Articles

By:  Charles Kassir, Esquire Some employers have made headlines by offering employees incentives to get the COVID-19 vaccination, including paid time off and high value gift cards, among others. But do those incentives violate federal law? Time will tell. On February 1, a group of organizations representing national employers, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, […]

By:  Charles Kassir, Esquire  Among the hundreds of bills introduced in the 2021 Session of the Maryland General Assembly is the Community College Collective Bargaining Bill (HB 894/SB 746) which would establish collective bargaining rights for certain Maryland community college employees.  In both chambers, the bill is still in the preliminary stages of the legislative […]

By:  Alexander Kelly, Esquire Cybersecurity breaches against businesses in the form of ransomware attacks have risen drastically in recent years.  These attacks can be particularly difficult on a company’s bottom line especially in conjunction with the Covid-19 pandemic. While most companies now carry insurance covering ransomware attacks; nevertheless, such an attack can leave a company’s […]

  By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire I have a basket in my office that I fill with things that I should read.  Sometimes I print an article about an interesting book or person and put it in the basket. Sometimes I place an outline from a Zoom program that I half-listened to while I was […]

By:  Andrew Will, Law Clerk (2021 J.D. Candidate) and Adam Konstas, Esquire Grappling with economic lulls and government restrictions, many businesses have struggled to compete during the pandemic. Making matters worse, political unrest has increased the prevalence of divisive off-duty employee conduct. Social media and work-from-home policies have blurred the line between public and private […]

By: Charles M. Kassir Now that COVID-19 vaccines have arrived, employers are asking: can we really mandate vaccination? The general rule is yes, a mandatory workplace vaccination program is lawful under the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other Federal employment laws. On December 16, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated its COVID-19 […]

By:  Drew Ricci, Esquire The Austin, Texas based SolarWinds, a major U.S. information technology firm, was recently involved in one of the largest cyberattacks to have targeted U.S. government agencies and private companies in American history SolarWinds is a networking software company that makes IT management and monitoring software that is widely used in both […]

By:  David Burkhouse, Esquire On January 6, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced its final rule which clarifies the standard employed in determining whether a worker may be classified as an independent contractor versus an employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The effective date for the final rule is March 8, […]

  By: Adam E. Konstas, Esq. As we look ahead to what may be in store for 2021, we all seem focused on the prospect of a successful COVID-19 vaccination campaign to spur an economic recovery.  News of successful trials and photos of the first shots going into the arms of medical personnel and first […]

Most courts quickly adopted holding remote hearings and it is likely a trend that is to stay beyond COVID-19. In order for these proceedings to feel as “normal” and engaging as possible, it is imperative that attorneys and litigants treat the proceedings the same way as if they were appearing in the courtroom and be […]

By:  Kathryn D. Jackson, Esquire  It has been almost four months to the day after the Maryland Court of Appeals adopted the Daubert standard for expert testimony. As noted by the court in the Rochkind v. Stevenson opinion, which first established the new standard, Daubert applies to all currently pending appeals and cases at the […]

Tuesday, January 12, 2021 – 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Unique legal issues confront families whose loved one is in the grips of Parkinson’s and other neurological disorders. Join PK Law Estate Planning Attorney Elizabeth Green to learn how to stay ahead of those issues with the appropriate planning and implementation of legal documents, including wills, trusts, health […]

There is a Light at the End of the Tunnel-I Hope It Ain’t No Train This has been an extremely difficult time for school systems, and in particular for school personnel who work with disabled students. The needs of the children are immense and the demands are often unattainable. Sometimes it seems that people who […]

By:  Andrew Scott, Esquire As the COVID pandemic stretches on, employers are increasingly likely to encounter not only employees who have tested positive for the virus but also employees who continue to experience symptoms long after they have tested negative.  These individuals—known as “long haulers”—report experiencing a wide range of symptoms, including but not limited […]

  By:  Elizabeth Green, Esquire When you work with a caregiver service, the company will very likely require you to sign an agreement.  It is important to read it very carefully and to understand what you’re agreeing to. For example, what are you agreeing to pay?  For example, if you have agreed to pay $20 […]

  By:  Kathryn D. Jackson, Esq. Maryland is no stranger to being a legal outlier. After all, Maryland is one of five states that hold contributory negligence as an absolute bar to recovery in negligence actions, and one of seven which apply joint and several liability. However, not to be underestimated, on August 28, 2020 […]

By: Robert Campbell, Esq. and Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esq. The trees have begun their annual transformation and the scent of pumpkin spice is starting to drift through the air. Yes, we have made it to autumn. While many of our favorite autumn activities have been postponed, transposed, or flat-out canceled, there is one thing that […]

By:  Adam Konstas, Esquire On October 1, 2020, a new Maryland law will take effect which has two important components for Maryland Employers to keep in mind when hiring new employees: Employers will be prohibited from requesting or relying upon a job applicant’s prior wage history when determining the wages of the applicant or considering […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire and Robert Campbell, Esquire Over the last several weeks, the Maryland Insurance Administration has been busy with the issuance of new Bulletins concerning various compliance reminders.  These Bulletins indicate, in our view, that Commissioner K. Birrane takes regulatory compliance seriously, even as we continue with the pandemic of COVID-19. We are today providing […]

Help others navigate uncertain times: How you can (and should) serve the public without giving up your day job in private practice. By: Patricia McHugh Lambert To paraphrase businesswoman and activist Anita Roddick, if we lawyers can’t do something for the public good, what the heck are we doing? In today’s world where there is […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire I can’t wait for New Year’s Eve.  I don’t care whether I am spending that night at a formal event, a neighborhood party or in my pajamas in front of my television.  I will stay awake until midnight, do the countdown and electronically watch the crystal ball drop at Times […]

By:  David A. Burkhouse, Esquire  Given the recent economic challenges related to the current COVID-19 pandemic many employers have become familiar with their obligation to provide notice prior to layoffs under the federal WARN Act. However, effective October 1, 2020, Maryland employers must also comply with the new requirements of Maryland’s Economic Stabilization Act (SB […]

                                                    PK Law’s Back to the Workplace Committee (PK Law BWC) has been working hard over the past several months to closely evaluate the current COVID-19 situation in Maryland, monitor […]

PK Law’s Labor and Employment Attorneys Paul Finamore and Adam Konstas discuss important takeaways from the U.S. Supreme Court’s most recent employment decision – Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru.  Watch Video HERE.   Paul Finamore is a Member in PK Law’s Labor and Employment Group.  He is an experienced trial lawyer who has practiced […]

By:  Diva Bole, Esquire Last updated 6/30/2020 What is the process for PPP loan forgiveness? The first step is submitting a loan forgiveness application. The SBA has its own form of loan forgiveness application and your lender may have its own form to use. If you haven’t already heard from your lender, check with them.  […]

By: Andrew Scott, Esquire  On or before July 1, 2020, every employer in Maryland with 50 or more employees must electronically submit a survey to the Maryland Commission on Civil Rights (“MCCR”) in order to fulfill the reporting obligations under the Disclosing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Act of 2018. Specifically, covered employers are required to provide […]

By:  Diva Bole, Esquire On May 22, 2020, the SBA issued some guidelines intended to clarify some ambiguities from the CARES Act as to how to calculate full-time equivalent employees and what to do if employees did not return to work when re-employment was offered by the employer.  Per such guidance, full-time equivalent employees are […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire and Robert Campbell, Esquire We have been providing information as to recent Bulletins and other information sent out by the Maryland Insurance Administration. (Please see updates below listed by date). We are today providing a summary of additional Bulletins that have been issued since our last newsletter. Premium Relief On May 20, 2020, the Maryland Insurance […]

By: Zoe Kerasidis, Esquire    zkerasidis@pklaw.com As the devastating effects of the coronavirus pandemic, or COVID-19, continue to grow, more and more people are focusing on getting their legal and financial affairs in order. Given the current social distancing policies and the ever-growing health and economic concerns, many have turned to online sites that offer […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire Sometimes it is hard to imagine what the world was like before the COVID-19 crisis.  There were crowd filled events, worker filled offices and customer filled restaurants and bars. Those former normal days are long gone, and anyone who  thinks that business will revert back to the prior norm is surely […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire and Robert S. Campbell, Esquire  For the past couple of weeks we have provided information as to recent Bulletins and other information sent out by the Maryland Insurance Administration. (Please see updates below listed by date). We are today providing a summary of additional Bulletins that have been issued since our last newsletter. […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire and Robert S. Campbell, Esquire  For the past couple of weeks we have provided information as to recent Bulletins and other information sent out by the Maryland Insurance Administration. (Please see updates below listed by date). We are today providing a summary of additional Bulletins that have been issued since our last newsletter. […]

By:  Joan Cerniglia-Lowensen, Esquire The presence of COVID-19 is likely to develop a new area of premises liability law that establishments will be confronting over the next several years.  The business invitees as well as employees that are infected, risk causing an outbreak to other business invitees.  Though general premises liability law will likely control […]

Below is a list of the actions taken by the State of Maryland under Governor Larry Hogan’s direction to date:  June 25, 2020 Governor Larry Hogan today issued the following update to Marylanders regarding the state’s ongoing response to COVID-19: “While yesterday the United States saw a record number of COVID-19 cases, in Maryland, our […]

By:  Joan Cerniglia-Lowensen, Esquire Employers find themselves in the new legal quandary regarding their obligations to their employees in light of the pandemic that is circling the globe.  Not surprisingly, the first of many wrongful death actions has been filed against Walmart related to the death of one of its workers alleging willful and wanton […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire and Robert S. Campbell, Esquire  April 15, 2020 Last week we provided information as to recent Bulletins and other information sent out by the Maryland Insurance Administration.  (Please see updates below listed by date).  We are today providing a summary of additional Bulletins that have been issued since our last newsletter. Bulletin […]

  By:  Aidan Smith, Esquire Many business owners may feel as if the Coronavirus and its consequences are  making it, impossible, impracticable, and frustrating to perform their  contractual obligations. They may be unable to get the supplies they need to produce products.  They may have been forced to shut down their business or significantly reduce […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire and Robert S. Campbell, Esquire  April 6, 2020 There is so much being written about the legal issues surrounding the pandemic that it is hard to know where to begin reading.  We have decided to help by giving our clients and colleagues a guideline of some of the articles and resources we […]

This COVID-19 Emergency Relief $75M Loan Fund offers working capital to assist Maryland for-profit small businesses disrupted operations due to COVID-19. Loan assistance is intended to provide interim relief complementing actions with its bank, business interruption insurance, and financial partners. GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS Loans up to $50,000 (not to exceed three months of cash operating expenses) […]

  By: Leslie Robert Stellman, Esq.   lstellman@pklaw.com (Stayed tuned with COVID-19 Updates on PK Law’s Business Continuity and COVID-19 Update Page) Since the outbreak of the deadly COVID-19 coronavirus in the United States, individual workers and groups of workers have begun to stage walkouts and other expressions of fear and concern over potential exposure to […]

End-of-life decisions are among the most difficult a family will ever face.  Most people do not like to think about life support, ventilators, and artificial food and hydration.  As we face this unprecedented global pandemic, more and more people are thinking about their mortality and what their end of life wishes would be.  One significant […]

  After an initial period of shock as the current crisis unfolds, many of us are now focusing on critical estate planning issues. PK Law can help you prepare and execute your estate planning documents during this difficult time. Remote Capabilities  Our attorneys and staff have full remote capabilities to minimize any interruption in our […]

On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) into law.  As part of that law, the Paycheck Protection Program was enacted to allow small businesses to borrow money to help keep their businesses in operation.  PK Law is available to assist in interpretation of the CARES […]

As a business owner you enter into many contracts.  You enter into contracts with vendors for supplies, merchandise, equipment, goods, services and venues.  You enter into contracts with landlords, commercial management companies, cleaning and maintenance companies.  You enter into contracts with employees, independent contractors and professional services firms.  Something that is probably common to all […]

By:  Adam Konstas, Esquire and Paul Finamore, Esquire On March 18, 2020, the U.S. Senate passed the “Families First Coronavirus Response Act” and President Trump signed the Act into law shortly after.  The law becomes effective no later than 15 days after enactment.  It remains unclear when the law will actually go into effect, pending […]

By:  Diva Bole, Esquire As more and more patients seek to avoid exposing themselves to COVID-19 (also known as coronavirus) in crowded waiting rooms, more and more healthcare practitioners are considering implementing telemedicine services.  These efforts have been supported by the federal government, which recently announced that Medicare enrollees could receive telemedicine services at no […]

Both Baltimore County and Baltimore City have announced decisions to temporarily allow establishments to deliver alcoholic beverages to residents. It’s to ensure local businesses impacted by Maryland’s closure of bars and restaurants can continue to support employees and provide service. For Baltimore County to be granted this privilege, establishments must: Hold a Class A, B, […]

By:  Adam Konstas, Esquire  As more news breaks of the spread of the Coronavirus and the measures taken by government and private sector institutions in response, one topic that persistently arises is paid sick leave.  The CDC has advised employers to encourage sick employees to stay home, to ensure that employees are aware of sick […]

  By: Kathryn D. Jackson, Esq. For many of us, the Spring and Summer will mean weddings, graduations, and vacations. We won’t just be “springing forward” our clocks in preparation—many of us will also be booking a lot of travel arrangements.  In light of growing concerns regarding COVID-19 (“Coronavirus”), I began wondering what the uncertainty […]

By:  Joan Cerniglia-Lowensen, Esquire The global effect of the novel coronavirus on international business has left many companies who rely on Chinese companies as part of their supply chain scrambling to minimize damage.  This experience should prove instructive to businesses when considering their insurance readiness to deal with communicable diseases. The outbreak has had serious […]

By:  Elizabeth Green, Esquire In December 2019, Congress passed the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 abbreviated to the SECURE Act.  The SECURE Act has many sections and covers many topics.  For our purposes, we focus on just a few. Required Minimum Distribution Age:  The SECURE Act has raised the age […]

By:  Emily Devan, Esquire This month the Small Business Reorganization Act (SBRA) goes into effect, impacting approximately 40% of small business who reorganize in bankruptcy and their creditors.  We have a quick overview of the Act and its terms. Who is impacted?  Businesses or individuals with under $2,725,625 in debts, provided at least half of […]

By: David Burkhouse, Esquire On January 30, 2020, Maryland joined the ranks of the growing number of states with “ban the box” laws restricting pre-employment inquiries into an applicant’s criminal record. Although the governor vetoed the bill on May 24, 2019, the General Assembly voted to override the veto on January 30, 2020. As such, […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire My friends, as we begin this New Year, it is time we once again talk about legacy. Legacy is about life and living.  Legacy concerns what we, in our lives, have learned about the past, given to the living and leave to those in the future to build better lives.  […]

By:  Kathryn D. Jackson, Esq. As 2020 arrives, it is a time for everyone to reflect on the past year. For some, this will include New Year’s resolutions to eat better, drink less, or save more money. When you lead the exciting life of an insurance lawyer, however, the most important resolution is to brush […]

By: David Burkhouse, Esquire On November 5, 2019, the Montgomery County Council unanimously passed the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act which prohibits discrimination against individuals based on hairstyle. The CROWN Act makes it illegal to discriminate against a person based upon a “protective hairstyle” which is defined as “those […]

  By:  Elizabeth A. Green, Esquire “Should I give my estate planning documents to my children?”  “Do you think my son will be upset when he finds out that I chose his sister as my healthcare agent?”  These and many other questions are common. Choosing how much to disclose is both a personal decision and, […]

By:  Emily Devan, Esquire Under COMAR 31.15.12.03, an insurer has 10 business days after determining that a motor vehicle of a first-party insured is a total loss to either value the car and make an offer of cash settlement or replace the vehicle (if the policy allows for the same).  “Business days” are days “other […]

By:  Adam Konstas, Esquire Think of how many tasks you can accomplish using company websites and apps.  For any Ravens fan – you can purchase that new Lamar Jackson jersey you’ve been meaning to order, buy tickets to the big game, and even order pizza delivery for when you watch the game at home.  Imagine […]

  By Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esq. Every day in the United States, 130 people die from opioid overdoses.[1] To date, the opioid epidemic, as it has been termed, has claimed the lives of more than 420,000 people[2] and affected the lives of many more.[3] Because the drugs involved—codeine, oxycodone, and fentanyl, among others—are physically addictive,[4] […]

On October 7, the Supreme Court denied certiorari in R.F. v. Cecil County Public Schools, 919 F.3d 237 (4th Cir. 2019).  In this case, the parents of a special education student attending Cecil County Public Schools (CCPS) asserted a claim under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act alleging a failure to provide a free appropriate […]

By:  Cheryl Jones, Esquire Often, people seek out an estate planning attorney so that they can organize their affairs if something happens, so as to make it as easy as possible for their family on the “Day After.”   This is the period immediately following some event (medical emergency, incapacity, entrance into a nursing home, or […]

By: Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esq. Member, Pessin Katz, P.A. What Constitutes Mass Shooting/Active Shooter Situation? Currently, there is no universally accepted definition of “mass shooting,” the general understanding of the concept seems to be a combination of two sub-categories of violent events, “mass killings” and “active shooters.” The Investigative Assistance for Violent Crimes Act of […]

By:  Paul M. Finamore, Esquire On September 24, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued its final rule to update the salary thresholds necessary to qualify as exempt employees:  www.dol.gov/whd/overtime2019.  The new ruling will take effect on January 1, 2020. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, certain employees may qualify as exempt from the […]

By:  Andrew G. Scott, Esquire  Starting October 1, 2019, all employers in Maryland with 15 or more employees will be required to provide “eligible employees” unpaid leave to donate organs or bone marrow.  The law defines “eligible employee” in the same manner as the Family Medical Leave Act (i.e., an individual who has been employed […]

By:  Elizabeth A. Green, Esquire Well thought out and prepared estate planning is important for many reasons.  Some reasons are obvious, such as tax planning and making sure your assets go where you want them to go; others are not.  These less obvious reasons often impact negatively on one’s family.   Everyone should understand the impact that […]

  By:  David Burkhouse, Esquire Employers visiting the EEOC’s website to obtain information regarding employment practices often encounter agency guidance documents. Many employers understandably assume EEOC guidance simply contains a summary of applicable legal requirements. However, employers should be aware EEOC guidance often contains additional restrictions and requirements which are neither mandated by the EEOC’s […]

By:  Diva Bole, Esquire and Lauren B. Ades, Esquire Maryland has taken the lead in a group of states removing barriers preventing socially conscious investors from connecting with nonprofit organizations and underserved communities. A new statute passed as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 seeks to encourage investment in disadvantaged communities […]

Educational series to be produced monthly by Kevin Bress and Ashley Nelson-Raut Ashley Nelson-Raut and Kevin Bress of PK Law Pessin Katz Law, P.A. (PK Law) has launched a podcast series entitled Ultimate Planning that will deliver emerging estate planning issues through interviews with local and national experts in the field. PK Law Attorney Ashley Nelson-Raut conceived the idea for […]

  By: Adam Konstas, Esq. Maryland employers can expect some big changes to the State’s workplace harassment laws which will take effect October 1, 2019. Some notable changes include:   The definition of “employee” now includes employees and independent contractors. This change significantly expands the pool of people who may file workplace harassment claims against an employer. […]

By:  Kristy Bayus Williams, Esquire The bulk of inheritances left to loved ones are usually not held in bank accounts, cars, and other tangible assets. Rather, they are tied up in retirement accounts (such as an IRA, SEP, 401(k) or 403(b)), life insurance policies, annuities, or employee benefit plans or stock options. A will does […]

By:  Aidan Smith, Esquire  After you have taken the steps outlined in the previous articles on the topic of social media business defamation, The Proper Response To Social Media and Business Defamation and Preserving Evidence Can Be “Key Element” in Business Defamation Success, if you still believe that your only recourse is to file suit […]

  By: Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esq. In May 2018, the American Law Institute (ALI) approved the ‘final’ version of a project initially launched in 2010 to deal with the principles of liability insurance law. During the drafting and approval process, the project, the “Restatement of Law, Liability Insurance” (the “RLLI”) became, and continues to be, […]

  By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire With the end of the most recent Maryland General Assembly legislative session, insurers have certain expectations.  They expect the change that comes with new insurance laws.  They expect that there will be laws that impact coverage. (Consider SB 436/HB 1003, dealing with coordination of coverages for rental vehicles).  They […]

Q&A with PK Law Estate Planning Attorney Cheryl Jones Q:          Why do young adults need Financial Powers of Attorney and Health Care Directives? A:          At age 18, your child is legally an adult.  Because of increasingly protective privacy rules, without these documents in place parents can’t access their adult child’s medical or […]

By:  David Burkhouse, Esquire Effective October 1, 2019, employers committing multiple violations of Maryland’s Equal Pay for Equal Work Act may face civil penalties in addition to compensatory and liquidated damages, and attorneys’ fees. (House Bill 790). The Equal Pay Remedies and Enforcement Act provides that the Commission of Labor Licensing and Regulation may assess […]

  By: Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esq. In May 2018, the American Law Institute (ALI) approved the final version of a project initially launched in 2010 to summarize the principles of liability insurance law. The ALI is a deliberative body established to promote the clarification and simplification of United States common law.  The foremost way the […]

  By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert Well it’s that time of the year again. Maryland’s 2019 legislative session has officially come to an end and we can now begin the process of figuring out just how much our world is going to change. For those in the insurance field, the answer to this question lies beneath […]

By:  Andrew Scott, Esquire The Maryland General Assembly recently enacted legislation that will begin impacting employers as early as this summer. Effective June 1, 2019, Maryland’s minimum wage is set to increase 75 cents every January until the year 2025, at which time it will increase one dollar to reach $15.00 per hour.  Employers with […]

By:  Aidan Smith, Esquire As outlined in my previous article on business defamation, The Proper Response To Social Media and Business Defamation, there are some preliminary steps you should take if you believe your business has fallen victim to a defamatory online statement.  If, after taking those actions, you still believe your only recourse is […]

By:  Kristy Bayus Williams, Esquire By the recent passage of the “Remote Online Notarization” (RON) Bill (Senate Bill 678), which goes into effect on October 1, 2020, Maryland will be the most recent of six states who have authorized remote online notarizations.[1]  Below is an explanation of RON and a summary of how it compares […]

Becomes first woman chair of group in more than 30-year history of the firm Pessin Katz Law, P.A. (PK Law) has announced the appointment of Lauren B. Ades, Member, to Chair of the firm’s Corporate and Real Estate practice group, marking the first woman to ascend to this position in the more than 30-year history of PK […]

Edmund O’Meally, Member, PK Law and Dawn O’Meally, owner of The Counseling Center for Change, behind effort to provide resources and guidance to families impacted by disease Edmund J. O’Meally, Member, Pessin Katz Law, P.A. (PK Law) Edmund J. O’Meally, Member, Pessin Katz Law, P.A. (PK Law) understands on a firsthand basis the devastating toll that Alzheimer’s […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire So I have been traveling recently—mostly for business—but I am certainly thinking about the lazy, crazy, days of summer and where I should spend my way too limited vacation time.  I have not decided where I will go.  I might go to a pilgrimage tour of Ireland, a road trip […]

By:  Emily Devan, Esquire          Bankruptcy courts are sometimes referred to as the wild west. Rather than using the advantages of the open range, remote countryside and badlands for hideouts, filers use complex bankruptcy statutes and inconsistent case law to protect themselves from paying their debts and turn contracts on their head.  Unfortunately for insurers […]

  By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire Introduction On December 19, 2018, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (“NAIC”) adopted a Travel Insurance Model Law (“Travel Ins. Model Law”) after three years of development in the Travel Insurance Working Group.  Largely based off the National Council of Insurance Legislators’ (“NCOIL”) March 2017 version, the NAIC Travel […]

  By:  Adam Konstas, Esquire For approximately the past three (3) years, employers have been caught in a maelstrom between two shifting currents.  One current consisted of Department of Labor (“DOL”) rulemaking, which proposed to increase the salary threshold for the executive/administrative/professional exemption (the “white-collar exemption”) under the Fair Labor Standards Act.  The countervailing current […]

Edmund O’Meally For more than 30 years, Edmund O’Meally has worked closely with superintendents, boards of education, private schools, colleges and private sector employers on a variety of matters including collective bargaining, employment litigation, Title IX compliance and litigation, student discipline, construction and procurement issues and Open Meetings/Public Information Act compliance. He is a frequent presenter and […]

By Gregory Weiner, Member, PK Law Roger Bedard (left), General Manager, Pooles Island Brewing Company and Gregory S. Weiner, Member, PK Law Pooles Island Brewing Company recently opened its brewing operation and taproom within a 10,000 square foot space at Greenleigh at Crossroads, a mixed-use development located in Middle River. Owners Roger Bedard and Scott Donnelly […]

  By:  Aidan F. Smith, Esquire It’s hard to imagine making almost any purchase these days without looking at on online commentary. Posts, reviews, and tweets written by helpful souls with a bit too much time on their hands (or perhaps more often than we’d like to think, by reviewers-for-hire) guide us toward certain products, […]

By: Kathryn D. Jackson, Esq. Technology grants greater access to the law than ever before, and with that, we are becoming more litigious with every passing year. Personal injury law firms notoriously flaunt massive jury verdicts, in particular. Nearly everyone seems to know about the enormous verdict granted to the woman who was burned by McDonald’s […]

As of December 1, 2018, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland adopted several amendments to the local rules. Below is a list of the amendments along with a description of the change and a practical “takeaway.” RULE 108:  Judgments The Amendment:  Rule 108 was amended to include a requirement that, in […]

Kevin Bress Kevin Bress focuses on the practice areas of elder law, estate planning, wealth preservation, probate and estate administration. His broad-based tax background serves his clients extremely well when drafting wills, administering estates and providing elder law planning guidance and advice. Mr. Bress served for 15 years as an adjunct professor at the University of […]

  By:  David Burkhouse, Esquire  As we all deal with closures related to inclement winter weather, employers in Maryland may be faced with employees who wish to utilize Sick and Safe Leave, which is mandated under Maryland’s Healthy Working Families Act, in order to take a snow day or to provide childcare to children whose […]

Natalie C. Magdeburger For more than thirty years, Natalie Magdeburger has worked as an attorney defending actions of wrongful deaths and serious personal injury claims at both the trial and appellate levels. She has also been engaged in the representation of physicians and hospitals throughout the State of Maryland in the defense of medical negligence […]

Franchise owner Abdul Esreb expects to select five additional sites throughout Baltimore metropolitan region over next several years after planned first quarter 2019 opening The Original Pancake House has signed a lease with MCB Real Estate for 5112 square feet of space within The Can Company, a 205,000 square foot mixed-used project located in the Canton section of Baltimore City. […]

  Patricia McHugh-Lambert Patricia McHugh-Lambert has more than 30 years of experience handling complex commercial litigation and insurance matters and has worked on national class actions, significant litigation and regulatory matters for Fortune 500 companies. She has also assisted small and medium-sized companies with contract, real estate, liability assessment and commercial disputes that need resolution quickly. […]

An Advanced (Healthcare) Directive informs your health care provider as to your wishes regarding your care if you are unable to communicate decisions in that regard, and names a person to communicate them for you and act on your behalf. In Maryland only about 1/3 of adults actually complete a healthcare directive while well over […]

Joan Cerniglia-Lowensen Joan Cerniglia-Lowensen has more than twenty-six years of civil litigation experience throughout the State of Maryland in both state and federal courts. She primarily defends nurses, doctors, veterinarians, dentists, healthcare providers, healthcare facilities, mental healthcare workers, urgent care facilities and nursing homes in medical malpractice matters; professional liability and tort claims; disciplinary actions before […]

By:  Andrew Scott, Esquire According to data recently released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the agency initiated 6,848 worksite investigations and 5,981 I-9 audits in fiscal year 2018—both substantial increases from 2017. As a result of ICE enforcement actions over the course of the year, businesses were ordered to pay more than $10.2 […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire If you ever want to make people’s eyes roll, just tell them that you want to talk about history.  Certainly, there are the few oddballs that treasure discussing the latest Civil War biography or the newest retrospective on the presidency, but they often hide their historical obsessions fearing it makes […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire  Too many. There are too many. There are simply too many mass shootings in this country.  We have all seen the heartbreaking pictures of the aftermath of these shootings—shootings at concert venues, at nightclubs, at houses of worship, and at schools.  While we may have the victims of these shootings […]

By:  Megan Anderson, Esquire As part of our ongoing review of the ever-growing liability of healthcare providers in relation to the opioid crisis, below is an overview of the most recent opioid related legislation in Maryland . A New Form of Opioid Liability: Will Big Pharma Be The Next Tobacco Industry Liability of Healthcare Providers […]

  By: Adam Konstas, Esquire On November 6, 2018, the United States Supreme Court issued its first ruling of the new term — a unanimous 8-0 decision (Justice Kavanaugh did not join the decision because he did not take part in oral argument) which not only expands the reach of the Age Discrimination in Employment […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire Alternative litigation financing, also known simply as litigation financing, is the funding of litigation activities by entities other than the parties to a lawsuit themselves, their counsel, or other entities with a pre-existing contractual relationship with one of the parties, such as an indemnitor or a liability insurer.  The third-party […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire  People ask me all the time about planning.  Pat, how do I plan so that I’m prepared for a disaster?  Pat, how do I plan so that I don’t get sued?  Pat, how should I plan for what happens when I die?  Problems. Problems. Problems.  Can we every think about […]

By:  Alexandra Neifert, Esquire On May 8, 2018, Governor Hogan signed Maryland House Bill 1093, also known as the Maryland Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act (the “Act”). The Act is codified in Title 3, Subtitle 7 of the Real Property Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland. With an effective date of October 1, […]

Diva Bole, PK Law (left) with Dawn O’Meally, The Counseling Center for Change By: Diva Bole, Esquire,  PK Law This interview is part of a continuing series focusing on women entrepreneurs in the greater Baltimore metropolitan region. Over the next several months, PK Law will identify local businesswomen that are making a difference with companies and organizations, […]

By:  David Burkhouse, Esquire In the wake of the controversy that led to Maryland’s adoption of the Maryland Healthy Working Families Act which requires private employers to provide certain employees paid sick and safe leave, Maryland has continued to expand the scope of the framework under which employees can receive paid leave. On October 1, […]

By:  Brian Cathell, Esquire and Kathryn Jackson, J.D. In recent years, workplace violence has reached alarming numbers. More than 2 million Americans report being victims of violence in the workplace each year.[1] For healthcare workers and facilities, these numbers are even higher. In fact, the number of incidents in the healthcare field is four times those […]

By:  Kizzy Bivins, Paralegal and Laura Marin, Paralegal A foreign subpoena is a subpoena issued under the authority of a court of record of a foreign jurisdiction. This includes the 50 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands. A foreign subpoena is needed when you want to take the deposition of a non-party or […]

By:  Joan Cerniglia-Lowensen, Esquire and Kathryn Jackson, Esquire  The nationwide opioid crisis has changed the way the entire health care industry prescribes painkillers. Health care providers are encouraged to view these medications differently.  In the past, providers believed that if a patient truly had pain, if opioids were prescribed, there was little risk of addiction.  […]

By:  Andrew Scott, Esquire The United States Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued an opinion letter determining whether non-exempt employees’ 15-minute rest breaks were compensable time under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).  The employees at issue required 15-minute rest breaks every hour, as certified by their health care provider, due to a serious health […]

By:  Justin Fine, Esquire The commercial application of drones is increasing. Drones are being used to fight forest fires, for commercial agriculture, and to deliver medical supplies to remote areas. Insurance companies are also increasingly using drones, which can be useful for capturing evidence during the claims process. However, there are plenty of pitfalls in […]

By: Diva Bole, Esquire This is the first in a series of interviews focusing on women entrepreneurs in the greater Baltimore metropolitan region. Over the next several months, PK Law will identify local businesswomen that are making a difference with new companies and organizations, serving the local community or rising above a particular challenge to positively impact […]

By:  Ashley Nelson-Raut, Esquire Over the years, it has become more common for significant others to live together prior to marriage. In fact, some couples purchase real estate prior to marriage. When two people who are not married take title to real estate together, they own it either as tenants-in-common or as joint tenants. Tenants-in-common is […]

By:  Adam Konstas, Esquire In Boeing Company and Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace, IFPTE Local 2001, 365 NLRB No. 154 (December 14, 2017, the National Labor Relations Board announced a new standard governing whether facially neutral workplace rules, policies, and employee handbook provisions unlawfully interfere with the exercise of protected rights under the National Labor Relations […]

By:  Alexandra Neifert, Esquire Effective August 1, 2018, single and two-family rental dwellings in Baltimore City must be registered, inspected, and licensed just like larger properties. The change is a result of the enactment of Baltimore City Council Bill 18-0185 and marks a distinct expansion in Baltimore City’s rental registration requirements. By January 1, 2019, […]

By:  Benjamin Wolf, Esquire Traditionally, the process of managing the affairs of a deceased loved one involves combing through the family member’s belongings, trying to piece together assets, investments, life insurance and other death benefits, bills and liabilities, as well as keepsakes, photographs, letters, journals, and other personal effects.  As our personal finances and our […]

By: Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esq. News of abusive sexual behavior and scandal involving deplorable actors and film producers such as Harvey Weinstein have been pervasive in recent headlines.  These scandals run the gambit, from harassment problems including individuals preying on co-workers to employment waivers preventing employees from disclosing harassment or asserting other rights.  There has also […]

By:  David Burkhouse, Esquire Employers in Maryland generally, and in Montgomery County specifically, need to be aware that two changes in the minimum wage became effective on July 1, 2018. Statewide, the minimum wage increased from $9.25 per hour to $10.10 per hour.  Md. Code Ann., Lab. & Empl. § 3-413(c)(5).  Employers should note there […]

Congratulations to Ashley Nelson-Raut on being selected to be a 2018-2019 GameChanger for the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults. The Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults’ GameChangers recognition is awarded to outstanding young professionals in the Baltimore-area who are going above and beyond at work and in the community. The committee selects individuals who […]

By:  Kristy Bayus Williams, Esquire Clients often have questions regarding the requirements of a Financial Power of Attorney under Maryland law. The purpose of this article is to explain the background of the Maryland statutory form power of attorney (that is, the financial power of attorney formed in accordance with the laws enacted by the General […]

By: Jennifer L. Harris, Esquire Most service companies, commercial landlords, or contractors will find the need to collect on unpaid fees or delinquent rent.  If your company finds itself in this situation, then be sure to first ask: when did the cause of action accrue?  This question is so important because often, as most recently explained […]

By:  Andrew G. Scott, Esquire As data breaches affecting businesses around the world continue to dominate the headlines, it’s worth ensuring that your business is complying with the recently amended Maryland Personal Information Protection Act (“MPIPA”).  This statute, which was amended effective January 1, 2018, requires that businesses “implement and maintain reasonable security procedures and […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire In thinking about claims professionals, I am reminded of Giles Corey, the strong, determined old man who was accused of being a witch in Old Salem.  His tormentors tortured him by placing heavy stones, one at a time, on a board covering his chest.  Despite the excruciating weight of the […]

By:  Diva Bole, Esquire Throughout the lifespan of a business, business owners have to make millions of decisions about how their businesses will be run.  In some instances, making the wrong decision can expose the business owner to unnecessary liability that can be devastating to the business, and, in some instances, to the owner’s personal […]

  By:  Adam E. Konstas, Esquire You know the game of telephone – one person whispers a phrase into another’s ear, that person whispers the same phrase into another’s, and so on and so on until the final person is left with a phrase completely different from the original phrase.  Unfortunately, employers might be unwittingly […]

With the passage of Senate Bill 228, Maryland is poised to start awarding tax credits to both investors in and purchasers of cyber related goods and services from Maryland cyber companies. Before diving in, investors and purchasers seeking the credit should carefully review as there are many qualifications and requirements peppered throughout the bill. Investors […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire and Aidan Smith, Esquire             Knock, knock! Who’s there?  It’s the FBI. Or a State Trooper. Or an investigator from the Insurance Commissioner’s office.  After the knock, the door opens and the business professional is handed a subpoena to appear and give testimony.  No matter how politely the envelope is delivered, what is being […]

By:  Kambon Williams, Esquire Ever since the first news of Equifax’s data breach broke, savvy plaintiff’s lawyers around the country have wasted no time in filing a myriad of class action lawsuits.  Following Equifax’s disclosure on September 7, 2017 that it had been the target of a data security incident that resulted in the criminal […]

    PK Law Estate Planning Associate, Ashley Nelson-Raut was given the opportunity to speak at Eastern Technical High School as a representative of the One Love Foundation, an organization dedicated to educating young people about healthy and unhealthy relationships.  Over 150 students volunteered to participate in the event at Eastern Tech, where Ashley is […]

By:  David Burkhouse, Esquire With the Maryland Legislature’s passage of the Disclosing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Act of 2018, SB1010, Maryland employers will face new restrictions in drafting, renewing, or extending employment agreements. Effective October 1, 2018, any provision in an employment agreement which waives any procedural or substantive right to a claim for […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s monthly Insurance Insights? Sign up HERE. By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esq. Introduction Under Federal Rule 30(b)(6) and comparable state rules, preparing for a corporate deposition may seem like a simple, straightforward task— and business as usual for defense counsel. However, the scope of this mechanism far exceeds the rule. Rather, strategic norms […]

By: Toni Norris, Law Clerk Technology has become an integral part of public education as we know it.  With advancements in technology steadily progressing throughout society, the use of electronic resources continues to extend further into classrooms and school systems as a whole. The increased use of online educational tools as a part of the […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s monthly Insurance Insights? Sign up HERE. Migliaro v. Fidelity National Indemnity Insurance Company United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit 2018 WL 577704 I. Facts Anthony Migliaro purchased an SFIP from WYO carrier Fidelity for his New Jersey Property. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy damaged the property with flooding. The […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s monthly HR Tips?  Sign up here. By:  Andrew G. Scott, Esquire and Toni Norris, Law Clerk In light of recent legislation passed in Maryland, employers now face the question of whether or not to amend their existing drug enforcement policies to reflect medical marijuana users in the workplace.  Although under Maryland law individuals […]

By:  Diva Bole, Esquire Most small business owners will, at some point in the lifespan of their businesses, need to obtain financing in order to get their business off the ground or expand. This article summarizes the basics of obtaining financing through both loans and investors. There are many different options available to get financing […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s monthly HR Tips?  Sign up here. By:  Adam E. Konstas, Esquire In light of developments in Maryland employment discrimination law, employers are strongly encouraged to re-examine their reasonable accommodation policies and procedures.  When confronted with a reasonable accommodation request, employers should be mindful that Maryland’s Fair Employment Practices Act (“FEPA”) imposes […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s monthly Insurance Insights? Sign up HERE. By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire and Robert S. Campbell, Esquire  Introduction In the not too distant past, claims and claims handling were generally predictable.  There was an incident causing damage, then a demand, and a dispute largely about the amount that would be paid.  More […]

It is something that every health care provider fears: a patient files a complaint against you with the medical licensing board. Despite the anxiety that may come with receiving a letter of complaint, ignoring the matter will not make it go away. In fact, doing so will make matters worse. Although you may feel the […]

Interested in getting PK Law’s content in your inbox? Sign Up Now     By:  Ashley Nelson-Raut An abundance of tax legislation was signed into law in the final days of 2017. In terms of estate and gift tax, here is what individuals need to keep in mind: Under the new law, which took effect […]

Q&A – A Few Highlights On What the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Means for Your Business By:  Alexander Kelly, Esquire President Trump signed The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (“Tax Reform Act”) into law on December 22, 2017, a little less than two months after it was first introduced in the House […]

On January 12, 2018, the Maryland Senate voted to override Governor Hogan’s veto of the General Assembly’s paid leave bill from last year’s legislative session.  As such, the paid leave bill (formally known as the Maryland Healthy Working Families Act) will be become law in Maryland on February 11th. 

By: Joan Cerniglia-Lowensen, Esquire and Kathryn D. Jackson, Law Clerk When it comes to opioid use, the U.S. is in a league of its own. Roughly eighty percent of the world’s opioid supply is consumed within the United States. Drug overdose is the leading cause of accidental death in the United States. The likely source […]

It is a common misconception of employers that if they do not sponsor foreign workers, they do not need to be worried about immigration laws.  However, there is one notoriously confusing form, created by the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), that must be used by all employers who employ an individual in […]

Read Update! Contact information@pklaw.com  for information on our flat rate reviews of existing paid leave policies or development of a new policy. On January 12, 2018, the Maryland Senate voted to override Governor Hogan’s veto of the General Assembly’s paid leave bill from last year’s legislative session.  As such, the paid leave bill (formally known as […]

By:  Kambon R. Williams, Esquire There appears to be no stopping the continued breathtaking pace of cyberattacks as we head into 2018.  In 2017, the Equifax data breach exposed the nonpublic information of over 140 million consumers; there were allegations that Uber hired hackers to conceal a data breach involving over 57 million rider accounts; […]

What are businesses required to do when personal information they have collected is breached?  Most states have breach notification laws with varying degrees of security and notice requirements.  With high profile data breaches continuing to top headlines, legislators are beginning to make these laws more strict. Maryland’s legislature is no exception.  On January 1, 2018, […]

There have been few occasions in recent history when immigration has been such a hot topic.  The current administration has directed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to increase enforcement efforts against removable aliens, including the hiring of more enforcement agents.  As enforcement efforts grow, schools must be prepared for the possibility of campus visits from […]

By: Andrew Scott, Esquire Last legislative session the Maryland General Assembly passed the Maryland Healthy Working Families Act (HB1/SB230) (“the Act”), which required employers with 15 or more employees to provide paid sick and safe leave. Although Governor Hogan later vetoed the Act, the Act had passed with enough votes to override the Governor’s veto, […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s monthly Insurance Insights? Sign up HERE. The PK Law Flood Team handles litigation for a variety of carriers in several jurisdictions including federal and state courts in Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, New Hampshire, Tennessee, North Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Texas, Minnesota, Louisiana and Oregon. In this article, we highlight […]

By David N. Pessin, Esquire Does a wealth preservation attorney representing some of the richest and most famous people in the world – professional athletes – differ from those representing so-called “regular people”? Some lawyers will say, “Well, you’re still just doing wills, trusts, LLCs, maybe a prenup or two. Isn’t it all just the […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s monthly Insurance Insights? Sign up HERE. Insurance coverage can be the difference between a natural disaster causing the closing of a business or merely a temporary shutdown. In October 2017, wildfires blazed across eight counties in Northern California causing billions of dollars in insured losses. 19,000 residential, commercial, and auto […]

Q&A with PK Law Estate Planning Attorney Cheryl Jones Q:          Why do young adults need Financial Powers of Attorney and Health Care Directives? A:          At age 18, your child is legally an adult.  Because of increasingly protective privacy rules, without these documents in place parents can’t access their adult child’s […]

Interesting in receiving PK Law’s monthly Insurance Insights? Sign up HERE.   The practice of exchanging discovery in federal litigation has ballooned to its own cottage industry within the practice of law. Many law firms tout expertise in the practice “Electronic Discovery Law.” Heady conferences convene to discuss the intricacies of how parties are to […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s monthly Insurance Insights? Sign up HERE. By: Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire Today I am listening to music as I write my article regarding an insurer’s obligation to pay pretender defense costs in Maryland. I first listened to the Platters’ version of “The Great Pretender” with lyrics of “my need is […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s monthly HR Tips?  Sign up here. By: Adam E. Konstas, Esquire Since news broke of the allegations of sexual harassment against Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein, the dam has breached, and the news has been flooded with reports of sexual harassment allegations against other high profile media figures, journalists, and […]

The Trump administration and Congress have begun consideration of “tax reform” or, as many pundits have declared, “tax cuts”.  Now, the “waiting game” begins to see just what form this consideration of revisions to the Internal Revenue Code will take.  However, even Warren Buffett, the “Oracle of Omaha” has indicated that stock sellers who have […]

By:  Jennifer L. Harris, Esquire Currently 13 out of 24 counties in Maryland require electronic filing.  Effective August 1, 2017, the Court’s Standing Committee of Rules of Practice and Procedure (the “Rules Committee”) revised the electronic filing rules to be slightly more “technical.”  While electronic filing typically felt more “safe” than the traditional filing methods, […]

By:  Robert S. Campbell, Esq. The drafting of liability releases has always been complicated and recent legal developments in Maryland have made such drafting even more complicated.   Some non-exhaustive things to think about when drafting liability releases include: JOINT TORT-FEASOR STATUS: Under the Maryland Uniform Contribution Among Joint Tort-Feasors Act, Cts. & Jud. Proc. I […]

By:  Robert S. Campbell, Esq. Recently, in Spangler v. McQuitty, 449 Md. 33 (2016), the Maryland Court of Appeals examined the interplay between an injured person’s injury claim/survival action and the claims of beneficiaries under Maryland’s Wrongful Death Act. While the Court acknowledged that a wrongful death action was derivative of the injured person’s action, […]

By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire For most of us, we do not get into trouble for intentionally doing something wrong.  We do not steal. We do not commit fraud.  We do not hurt people on purpose.  But, if we are truthful with ourselves, we have sometimes looked away and then backed away when we saw […]

As you may recall, in 2016 the Department of Labor issued a new overtime rule under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In nutshell, the new rule raised the salary threshold for employees exempt from overtime from $455/ week ($23,660.00) to $913/ week ($47,476.00). The new rule was scheduled to take effect on December 1, […]

  On September 22, 2017, the U.S. Department of Education issued new Interim Title IX Guidance providing Questions and Answers on Title IX sexual violence. Significantly, the new guidance withdraws the April 4, 2011 Dear Colleague letter and the April 29, 2014 Questions and Answers that the Department of Education previously issued. As the 2011 […]

By:  Cheryl A. Jones, Esquire On July 13, 2017 Rep. Richard E. Neal (D-MA-1), joined by other members of the U.S. House of Representatives, introduced H.R. 3234, Refund Equality Act of 2017, which has been referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.  The bill was also introduced on the Senate side as S. […]

On August 25, 2017, Maryland’s highest court, the Court of Appeals (the “Court”), visited issues arising from the statute providing for the valid execution, particularly attestation, of a Maryland will based on a statute that had remained largely unchanged since 1798. In Sadie M. Castruccio v. The Estate of Peter A. Castruccio et al., No. […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s Insurance Group’s monthly Insurance Insights Newsletter?  Click HERE. In 1975, Maryland, recognizing the importance of protecting victims of uninsured or underinsured motorists, began requiring that every private automobile insurance policy issued, sold or delivered in Maryland contain uninsured motorist coverage (“UM Coverage”). Since then, Maryland has steadily increased the scope […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s Insurance Group’s monthly Insurance Insights Newsletter?  Click HERE. By: Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire I have been in a haze recently due to marijuana. Granted, I do not smoke, toke, or even eat pot laden brownies—I truly never have.  But each insurance conference I go to and each insurance journal I read, I […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s Insurance Group’s monthly Insurance Insights Newsletter?  Click HERE. By: Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire Insurance companies and lawyers defending insurance companies oftentimes try to shield claims investigations from disclosure during discovery. Oftentimes, the claimed basis for non-disclosure is the work-product privilege.  In light of the recent case of Gioioso, v. Thoroughgood’s Transport LLC, […]

Before bottling beer, brewers need to raise capital By: Tim Curtis Daily Record Business Reporter September 6, 2017   Lauren Ades, attorney with P K Law at Union Craft Brewing in Baltimore. (The Daily Record/Maximilian Franz) If it seems like another Maryland brewery’s product pops up in the beer fridge at the local liquor store every other […]

By:  Kristy Bayus Williams, Esquire The bulk of inheritances left to loved ones are usually not held in bank accounts, cars, and other tangible assets. Rather, they are tied up in retirement accounts (such as an IRA, SEP, 401(k) or 403(b)), life insurance policies, annuities, or employee benefit plans or stock options. A will does […]

This fall, a group of 11 accomplished and diverse students began their legal careers with vital financial and professional support, thanks to a new collaboration between four top law firms and the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law. DLA Piper; Gallagher Evelius & Jones; Miles & Stockbridge; and Pessin Katz have joined […]

By: Cheryl A. Jones, Esquire Are you a Maryland resident? Do you have student loan debt? Well, good news – you may be eligible for a new tax credit on your 2017 tax return! The Student Loan Debt Relief Tax Credit went into effect on July 1, 2017, and provides that qualifying Maryland residents may […]

In Ryke v Commissioner (U.S. Tax Court, TC Memo 2017-144, Docket No. 20587-15, July 25, 2017) a doctor claiming innocent spouse relief for unpaid taxes was denied the same because she knew or should have known of the tax status of herself and her husband. The opinion recites that Mr. Ryke “has a long history […]

Over the past several months there have been a number of tax developments that might affect PK Law readers: As widely reported, there is no “health reform” pending. The repeal of the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”) would have widely impacted a number of tax issues. Due to taxpayer confusion about making an expensing election for […]

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (129 Stat. 584, Public Law 114–74, Nov. 2, 2015, H.R. 1314) (the “Act”) contains a new partnership audit regime the implementation of which will begin for audits of partnership tax returns for years beginning on or after January 1, 2018. Even though such audits may not occur until years […]

In Fact Sheet 2017-10 issued by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) on July 25, 2017, “Information on Identity Theft for Business, Partnerships and Estate and Trusts”, the IRS points out that business, partnerships and estate and trust filers are “increasingly targeted by national and international criminal syndicates who use stolen data to file fraudulent tax […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s Employment Group’s monthly HR Tips?  Click HERE. By:  Andrew G. Scott, Esquire Inflated, generic, or incomplete performance evaluations plague employers of all stripes.  Ironically, most supervisors provide them to avoid or minimize conflict, but in the end, they often create larger problems.  This is especially true when an employee is later […]

On June 27, 2017, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced it will reinstate the issuance of opinion letters (the “letters”), a practice not followed since 2010. The letters allow the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division (“WHD”) to provide guidance to covered employers and employees. An opinion letter is issued by the WHD in response […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s Insurance Group’s monthly Insurance Insights Newsletter?  Click HERE.   Similar to other abuse registries, animal advocates have been petitioning legislatures to initiate an “animal abuse registry,” which would identify past animal abuse and cruelty law offenders. This year, Senator James N. Mathias, Jr. was the primary sponsor of Senate Bill 84 which […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s Insurance Group’s monthly Insurance Insights Newsletter?  Click HERE.   Whoever said that a diamond is a girl’s best friend never had a dog. Within the first few minutes of every conversation, professional or personal, the person I am speaking with always casually, or sometimes intentionally, mentions their beloved dog, cat, horse, you […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s Insurance Group’s monthly Insurance Insights Newsletter?  Click HERE. By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire Have you ever wondered who will take care of your pet after your death? Maryland has a pet trust law allowing owners to set aside funds for their pet’s care and to provide for a care taking system for […]

Interested in receiving PK Law’s Insurance Group’s monthly Insurance Insights Newsletter?  Click HERE. By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Esquire Keep in mind that statutes or ordinances can be a source of a duty of care towards members of a specific class. See, e.g., Kiriakos v. Phillips, 448 Md. at 495, 139 A.3d 1006 (concluding that a social host […]

READ UPDATE!   Contact information@pklaw.com for information on our flat rate reviews of existing paid leave policies or development of a new policy.   Although Governor Hogan vetoed the Maryland Healthy Working Families Act (HB1/SB230) which would have required employers with over 14 employees to provide paid sick and safe leave, it is expected that the legislature […]

By Lauren B. Ades, Member, PK Law Speaking from the manufacturing operations of The Baltimore Whiskey Company on 2800 Sisson Street in Baltimore City, Max Lents provided details on the launch of the inaugural rye whiskey batch on February 6, 2018; their upcoming move and expansion; the equity raise campaign that is currently underway and the “secret […]

Five Questions with Ashref Elshazli and Ckori Jones, Brocar Properties By Herbert Burgunder III, PK Law Ckori Jones (left) and Ashref Elshazli After initially focusing on residential renovation projects in the suburban Maryland region, Brocar Properties has now set its sights on acquiring value-add commercial and retail buildings — specifically in Baltimore City — with […]

On June 19, 2017, Justice Samuel A. Alito, delivered the unanimous opinion of the United States Supreme Court (the “Court”) in Matal v Tam, No. 15-1293, Oct. Term, 2016, argued January 18, 2017. Simply stated, the Court upheld the decision of the Federal Circuit (In re Tam, 808 F. 3d 1321 (CA Fed. 2015) (en banc)), that Sec. 2(a) of the Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. §1052(a))(the “Act”) violates the freedom of speech clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

By: Elizabeth Green, Esquire
In the recently completed legislative session, a bill was passed to revoke the ability of certain individuals to serve as an Agent under a Medical Directive.

Larry Letow, CEO of Convergence Technology Consulting, LLC knew his company’s acquisition of Deep Run Security Services, LLC in January was a sound and pro-active business decision, and this judgement is paying “better than expected” dividends based on the “corporate awakening concerning the potential long-term damage” caused by intellectual property theft.

Interested in receiving PK Law’s Insurance Group’s monthly Insurance Insights Newsletter?  Click HERE. By:  Patricia McHugh Lambert, Member, PK Law The following is a list of new legislation that may impact those interested in liability issues and insurance practices.   Special Causes of Action Statutes of Limitations Child Sexual Abuse The Maryland General Assembly enacted House Bill […]

By: Herbert Burgunder III, PK Law Member Corporate and Real Estate
After receiving an employee severance package from Air Products in Sparrows Point, Ken Jacobs and his wife Julie considered numerous franchise concepts before settling on 9Round, a kickboxing gym that is rapidly expanding.

By:  David Burkhouse, Esquire
After several attempts at passage in previous legislative sessions, the Maryland General Assembly has passed the Maryland Healthy Working Families Act (HB1 (SB230)) and will send it to the Governor whose own version of a bill on paid sick leave was rejected by the General Assembly.  The Governor has publicly stated that the legislature’s bill is bad for business and intends to veto it.  The legislative leadership states that it will override his veto.  The bill takes effect January 1, 2018 and is only prospective in its application.

By:  Greg Weiner, Member, PK Law
Consumers visiting Holabird Sports on Pulaski Highway in Baltimore are familiar with the 7000 square foot retail space that houses walls of footwear matching any athletic or fitness requirement, the vast selection of tennis rackets and accessories, as well as the comprehensive array of fitness apparel for the active user. But what the average visitor doesn’t experience is a “behind-the-scenes” viewof the operation that houses nearly 50 employees involved with marketing, sales, customer service and distribution on the top floor, as well as the approximately 40,000 pairs of athletic shoes and sophisticated logistics operation contained withthe bottom-floor warehouse.

On May 4th, Governor Larry Hogan conducted his last bill signing session for the 2017 Maryland General Assembly session.  Although bill numbers are listed, once signed they become law, but the corresponding chapter numbers are not reflected below.  Again, inclusion of a bill below, of the hundreds introduced in the legislative session, is purely subjective, […]

By:  Gregory Weiner, Member, PK Law Corporate and Real  Estate Group

Speaking from the company’s corporate headquarters in Columbia, CEO and President Larry Letow explained why every organization – in every industry sector – should be aware of the daily threats from information breaches that could potentially cause significant negative ramifications including financial, personal and reputation loss. No business or government agency is immune, the threats are rapidly growing and, in many cases, companies need to look no further than their own employees as the culprits of intellectual property theft. Founded in 2002, Convergence Technology Consulting has more than forty employees working for customers throughout the country.

Patricia McHugh Lambert, Member, PK Law
By now, every Maryland defense lawyer knows that there is a cause of action that can be leveled against insurers for lack of good faith. Most even know that this cause of action is based on Md. Code Ann., Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 3-1701, which allows for “enhanced damages” when “an insurer failed to act in good faith.” Under the statute, “good faith” means “an informed judgment based on honesty and diligence supported by evidence the insurer knew or should have known at the time the insurer made a decision on a claim.”

Governor Hogan has held six bill signing sessions to date. Two bill signings remain on the Governor’s schedule for May 2 and May 4. Under Maryland law all bills are to be presented to the Governor by April 30 this year, the 20th day after adjournment of April 10th, and he must veto them, if he wishes to do so, within thirty days of their presentment or by May 30th this year. Otherwise, he must sign a bill or allow it to become law without his signature, often said to be an expression of a Governor’s displeasure with the legislation he or she refuses to sign.

As in the past, PK Law reports on the Internal Revenue Service’s (“IRS”) data book (IR 2017-69) regarding a taxpayer’s chances of undergoing an audit. The annual data book reflects data collected during the fiscal year 2016 (“FY 2016”, October 1, 2015 to September 30, 2016).

In U.S. v Jennifer Salgado & Jenny’s Tax Service, (No. 1:16-CV-03186-SMJ, Mar. 24, 2017) the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington (the “Court”) held that a taxpayer’s client list and client identifying data were not trade secrets under Washington state law but that because the clients had a reasonable expectation of privacy that information could not be put into the record without redaction.

By:  Kristy Bayus, Esquire
I don’t need to tell you that social media has become a mainstream way to communicate ideas, photos, and information. Even the President uses this technology as a prime form of expression. Have you considered what happens to this digital information after your death? Without specifically granting your fiduciaries access to edit or delete the personal data through provisions in your estate planning documents, it could be accessible in cyberspace indefinitely. It is important, therefore, to review your estate planning documents to make certain that this information is protected in the event of your death or disability.

David N. Pessin, of Pessin Katz Law, P.A. (PK Law) recently wrote an article, “Protect Your Wealth,” for the 2017 Guide Retire Now America. In the article David explains the importance of protecting the wealth, you have spent so many years acquiring, from such things as: state and federal estate taxes; family fights; probate; long-term care; divorce; lawsuits for personal liability; improper management of assets in the event of incapacity; and incorrect titling of assets and beneficiary designations. He then goes through the multi-tiered process of planning, basic planning, more complex planning and asset protection.

By:  Dino La Fiandra, Esquire
The Clean Water Act, passed in 1972, allows the EPA and the Army Corp of Engineers to regulate many activities, including development and agriculture, to the extent these activities impact Waters of the United States. Such regulations include things like requiring permits to add fill material to wetlands in order to make these areas suitable for development. Over the years, the jurisdictional reach of the Clean Water Act and the regulations promulgated under it (through the definition of “Waters of the United States”) has been debated and litigated.

By:  Rochelle Eisenberg, Esquire
On February 22, 2017, the Supreme Court issued a decision in Fry v. Napoleon Community Schools et al. A school district had prohibited a student from bringing her service dog, Wonder, to school with her. So the family filed suit for money damages under Title II of the ADA and Section

 By: Aidan Smith, Esquire In Robinson, et. al. v State, Nos. 37, 39, & 46, September Term, 2016, decided January 20, 2017 (Watts, J.), the Maryland Court of Appeals, Maryland’s highest court, (the “Court”) held that a law enforcement officer (“officer(s)”) has probable cause to search a vehicle when an officer detects the odor of […]

By: Cheryl A. Jones, Esq. Insurance is a form of risk management, designed to minimize the loss associated with certain events like flood, fire, accidents, disability, and even death.  Most insurance requires an agent and the payment of premiums.  However, there is a type of insurance which you can take out on your own that […]

In an article published in the March 2016 Ferris State University Perspectives publication, PK Law Labor and Education Attorney Leslie Stellman produced a “top ten” list of the most prevalent legal issues facing community colleges. Number three on the list is Employee Relations (Collective Bargaining). Mr. Stellman identified “the emergence of the ‘nontraditional’ faculty, such as adjunct professors

According to an issue paper (the “Paper”) published on the Maryland General Assembly’s website, implementation of the ACA in the State has resulted in an increase in health insurance coverage for Marylanders. The Paper points out that substantial revision to the ACA could have far reaching implications for the State.

By: Aidan Smith, Esquire

In Wendy Cane v. EZ Rentals, No. 1, September Term 2016, decided November 29, 2016, the Maryland Court of Appeals (the “Court”), Maryland’s highest court, broke new ground in landlord-tenant law. Maryland law provides a residential tenant who experiences serious conditions or defects in a rental unit with a legal remedy known as “rent escrow”.

In Notice 2017-12 (the “Notice”) the IRS announced that an “account transcript” from the agency can substitute for an Estate Tax Closing Letter (“ETCL”).
An ETCL (IRS Letter 627) generally indicates that, for purposes of determining the estate tax liability of a decedent’s estate, the IRS examination of a federal Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return (Form 706) is closed, barring certain circumstances.

On December 13th the President signed into law the “21st Century Cures Act” (H.R. 34, PL 114-255 (the “Act”)).  The legislation has been hailed as a variety of things including a tribute to Vice President Joe Biden; evidence of bipartisan cooperation in Congress; the most important health-related legislation since Obamacare; and a terrible piece of […]

Look for Congress to repeal the Medical Device Tax enacted in 2013 as a funding mechanism for the Affordable Care Act (“ACA” or “Obamacare”). Obamacare will not look the same – look for repeal and reenactment of certain provisions of the ACA, perhaps with modifications to any “reenacted” provisions. Look for repeal of the Estate […]

  Let’s regroup after the holidays. Let’s give it some thought after the holidays. No one is doing much now, I will reach out after the holidays. By: Nicole Ames, Esq. I promise I am not a distant relative of Ebenezer Scrooge or the Grinch.  However, there is one thing about this festive season that […]

By: Adam Konstas, Esq.
Are you reading this article on a computer? I would venture to guess that you are. How did you access this page? Did you have to navigate through multiple web pages? While you were at it, were you surfing the internet, doing some online shopping, watching a video, reading some other

  By: Kristy Bayus Williams, Esquire kbwilliams@pklaw.com Many times I have heard the following questions from prospective clients: “If my things will pass to my spouse and children automatically, why do I need a Will?” or “My estate is not large enough to be subject to estate taxes, is a Will  even necessary?” There are […]

As in the past, year-end tax planning for calendar year 2016 presents a challenge. The political and economic landscape is rocky and a number of tax provisions face expiration at the end of the year if not extended by Congress. The expiring provisions may be extended, as Congress has been prone to do, but that

On October 26, 2016, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) unanimously approved final rules enabling businesses to raise capital “intrastate” (within a state). The final rules, effective 150 days after publication in the Federal Register, amend Rule 147 of the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Act”) and add a new Rule 147A. Rule 147A

At the end of August of this year, the EEOC (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) released a transmittal entitled “EEOC Enforcement Guidance on Retaliation and Related Issues” (the “Guidance”). The Guidance “provides guidance regarding the statutes enforced by the EEOC. It is intended to communicate the Commission’s position on important legal issues. [It] supersedes the EEOC Compliance

By Aidan Smith, Esquire asmith@pklaw.com
If someone who purchases a home believes their home was improperly constructed, they may file a claim against the Homebuilder Guarantee Fund to recover any monetary losses they suffer. In order to recover from the Homebuilder Guarantee Fund, the purchaser must prove that their home was not completed, a warrantee

In Scott Singer Installations, Inc., (TC Memo 2016-16, filed August 24, 2016)1, the U.S. Tax Court (the “Court”) ruled that the bulk of payments made to a sole shareholder of an “S” Corporation, characterized as reimbursement of “personal expenses”, represented loan repayments. The Court held that the advances made by the shareholder to the business were loans rather than capital contributions. Therefore, the payments made by the corporation to him for those “personal expenses” were not wages subject to federal employment tax.

Whether the kids will be with Grandma and Grandpa for the holidays or a nanny when you go on a quick business trip, it is important to consider whether the person caring for your children has the legal tools necessary to care for your child. As a parent, you have the ability to make legal and medical decisions for your children under the age of 18. What happens, though, if your child gets sick while you are away, or when the child is on vacation without you? While we are often only a cellphone away, that is not always sufficient in an emergency.

News sources reported recently that call centers outside of Mumbai, India and engaged in threatening fake “tax demand” phone calls to American taxpayers were raided by authorities, netting a substantial number of arrests and detentions in an “on-going” investigation. The call centers were notorious for “scamming” American taxpayers. They netted huge sums of money from the illicit activity and irritated thousands of Americans due to “robocalling” tactics.

For any number of reasons, you have decided to add a partner, child, or close friend as a joint owner on one or more of your assets. Perhaps you are concerned about becoming disabled, and want to know that your loved one can easily pay your bills and manage things for you. Perhaps you want to ensure that when you pass away your partner will inherit the home you share without having to go through the hassle of opening and administering an estate. What’s not to like about such an easy plan?

By: Elizabeth A. Green, Esquire As an estate planning attorney, I have the opportunity to help people every day. Working with clients to craft an estate plan to transition their assets to their family members and friends is very rewarding. Not infrequently, clients come in with a general sense of what they want and walk […]

Harford County Executive Barry Glassman and the Harford County Council have initiated the 2017 Comprehensive Zoning review. During the Comprehensive Zoning review, any property in Harford County can be rezoned provided that the new zoning classification is consistent with the Harford County Land Use Plan which was adopted earlier in 2016. Since Comprehensive Zoning only occurs approximately every eight years, this is a great opportunity to improve the zoning of your property if it qualifies for rezoning. Although the application period will run from December 12, 2016 through February 10, 2017, we recommend that you have your property reviewed as soon as possible.

Not a week goes by without some news report of another hacking incident. The industries targeted include large retail stores, restaurants, banks, attorneys, accountants and recently in Maryland, a title company. In Montgomery County between $100,000 and $200,000 vanished when the buyers sent the money to what they believed was the correct bank for their home purchase. This occurred when the sellers’ email was hacked and their email communication regarding the purchase was monitored. The hackers then, pretending to be the sellers, sent an email from the sellers’ account instructing the buyers at the last minute to send the money to a different bank account. Neither the sellers nor buyers saw the money again.

By:  Nicole E. Ames, Esquire names@pklaw.com A key component of my position as Director of Marketing and Business Development at a law firm, is to educate.  As many new attorneys in private practice quickly realize, marketing and business development are generally not taught in law school and they must learn these skills in order to become […]

Statistics show that more than 50% of Americans die without having a Last Will and Testament.  People tend to put off this important planning because they are either procrastinators (“I’ll worry about it later!”) or misinformed (“I don’t need a Will because my spouse/partner will get everything when I die.”) The consequences of this can be dramatic, whether you are a wealthy celebrity (look at the tabloid stories about Prince!) or just an “everyday Joe.”

Restaurant Associates and its subcontractor, Personnel Plus, have been ordered by the Department of Labor to pay 674 workers $1,008,302 in back wages.  The two employers contracted with the U.S. Government to food preparation and meal service for Capitol Hill lawmakers and their staff in the U.S. Senate cafeterias. An investigation by the Department of […]

By:  Kristy Bayus Williams, Esquire            kbwilliams@pklaw.com The time when a child goes off to college can be a stressful time for any parent. You know that you are giving up substantial control over your child’s safety and choices, but you may be relinquishing even more control than you think.  When a child turns eighteen, a […]

A consent judgment was entered in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin requiring El Azteca Restaurant Group, including the restaurants, the owners and the managers, to pay 129 current and former employees, $700,000 in back wages and liquidated damages.   In addition to many other requirements in the Order, it also […]

PK Law is pleased to welcome Attorney Herbert Burgunder III, as a Member, to the firm. Mr. Burgunder is part of the Firm’s Corporate and Real Estate Group. He represents real estate developers, property managers, brokers, renovation companies, engineers, landlords, real estate agents, business owners, and profit and not-for-profit organizations in commercial and residential real […]

With the end of the 2016 Maryland legislative session and the completion of bill signings by Governor Lawrence J. Hogan, Jr., PK Law highlights several bills of interest to our readers: HB 185:  One of the few pieces of “bipartisan” (sponsored by 7 Democrats and 6 Republicans) legislation to reach the Governor’s desk and signed […]

By:  Gregory S. Weiner                                                  gweiner@pklaw.com On May 16, 2016 the long awaited Crowdfunding rules became final.  In some 680 pages of regulations, not to mention the length of the text of […]

In Peninsula Regional Medical Center v. Tracey L. Adkins, No. 68, September Term, 2015, (Opinion by Adkins, J., May 26, 2016),  (“PRMC” and “Adkins”),  the Maryland Court of Appeals, Maryland’s highest court, (the “Court”) considered the question of an employer’s duty to reasonably accommodate a qualified individual with a disability under Maryland law.  PRMC had […]

Remember when you, as an employer, asked an attorney to prepare a contract containing a covenant not to compete?  Or maybe you, as an employee, had questions about such a covenant.  Or, perhaps, an attorney prepared a document for you as an employer that prohibited the disclosure of trade secrets either separately or within that […]

By:  Aidan F. Smith

Married couples with a property settlement agreement who do not have minor children are now allowed to obtain divorces without any waiting period. This is a wonderful change from the previously required one year separation period, where spouses would have to live separate and apart from one another for a

By:  Aidan F. Smith                                                                            asmith@pklaw.com The Baltimore County Police Department makes a regular practice of obtaining lists of people who have engaged in target practice at local firearms ranges.  The police department then compares the list of individuals who have engaged in target practice against the list of people who are prohibited from possessing firearms.  […]

The Maryland Court of Appeals (the “Court”), the state’s highest court, in Phillip Martin, v. TWP Enterprises Inc. (No. 1855, Sept. Term, 2014, decided Feb. 24, 2016, Leahy, J.) addressed what it identified as the third exception to the general rule that a corporation which purchases assets is not responsible for the liabilities of the

In Estate of Sarah D. Holliday, TC Memo 2016-51TC Memo 2016-51, (the “Estate” and the “Court”, respectively) the Court revisited a common factual pattern in the use of a family limited partnership to reduce estate tax. The use of such partnerships is employed to remove assets from an estate and secure, in connection therewith, a

In Notice 2016-27, 2016-15 IRB 1, the IRS has again delayed the initial due date for providing statements to the IRS and to beneficiaries under the “consistent basis reporting” rules for estate and income tax purposes until June 30, 2016. The action follows upon the heels of at least one comment to the IRS that

As the tabloids reveal that Prince died without a Will, and his family heads to court to divvy up the estate, here are five reasons you should make a thorough inventory of your assets and set up an estate plan now

In spite of an avalanche of comments to the Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) proposed new rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act regarding overtime (the “rules”), it now appears that the rules will become final in May and go into effect 60 days after their date of finality. PK Law briefly recaps the rules in this article and provides a few suggestions as to preparing for their implementation.

PK Law previously reported upon the decision of the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) regarding Browning Ferris Industries (“BFI”) and the creation of a “new” joint employment standard. That new standard substituted indirect control, or a reserved right to control, whether or not actually exercised, over employment issues for direct control over those issues in National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) matters. After that decision, in August, 2015, the Teamsters were certified as the bargaining unit for the workers in question in the BFI matter.

The Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (“PATH”) Act of 2015, contained a provision by which tax-exempt organizations (a “TO”) could challenge revocation of exempt status by virtue of the filing of a declaratory judgment in federal court. The language of the Act appears to indicate that this was an attempt by Congress to provide TOs with expanded rights in the revocation process by permitting all TOs, not just certain categories of them, to challenge rulings on their status, as was the case in the past. According to published reports, however, what Congress giveth, the Internal Revenue Service taketh away.

For the last few years the IRS has warned taxpayers that it would look closely at year-end bonuses that resulted in “zeroing out” taxable income of a corporation by deducting the bonuses as salary rather than a payment of dividend to stockholders. This position landed squarely at the doorstep of a law firm in a case decided on February 10, 2016 in the United States Tax Court.

By: Elizabeth A. Green, Esquire
Well thought out and prepared estate planning is important for many reasons. Some reasons are obvious, such as tax planning and making sure your assets go where you want them to go; others are not. These less obvious reasons often impact negatively on one’s family. Everyone should understand the impact that a lack of good planning would have on his or her family.

By: James R. Benjamin, Jr., Esquire
Q: How does a minority-owned business become eligible for certification as a minority business enterprise (MBE) in the State of Maryland? A: A minority-owned business seeking certification as an MBE in the State of Maryland must apply to Maryland’s Office of Minority Business Enterprise.

In Daniel M. Mensah v. MCT Federal Credit Union, No. 54, Sept. Term, 2015 (Opinion by Battaglia, J.), the Maryland Court of Appeals, Maryland’s highest court, addressed an issue of first impression regarding wage garnishments.  The question before the Court was as follows: “The sole issue before us involves judgment enforcement, i.e. whether the District […]

PK Law previously reported on the advent of ABLE (“Achieving a Better Life Experience”) accounts (the “Accounts”). By enacting a change to the Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”), new Sec. 529A, Congress permitted distributions from the Accounts, created under that Section of the Code, to be made tax free when made, essentially, for the wellness of […]

In a case of first impression in Maryland, the Court of Appeals, Maryland’s highest court, (the “Court”) held on January 22, 2016, that as a preliminary and procedural matter, government failure to act may give rise to a “taking” of property which could justify a constitutional compensation claim under the legal theory of “inverse condemnation”. […]

The U.S. Supreme Court in Montanile v. Bd. of Trs. of Nat. Elevator Indus. Health Benefit Plan, U.S., No. 14-723, 1/20/2016,considered what happens when a participant in an employee benefits plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) obtains a settlement fund from a third party but spends the settlement on nontraceable items such as services and food. The facts of the case involve Petitioner, Robert Montanile who was a participant in a health benefits plan that provided for certain medical expenses incurred by the participants. Under the terms of disbursement, the plan could demand reimbursement when a participant recovers money from a third party.

Non-compete agreements are traditionally disfavored as unlawful restraints on an employee’s ability to seek future employment. However, courts in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. have long recognized that these agreements are important in order for businesses to protect their commercial viability.

It’s hard not to love travel. The Dalai Lama suggests “Once a year, go somewhere you have never been before,” and Audrey Hepburn proclaimed that “Paris is always a good idea.” But with bed bugs on the rise, travelers may be wise to proceed with caution and hotels must be vigilant in risk management efforts.

Talley’s Tip: In Maryland, a liability insurer has a duty to defend an insured against any and all potentially covered claim(s) made against that insured in a lawsuit. In a frequently cited case called Brohawn v. Transamerica Insurance Company, 276 Md. 396, 407-408 (1975), Maryland’s highest appellate court decided that an insurer has a duty to defend any claims alleged against its policyholder that are “potentially covered” by the policy.

The U.S. Supreme Court in Montanile v. Bd. of Trs. of Nat. Elevator Indus. Health Benefit Plan, No. 14-723, 1/20/2016, considered what happens when a participant in an employee benefits plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) obtains a settlement fund from a third party but spends the settlement on nontraceable items such […]

With the ever-increasing risk of cyber threats, directors and officers must pay attention to and plan for what some are calling “the new fire in the warehouse.”

Talley’s Tip: The cold may very well be here to stay. So, it’s a good time to turn attention to pipes and roofs and try to minimize the risks that come with unusual weather, ice and snow.

According to the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS), extreme winter weather is the third-largest cause of insured catastrophe losses after hurricanes and tornadoes. The Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I). estimates that losses from snow, ice, freezing temperatures and related causes averaged $1.2 billion annually over the past 20 years.

As previously reported in the PK Law Newsletter, tax planning for the end of 2015 was hampered by the expiration of a number of “temporary” tax provisions routinely extended for a one or two year period by Congress.  Congress and the President have now reached agreement on the “extenders”, making many of them permanent.  The […]

On December 18, the President signed into law H.R. 2029, the Consolidated Appropriations Act Of 2016, (the “Act”), the 887 page bill which avoided a closure of federal government functions.  Beyond the massive funding of the federal budget, the legislation contains a few surprises. First, and foremost, is the suspension or postponement of the implementation […]

The New Year is almost here and it’s time to put your estate planning on the top of your “to do” list.  If you don’t have an estate plan in place, now is the time to put one in place.  If you already have a plan, now is the time to do an estate plan […]

A rapidly growing number of people do everything online, from managing their banking to storing their photos, writing the next best-seller, or documenting the next great invention. Yet few of them have read the Terms of Service governing access to those Facebook, LinkedIn, AOL, Gmail, and other digital media sites. And access to that information by your family if you become disabled, sick, or die is most assuredly not guaranteed.

End-of-life decisions are among the most difficult a family will ever face.  Most people do not like to think about life support, ventilators, and artificial food and hydration.  Young people, especially, believe that end-of-life decisions can wait until later. The case of 33-year-old Marlise Munoz should be a wake-up call for everyone.  Marlise, a 33-year […]

By:  Cheryl A. Jones, Esquire If you become incapable of making your own medical decisions, it is critical to have planning in place so that medical providers and family members know and can implement your wishes.   This is especially important if you have a serious illness or a condition with potentially life-threatening complications. In Maryland, […]