Publications

• Employment Discrimination in Michigan

  May 24, 2018

  The Times, They Are a Changing… Or Are They? On Monday, May 21st, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights (the “Department”) announced that it is joining the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in interpreting sex discrimination to include sexual orientation and gender identity. While federal law has been interpreted this way for some time, Michigan […]

• Non-Disclosure Agreements: The Beginning of a Deal

  May 20, 2018

  Sellers and Buyers want to negotiate, but need to protect themselves in the event a deal is not completed. The Non-Disclosure Agreement, or NDA, is the key to opening meaningful conversation, while protecting valuable interests. There are several topic areas you should expect to address in an NDA, though Sellers and Buyers each have their […]

• New European Data Protection Regulations Have Far-Reaching Implications

  May 15, 2018

  Before May 25th: Make sure that your privacy policy and terms of use comply with the GDPR Make sure all your users opt-in to your possessing of their data Make sure all of your users can download and delete their data on demand Many small and mid-sized U.S.-based businesses without a physical presence in Europe […]

• Why First Impressions Matter in Business Valuation Litigation

  April 26, 2018

  In a business-divorce case or marital divorce case involving a business, each side typically hires an expert to provide the court or jury with an opinion as to the value of the business. Depending on a party’s position, their expert will seek to establish as high or low a value as possible. For example, a […]

• What to Ask Before Retaining a Divorce Lawyer

  January 23, 2018

  Retaining a divorce attorney requires careful consideration.  When a marriage ends, spouses and their children often face a perfect storm of stressful decisions:  new living arrangements, parenting schedules, and of course issues concerning property and money.   Your attorney will inform you about the legal process, explain how the courts interpret the law and will help […]

• New Deduction for Pass-Through Entities

  January 23, 2018

  The recently enacted tax act significantly changes the way businesses will be taxed.  The tax rate for C corporations was changed from a progressive-rate system with a maximum rate of 35% to a flat rate of 21%.  Combined with a Qualified Dividend rate of 15% for many taxpayers, the combined tax rate on corporate earning […]

• Game Over for Entertainment Deductions

  January 16, 2018

  The cost of business entertainment just got more expensive.  The good old days of deducting expenditures to entertain clients and customers has come to an end.  Under the recently enacted tax reform, no deduction is allowed with “respect to an activity generally considered to constitute entertainment, amusement or recreation.”  While portions of the current IRS […]

• Commercial Litigation Team Shares Insight on 2017

  January 15, 2018

  Happy New Year! Our Commercial Litigation Team would like to say THANK YOU to the many accountants, financial advisors and other professionals for the confidence you show in our team by referring clients to us in the past year.  Our commercial litigation team has worked diligently to develop unique capabilities in finance, accounting, and business valuation, […]

• Court of Appeals Publishes Opinion Impacting Use of Experts

  January 4, 2018

  The Michigan Court of Appeals recently published a new opinion clarifying expert qualification for nursing experts and the standard applicable to a request for permission to disclose a new expert following a ruling that the party’s timely disclosed expert is unqualified.  Cox v Hartman, ___ Mich App ___; ___NW2d ____ (2017) (Docket Nos 333849, 333994). […]

• Take 2? Supreme Court Asked to Revisit Harrison

  December 20, 2017

  Harrison v Munson Hospital leaves the Court of Appeals for a second time on its way to the Supreme Court to possibly consider whether or to what extent peer-review documents can serve as a basis for attorney sanctions. The Supreme Court is once again being asked to address the question of whether a peer-review document […]