Lemons to Lemonade and Virus to Value: A Unique Window for Gifts to Family
April 20, 2020 The federal transfer tax consequences of a gift are determined by the gift’s value when it changes hands. So if you want to advance wealth, the time to do so is when values are low and...
View ArticleLegislation Enacted to Address Municipal Open Meetings and Deadlines During...
April 20, 2020 On Monday, April 20, 2020, Governor Wolf signed SB 841 into law as Act 15 of 2020 (“Act 15”), adding a new Chapter 57 to Title 35 (Health & Safety) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated...
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Paycheck Protection Program Update: New Money to Be Allocated
April 22, 2020 The initial allocation of $349 billion in forgivable loans to be made to small businesses and non-profits under the Paycheck Protection Program (the “PPP”) administered by the Small...
View ArticleExecutive Order Suspending Entry of Immigrants
April 23, 2020 A tweet from President Trump this past Monday evening proclaiming that immigration would be suspended provoked considerable trepidation and concern among many foreign nationals in the...
View ArticlePaycheck Protection Program FAQs for Small Businesses
April 24, 2020 On April 23, 2020, the Small Business Administration (the “SBA”), in consultation with the Department of the Treasury, published updated Frequently Asked Questions that included one new...
View ArticleSBA Formally Announces Enforcement Program for PPP Loans
April 30, 2020 On April 29, 2020, the Small Business Administration (the “SBA”), in consultation with the Department of the Treasury, published updated Frequently Asked Questions that included one new...
View ArticleFederal Reserve Provided Additional Details Regarding $600 Billion Main...
May 1, 2020 On April 30, 2020, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “FRB”) announced additional details regarding its previously announced Main Street Lending Program (the “MSLP”)....
View ArticleOSHA Issues New Enforcement Memorandum Reversing Previous Position on...
May 20, 2020 On April 16, 2020, Stevens & Lee reported on a recently-issued OSHA Enforcement Memorandum modifying the requirements for when employers must record and report cases of COVID-19 among...
View ArticlePaycheck Protection Program Loans: Forgiveness
May 28, 2020 Recently, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) released its overdue Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loan Forgiveness Application and an Interim Final Rule (IFR) regarding loan...
View ArticleNLRB’s Revised Election Rules to Take Effect (Partially)
June 3, 2020 In December 2019, the National Labor Relations Board (the “NLRB”) announced amendments to its rules for conducting representation elections. (See our previous Alert discussing the changes...
View ArticleMuch Anticipated PPP Flexibility Act Signed into Law
June 5, 2020 On June 5, 2020, President Trump signed the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020 (the “PPP Flexibility Act”) This is an important update to the already existing Paycheck...
View ArticleDOL Enforces Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act Provisions of the Families First...
June 10, 2020 Under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”), businesses with fewer than 500 employees must provide up to 80 hours of paid-sick-leave benefits if employees need leave to...
View ArticleEEOC Provides Guidance on COVID-19-Related Return to Work Issues
June 11, 2020 On June 11, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) updated its technical assistance Questions & Answers (“Q&As”) to address a number of issues and...
View ArticleThe United States Supreme Court Rules That Federal Law Bars Discrimination...
June 15, 2020 On June 15, 2020, the United States Supreme Court ruled, in a 6-3 decision, that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which bans discrimination “because of … sex,” covers sexual orientation...
View ArticleTake Advantage of This Time-Sensitive Opportunity to Save on Your...
If you own or lease a significant amount of real estate in Pennsylvania and operate in a sector hit hard by COVID-19, now is the time to act on filing a property tax assessment appeal. An appeal shifts...
View ArticleSBA Releases PPP EZ Forgiveness Application and Conforming Guidance for the...
June 19, 2020 On June 16, 2020, the SBA released Revisions to the Third and Sixth Interim Final Rules (the “Revisions”), as well as an updated PPP Loan Forgiveness Application (click here for the...
View ArticleNLRB Rules that Arbitration Agreements May Include Confidentiality Provisions
June 23, 2020 On June 19, 2020, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled that a confidentiality provision in an arbitration agreement does not interfere with employees’ rights under the National...
View ArticleNLRB Erases Employer’s Obligation to Bargain Over Discretionary Discipline...
June 24, 2020 On June 23, 2020, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) made a major change to the obligation that employers bargain with a union about discipline after a union wins a...
View ArticlePresidential Proclamation Bars Entry of Certain Work Visa Nonimmigrants;...
June 24, 2020 Key Points The June 22, 2020 Presidential Proclamation (“Proclamation”) extends, effective immediately, the April 22, 2020 proclamation which suspended the entry of certain immigrants...
View ArticleSBA Issues Revisions to Loan Forgiveness Interim Final Rule and SBA Loan...
June 25, 2020 On June 22, 2020, the SBA released new guidance (the “Revision”) titled Interim Final Rule on Revisions to Loan Forgiveness Interim Final Rule (the “Loan Forgiveness IFR”) and SBA Loan...
View ArticleFederal Antitrust Agencies Release Vertical Merger Guidelines
July 8, 2020 The U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission released their much anticipated Vertical Merger Guidelines on June 30, 2020. The new guidelines outline how the Agencies...
View ArticlePennsylvania Makes Grants Available to Provide Additional “Hazard” Pay to...
July 16, 2020 Using funds provided under the federal CARES Act, the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development has announced a “COVID-19 PA Hazard Pay Grant Program.” The program...
View ArticleDOL Publishes New FMLA Forms – Solicits Input on FMLA
July 20, 2020 On July 16, 2020, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) unveiled its new FMLA forms. In August 2019, the DOL had announced plans to modify the forms. The new forms can be used to comply with...
View ArticleDepartment of Labor Adds Four Questions to the Families First Coronavirus...
July 23, 2020 On Monday July 20, 2020, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) added four more questions to the questions and answers list to further clarify the Families First Coronavirus Response Act...
View ArticleNLRB Makes it Easier to Discipline Workers Because of Abusive or Offensive...
July 24, 2020 In a decision issued on July 21, 2020, the National Labor Relations Board (the “Board”) modified its standard for determining whether employees have been lawfully disciplined or...
View ArticleStevens & Lee Consults With Pennsylvania Legislature to Provide COVID-related...
July 28, 2020 Lost revenue from mandated closures, cancelled fundraising events, depressed donations and burgeoning requests for services and financial benefits have threatened the survival of...
View ArticleLabor Department Answers More Questions About the FLSA During the COVID-19...
July 28, 2020 The United States Department of Labor has issued six new Questions and Answers related to interpretation and enforcement of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) during the COVID-19...
View ArticleEEOC Issues New COVID-Related Guidance on Teleworking Arrangements
September 9, 2020 In the early stages of the COVID global pandemic, employers were forced to immediately adapt from on-site to remote work arrangements. However, as employers are reopening and...
View ArticleJudge Rules in Favor of Plaintiffs in Case Against PA Governor Tom Wolf and...
September 14, 2020 Today in the District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, U.S. District Judge William Stickman, IV held that Governor Wolf and Dr. Rachel Levine’s shutdown orders and...
View ArticleAnticipating Credit Defaults in the COVID-19 Era: Strategies to Maximize...
September 17, 2020 As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to erode the global economy, most economists predict a wave of corporate defaults and bankruptcies for the foreseeable future. Regardless of...
View ArticlePlaying Poker with Awful Odds: Our Tax System at Risk
September 28, 2020 Few families face the risk of paying a 40% federal estate tax while the exclusion is $23 million for a married couple and half that for a single taxpayer. A substantial number of...
View ArticleJoint Employment Concerns with Franchisor-Developed COVID-19 Safety Policies
September 28, 2020 As businesses return to in-person work, employers and employees are keenly aware that the workplace has changed. Employment and workplace-related challenges are issues that have...
View ArticlePennsylvania’s New Salary Threshold for Overtime
October 5, 2020 On October 3, 2020, Pennsylvania’s new overtime rules went into effect that change the salary threshold of those eligible to receive overtime compensation in Pennsylvania. This is the...
View ArticleConsumer Financial Protection Bureau Revisits Marketing Services Agreements...
October 14, 2020 Please note: Paul Schieber, Shareholder, Stevens & Lee, will be hosting a webinar on this topic on Nov. 3. Click here to register. In a series of new FAQs, the Consumer Financial...
View ArticleStevens & Lee Appellate Team Saves Pennsylvania City $50 Million With...
November 3, 2020 Led by Hon. Thomas I. Vanaskie (Ret.), a team of Stevens & Lee attorneys received a unanimous decision from the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania en banc, reversing the Court of...
View ArticleAdvisory Opinion: A Former Third Circuit Judge’s Tips for Winning on Appeal
May 2020 Hon. Thomas I. Vanaskie (Ret.), Peter J. Adonizio, Jr. and Geoffrey R. Johnson On Appeal: Bar Association for the Third Federal Circuit Newsletter Before reentering private practice, I was a...
View ArticleEEOC Publishes Questions and Answers About COVID-19 Vaccine Administration
December 17, 2020 On Wednesday, December 16, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) added a new section to its ongoing list of questions and answers related to COVID-19. The new...
View ArticleU.S. Department of Labor Issues Rule About Tip Pooling
December 24, 2020 Introduction On Tuesday, December 22, 2020, the United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a final rule addressing important issues for the restaurant industry. The rule...
View ArticleContinuing Confusion Over Tip Credits and Tip Pools
January 27, 2021 Most Americans who go to restaurants are aware that tips make up a large portion of their servers’ wages. People may be less aware that the law governing tips and tip pooling is...
View ArticleRetention of Debtor’s Property Does Not Violate the Automatic Stay
January 28, 2021 Creditors who garnished funds or repossessed collateral prior to a debtor’s bankruptcy frequently ask whether the continued retention of that property violates the automatic stay. The...
View ArticleH-1B Fiscal Year 2022 Is Here
Feb. 8, 2021 The Basics The H-1B program allows companies in the United States to temporarily employ foreign workers in occupations that require the theoretical and practical application of a body of...
View ArticleCreditor Strategies to Combat Insider Transactions – Part 1 of 2
February 9, 2021 A lawsuit recently filed on behalf of unsecured creditors in the Senior Care Centers[1] bankruptcy serves as an important reminder of the various remedies that may be employed to...
View ArticleArizona Enacts New Pregnancy Anti-Discrimination Law
February 17, 2021 On February 4, 2021, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey signed into law HB 2045 which, among other things, expands Arizona law to now prohibit discrimination on the basis of pregnancy,...
View ArticleCoronavirus U.S. Immigration Update: F-1/M-1 Exemptions to Pandemic Travel...
February 17, 2021 The State Department has announced that foreign nationals with valid F-1 or M-1 student visas will be exempted from the Presidential Proclamation barring the entry into the U.S. of...
View ArticleTenth Circuit Opinion Highlights Challenges to Enforcing Personal Guarantees
February 23, 2021 A recent opinion issued by a federal appellate court offers important reminders to financial institutions that utilize personal guarantees to secure business loans. In Radiance...
View ArticleCreditor Strategies to Combat Insider Transactions – Part 2 of 2
March 4, 2021 In the first part of this article series, we reviewed the insider transactions that were challenged by the Unsecured Creditors Trustee in the Senior Care Centers[1] bankruptcy case. The...
View ArticleAmerican Rescue Plan Act’s COBRA Subsidy Imposes New Obligations on Employers...
The recently enacted American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 provides eligible workers with a subsidy to pay for health care (e.g., medical, dental, and vision, but not health FSA coverage) continuation...
View ArticlePhiladelphia Amends Its Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards Ordinance
April 1, 2021 Starting April 1, 2021, the City of Philadelphia will expand its Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards (“FCRSS”) to protect current employees, independent contractors, and gig workers...
View ArticleLandlord Ordered to Pay Tenant $600,000 in Bankruptcy Fee Dispute
April 7, 2021 The decision to litigate a business dispute requires comprehensive cost-benefit analysis. This process typically begins with an evaluation of the potential recovery or, for parties...
View ArticlePA High Court Deems No-Poach Deal Between Two Businesses Unenforceable
May 4, 2021 The Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision on Thursday, April 29, 2021, ruling that an agreement between two trucking companies not to poach each other’s employees was...
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