Articles Posted in NEWS AND COMMENTARY

In Carmel Mountain, there are many workers who are on salary and some who are paid hourly per week. The below case did not concern workers in Carmel Mountain however the analogy is the same. Our law firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP practices in estate planning. Please feel free to call or set up an appointment in person for a complimentary consultation. We also have e mail for your convenience.

Unless an employee falls within an exempt category of workers, the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires the employer to pay the employee overtime at a rate of one and one-half times the regular rate of pay, for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week. To be exempt is to be ineligible for overtime. The exemption commonly called the “white collar” exemption is for professional employees.

Federal regulations in place since August 2004 have simplified the test for determining which employees come within the white collar exemption. An employee is a professional if each of the following elements is present:

In Bonita, there are many golf courses including the Bonita Golf Club and the Chula Vista Municipal Golf Course. In our law firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP we practice in estate planning. Please contact us by phone or e mail for a complimentary consultation. In the below example, neither golf club as listed above was a party that law suit.

Joyce had nothing against golf or golfers. In fact, she was a regular golfer herself and a member of two different golf clubs. But when her home in a subdivision adjoining a private golf course was continuously pelted with errant golf balls, she and a neighbor with the same predicament eventually took the matter to court and won.

The golf course began operating in the late 1980s, and Joyce moved into her home in the late 1990s. But the fact that she “came to the problem” did not prevent Joyce from winning an injunction to stop, or at least minimize, incoming golf balls and the golfers in search of them. No doubt the court was impressed by the evidence showing the extent of the problem, which went well beyond an occasional Titleist in the flower bed. Among other effects, there were five damaged window screens, one large broken window, dented siding, and a dimpled car hood (only the golf balls are supposed to have dimples). At least one wayward shot struck the house hard enough to trigger a burglar alarm. It got so bad that Joyce all but gave up on using her rear deck, and her young son was instructed to play only in the part of the yard that was shielded from the golf course by the house. The clincher piece of evidence may have been the 1,800 golf balls that Joyce had retrieved from her yard during the five years she had lived in her house.

In Los Angeles, there are many modeling agencies including Wilhemina Models, Affinity Models & Talent and many others. Our law firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP does not endorse or support any of these and they are listed for illustration purposes only. None of the agencies listed were involved as a party in the example law suit listed below. Our firm practices in estate planning and family law. Please feel free to contact us for a complimentary consultation by e mail or phone.

A two-hour photo shoot paying $250 has turned into a jury verdict of over $15 million for the model, but it took almost 20 years and some good luck for it to happen. Russell had his photo taken for use on labels by a major coffee maker. He did not think much more about it until many years later, when he saw the photo of himself savoring a cup of coffee.

According to the modeling agreement, which Russell had kept in his records, he was supposed to be paid additional sums if the photo was actually used in marketing. The company had never paid more money to Russell, even though his photo had ended up on countless jars of coffee around the world for a six-year period. Nor did the company get his permission for the use of his image.

In San Diego, there are many small business owners. Our firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP offers a complimentary consultation and, if we cannot assist you, we will refer you to the San Diego County Bar Association Lawyer Referral and Information Service. Please also feel free to e mail our firm.

As of January 1, 2005, the IRS increased the minimum threshold for Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) deposits. Under the previous rule, employers were required to make a quarterly deposit for unemployment taxes if the accumulated tax exceeded $100. Now the threshold is $500.

The IRS estimates that this change will lighten the load for more than 4 million small businesses. Assuming an employer makes timely state unemployment tax payments, the most that the IRS will collect from employers per employee is $56 per year. Before the threshold was increased, most employers with two or more employees had to make at least one federal tax deposit a year. Now employers with eight employees or fewer will be freed from the requirement of making as many as four FUTA deposits per year.

In San Diego City, there are many banks including Washington Mutual, Bank of America, Union Bank and others which use electronic fund transfers. Our firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP does not endorse any of these banks and they are used for illustrative purposes only. Please call our office if you need legal assistance or e mail our firm.

The methods for electronic fund transfers (EFTs) are already commonplace for many bank customers. They include ATMs, debit or check cards, preauthorized deposits and withdrawals, and telephone transfers. The federal Electronic Fund Transfer Act answers some basic questions about using EFT services. The Act is especially important when things go wrong, providing rules for the correction of errors and dealing with loss or theft.

Financial institutions must provide documentation of EFTs in two forms: terminal receipts and periodic statements. Among other pieces of information, both documents must include the type of transfer, the amount and date of the transaction, and the location of the terminal. For preauthorized transfers that occur at regular intervals, the institution must provide a notice that the transfer occurred as scheduled.

In San Diego, there are many defense contractors which maintain aircraft engines. Many of these have large factories and plants. Our firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP has been in San Diego for over a decade. We would be pleased to offer you a complimentary and confidentiary consultation on an estate planning issue and feel free to send an e mail or call our firm.

A company bought an aircraft engine maintenance business and operated the business for a few years. It then discovered that the property on which the business was located was contaminated with toxic waste, both because of the company’s activities and the activities of the previous owner. The company reported itself to a state environmental agency, which told the company that it was in violation of state laws and directed that the site be cleaned up. However, neither the state agency nor its federal counterpart, the Environmental Protection Agency, ever brought a proceeding to force the cleanup.

Under the state’s supervision, the company cleaned up the property (incurring costs in the millions of dollars) and unsuccessfully sued the previous owner that had contributed to the contamination, in hopes of getting a contribution to the cleanup costs as well. This case is a study in how a few words in a statute can control the outcome in a dispute where large sums of money are at stake.

In San Diego, there are many “wetland” areas. These can be found on the coast and also inland. All land use cases are different and all have individual facts. Land Use Attorneys can be located on three bar certified referral services in San Diego County including the San Diego County Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service, Attorney Search Network and Attorney Referral Service. Our firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP is also available to assist in your estate planning and other legal needs. Please feel free to e mail our law firm.

Land Use cases can be heard in the San Diego Superior Court or the San Diego Federal Court. An experienced attorney is needed to evaluate any land use case.

Paul owned waterfront property that included some tidal wetlands that were subject to state regulation. When he decided to extend his existing dock and add another boat lift, he submitted the necessary application to the state, but he refused to consent to a land-based inspection of the premises. Nevertheless, following the usual procedure, an inspector went to the property to make sure that plans submitted with the application accurately reflected existing conditions and to evaluate the possible impact of the project on the wetlands.

In San Marcos, there are many companies which must dispose of consumer report information and records. There are many companies which make shredders for business use including Fellowes and others. Our law firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP does not recommend or endorse any particular company however urges you shred all confidential information. Please feel free to e mail or call with any additional questions.

In the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA), Congress required the adoption of rules for the proper disposal of consumer report information and records. The legislation was prompted by the growing risk of consumer fraud and related problems, including identity theft, that arise from the improper disposal of consumer information for which there is no longer a business need or purpose. FACTA and the rule stemming from it are meant to make it tougher for dumpster divers and miners of computer data to profit from sloppy disposal methods.

The Federal Trade Commission’s Disposal Rule went into effect June 1, 2005, but affected businesses will have six months from that time to come into compliance. After that, failure to comply could trigger a range of civil enforcement actions by the Government or affected consumers.

While there is room for interpretation of the Disposal Rule’s meaning, and how it should be applied as circumstances change, the Rule’s essential standard is all in one sentence:

Any person who maintains or otherwise possesses consumer information for a business purpose must properly dispose of such information by taking reasonable measures to protect against unauthorized access to or use of the information in connection with its disposal.

Consumer information covered by the Rule means any record about an individual, in any form, that is a consumer report or is derived from a consumer report. The definition includes a compilation of such records. If the information does not in some fashion identify individuals, however, such as information in aggregate form, the Disposal Rule does not apply. The obvious ways in which individuals may be identified are names, Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, telephone numbers, physical addresses, and e-mail addresses. But even pieces of information that, by themselves, do not identify someone can, in combination, be regarded as identifying information.
Continue reading

In San Diego, we have many veterans. Our firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP is pleased to offer a complimentary consultation to veterans on issues of estate planning and other issues concerning veterans. Please feel free to call our office or e mail us. Walter E. Pinkerton, Jr. is a veteran of the Vietnam War.

In San Diego, there is a San Diego Veterans Department and other resources are available. Veterans are included from the Marines, Air Force, Army, Navy and National Guard.

A new federal law has enhanced the rights of members of the armed services during active duty and on their return to the civilian workforce. The Veterans’ Benefits Improvement Act makes two significant additions to the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). USERRA is intended to encourage non-career uniformed service by balancing the needs of individuals in those services with the needs of civilian employers who also depend on those same individuals.

In San Diego, there are many franchises and franchisee’s. Our law firm of Law Office of Scott C. Soady, A Professional Corporation, LLP can assist you with your business planning and strategies. Please feel free to call or e mail our firm.

A franchisee’s breach of the franchise agreement, such as by failure to make payments or to comply with performance standards, could result in termination of the franchise and loss of the franchisee’s investment. Even without a breach, a franchisee must foresee that franchise agreements generally run for a finite period, such as 15 or 20 years. Of course, if both sides so desire, the agreement can be renewed under the same terms or perhaps even terms more favorable to the now-proven franchise. But the franchisor could decide not to renew, and it usually reserves the right to do so for its own reasons. If there is a renewal, the parties must agree again to all of the terms and conditions. The franchisor may take that opportunity to make changes in the deal to its benefit. In that event, the franchisee would be wise to give a fresh look at whether owning a franchise still makes business sense.

Anyone seriously considering buying and running a franchise needs to do the homework first, and the Federal Government has made that process more organized. The Federal Trade Commission requires franchisors to prepare a disclosure document, sometimes called a Franchise Offering Circular, that puts in one place a wealth of information about the franchisor, current and former franchisees, and what the franchisee is agreeing to when the franchise agreement is signed. Reading and understanding the disclosure document, not to mention the franchise agreement itself, is essential. One should always seek independent professional advice before making a commitment to a franchise arrangement.