Every year new federal, state, and local employment laws are enacted and existing ones updated. While the list from 2025 is substantial, and often local or industry specific, some of the major employment issues to be aware of include:

• Compensation Transparency. Wage and salary information must be provided to applicants as well as comparable compensation information to requesting employees.
• Paid Time-Off. Paid leave may be required and policies for vacation time or PTO must be clear.
• Protected Categories. Numerous categories of employees are protected from discrimination or unfair treatment, and employers must provide reasonable accommodations for many of their situations.

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Limited Liability Companies may be treated for tax purposes in a number of ways. To be taxed as an S Corporation under the IRS Code, a new LLC and all of its members must sign and file Form 2553 with the IRS within sixty (60) days of when it starts business, acquires assets, or has members. There are provisions for delayed filings and for filings by existing LLCs. This is a decision best made with the advice of your tax professional.
As the election of tax treatment for your LLC can have financial consequences, please consult your tax advisor at…
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A business you create with or for your family can be a legacy for generations to follow. But preserving this legacy in light of an expanding family and the addition of new generations takes planning and sometimes difficult decisions to avoid its breakup and family strife.
Some of the steps you can take to avoid or reduce the impact of family growth and strife on the family business include:

• Corporate Governance.  Maintain the multi-tier structure of Owner – Director- Officer- Employee or Member- Manager- Employee in the business documents so each family member involved in the business knows their rights,

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Continue Reading Preserving a Family-Owned Business

Hurricanes, floods, and other extreme weather conditions can cause substantial damage to businesses and their property. If you had property damage and business interruption insurance for such situations, both usually sold in commercial insurance policies, you still have work ahead of you to submit your claim and maximize your recovery.
Some rules for preparing business loss claims include:

• Thoroughly examining and documenting all physical damage.
• Assembling a team, including accounting, legal, insurance, and construction, with a single team leader.
• Knowing your policy and tailoring the claim to it, including the forms of coverage provided, covered locations, covered causes of loss,

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We are seeing an increasing number of situations where family members, employers, executors, and guardians are unable to access or even discover a disabled, deceased persons, or former employee’s accounts, phones, computers, emails, social media accounts, electronic wallets, vehicle titles, and other assets. To avoid this loss and excessive costs, please be sure you have the following in a safe, secure, and assessable location known to a trusted friend or attorney in the event of your death or disability:

• A complete list of and the documents relating to accounts, bitcoin, assets, real estate, vehicles, electronic wallets, and other items of

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Continue Reading Preserving Accounts, Usernames, and Passwords

All business owners should be prepared for a disaster, whether it’s physical, economic, legal, or personal. Besides preparing a disaster action plan, many businesses also acquire various insurance policies to address the harm a natural or other disaster can cause a business. Some common types of business insurance for such disasters include:

• General Commercial Liability. Provides coverage for claims arising from personal injury or property damage caused to third parties.
• Workman’s Compensation. Provides coverage for employees injured on the job.
• Property Coverage. Provides payment for property damage to the premises and its assets, like machinery and computers.
• Business Interruption. Provides

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Social media has been a boon for many businesses, but businesses must use it with caution. Some of the legal traps of social media include:

• Not treating your company’s social media posts as marketing subject to advertising laws.
• Overlooking sweepstakes and other laws applicable to giveaways and promotions.
• Not realizing you can be responsible for your influencers’ and content creators’ content.
• Sharing or posting inappropriate content.
• Not obtaining appropriate rights when sharing others’ content.
• Failing to comply with social media platform terms.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact us.
This Bulletin is designed to provide our friends…
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Following a business disaster, even the savviest owner can be in shock and unable to comprehend how to recover. Having a disaster recovery plan in place before an occurrence can speed up the process and maximize your recovery.
A disaster recovery plan should include:

• Proper Documentation.  Photograph and document real and personal property periodically to have evidence of their existence and pre-disaster condition.
• Document Preservation.  Multiple copies of insurance policies, property valuations, titles, and other important papers should be stored in safe and accessible locations.
• Contact Information.  Contact information for all relevant parties should be maintained in a safe and

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Introducing new business partners to add talent, increase sales, or enhance finances is often a good idea, but with new partners come new risks to your business. To minimize those risks:

• Evaluate how they will enhance your business.
• Conduct due diligence on new partners.
• Provide a honeymoon or probation period.
• Establish mutual expectations and goals.
• Define roles and responsibilities.
• Secure a business prenup or buyout agreement.
• Document your understanding.

If you are considering adding members, owners, or partners to your business, please contact us if you have any questions or issues.
This Bulletin is designed to provide our friends and…
Continue Reading New Partners, New Problems

Family gifts come in many forms and are made for various reasons. If they are of substantial value, care should be taken to avoid regrets or problems thereafter. Major gifting should also be considered in light of future life care and estate plans. Some of the issues to consider include:

• Loan or gift.  While it can be both or part of each, the donor’s intention needs to be clear.
• Immediate or delayed delivery.  When and how will the gift be complete?
• Cash or property.  Whether both or some of each, can the recipient maintain the property without adequate income?
• Tax

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A recent Illinois Appeals Court ruled that a divorce did not terminate an ex-spouse’s claim as a beneficiary of her former spouse’s retirement account on the ex’s death. While a divorce renders an ex-spouse to be considered “deceased” on most documents, the court ruled the deceased’s failure to change the death beneficiary on his retirement account following the divorce reflected his choice not to remove his ex as a beneficiary and awarded the account to the ex-spouse. Upon divorce be sure to review all assets, accounts, beneficiary designations, and entitlements to ensure they reflect your wishes on your death.
If…
Continue Reading Ex-Spouse’s Rights After Divorce

Every business and investment in a business eventually comes to an end, whether by sale, death, or dissolution. With this in mind, business succession planning needs to include estate, retirement, and tax planning. Making plans early, that can usually be adjusted, can result in maximizing the value of the business returned to you or your heirs, because once a letter of intent is signed or you are no longer able to make decisions, options may be limited. Some issues to consider include:

• Legacy.  Is the business something you want continued by future generations or is its value what you want

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Don’t think that just because a picture, diagram, or other artwork is on the internet and easy to download that it is free to use because it’s in the “public domain.” If the image is copyrighted and you use it “commercially,” you could be subject to substantial statutory and other damages. There are numerous businesses scouring the internet for copyright infringement recovering substantial bounties from the infringers they find.
Be sure you can use the images you download before using them.
This Bulletin is designed to provide our friends and clients with information regarding the various subject matters covered, it…
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