If Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, Tax Season is the most less-wonderful and slightly stressful time of the year. And unless you’ve got a big return coming, you’re probably delaying your tax filing as long as possible. But there can be some advantages to procrastination – you can get some of your biggest tax law questions answered before you file. Here they are: Not everyone needs to file an income tax return....
Although the men and women who served this country deserve more than just one day to honor their service, every November, Americans are asked to honor and celebrate their veterans on Veterans Day. While US laws attempt to treat everyone equally, veterans can sometimes have special rights, or get priority in employment, because they made the huge sacrifice to serve in the armed forces. For Veterans Day, and as a way to make the lives of veterans just a little bit easier, below you will find 5 of the top legal questions veterans ask....
Staff meetings are a great way to brainstorm new ideas for the business and do a round-up of the current happenings in the company. How can you make them more effective? In order to facilitate a good meeting, there are a few things business owners can do to make the most out of the session. So rather than making a staff meeting something employees dread, here are five tips for effective staff meetings:...
Interested in a small business grant? You may want to check out Chase’s newest cash contest for small businesses, called “Mission Main Street.” Mission Main Street grants will total $3 million – that’s $250,000 each for 12 chosen small businesses. Winners will also get to attend a small-business marketing workshop with in-house experts at Google, and get a free Google Chromebook Pixel computer. Sound good? Apply away! But before you do, remember that there are many rules that apply, along with some legal caveats....
A debt collector’s job is to bother people until they pay a debt. No wonder they have a reputation for harassment. It’s certainly not pleasant to receive a call from a debt collector, but collectors aren’t supposed to make the process worse. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is designed to ensure that collectors don’t harass people in debt. Of course, even a single call from a debt collector can feel like harassment, so the FDCPA lays out guidelines to specify what is permitted....
Interviewing new grads is likely going to be a task on many a to-do list for small business owners, especially this time of the year. Because with spring allergies comes not only pollen, but a confetti of tasseled graduation caps being tossed into the air. As fresh-faced young adults enter the working world, now is the time to prepare for interview season. With that being said, here are five useful tips for interviewing new graduates:...
Fighting an ex over custody of your children can be an uphill battle, and dragging it out into social media can turn molehills into mountains. From criminal trials to divorce proceedings, our social media presence can be dragged into court, and that’s the last thing you want jeopardizing your custody case. Social media may have led to your divorce, but don’t let it jeopardize custody of your children. If you need help with a custody issue, contact an experienced child custody attorney near you....
Despite most retailers still enjoying the revenues from the holiday shopping season, a former leader of department stores, Sears, is having a grim start to the year. In fact, analysts are predicting that Sears will be forced to declare bankruptcy within the next two years if something doesn’t drastically change. CEO and billionaire Eddie Lampert is basically extending a line of credit to keep the retailer afloat. While declaring bankruptcy for Sears may not be the end for the retailer, it is certainly looking like the likeliest path to continue existing at all....
You might consider what your employees do on their own time their own business. But when it comes to domestic violence, providing your employees workplace training can pay off both at home and at work. For a dramatic example of how domestic violence at home can effect business, one can look to the NFL, where a rash of recent off-the-field incidents – including video footage of a player hitting his wife and allegations of child abuse against another player – have overshadowed the league’s first three weeks of regular season play....
So-called “right-to-work” laws prohibit companies and unions to enter security agreements that require all employees to become members of a union or require all members who benefit from the union contract to contribute to the costs of union representation. As it stands, 27 states have right-to-work protections, whether by legislation or constitutional provision. But can cities and municipalities get in on the act as well? That may depend on in which federal court circuit the municipality is located....
Maine’s Public Utilities Company (MPUC) is attempting to limit solar credit offered to people using solar panels on their homes to reduce their energy bills. Solar Advocates claim this is unfair. Perhaps. But is it illegal? Environmental groups have filed a new state lawsuit against the MPUC claiming that the benefits promised to solar panel installers can’t be taken away simply because the public utilities company has created a new rule....
It may be unusual for shoppers to whip out $100 bills at Walmart but that doesn’t excuse the clerk who ripped up a customer’s legitimate bills when she tried to pay. Julia Garcia was doing some late-night Christmas shopping in December 2010 when she pulled out a $100 bill to pay for her purchases. The cashier took it, spoke briefly to another cashier, and then ripped the bill in half. He hadn’t done any counterfeit detection that Garcia noticed....
For consumers out there angry at big business and bailouts in general, Ford, GM, and Walgreen are taking some high-profile steps to try to get back in their good graces, while at the same time perhaps making good business moves. The L.A. Times reports that GM and Ford, on one hand, are offering to make car payments for certain customers who lose their jobs. Walgreen is also reaching out by offering free clinic visits to the unemployed and uninsured for the year, providing tests and routine treatment for minor ailments, according to the AP....
It happens about this time every four years or so – American voters, faced with the prospect of their disfavored candidate becoming president, threaten to flee to Canada if he or she is elected. This election cycle, the Canadian emigration candidate seems to be Donald Trump. After Trump nabbed seven of eleven states on Super Tuesday, US-based Google searches for “move to Canada” soared to a ten-year high. So if you’re considering a move to the Great White North to avoid a Trump (or Cruz, or Clinton, or Sanders) presidency, do you need to get a lawyer?...
Last month, Bank of America reportedly froze access to a Kansas couple after they failed to provide proof of U.S. citizenship. Josh Collins and wife Jessica Salazar Collins disregarded a form the bank mailed them in June asking whether Collins (who was born in Wichita) was a citizen, assuming it was a scam. The couple’s access was restored after Collins provided a driver’s license, but the incident left many people wondering why the bank was asking for proof of citizenship in the first place, and others wondering if you need to be a U....
By now, the majority of employees at most small businesses will have smartphones, some of them even issued by their companies. So a savvy business owner will have policies in place to prevent liability and misuse of smartphones in the office. For many businesses, an employee smartphone policy is the right call – it can increase productivity, and it may also save your business from future lawsuits. Here are a few legal issues you may want to consider for your company’s employee smartphone policy:...
The First Amendment ensures that the government cannot pass any laws preventing the dissemination of news. However, reporters, journalists, and other members of the press corps, are not considered any differently than regular citizens despite the freedom of the press. This means that when a reporter is assaulted while trying to get the scoop, the perpetrators are not going to be charged with a hate crime. Regardless of the criminal charges an attacker could face for assaulting a reporter, there are several civil actions, including potential civil rights claims, a reporter, or even just a blogger, can pursue against an attacker....
You like to think of yourself as a good person and hope that your business will contribute positively to your community and the world. But having a feeling and having an ethics policy are two different things – a policy makes abstract notions concrete, serving as a guide for you and your employees. Your business code of ethics can be a moral compass for the whole operation. But coming up with an ethics policy can be a little daunting, so let’s consider some general principles, as outlined by Kabbage, a small business finance site....
Ellen Pao has Silicon Valley riveted on her lawsuit against her former employer Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, alleging sexual harassment and gender bias. Pao took the stand to testify this week. She described alleged sexual harassment by a coworker whom she previously had an affair with, recounted incidents of sexist jokes made by former coworkers, and claimed that she was denied promotions because of her gender. Sexual harassment issues in the workplace can cause a lot of trouble for any business....
They told Jamel Dunn he was going to die. As five teenagers filmed Dunn screaming for help and struggling to stay afloat in a small Florida pond, they mocked his final moments. “Bruh’s drowning, what the heck,” one can be heard saying on the video. “Ain’t nobody gonna help you, you dumb (expletive),” another taunts. “We’re not (fixing to) help your (expletive).” The group laughed, left, and then posted the video to YouTube....
