News & Info

At the beginning of the third week in March, the United States Supreme Court decided a bankruptcy case which includes relevant lessons and considerations for lenders, investors and those manufacturers which finance the purchase of their goods. At issue was whether a bankruptcy court has the authority to confirm a settlement agreement in conjunction with the dismissal of a bankruptcy filing when the settlement agreement violates the priority for distributions set forth by the Bankruptcy Code and the impaired creditors have not consented to the settlement agreement.

In a familiar refrain, business owners often question which practices they should engage in when managing members of the millennial generation (roughly those individuals born between the early 1980’s and the year 2000).

Have you or your business received a letter from the Business Software Alliance (“BSA”) claiming that your software licenses are out of order? Would you be prepared to respond to such a letter?

They listen to our stories and complaints when no one else is around. They encourage us to get up off the couch and be active when we are feeling lazy. They comfort us, provide a sense of security, and never judge us. But what happens to our beloved pet or companion animal when we are no longer able to look after them? Increasingly, people are turning to pet trusts to answer that question.

Business owners, including many manufacturers and vendors, often think twice prior to hiring counsel to review the standard contracts of their business. This hesitancy is understandable since legal fees can quickly accumulate and short run returns are not always immediately evident. However, a recent Michigan Court of Appeals case emphatically demonstrates why it is important for business owners to partner with a good lawyer to achieve objectives and identify risks in a manner that allows the business to maximize its long term earning potential while minimizing its risk exposure.

In a rare example of bipartisan effort to correct a problem created by the Affordable Care Act, Congress passed and President Obama signed the “21st Century Cures Act” (Public Law No. 114-255) into law in December 2016. Among other things, the law allows small employers with fewer than 50 full-time employees to create a new form of health reimbursement account (“HRA”) to help their employees pay for certain medical expenses. The new HRA can be used to reimburse employees for qualified out-of-pocket medical expenses and for non-group plan health insurance premiums, including plans purchased on public health care exchanges under the Affordable Care Act.

If your business offers products or services to residents of the European Union, you may be required to appoint a Data Protection Officer.

Most businesses take steps to implement and maintain reasonable security procedures and practices in order to protect information from unauthorized access, destruction, use, modification or disclosure. A good cybersecurity strategy should not only manage security threats—it should also proactively address how a business will respond to security breaches.

Spring is a common time for homeowners and businesses to engage in “spring cleaning,” tackling projects which acquire attention to better position the home or business for the long run. It often behooves a business to review its legal documentation every few years as part of its “spring cleaning.”

As an estate planning attorney, I often find that individuals who have recently been divorced are not aware of the importance of revising their estate plan. After a divorce, particularly one that is long and drawn out, the last thing a client wants to do is spend more in legal fees. However, failing to promptly attend to estate planning can be financially disastrous.

On March 13, 2018, the Michigan Court of Appeals issued a published opinion in Lockwood et al v Township of Ellington et al, affirming the authority of public bodies to ratify, or not ratify, decisions made in violation of the Open Meetings Act (“OMA”) at their discretion.

While financing public infrastructure improvements through the use tax increment financing by downtown development authorities, local development finance authorities, and corridor improvement authorities is not new in Michigan, those entities will be established and will operate under a new statute as a result of legislation approved by the state legislature and signed by the Governor earlier this year.

The Michigan Townships Association 65th Annual Educational Conference will be held at the Grand Traverse Resort from April 23 through 26, 2018.

Unlike most laws or ordinances, zoning ordinances are unique in that they attempt to apply a uniform set of regulations to properties which can be very different in terms of topography, access and existing uses or buildings.

In a recent opinion, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit sitting En Banc, ruled that the practice of the Jackson County, Michigan Board of Commissioners of offering a prayer before commission meetings does not violate the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution. The case, Bormuth v County of Jackson, arose when a “self-professed Pagan and Animist,” took offense to the Jackson County Board of Commissioners custom of opening its monthly meetings with Commissioner-led prayers. Typically, following the call to order, the Board’s Chairman requested Commissioners and the public to stand. On a rotating basis, one of the Commissioners then offered a prayer based on the dictates of his/her own conscience, which was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, and then county business.

2017 was a busy year in regards to the laws governing firearms within the State of Michigan. Republicans in the Michigan House of Representatives have identified “defending second amendment rights” as being among their action plan items for the 2017-2018 legislative session, which has led to a flurry of bills being proposed. Among bills proposed during 2017, there were multiple bills which would seek to alter the rights of individuals to possess firearms within traditional gun free zones, such as schools.

On June 23, 2017, the United States Supreme Court, in a five to three opinion, upheld, against a takings challenge, state and local regulations preventing the use or sale of adjacent lots under common ownership as separate building sites unless they have at least one acre of land suitable for development. The case, Murr et al. v. Wisconsin et al., dealt with two adjacent lots along the lower portion of the St. Croix River in the town of Troy, Wisconsin.

The Michigan Supreme Court recently issued two important decisions involving Intergovernmental Contracts for the Conditional Transfer of Property, which are commonly known as “Act 425 agreements.” The two cases are Clam Lake Township v Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, and TeriDee, LLC v Haring Charter Township. Attorney Ronald M. Redick, of our firm’s Local Government Practice Group, successfully represented the townships in these lawsuits, and, as explained below, scored an important victory for all advocates of local control. To understand the significance of these decisions, it is helpful to first review what an Act 425 agreement does, the benefits such agreements provide, and how the State Boundary Commission has historically limited the effectiveness of such agreements.

A recent unpublished per curiam opinion of the Michigan Court of Appeals found that emails sent between members of a public body were in violation of the Open Meetings Act.

Previous editions of this Newsletter have discussed the proliferation of short-term rentals through social media companies like Airbnb, and the myriad of challenges the home-sharing phenomenon is causing for communities across Michigan. Many municipalities have taken steps to limit short-term rental activity through zoning regulations and general police power short-term rental ordinances. A recent Bill introduced in the Michigan House, however, seeks to strip local governments from being able to limit short-term rentals in their communities.

In 1994, Michigan’s voters approved “Proposal A.” A key feature of Proposal A limited annual increases in property tax assessments to the lesser of 5%, or the rate of inflation, until a property is transferred. The calculated tax assessment is called the “taxable value.” The local assessor still keeps track of the “state equalized value,” (“SEV”) which is theoretically one-half of the property’s market value. When the property is transferred, the taxable value is automatically increased to the SEV– usually referred to as “uncapping.”

Michigan is finally administering a procedure for “Medicaid recovery” of financial support paid under the Medicaid system. Medicaid is a needs-based program to provide long-term nursing care (among other purposes). To qualify for Medicaid, a single person must have $2,000 or less of “countable” assets. Among the few assets which are not “countable” is the person’s homestead with up to $500,000 in equity (adjusted for inflation). In addition, term life insurance policies without a cash value are not countable assets.

The use of “Lady Bird Deeds” has become common in Michigan is a way to pass property upon death. The name comes from the mechanism that President Lyndon Johnson used to pass property to his wife, “Lady Bird” Johnson on his death. Some lawyers call these “enhanced life estate” deeds.

On Wednesday, November 7, 2018, Scott Dwyer and Nikole Canute will speak at the National Business Institute’s seminar “How to Deal With Problem Employees: A Legal Response Guide.”

Nikole L. Canute was selected as a member of the Michigan Lawyers Weekly Class of 2018 “Women in the Law."

Attorney Neil Kimball was recently included in the global legal ranking firm Chambers’ guide of professionals who service High Net Worth individuals called “Chambers HNW 2018.”

On July 20, 2018, Andrea Crumback was quoted in Grand Rapids Business Journal article “Decision affects online retailers.”

On Tuesday, July 17, Jennifer Puplava participated in a panel discussion with representatives from the Better Business Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission to help businesses combat the growing number of scams.

Grand Rapids Legal News editor, Cynthia Price, recently interviewed Randy Velzen regarding his presidency of the Grand Rapids Bar Association (GRBA).

On Tuesday, July 17, 2018, Jennifer Puplava will be a panel member of the Better Business Bureau’s Operation Main Street: Stopping Small Business Scams.

Grand Rapids Legal News recently ran the article “GRBA combines business with fun, announces 3 in 10 award winners.”

On June 28, 2018, Brad Fowler joined the WOOD 1300 morning radio program to discuss Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy announcing his retirement.

On June 22, 2018, MiBiz published “SCOTUS online sales tax decision ‘levels playing field’’ for retailers, advocates say."