Skip to content
Many seminars dealing with cybersecurity start with the statement: there are two types of entities, those which have been hacked and those which will be hacked. Such a statement strikes fear into the listener and sometimes leads to paralysis pursuant to which nothing is done to protect the files of customers and clients. There are rational ways to deal with cybersecurity issues… Read On
An Intentionally Defective Grant Trust (“IDGT”) is a tool for use in transferring an appreciated asset to family members as a current gift early in the appreciation of the asset as opposed to having the transfer at death after much appreciation has occurred. The result is that use of the tool leverages the transfer so that its value for tax purposes is lower than it would be at death… Read On
Financial advisors who do estate planning are always on the alert to do what is called an estate freeze. An estate freeze is an estate planning technique in which a person is able to set the value of an appreciating asset at a value of the asset at an earlier date than his or other death… Read On
As issues under the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know law (RTKL) become more nuanced, the Commonwealth Court was called upon recently to decide the meaning of the word “individual” in the exemption found in § 708 (b)(13). This section provides exemption for the “Identity of an individual who lawfully makes a donation to an agency.” Who or what constitutes an “individual” was the basis of the Court’s decision… Read On
Beginning in early July 2019, San Francisco will start restricting its local police force’s access to surveillance equipment and will prohibit its use of facial recognition technology. This is the first of a growing number of municipalities to begin regulating or banning facial recognition technology by local police departments. In California, the cities of Berkeley and Oakland are currently debating the use of the software… Read On
The United States Supreme Court in a decision handed down June 21, 2019, in the case of Rosemary Knick v. Township of Scott has made it easier for plaintiffs to go directly to Federal Court in state and municipal “Takings” cases. The Court, in a 5-4 decision authored by Chief Justice Roberts, has held that a property owner has an actionable Fifth Amendment claim at the moment a governmental entity takes the individual’s property without paying for it… Read On
On May 7, 2019, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a notice of proposed rulemaking to amend Regulation F—the implementing regulation for the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). The FDCPA was passed in 1977 and has not been updated or amended in the 40 years of its existence. This is problematic, given how much technology has evolved since the Act was passed… Read On
Pennsylvania now has some guidance from its courts regarding the enforcement of no poach agreements within the state. The Pennsylvania Superior Court issued a decision on January 11, 2019 in Pittsburgh Logistics Systems, Inc. v. BeeMac Trucking, LLC,[1] serving as the first appellate level court within the state to address the issue of no poach agreements… Read On
Fluctuating workweek pay schedules can be beneficial for both employers and employees alike, provided they are implemented correctly. The pay schedule is under fire in Pennsylvania, however, due to the way it handles overtime compensation. A fluctuating workweek is where an employee’s weekly work schedule involves a different number of hours in any given week, but the employee still earns a set weekly salary regardless of the number of hours he or she worked… Read On
Roth IRAs are traditionally thought of as a savvy investment tool for individuals looking to keep more of their money long-term in retirement. It can, however, be an equally smart tool for children (or their parents) looking to jumpstart a long-term savings plan. Roth IRAs are ideal for children since the investment has more time to grow and earn compound interest and the use of the funds is more flexible than traditional IRA savings plans… Read On
The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue had a nice surprise in tax collections this year. Its projection of sales tax revenue from online retail sales in the current fiscal year was $50.5 million. As of March 31, however, three-quarters through the fiscal year, revenue already surpassed $151 million. The amount of sales tax revenue collected from online sales can be expected to grow even further due to the Department’s interpretation of its expanded authority to collect tax on such sales under current law… Read On
The advent of short-term rentals of vacation homes through online platforms such as AirBnb, VRBO, Home Away, and Luxury Stay have posed new challenges to municipalities in their regulation of uses in residential neighborhoods. These online home-sharing websites provide travelers with the option of staying in facilities with all of the comforts of home for short periods of time but often at a much lower cost than in motel or hotel… Read On
