Your trusted source for Iowa business and franchise law insights.
Your trusted source for Iowa business and franchise law insights.
The Technology and Marketing Blog has an interesting analysis of the Barrett vs. Rosenthal case handed down by the California Supreme Court on November 20, 2006. In its ruling, the court decided whether "distributors" of content have immunity under 47 USC 230 for Internet publications.
A major point in the analysis:
No one is
…
Buying a franchise does not automatically provide you with limited liability. The franchisor may be a corporation or LLC but that does not make your own franchise business a corporation or LLC. You must still form your own corporation or LLC in order to obtain the benefits of limited liability. Otherwise, you will have a…
In his monthly newsletter, Joe Cooney of Frannet points out the categories and questions you should ask franchisors to provide a starting point in your due diligence process. Those categories and questions include:
1. Competitive Advantage of Product or Service
How is your system better than others? Who are your competitors? How does your business…
Most people have heard of "buyer beware" but anyone selling their business would be wise to think "seller beware". When someone decides to sell their business they naturally want to find a buyer as quickly as possible for the highest possible price. But business owners and advisors should take care to avoid litigation traps in…
North Carolina business litigation attorney, Thomas Kerner, has an excellent post about the rise in business to business contract litigation. Kerner says this is happening for two main reasons. First, many businesses do not use lawyers to draft their contracts. Second, many businesses often rely on form contracts that are outdated.
Kerner provides some…
Here is an interesting tidbit presented by the California Estate and Business Law Blog.
According to Turbotax the S Corporation has the lowest risk of audit for the various business entities. Those audit risk percentages are:
S corporations .19%
Partnerships .26%
C Corporations .71%
Sole Proprietorships 2.13%
But if you play…
Last week was a momentous week as Brett Trout and I concluded the first ever full-day CLE devoted to lawyer blogging in the country through LAWpportunities. We were fortunate to have been joined by blogging experts Mike Sansone and Sandy Renshaw. Mike delighted the crowd with his tutorial on RSS feeds. Any lawyer…
As evidenced by a recent study from Iowa Association of Business and Industry, Iowa companies are concerned about the legal climate in Iowa.
Here are five ways to avoid lawsuits against your business:
1. Use written agreements. Unfortunately the day is over when you could rely on a handshake. Make sure that your agreements…
Last week I attended the Iowa State Bar Association Employment Law Seminar. One of the more interesting discussions involved whether an employer should ask an applicant whether he or she is a U.S. citizen or authorized to work in the U.S. on the employment application. There was some lively debate on the issue.
The speaker…
The Iowa consumer class action case against Microsoft begins tomorrow, November 13, 2006. It is anticipated it may take weeks to pick the jury and the trial itself could take several months. The jurors will be expected to complete a 31-page survey before the questions even begin. Surveys are often used by Plaintiffs’ attorney, Roxanne…