Rush on Business : Iowa Corporate Lawyer & Attorney : Rush Nigut of Brick Gentry Law Firm : Serving Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Davenport, & Sioux City

Once a mainstay of this blog, I have not written about employment law for quite some time. Since my franchise law practice has grown over the past few years, I've left it to Matt Brick from Brick Gentry to handle employment law issues in the office.  On the blogging side there are many great employment law blogs to follow including Daniel Schwartz of the Connecticut Law Blog and Jon Hyman of the Ohio Employer's Law Blog. Their blogs are terrific resources for anyone interested in employment law.

Another employment law blog that has come on the scene is the Iowa Employment Law Blog written by Patrick Smith of Des Moines. I've known Patrick for years and his blog is also one you can trust for up-to-date content on employment issues.

But the reason I am writing on employment law in this post is because all employers should definitely be aware of a new National Relations Labor Board (NLRB) rule that requires nearly EVERY private sector employer to post notices about their rights to unionize.  While there is some debate over whether the NLRB has the right to require the postings, the rule will go into effect on November 14, 2011. The failure to do so could result in an unfair labor practice. I am sure this would be quite the surprise for most small (or even large) businesses.

For more information, see the postings by Jon and Patrick on the topic.

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This blog post from the Minnesota Business and Real Estate Blog discussing the Fallacy that LLCs require less paperwork is spot on.

Many people come to my office wanting to set up an LLC because it is easier to "manage" than a corporation. But even with an LLC, it is important to follow corporate formalities as described in the post including documenting important decisions such as loans, issuance of membership interests, major capital purchases, leases, and the election and removal of managers/officers and board members.

Plus, in the state of Iowa you must file biennial reports with the Secretary of State whether you have a corporation or LLC.  For the typical small business owner, it does not require significantly more work to have a corporation than an LLC.

The decision to form a corporation or LLC involves several factors. But in my view the amount of paperwork is not one of them.

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Earlier this week I applied for a charge card for my new business. As a part of the application, I was informed that I would need to personally guarantee charges, not only for my card, but also the cards of any other people under the account. Fortunately, this did not come as a surprise because I had already seen this bite unsuspecting business owners and/or executives in the past through my law practice.

In one instance I represented the vice-president of a company who was a part of a four-person management team. The vice-president was the named account holder but he thought the other members of the company's management team were equally liable for the debts on the account. Not so. So when the company folded, the charge card company had his personally guarantee but not the personal guarantee of the other members of the management team. Naturally, the charge card company pursued only the vice-president for the debt.

In another instance, an office manager (yes, an office manager) was pursued by a charge card company for BUSINESS expenses charged when the owner of the business died without adequate funds in his estate to pay for the debts. We argued no personal guaranty existed and that the office manager had never agreed to the terms on the account but the fact that charge card company pursued her cost her legal expenses and much aggravation. 

So beware of personal guarantees on charge cards. You may be accepting more personal liability than you suspect. Always inquire when applying for a new card and make sure you understand the extent of your personal liability.

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Via the Silicon Prairie News:  The Dream Big Grow Here contest for Central Iowa has officially begun. Take a look at the pitches and vote for your favorites. It appears like it's going to be a close race. I am impressed with all the ideas but I am partial to the legal startup, FInalize It.

As they say, vote early and vote often!

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For the past 17 years, I have been advising businesses of all shapes and sizes, whether small or large. I have always loved working with startups. It is exciting to hear the stories of these entrepreneurs and how they could solve a problem or discovered a new way of doing business.

Now I am leaping into that startup world with my own company called Notifyworks. Notifyworks is an automated client notification system. We are currently continuing with our beta testing but anticipate launching formally September 1, 2011. My partners, Mike Colwell and Brian Hemesath, bring a wealth of experience and I couldn't be more excited to get our company off the ground.

The idea from Notifyworks developed out of my law practice. In almost every contract or legal matter, there is some sort of follow up needed. It might be a termination date, a renewal or some other deadline. Too often these dates are ignored by clients until the last minute, or worse, forgotten entirely. What Notifyworks does, in a nutshell, is make sure lawyers and their clients never miss one of those dates. It's a great solution for any professional or business that routinely deals with contracts and deadlines.

Unlike your calendar or docket system that still requires you to take action, Notifyworks removes surprises or last minute scrambling by allowing you to set up proactive notifications that are timed to automatically go out in advance of important dates and deadlines. The system is easy to use and we have a notification library with message templates or your own customized messages that will save you valuable time in the process.  I think most lawyers will even generate more work from clients that see their lawyer cares and is on top of things.   The whole idea is to deliver great service and build strong relationships with clients.

I am excited to discuss Notifyworks and other stories on the Silicon Prairie News Prairiecast this afternoon at 2:00 p.m. If you miss it live, please be sure to check out the archived podcast.

If you are interested in joining our beta test group, please send me an email at rush@notifyworks.com. Be sure to let me know if I can answer any questions. 

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If you are currently starting a business or thinking about starting one, I suggest you read a couple of articles via the Des Moines Register business section.

Five Things You Should Know About Raising For Your Startup with advice from Mike Colwell. Mike is the executive director of the Business Innovation Zone and a terrific resource for any startup or early stage business.

Five Things You Should Know About Starting a Tech Company in Iowa with advice from Christian Renaud. Christian is the founder of StartupCity Des Moines. Startup City is a new technology incubator in Central Iowa.

Guys like Mike and Christian are available to mentor and assist new business startups. If you need help (or maybe even if you don't think you do), it would be worth talking to these guys. They're experienced and have been instrumental in helping develop an increasingly popular startup business culture in Des Moines.

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