If done properly, the debts and the liabilities of the business attach only to the business and the business’s assets. With certain exceptions (such as wage… Continue reading

Using Experts In Personal Injury Cases

The use of experts in personal injury cases is an important and valuable weapon in a lawyer’s arsenal to aggressively pursue recovery on behalf of an injured client. While the costs of experts can be significant, those costs are often more than justified by an… Continue reading

Steps to Insure Against Vendor/Supplier Failures

For a small business, vendor defaults and failures can be as serious as customer defaults and failures. As in managing customer relations, there are also a number of steps that can be taken to prevent your vendors’ financial problems (or indifference) from becoming your problem.… Continue reading

Property Protected from Creditors – Lender Be Aware, Debtor Be Prepared

It is of course, preferable to not be sued, and if you are sued it is obviously better to win your case and not have a judgment entered against you. The judgment itself is bad for your credit, but the execution proceedings that may follow… Continue reading