On June 30, 2014, the United States Supreme Court issued a ruling which held that a closely held, for-profit entity can object to certain aspects of the birth control mandate imposed by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act by invoking the Religious […]
The National Labor Relations Board created a stir last week when it announced that it intends to hold McDonald's USA responsible for its franchisees’ violations of employment law. The announcement has created concern and consternation among businesses […]
In Texas, criminal background checks are generally limited to a seven (7) year review period. However, Texas Business and Commerce Code § 20.05 provides an exception if an applicant is applying to a job with an annual salary that exceeds or should […]
If after a Phase I ESA, the EP determines further investigation is warranted, that more invasive investigation takes the form of a Phase II ESA. The primary purpose in conducting a Phase II ESA is to evaluate any REC(s) identified in a Phase I ESA to […]
As spring rolls into summer, bankruptcy lawyers await the Supreme Court's decision in Executive Benefits Insurance Agency v. Arkinson. With the Supreme Court's term ending June 30, 2014, some wonder if the Court will, in fact, declare bankruptcy […]
It's generally known that Bankruptcy Code section 547(b)(4)(A) provides that for non-insider creditors, a preferential transfer is one made "on or within 90 days before the date of the filing of the petition." The calculation of the 90-day "preference […]
Employers must treat severance payments to involuntarily terminated employees as taxable wages. In an 8-0 opinion, the Supreme Court held that such payments are "remuneration for employment" for which taxes much be withheld and paid under the Federal […]
On August 5, 2014, Jason Binford and John Kane spoke at the annual meeting of the National Society of Accountants for Cooperatives in San Diego, California. They presented on their law review article, Farmer Favoritism: Statutory Protections for Creditors […]
On June 9, 2014, the United States Supreme Court issued the decision Executive Benefits Insurance Agency v. Arkinson, Trustee of the Estate of Bellingham Insurance Agency, Inc., which deals with the constitutional limits on bankruptcy judges. The Bellingham […]
First, think back to October 2013—the federal government had just experienced a 16-day shutdown and the internet only had 22 generic Top-Level Domains ("gTLDs"). Of these 22 gTLDs, there were less than a handful of gTLDs which were […]
It is unfortunate, but true: a commercial tenant may someday be required to deal with a bankrupt landlord. Any bankruptcy filing can be complicated and chaotic. But, a tenant faced with a landlord's is more than just a creditor who is […]
Environmental Site Assessments (“ESA”) assist potential purchasers acquiring an interest in commercial real estate with determining a baseline for certain environmental conditions of the property and potentially establishing statutory protections […]