Source: http://utahbusinesslawadvisor.com/page/3/
Timestamp: 2019-04-20 04:35:44+00:00

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Do You Need Help with Affordable Care Act Reporting?
Reporting on offers of health insurance coverage by Utah employers under section 6056 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is first required in early 2016 with respect to calendar year 2015. If you find yourself in this situation, my partner, Chris Droubay, has experience and expertise in this area. I am confident he can provide valuable assistance to you. Feel free to call him and tell him I sent you.
If you want to research it yourself and take a shot at getting it right on your own, the IRS has some online guidance, for whatever it’s worth, for completing the Form 1094-C, Transmittal of Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage Information Returns, and Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage, at the Employer Information Reporting FAQs for Forms 1094-C and 1095-C on IRS.gov. If you are a large employer per IRS guidelines, the IRS has information available on its large employers page. Good luck!
ACA reporting is one of those areas that I simply have no expertise. Fortunately, I have partners who have the expertise. As with all legal issues, if you have questions, you should get specific legal advice. If you would like to talk to me about this or any legal matter, contact me, Utah attorney Ken Reich directly. I will likely ultimately involve a partner in the matter but I would love the opportunity to help out where I can. I have represented both companies and individuals in numerous business matters and disputes since 1999. Using my many years of experience and backed by a firm of legal specialists in nearly every legal field, I can help you evaluate your situation and help you make smart decisions about your business and your life that will best fit your circumstances. Cheers!
Do Your Contract or Settlement Negotiations Amount to Fraud?
Your initial response to the title question should certainly be ‘No’. In light of a recent case pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals, however, you may want to reevaluate your representations made in contract or settlement negotiations. A bank VP was convicted of fraud based on representations he made in a deal he made with his bank employer, even when the bank acknowledged and waived the obvious conflict of interest. Makes me think any amount of ‘puffing’ in contract or settlement negotiations could turn to a fraud indictment.
In the U.S. v. Weimert case, Weimert was convicted of wire fraud in a negotiated transaction. Weimert was a bank senior vice president and president of a bank subsidiary, IDI. IDI was a 50% minority owner in CCLP, LLC. The majority owner of CCLP, Burkes, held a right of first refusal on IDI’s shares in CCLP. As the real estate market was crashing in 2008, the bank accepted Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds from the US government.
In order to gain liquidity and avoid bankruptcy, the bank told Weimert to sell assets to make interest payments. Weimert found a legitimate buyer, Kalka, to make a ‘stalking horse’ offer on the CCLP shares held by IDI. Kalka’s letter of intent included a provision that gave Weimert, personally, a commission on the deal and a buy-in interest of 4 7/8% in CCLP. Weimert took that LOI to Burkes, as he was required to do, and convinced Burkes to match the offer. Burkes matched it (almost, but that’s not an issue in the case).
Weimert then took Burkes’ offer to the bank board of directors. Weimert represented to the board that the buyer would not purchase the asset unless Weimert received the commission and the stake in CCLP. This was factually not true; the buyer made no such requirements to consummate the deal. Weimert’s conflict of interest was acknowledged and signed off by the bank’s attorneys. The bank waived the conflict and approved the sale but was ignorant of Weimert’s misrepresentation about the buyer’s alleged stipulation that he obtain a commission and interest in CCLP.
TARP inspectors investigated the transaction and brought wire fraud claims against Weimert since his negotiations on the deal were communicated across state lines. A jury convicted him on 5 of 6 fraud counts. The jury found that Weimert defrauded the bank by inserting himself in the transaction based on the misrepresentation that the buyer would only buy the CCLP shares if he obtained a commission and interest in it.
Weimert’s case is now on appeal. At oral argument, the judges raised issues of prosecutorial judgment and whether this claim should have ever been brought.
Apparently, the judge questioned whether Weimert’s representations about the deal were anything but ‘puffing’ or negotiation tactics. This position appears to make the assumption that the bank could no longer rely on Weimert’s impartiality when it waived the known conflict that Weimert was now personally interested in the deal and whether the reason for his personal interest was because the buyer required it or because he wanted a slice of the pie does not give rise to a claim under the wire fraud statutes.
He’s bluffing, sure. This happens in deals. These are capitalist acts among consenting adults.
If you are really interested, you can search the Seventh Circuit’s oral arguments here.
Negotiating is an art. Parties constantly make representations based on their position and outcome goals. There are fine lines between ‘puffing’ and fraud. Weimert crossed over. Let me see if I can help clarify some of the gray areas.
In negotiations, you will find yourself in differing situations. For example, Weimert was in a position of trust as an employee and senior vice president. Even though his personal interest was disclosed to his employer, the bank, he was not free to lie about the essential facts underlying the transaction. He was still the only person reporting or presenting the deal to the board. Certainly there is still some ‘shame on you’ to be shared with the board. Under the circumstances, if the board had any concerns, it should have assigned another employee to oversee the transaction since Weimert was clearly conflicted.
You need to examine your position in the deal. Do you owe any duty to the other side in the deal? Are you related by blood, employment, or contract? Is the other party relying on your opinion, investigation, or valuation that is not otherwise disclaimed in the written agreement? Are you in a position of trust in relation to the other party? Do you exert control over the other party?
Likewise, the amount of scrutiny a deal will receive is a function of the amount at stake and the parties involved. The bigger the numbers, the more scrutiny, usually. If government funds are involved, such as the TARP funds involved in Weimert, you can expect a certain amount of additional oversight. The IRS also likes to look at big deals to make sure they get their cut. If you are crafting a deal to avoid taxes and your express negotiations are key to entitlement to a preferred tax treatment, be careful. Likewise for family transactions. You may find a sweet deal from your elderly uncle but you have to know that your cousins and siblings are going to look at it very closely and blame you if it goes south or you took advantage. Also, with elderly people, you need to make sure that competency is not an issue. Appearance of fraud is sometimes as powerful as actual fraud. Think about how it would look in front of a jury. Put it in writing and disclose anything you think might make a difference to someone in an armchair quarterback role a year from now.
(Emphasis added). My partner, Keith Call, recently addressed the subject in the Utah Bar Journal article “Is it Ethical to Be Dishonest in Negotiations?” (see page 40). His article is addressed specifically to lawyers but you may find it interesting.
There are issues and nuances for negotiations that certainly cannot all be addressed here. If you have questions, you should get specific legal advice. If you would like more information about negotiations or how to stay out of trouble, contact me, Utah attorney Ken Reich directly. I have represented both companies and individuals in numerous business matters and disputes since 1999. Using my many years of experience and backed by a firm of legal specialists in nearly every legal field, I can help you evaluate your situation and help you make smart decisions about your business and your life that will best fit your circumstances.
You have carefully crafted your employee handbook to expressly and explicitly disclaim any contractual relationship with your employees and keep them at-will and then- BOOM. You got cute with the fine print. You kept your important language buried in the minutia of the handbook while keeping all the employee-friendly terms front and center. This may have been good enough in the past but it is no longer. Let’s look at Reynolds v. Gentry Finance Corporation, 2016 UT App 35, a recent case from the Utah Court of Appeals on this issue.
A company’s employee manual is a great opportunity to define its employment relationship with its employees. In fact, employers often expect and hope that employees refer to the employment manual to understand the terms of their employment– not every employee warrants an employment agreement. Here’s where the Gentry company went a bit awry.
Gentry wanted to keep the bundle of at-will employee ‘privileges’ intact while at the same time make the broad statement that “NO EMPLOYEE WILL BE TERMINATED OR HAVE ANY ADVERSE ACTION TAKEN AGAINST THEM FOR BRINGING A COMPLAINT TO THE ATTENTION OF THE HOME OFFICE.” (Capitalization, boldface, and italics in Gentry’s handbook).
What does this mean? Well, for example, in a Utah Supreme Court case, a disclaimer that was conspicuously located at the top of a employee handbook and prominently bolded and SET APART by a text box was good enough or “sufficiently prominent” to put employees on notice of its terms. Use your imagination. Look at the ALLCAPS, italicized, and bolded statement from Gentry’s handbook. It stands out. And, if it stands out to you, it is likely to stand out to your employees. If you have questions, talk to a lawyer. I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s get back to Gentry.
So what? Well, for Gentry it meant that its employee could avoid having its case dismissed and a jury would get to hear her case. Juries are a mixed bag. If your employee handbook is clean and clear and meets all the right requirements to keep your at-will rights intact, you punch your ticket out of the case early and cheaply. Gentry, however, now gets to pitch its story to a jury who may be sympathetic to an employee that the jury may feel has been wronged.
The takeaway from Reynolds: don’t get cute with your employee manual. Don’t put the important stuff in the fine print or make it inconspicuous. Bold it. Put it in ALLCAPS and italicize it. Make it a black box label that cannot be ignored.
There are issues and nuances for employee handbooks that certainly cannot all be addressed here. If you have questions, you should get specific legal advice. If you would like more information about employee manuals, employment agreements, protecting your rights, or rectifying wrongs committed against you, contact Utah attorney Ken Reich directly. Mr. Reich has represented both companies and individuals in business matters and disputes. Using his many years of experience and backed by a firm of legal specialists in nearly every legal field, Mr. Reich can help you evaluate your situation and help you make smart decisions about your business and your life that will best fit your circumstances.
Do you have a neighbor whose conduct is reducing or barring you from enjoying your own property? A nuisance claim may be the answer to your problem.
Nuisance law is alive and well in Utah and modern courts. The problem, however, is its relative complexity.
“There is perhaps no more impenetrable jungle in the entire law than that which surrounds the word ‘nuisance.’ ” W. Page Keeton et al., Prosser and Keeton on the Law of Torts (Prosser on Torts ) § 86, at 616 (5th ed.1984).
There are two kinds of nuisance, public (see Utah Code Ann. § 76–10–803) and private (see Utah Code Ann. § 78B-6-1101). Bear with me for a moment while I give you the gist of these claims. I am not trying to provide a treatise on nuisance but to give you enough information to determine whether you should look into it further if you believe it applies to your circumstances. Once you see the elements of the claims, I will show you the claims in action.
Your neighbor’s conduct was unreasonable.
Note: ‘your neighbor’ could be a person, business, or government entity.
Simply, a private nuisance focuses on whether you have suffered an ‘unreasonable injury.’ Meaning, is your injury of the kind that a person would not be reasonably expected to endure (making it ‘otherwise actionable’)?
Inappropriate residential use: William Drysdale v. C.A. Dugas (1896), 26 S.C.R. 20: In Montreal, Drysdale constructed a livery stable 25 feet away from Dugas’s home. Of course, the stable stank and its 30 noisy horses disturbed Dugas. Dugas’s nuisance action prevailed and proved damages for discomfort and reductions in tenant rents.
To hold trees to be nuisances . . . merely because leaves or twigs or even branches in the ordinary course of affairs may be blown from them onto neighbors’ lots, would be to condemn to abolition all shade trees in communities sufficiently settled to have perils of such experiences. Cannon.
So, trees are a question mark. They are desirable and somewhat protected but also must be reasonably controlled.
Appropriate use of property: Hatch v. W.S. Hatch Co., 283 P.2d 217 (Utah 1955). Hatch sued his brother and neighbor W.S. Hatch for using his property as base of operations for his road-building business, vehicle garage, and maintenance facility. This was held not a nuisance because the ‘neighborhood’ was more like an industrial park that included: the main line of the Union Pacific Railroad (42 trains passing 195 feet from Hatch’s house every 24 hours) with flashing lights and signals; a petroleum plant, refinery, and a catalyst cracker; two racks for loading tank trucks with oils; and two other semi-truck service garages. Not a nuisance because his use fit the neighborhood- even though it was loud, dirty, and obnoxious.
A nuisance claim may be your friend if your neighbor is making your life difficult. Take a look at the elements of a nuisance claim and the examples above. Nuisance claims can require a complex bit of legal wrangling. I do not recommend attempting it on your own. If you have questions, you should ask them- contact me, Utah attorney Ken Reich. I regularly represent companies and the individuals and families that own them. My job is to know and understand my clients and their goals. Together with the right legal experts, I can help you get the result you want.
Insurance covers whatever has a value. I do not sell insurance but I am a consumer of it: in business, at home, and as a source of income. It is a monster topic with many issues. Let me share some bits that you may not have considered.
Why should your startup or new business consider insurance? If this question is a revelation to you, here’s the gist: the more you have to lose, the more diverse insurance products you should consider.
What does insurance do for you? It protects against loss. If you have nothing to lose personally or in business, then I suspect you may be running thin on insurance and keeping only the state-required minimums. (Hopefully you are not going without). If this is where you are, keep the following in mind: legal costs and interruption of your business.
If you or your business is sued on a covered claim and you have insurance, your policy will pay for a legal defense. In business disputes, legal fees mount very quickly. Quite. Legal fees can quickly be the tail that wags the dog.
Insurance allows you to continue to focus on your core business and less on the lawsuit threatening it. Insurance covers both the ultimate liability and the cost to defend the claim.
As an attorney, I consider it my duty to assume the burden of my client’s lawsuit so my client can focus his/her attention on business.
Consider this: A solo startup that is well-protected in its business organization (i.e., LLC or Inc.) could potentially risk running short on insurance when there is little to lose. As the business fills out, however, and assets are obtained (such as equipment, real property, intellectual property, copyright, patents, trademarks, etc.), or employees are hired, so should the insurance. Insurance is a hedge against unknown losses.
Auto insurance. If you own a car, it’s required by law.
The minimum amount of Utah auto insurance coverage is $25,000/$65,000/$15,000. This means limits for bodily injury are $25,000 per person, with a total maximum of $65,000 per incident, and up to $15,000 for damage to another person’s property.
Property insurance: If you own a home or any real property, it is presumably an asset that you do not want to lose. There is no sense owning property if you do not protect it from loss.
Auto. If your business owns a vehicle, it must insure it. If employees are required to use a car for business purposes, the business must provide insurance. Typical personal policies do not cover the business use of vehicles. Talk to your insurance agent if your business requires the use of a vehicle.
General Liability. Every business is different and you should evaluate your risk. General liability insurance typically covers libel, slander, property damage to others, and personal injury to others.
Business Property Insurance. This includes both real property insurance for property you own as well as renter’s insurance. Think of it as homeowner’s insurance for commercial property. It will protect your products (widgets or whatever you manufacture or inventory) and your assets (equipment, furnishings, etc.) from fire, flood, or whatever your policy covers.
Professional Liability. Some professions (doctors!) are required under Utah state law to carry malpractice insurance. If not required, you really (really) should have it. It is your livelihood at risk.
Umbrella. This is excess insurance. Typically if your underlying policy (auto, homeowners, general) covers a claim but the claim exceeds the coverage limit, the umbrella kicks in to cover the loss up to its limit on the claim. Note: policies vary; it is up to you to read the fine print or have your agent explain it to you. I personally have an umbrella policy. It gives me a cushion if my teenager happens to cause a catastrophic accident that my basic auto insurance may fail to cover. It usually comes in increments of one million with the lowest available being $1m.
Health and Life. Goes without saying. These topics are too big to address here.
Data Breach. If you obtain or collect private, sensitive, or financial information from your clients, you are at risk of having it stolen by a hacker or virus. Data breach insurance covers this risk.
Business Interruption. This is often a sub-set of a property policy. It covers your business operations and earnings in the event of a covered event (fire, flood, etc.).
Employment Practices Liability Insurance. When you have employees, this insurance covers your management of them. It covers wrongful acts arising from the employment process. The most frequent claims include wrongful termination, discrimination, sexual harassment, and retaliation. In addition, the policies cover claims from a variety of other types of inappropriate workplace conduct such as employment-related defamation, invasion of privacy, failure to promote, deprivation of a career opportunity, and negligent evaluation. The policies cover directors and officers, management personnel, and employees as insureds.
Directors and Officers. This insurance covers claims made against officers and directors for acts in the course and scope of their employment. You can get D&O insurance to cover nearly any business enterprise. It will cover claims arising from managerial decisions that have adverse financial consequences.
Errors and Omissions. This is more of a subset of a policy rather than the policy itself. E&O insurance protects you against liability for committing an error or omission in performance of a professional duty. It will cover financial rather than bodily injury or property damage.
Miscellaneous. Depending on your business or profession, there may be specialized or niche insurance to cover you. Some examples include commercial general liability (CGL) policies (often for construction businesses), lender-placed and REO insurance for financial institutions, event insurance, terrorism insurance, and travel insurance.
Insurance is very broad topic but one that you really need to look at closely for yourself and your business. If you have questions, you should ask them. There are many insurance agents, brokers, and options. I can provide some local references if you would like. If you would like more information about insurance and its intersection with the law and how it affects your business, contact me, Utah attorney Ken Reich. I regularly represent companies and the individuals and families that own them. My job is to know and understand my clients and their goals. Together with the right legal and insurance experts, I can help you get the result you want.

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