Don't Bet the Business

Taxpayers who owe the IRS will want to make note of this key date on their calendars.

The IRS, like other federal agencies, will be impacted by the U.S. Supreme Court's reversal of Chevron but could the decision be a positive for taxpayers? 

Working together, the IRS and U.S. Department of State can deny a passport application or confiscate the passports of delinquent taxpayers.

Dealing with the IRS can be much easier with an understanding of the Taxpayer Bill of Rights and assistance from the Taxpayer Advocates Service.

Understanding the difference between “innocent” and “injured” spouse relief under the IRS Code could save you a significant amount of money.

Here is your guide to joint and several tax liability for married couples and innocent spouse relief from federal income tax liability.

Filing for injured spouse relief with the Internal Revenue Service can spare one spouse from the pre-marriage tax debt of the other.

If you need to buy the time to address your federal income tax liability, "Currently Non-collectible" status may be worth considering.

Taxpayers have two options to consider for how best to settle tax debt with the IRS or state taxing authorities.

Taxpayers have options to settle federal and state tax debt with offer in compromise programs.

Installment agreements can help taxpayers resolve outstanding federal and state tax debts. 

If your residential property tax bill is too high, you can follow these steps to try and have them lowered.

What commercial and industrial property owners need to know about Michigan's property tax appeal process.

Implementing these New Year resolutions could help save you and your business time, liability and money.

Businesses that participated in the COVID-19 era federal Employee Retention Credit program should prepare now for a possible audit by the Internal Revenue Service.

Michigan Supreme Court rules buyer’s “blanket” order of goods from supplier not sufficient to satisfy statute of frauds requirement that contracts include an identifiable quantity.

Individuals and businesses need to understand their options when an IRS tax controversy arises.

Here’s what you can do to protect your rights and interests when you are not a party to a lawsuit.

Usury savings clauses may no longer protect Michigan lenders from enforcement challenges if their loans contain facially usurious interest rates.

Facilitation can be an effective dispute resolution tool for participants who have patience, perspective and flexibility.

This post reviews the difference between motions for summary judgment and motions to dismiss, which are important tools for resolving litigation.

Adding appellate counsel to your legal team may be the advantage your case needs to win at trial and beyond.

Before your dispute can be litigated in court, you must have proper standing to bring the lawsuit.

Your contract could be interpreted and enforced differently than you think if a court rules its language is ambiguous.

Understanding the 5 narrow exceptions to successor liability in Michigan could help your business buy/sell deal close more smoothly.

If you know these 10 things about protecting your trade secrets, you’re better informed than most Michigan business owners and executives.

Your legal team could benefit from the 3 "Es" new attorneys bring to each engagement. 

Protecting the rights of Limited Liability Corporation (LLC) minority members is best done with a well-crafted operating agreement.

Many businesses prefer arbitration to resolve disputes, but if contractual questions arise about whether to arbitrate, the courts decide.

Winning your case in court doesn’t always mean you win financially with the opposing party on the hook to pay your legal fees.

Understanding preliminary injunctions and how they can help in Michigan commercial litigation.

Presidential executive order sets stage for federal regulation of digital assets industry.

Pandemic reshapes litigation, provides opportunities for attorneys to practice new skills and highlights nation’s resilient court system.

Asserting the first-breach rule as a defense in a contract dispute requires understanding the difference between a substantial and technical breach of the contract’s terms and conditions.

When attorney fees are damages and collide with the limited jurisdiction of Michigan’s district courts, how can you maximize recovery within the court rules?

Michigan Court of Appeals shoots down notion that, even with the proliferation of drones and security cameras, the reasonable expectation of individuals should be lower.

Michigan Court of Appeals reverses trial court’s decision not to impose case evaluation sanctions against an indigent party because sympathy towards a party cannot excuse application of the court rules.

Shadow of COVID-19 continues to loom over real estate markets, leaving lenders, property owners and landlords in difficult position.

So you think your contract is airtight? A court may rule differently due to latent ambiguities in the contract language.

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages, Michigan’s real estate industry braces for a potential wave of foreclosures and evictions.

Recent federal appellate court ruling clarifies who decides whether a dispute can be arbitrated. 

Illinois Supreme Court tells litigation “tourists” looking to file their case in the “Land of Lincoln” for a potential better outcome to stay home!

Supreme Court rules the standing of pension plan participants can be challenged even if there is evidence of wrongdoing in plan management, when the plan is fully funded.

Applying lessons learned from the 2008 economic crash, mortgagees may want to consider challenging property tax assessments during pandemic crisis to protect the value of their collateral.

Under Michigan law, landlords may be able to recover future damages after a tenant vacates leased premises, even if the lease does not include an acceleration clause.

A recent appellate court ruling makes it prudent to take a deeper dive into the issue of minority shareholder oppression claims.

Three well-established legal doctrines may impact the enforceability of your contracts during an event like the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Companies that collect biometric data could run afoul of the nation’s most comprehensive biometric privacy law and become the target of multi-million dollar class action lawsuits.

New Michigan court rules have immediate impact on litigation procedure and costs in all cases filed in circuit courts.

A recent federal appellate court ruling illustrates the traps lenders could trip when state court collection actions against joint borrowers intersect with federal bankruptcy law.

Before agreeing contractually to settle disputes through arbitration, parties will want to consider who will make that call and about which issues.

Every business owner and executive needs to know the basics about commercial insurance coverage, so check out this post for details.

In a potential game changer for Michigan professional service firms, Supreme Court to review meaning of “services rendered in the city” for local income tax consideration.

Michigan Court of Appeals clarifies mortgagor’s right of property redemption, regardless of the manner of foreclosure used.

Whether contracting your kid to mow the lawn at home or executing a multi-million deal, you should probably read this blog post first for some important contract interpretation considerations.

Michigan courts have a range of options to remedy minority owner oppression claims.

Implied duties pertaining to contractual performance should not be misconstrued to allow for challenges to a contact’s fairness.

Ignorance of the terms in a personal guarantee agreement likely won’t save you from paying up under Michigan law.

Think your case is settled and over? Maybe not after this recent federal appeals court ruling involving the legal principle of collateral estoppel.

Breach of contract claims require plaintiffs to prove the contract existed, a breach occurred AND damage resulted, regardless who breached first.

Supreme Court ruling requires businesses to take immediate steps to begin collecting and paying sales tax on e-commerce transactions.

Seemingly cut and dry legal doctrine known as res judicata may not end a legal dispute after all.

Paying the debts of another is complicated business, especially under Michigan’s version of the statute of frauds.

Your amended pleading may not be allowed under Michigan’s relation back doctrine unless the new claims or defenses relate back to the original pleading date.

Steer clear of inconsistent contract, tort and equitable theories in litigation to position your case for a successful and cost-effective outcome.

Technology continues to change our lives and businesses, but do we understand the inherent vulnerabilities that come with this new tech age?

When the enforceability of a contract turns on a party’s “good faith,” these are much more than just words.

When it looks like a contract and reads like a contract, is it really a contract? Maybe not!

Requesting a change of venue in litigation can provide strategic and practical advantages.

It can be a real nuisance for lawyers and non-lawyers to get this aspect of the law wrong.

Following the massive Equifax data breach, businesses and consumers must remain vigilant.

Proper documentation of personal property sales the best defense to a claim of conversion

Bankruptcy court rules trustees can’t claw back, as fraudulent transfers, Plus Loans taken by parents for a child’s education.

Wise business owners and members invest up front in well-crafted operating agreements.

Litigation defaults difficult to set aside, easy to avoid with an attorney’s assistance.

Strategic advantage may be gained in contract disputes by deciding early whether to pursue arbitration.

Appellate court ruling allows receivers to sell property even if proceeds fail to compensate junior lien holders.

Michigan law may extend the statute of limitations in cases of fraudulent concealment.

Michigan Supreme Court reaffirms longstanding rules of contract law in arbitration agreements.  

Collection attorneys can now pierce the corporate veil, post judgment, when the corporate form is abused by individuals seeking to avoid legally paying obligations resulting from litigation.

Creditors must closely scrutinize Chapter 13 cases to understand what debts are being discharged and to update business records to ensure discharged debts are not pursued post-bankruptcy. 

The conversion of money is one of those things lawyers get wrong, particularly in business litigation.

Companies consider legal options after lawsuits were filed against them by the City of Detroit seeking to recoup pre-bankruptcy payments.

Understanding the rules of gift giving can make the holidays brighter... and legal.

Despite careful review, fraudulent inducements can jeopardize otherwise well-crafted contracts.

When modifying a contract, best practice is to always detail changes in writing with appropriate approvals by all parties.

Caution is advised when reviewing contracts electronically, because that click, reply or e-signature could legally bind you to the deal.

Surviving a cyber attack requires preparedness from a legal, business and technology standpoint.

Using boilerplate affirmative defenses in litigation leaves you vulnerable

Contracts should use plain English and your lawyer should too.

Following the U.S. Supreme Court's historic ruling on same sex marriage, federal and state lawmakers must play catch up to revise major statutes, including the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

Integration clauses cannot typically be used to defend against fraud in the inducement claims to invalidate a contract.

Michigan's garnishment system update should result in a more predictable process and reduced costs for creditors and garnishees.

https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/statutes/fair-credit-reporting-act/545a_fair-credit-reporting-act-0918.pdfCourt rules that bank, which accepted a borrower's voluntary payments post-bankruptcy and opted not to foreclose its security interest in the mortgage, did not violate the FCRA by reporting the loan as closed on the borrower's credit report.

Five tips for managing risk when you are asked for information that is missing or destroyed

The use of clear and simple terms to describe a tenant’s repair and maintenance obligations in a commercial real estate lease can do wonders to avoid misunderstandings and disputes.

Disclosure of the principal in a contract must occur to avoid agency liability.

Protecting customer lists with employee confidentiality and non-solicitation agreements could save your business time, aggravation and money.

Appellate court rules on whether lender can sue to enforce other security in a loan default situation without also foreclosing on the borrower's mortgage.

Fat finger alert: In today's tech driven environment, a simple email acknowledgement could confirm acceptance of dispute resolution terms.

Following these five tips and proactively addressing data governance will help your business avoid email troubles.

Is your company prepared to defend litigation stemming from an internet data breach?

Supreme Court rules that only written notice, not a lawsuit, by a borrower is sufficient to rescind a mortgage under the Truth in Lending Act.

Understanding the difference between materiality and relevance may be key to admitting or excluding evidence at trial.

Unauthorized access to another person's email could lead to civil and criminal liability under both state and federal law.

Non-compete agreements can protect one's legitimate business interests, but they must be reasonable in duration and scope and protect against actual competition.

SCOTUS ruling in Countrywide Home Loans case could result in a dramatic change to residential mortgage rescission practice.

Include language in standard contracts to maximize the likelihood your company is paid in the event of a customer's financial distress or bankruptcy.

Unanticipated expenses or losses might be avoided by a pre-execution review of a commercial lease by a business litigation attorney.

There is no legal or contractual right to a jury trial in shareholder oppression claims.

Limits to the statute of limitations under the UCC must be in a conspicuous writing to be enforceable.

Statutory conversion claims can be brought with Builder’s Trust Fund Act claims.