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Michigan

Michigan Business Lawyer Blog

A legal blog that covers business law, including news and events dealing with business legal matters. Written by Michigan attorney Michael J. Hamblin.

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Last Entry: July 11, 2011 at 10:30:37

The Basics of the Attorney-Client Privilege in Michigan

Posted on May 21, 2008
One of the perks of retaining an attorney to assist you in a legal matter is the age old protection offered by the doctrine of attorney-client privilege. Communications with a lawyer are protected by the attorney-client privilege when they are between a lawyer and a client seeking confidential legal advice...

Miller v. Allstate: The Controversy of Properly Incorporating the Businesses of Licensed Professionals

Posted on May 14, 2008
The Michigan Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments in the case of Miller v. Allstate. One of the issues in this case is whether a licensed medical professional, other than a physician, must incorporate under the Michigan Professional Services Corporation Act (PSCA) instead of under the Michigan Business Corporation Act (BCA)...

Michigan Charities Must Have Regular Physical Presence to Qualify for Property Tax Exemption

Posted on May 07, 2008
One of the perks of obtaining nonprofit status is getting tax breaks. Not only can charitable institutions get federal and state income tax breaks, they can also get real estate property tax breaks. The requirements that must be satisfied in order to get a property tax exemption are contained in MCL 211...

Expensing Equipment Purchases Using IRS Code Section 179

Posted on April 30, 2008
Generally, if you purchase equipment for your business you have to depreciate the cost of that equipment little by little over multiple years. However, for certain equipment purchases, IRS Code Section 179 provides a way for businesses to deduct the entire cost of an equipment purchase in one year instead of over a number of years...

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Michigan Provides Online Filing Option for Corporation and LLC Annual Reports

Posted on April 23, 2008
Michigan's state government provides some very good online resources and tools for businesses. One of these tools is a web page for filing annual reports for Michigan corporations and LLC's. As long as the corporation or limited liability company is in good standing, current and prior year annual reports may be filed online...

Michigan Businesses Must Deal Carefully and Properly with Religious Accommodation Issues in the Workplace

Posted on April 16, 2008
Statistics from the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) indicate that workplace religious discrimination and accommodation claims have increased by nearly 70% in the last decade. As one might imagine, this has resulted in greater monetary penalties against companies that do not properly handle religious discrimination and accommodation issues in their facilities...

The New FTC Franchise Disclosure Rule

Posted on April 11, 2008
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approved a new Franchise Rule on January 22, 2007. The new Rule is in the form of an amendment to the old FTC Franchise Rule. The amendment to the old FTC Franchise Rule modifies what franchisors must disclose in their franchise disclosure documents (formerly known as Uniform Franchise Offering Circulars (UFOC's)), as well as the timing requirements for making the required disclosures...

The Basics of a Michigan Corporate Merger Transaction

Posted on April 09, 2008
The basic concept of a corporate merger is relatively straightforward. Put simply, when companies are merged, one company is folded into another company. The surviving company takes on all of the assets, liabilities, powers, rights, and obligations of the company that is merged into the surviving company...

An Overview of Michigan's Social Security Number Privacy Act

Posted on April 07, 2008
If your business has any employees, you almost certainly have obtained the social security numbers of those individuals. Under Michigan's Social Security Number Privacy Act, you must take all reasonable steps to protect those social security numbers...

Why You Should Contact a Lawyer Before Organizing Your New Business

Posted on April 04, 2008
Starting a new business is exciting. In addition to the fun of being involved with a business start-up, there are important and often difficult decisions to be made. These initial decisions can have a significant impact on the future success and growth of a new business...

What Should a Michigan Business Do If It Suspects One of Its Employees Is Committing a Crime?

Posted on April 02, 2008
One of the most difficult decisions an employer can be faced with is what should be done when it appears that an employee is committing a crime. Although the first reaction may be to go to the authorities, that may not be the best course of action in all cases...

Possible Successor Liability in a Michigan Asset Purchase Transaction

Posted on March 31, 2008
One of the advantages of acquiring a business through an asset purchase is that the assets are transferred to the purchaser free and clear except for enforceable liens and security interests. However, there is a doctrine that anyone contemplating an asset purchase should be aware of...

Protecting Your Trade Secrets in a Michigan Court

Posted on March 28, 2008
For many "regular" businesses, a growing percentage of their value is made up of intangible assets like intellectual property and trade secrets. As these items grow in value, ensuring protection of your business's trade secrets is of the utmost importance to its success and future growth...

The Basics of American Copyright Law

Posted on March 26, 2008
Federal copyright law generally gives copyright owners exclusive control over their original works of authorship. Copyright protection extends to original works of authorship that are fixed in a tangible medium of expression. In order to be protected, a work of authorship must possess only a minimal level of creativity...

Michigan Secured Transactions: The Basics of Using Collateral to Secure Loans

Posted on March 24, 2008
Although the average Michigan business participates in a number of "secured transactions" during its life cycle, most Michigan entrepreneurs and business people would be hard pressed to explain just what a secured transaction is or the Michigan legal rules that govern these sorts of transactions...

Some Issues for a Michigan Business to Consider When Deciding Whether to Enforce a Non-Compete Agreement

Posted on March 21, 2008
The Michigan Antitrust Reform Act provides for the enforcement of properly prepared and implemented non-compete agreements. A Michigan business that wants to enforce a non-compete agreement can start a legal proceeding and obtain an injunction to prevent the breach of the agreement...

How to SCORE a Valuable Resource for Your Michigan Small Business

Posted on March 19, 2008
One of the biggest challenges for owners of Michigan small businesses is obtaining sound guidance and advice in running and growing their companies. Any Michigan small business owner struggling with this issue should seriously consider taking advantage of the resources SCORE offers...

New York Times Reports on The U.S. Supreme Court's Friendly Stance Toward Business Interests

Posted on March 17, 2008
The New York Times Magazine has published a piece detailing the apparent strengthening of businesses interests before the U.S. Supreme Court. In the article, the Times profiles the efforts of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in its advocacy of business interests before the United State Supreme Court...

How a Michigan Corporation Can Prevent Its Corporate Veil from Being Pierced

Posted on March 14, 2008
One of the main reasons businesses are conducted through corporations is to protect owners from personal liability for company obligations. Preserving limited liability is one of the most important aspects of operating a corporation because protection from liability can be lost unless certain formalities are observed...

Are Electronic Contracts and Signatures Enforceable in Michigan?

Posted on March 12, 2008
As we all know, any prudent business person will get any important agreement in writing. But in this day and age what does it mean exactly to get something in writing? Many businesses do much of their communication electronically, and may exchange physical paper documents only on a very rare occasion...

Civil Rights Laws that Michigan Businesses Must Be Aware of and Follow

Posted on March 10, 2008
We've all read the headlines where a particular business is charged with discriminating against one of its employees. Even if the charges are not true, being the subject of this kind of legal action can be devastating for a business. One of the best ways a business can protect itself against these kinds of charges is to be aware of the various state and federal civil rights laws that protect workers and implement procedures to ensure compliance...

Using Confidentiality Agreements to Protect Sensitive Information When Negotiating the Sale of a Michigan Business

Posted on March 07, 2008
It is the dream of practically every entrepreneur: build up their business and sell it for big bucks. In order to sell a business, the business owner has to talk with potential (or actual) suitors, negotiate the deal, and exchange certain information so that the parties can know whether the proposed sale is right for them...

How Will a Michigan Court Interpret Your Contract if There Is a Dispute As to Its Meaning?

Posted on March 05, 2008
Many people assume that when they have a written contract with someone else that any disputes about their agreement will be resolved simply by reading the contract itself. Sometimes this instinct is right. Indeed, Michigan state courts and federal courts applying Michigan law have generally ruled that the most reliable indication of the parties? intent is the language of the contract itself...

Chrysler Appealing Plastech Ruling

Posted on March 03, 2008
Crains Detroit Business is reporting that Chrysler L.L.C. will appeal a Detroit federal bankruptcy court's order that it cannot retrieve equipment from the premises of Plastech Engineered Products Inc. Plastech filed for bankruptcy protection last month...

The Michigan Litigation Process - Appeals

Posted on February 29, 2008
This is the sixth and last post in my series on the Michigan litigation process. Once a case has gone to trial and a judgment has been entered, the losing party has the right to appeal the judgment. In Michigan, there are two levels of appellate courts: the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Michigan Supreme Court...

The Michigan Litigation Process - Trial

Posted on February 27, 2008
This is the fifth post in a series of posts on the Michigan litigation process. If a judge does not grant a party summary disposition, and the parties do not settle, the case proceeds to trial. A trial starts with each party giving its opening statements...

The Michigan Litigation Process - Request for Summary Disposition

Posted on February 25, 2008
This is the fourth post in a series on the Michigan litigation process. Once discovery has been completed (and sometimes before), the defendant or plaintiff (or both) will typically ask the court to rule in their favor as a matter of law, without a trial...

The Michigan Litigation Process -- The Discovery Phase

Posted on February 22, 2008
This is the third in a series of posts about the Michigan litigation process. If a Michigan litigation case proceeds past the initial pleadings phase, the next phase is what's called the "discovery" phase. Discovery is where each party has the chance to gather facts and information needed to prove the various points of their respective cases...

The Michigan Litigation Process -- Initial Pleading Stage

Posted on February 20, 2008
This is the second post in a series of posts about the Michigan litigation process. The first stage in a typical lawsuit is the filing of initial pleadings. A lawsuit is started when the plaintiff files a complaint with the court. If a plaintiff wants to have a jury decide the case, they must also file a "jury demand" at this initial stage of the case...

The Michigan Litigation Process - An Overview

Posted on February 18, 2008
This is the first in a series of posts about the Michigan litigation process. At some point, an entrepreneur or small business may find themselves either a defendant in a lawsuit or contemplating filing a lawsuit against someone else. No one should feel hesitant or embarrassed to hire a lawyer to pursue a legitimate claim or file a legitimate lawsuit to protect their rights...

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