The Tennessean ran an article recently explaining how George Steinbrenner died in a good year, in that his family will like avoid millions in federal estate taxes. Â Click here to read the article.
Steinbrenner Family to Save Estate Taxes
July 15th, 2010Powers of Attorney Needed for Kids Attending College
July 8th, 2010Having children go off to college is always a time of adjustment, both for the kids and for the parents.
Many parents are surprised to learn that their children are considered to be adults by the administration of the college they’re attending. Â Parents are often unable to get automatic access to their children’s tuition information, scholastic records and medical information. Â When parents are footing part or all of the bill for college expenses, this fact can be annoying.
Fortunately, this potential problem can be fixed with smart planning in advance. Â If the child signs powers of attorney in favor of the parents before leaving for school, it will help ensure that the parents have access to information–even if the child is older than 18.
If you need help getting those documents in place for your college-age son or daughter, please let us know.
ICS Law Group to Host Two CLE Sessions in August
July 7th, 2010The ICS Law Group will be hosting two continuing legal education sessions on Thursday, August 26, at the ICS Law Offices.
The morning session is entitled “What Every Lawyer Needs to Know About Life Insurance.” Â It will be presented by Linas Sudzius, and three hours of credit are available.
The afternoon session is titled “Tax Issues with Buy Sell Agreements,” and will also feature Linas as the presenter. Â Three hours of credit are available, as well.
The cost for an attorney to register for either session is $125. Â To attend both, the fee is $200. Â Feel welcome to contact Mary Snipes (mary.snipes@icslawgroup.com) to register, or for more information.
Employment Test Questions
July 6th, 2010Please note:
You may be disturbed by some of the answers to the test. Please understand that we are not trying to mandate certain behaviors on the part of closely held business owners. Many of our own clients choose to take some legal risks while following strategies designed to meet their business objectives.  However, we are interested in educating our clients with regard to potential legal risks associated with business choices.
As with any legal information, you must consult with your own attorney to decide how these rules might apply to you.
1. Â Is is okay for an employer to use the internet as its only recruiting tool (only listing job postings on sites like Monster.com and Craigslist.com)?
2. Â Is it okay for an employer to use only word of mouth recruiting (disseminating job openings through employees and referral sources) in order to find qualified job applicants?
3. Â Is it okay to ask a job applicant when the applicant graduated from high school?
4. Â Is it okay to ask a job applicant about their children?
5. Â Can male employees be sexually harassed?
6. Â Is it okay to pay employees more who practice the same religion as the employee’s owner?
7. Â Is it okay for an employer to read emails sent by an employee from an employer owned email account?
8. Â Is it okay for an employer to classify an employee as a 1099 Independent Contractor in order to save money on payroll taxes?
9. Â If an hourly employee is required to take an unpaid 30 minute lunch and chooses to work during lunch anyway, is an employer required to pay the employee for that 30 minute lunch?
10. Â If an hourly employee truly volunteers to spend extra time working on a project, does the employee have to be compensated for the extra time?
11. Â Can an employer give an employee compensatory time off instead of paying the employee time and a half for overtime worked?
Answer to Q1
July 6th, 20101.  No - Using only the internet may subject a business to a discrimination lawsuit because it has the potential to exclude certain underprivileged individuals and certain racial groups. It is advisable to list job postings in a widely circulated paper at the same time.
Answer to Q2
July 6th, 20102. No- Using word of mouth recruiting may cause only job applicants of similar ethnicity, religion, age, or color to learn of the job opening.
Answer to Q3
July 6th, 20103. No- Asking a job applicant their date of high school graduation may lead an employer to determine the age of the applicant and potentially lead to an age descrimiation law suit. It is okay to ask if they graduated from high school.
Answer to Q5
July 6th, 20105. Yes- Sexual harassment laws protect all employees from sexual harassment. Sexual harassment can be unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. It is important for all employers to have well defined anti-sexual harassment policies which treat all employees equally and which provide for a well defined complaint procedure. The procedure must allow for prompt decisions regarding any complaint because there is potential liability for an employer’s failure to act.
Answer to Q4
July 6th, 20104. No- Asking a job applicant about their children, marital status, spouse, or family could lead to a discrimination lawsuit. In fact, it is advisable that employers steer clear of any discussion regarding an applicant’s family life during an interview even if the applicant initiates the discussion about family.
I advise clients to review the questions that they ask on job applications and during interviews and determine whether the question has a legitimate business purpose. If not, don’t ask it.
It is illegal to discriminate against an employee on account of race, creed, color, religion, sex, marital status, national origin, alienage, age, or if an applicant is a disabled veteran.
Answer to Q6
July 6th, 20106. No- Any benefit given to employees or any disadvantages applied to an empoyee based on religion, race, or age is discriminatory and illegal.