The Rhode Island General Assembly is poised to consider a new law that would prohibit prospective employers from asking candidates about their wage and salary history before making an offer of employment to them. The bill seeks to level the playing field between...
PLDO Law Blog
Month: May 2017
Hashtag Your Ads: FTC Warns Instagram Influencers
Businesses know that their young customers aren't reading newspapers, listening to the radio, or even watching cable television anymore. Instead, they're consuming information and content through their smartphones and the Internet, and streaming their favorite shows...
Trust Beneficiary Lacks Standing to Sue for Breach of Contract Calling for Trust to be Funded
On April 20, 2017, the Supreme Court issued a decision in Glassie v. Doucette, No. 2014-108-Appeal (R.I. 2017), holding that a Trust beneficiary lacked standing to sue as a third party intended beneficiary of a contract which called for the creation and funding of the...
HOW LIFE INSURANCE PROCEEDS COULD AFFECT A COMPANY’S VALUATION FOR ESTATE TAX PURPOSES
A recent case brought to light the impact that a stock-purchase agreement and life insurance proceeds may – or may not - have on the valuation of a closely held company for estate tax purposes. In this case that caused a split between the 8th and 11th Circuits, the...
HASTE MAKES WASTE . . . CASH THE CHECK.
One never knows what corner the grim reaper lies behind. A final illness can often accelerate quickly and deprive a donor of adequate time to complete gifts for tax purposes that he intended to make. In a recent federal court case, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals...
ATTENTION SNOWBIRDS: DO YOU PASS THE DOMICILE TEST?
“A person doesn't know how much he has to be thankful for until he has to pay taxes on it.” This anonymous quote is timely. It is rumored that the Rhode Island Division of Taxation (“the Division”) is reviewing its procedures for determining whether a Rhode Islander...
HOW CLOSELY HELD BUSINESSES CAN PREVENT MANAGEMENT DEADLOCKS
Differences in opinion on how to achieve a stated goal in a closely held business can lead to disputes that block the enterprise from moving forward. Closely held businesses are characterized by a limited number of shareholders and a lack of public trading. The...
WHY ESTATE PLANNING FOR BUSINESSES IS CRITICAL (NOT OPTIONAL)
Owning your own business can be extremely demanding. From your customers to your employees, there’s hardly enough time in the day. While most entrepreneurs are consumed by the day-to-day challenges of running their businesses, they often neglect the critical task of...