It’s not news that the U.S. is cracking down on illegal immigrants, though there is constant debate on how that should actually be done. It’s a focal issue among presidential candidates, and many people have a set opinion as to how this matter should be dealt with.

And it leaves very few people unaffected, especially business owners. In fact, the newest regulations have caused some new confusion. First, in August the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the implementation of a new “no-match” letter program, which would be a formal letter informing an employer that the social security number provided for an employee does not match that employee’s name. In October, the Northern District Court of California put this new program on hold, but in November the court suspended the injunction, giving DHS until March of 2008 to rework the program.

Continue reading : Immigration Laws Proving Difficult for Business Owners »

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Port of Los Angeles

On November 6th 2007, President Bush proposed new safety measures to insure that items imported into the United States meet safety standards. This step is resulting from the increased number of recalls in the past couple of years, specifically items such as toothpaste, dog food and toys produced overseas.

Bush proposes that the following improvements be made:

• Giving the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the authority to order mandatory recalls of unsafe products. As it stands now, the FDA can only encourage companies to voluntarily recall unsafe items, but have no way of enforcing a recall if the company refuses to do so.

• An increase in the presence of U.S. inspectors from Customs, Border Patrol the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and other agencies in countries that are major exporters to the U.S.

• A certification program (“seal of approval”) for companies that meet safety standards on a proven and regular basis. This change is expected to help encourage retailers to use businesses with the certification, and help discern those companies that are not meeting safety standards often enough.

Continue reading : New Safety Measures for Imports on the Horizon »

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Truth is, most of us don’t want to EVER consider bankruptcy as an option to get out of debt looming over our heads, especially when it comes to our goal for a successful business. Filing bankruptcy, in the eyes of most, is like admitting defeat at our dreams, and no one wants to do that.

Unfortunately, however, there are often circumstances beyond our control, such as unexpected medical problems, which force us into a financial corner that, no matter how we try, we just can’t seem to get out of. If you’re in that corner, and haven’t consider bankruptcy as an option yet, maybe you should.

Consider the following to determine whether bankruptcy may be your only way out:

Map Out a Payment Timeline
Determine your personal average monthly income, and list your personal expenses (such as groceries, mortgage, etc.). Next, list your businesses monthly income and business expenses (utilities, supplies, payroll, etc.). Determine what you have left each month after expenses. No, list your debts, including monthly interest, and find a total.

Continue reading : When to Consider Bankruptcy as an Option »

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The House endorsed a bill last week that would mark “the most significant changes in patent law in more than 50 years.” The last major change to patent law was in 1952. Supporters of the renovations include consumer groups, major high-tech companies, financial associations and farm groups.

The most significant change is duplicating the patent process already established in many overseas countries, such as Europe and Japan, of “first to file” as the patent holder. Currently, the U.S. is the only major industrialized country in the world that still holds a “first to invent” policy.

Of course, these changes would need extra protect from fraudulent inventors who file a patent but have yet to invent the actual product, while someone else has invented the product but was second to file the patent.

Continue reading : Revisions to the U.S. Patent Law Under Consideration »

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On May 25th the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released a new set of guidelines meant to protect those with caregiver responsibilities from employee discrimination. This includes, but is not limited to, employees with children, who care for the elderly, or who have an ill spouse, parent or in-law. These guidelines, of course, are meant to protect both men and women.

What the EEOC intends to protect is the employee’s ability to be available for those who are under his/her care. Some of the discriminatory issues that may arise, and the EEOC intends to prevent, are inflexibility in schedule (including mandatory overtime) and stereotypes that those who are deemed caregivers are less committed to their job and less deserving of promotions, raises and the like.

Continue reading : New EEOC Guidelines Expand Employee Protection »

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According to a survey by the Institute for Legal Reform, release in May, more than half of small business owners polled are not all that concerned about being sued. But, as I pointed out in a post earlier this month (see The Lawsuit Risks of Having a Website), we live in a world of lawsuit happy people, who want anyone to blame but themselves.

That seems to be the circumstances, in my opinion, in the case of the D.C. judge who sued his neighborhood dry cleaner for $54 million over a misplaced pair of pants. Apparently Judge Roy Pearson dropped of a pair of pants at Custom Cleaners, owned by Soo and Jin Chung, to be altered. According to his side of the story, when he returned to pick up the pants, the Chung’s said they couldn’t locate them. A week later they returned pants to him, but Pearson claims they were not the one’s he brought in.

Continue reading : Is Tort Reform Necessary to Protect Small Business? »

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We all know that with any business venture there is risk involved - sometimes minor, often substantial. Being sued is a big risk, especially as your company grows and your network of clientèle and other businesses expands.

Especially if you have a website.

Yes, you read that right. In this lawsuit-happy world of ours, all it takes is having a website, or allowing employees to use the internet at work, to drag you and your business into the courtroom. Everything from whines about content to product trademark and patent issues - all at the click of a mouse. Don’t get me wrong, having a website is synonymous with being successful with your business. It’s practically necessary. But you should be aware of the risk it involves.

Here are some examples of what can get you and your business into trouble when it comes to the internet:

Continue reading : The Lawsuit Risks of Having a Website »

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Tom Szaky has a new business - TerraCycle provides organic plant food, made from worm feces, and just recently secured its major financial backer. But just about that time, Szaky received a 173 page lawsuit. The Plaintiff: Scotts Miracle-Gro. Their accusations: that TerraCycle falsely claims that its product “outgrows the leading synthetic fertilizer,” and trade dress issues (in other words, TerraCycle’s packaging too closely resembles Miracle-Gro’s).

How do you, as a small business owner, deal with the squeeze from the big business corporate competition. Well, it’s foremost important to keep in mind that, if you make claims against those competitors, like your product can outgrow their’s, you probably need to make sure you can back up that claim.

Continue reading : Being Sued by Big Business Competition »

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As I have mentioned before in this blog, I am, among many other things, a legal assistant at a law firm. It’s a small firm, consisting of five attorneys, all men, and six legal assistants, all women. Though it wouldn’t be that strange for a female attorney to join the firm, it would be quite odd to have a male paralegal join the gang.

There are many professions that tend to appeal predominately to one sex or the other. Most nurses are women. Most construction workers are men. Daycare teachers - women. Trash collectors - men. Most of these jobs have always been this way, typically because that particular job fits the strengths of one particular sex better than the other. That doesn’t mean, however, that there isn’t a tough broad out there who couldn’t guide a steel beam into place.

Imagine with me, if you will, the opposite gender “infiltrating” one of these or many other professions that tend to be single-sex oriented. For example, if a female attorney joined our firm, it would probably be of little consequence, since female attorneys aren’t scarce, they’re just not part of our particular firm. However, I can imagine that a woman who gets a job pouring concrete at a construction site would receive her unnecessary share of cat calls and sexist remarks.

Continue reading : Preventing Sexual Discrimination in the Workplace »

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When starting a business in America, one of the most crucial elements is to get your product or business practices patented or copyrighted. Unfortunately, when it comes to expanding your business to the global market, a U.S. patent won’t protect your money-maker, as they are not enforceable overseas. There are some things you can do, however, to guard yourself from idea theft.

What you should probably do first is file with the Patent Cooperation Treaty under the United Nations World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). According to John Lanza, a Boston attorney, at a cost of $3,000 to $6,000, a PCT filing can preserve your right to patent your product in most major nations for up to 30 months. That way you can test the waters in a number of markets in order to find your niche.

Once you’ve determined where your product will be most successful, you should file a patent in that particular country. If you don’t, them moment you begin to offer your product copy-cats will begin producing competition with their knockoffs. Obviously the process for filing a patent differs with each location. For more assistance, The U.S. government provides a “tool kit” on international patents at StopFakes.gov.

International patents have classifications, in order to streamline the application process. After all, there has to be a way to determine if someone already has a patent for a particular product in a particular country. For more information of this classification process, visit the WIPO’s International Classifications page.

Danger - be aware of the fact that China is one of the leading countries when it comes to intellectual property theft. Ted C. Fishman, author of China, Inc. recommends that, in order to help protect yourself you should establish a licensing agreement with a Chinese business partner that requires him to provide a substantial upfront contribution to your business expansion. Such an investment will keep him from revealing product specifications to another manufacturer or trying it on their own and will also help to keep other Chinese businessmen from trying to tap in to your market.

Bottom line, protect your most important asset, the product you provide, whatever it may take. Though there may be some cost to it, in the end it would be more than worth it. The alternative, a cheaper knockoff of your product stealing your customers, would be detrimental.

Tomorrow I will cover the monetary and taxation aspects of owning a business overseas.

Pt. 1: Why and Why Not Expand Overseas?
Pt. 2: Labor Laws
Pt. 4: Money and Taxes

Source:
• Inc.com: How to Get Started

Resources:
• U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
• European Patent Office
• Patent Pending in 24 Hours by Richard Stim and David Pressman

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A milestone in the growth of any business is the capacity to expand into the global market. As exciting as the looming possibility may be, you don’t want to cross the boarder blindly, especially if you are passing the internet zone and actually opening your doors in a foreign land.

As most know, the laws vary in every country, and labor laws are no exception. If you’re expanding your business to another country and plan to have employees in that country, it’s important that you know what you’re dealing with before you except any resumes.

For example, U.S. employers have basically complete control over who they hire and fire. But in other countries, that’s not always the case. But, according to New York lawyer Aaron Schindel, in the European Union and much of South America, employers are legally obligated to consult with employee representative, whether it be a union or works council, before relocating an office, conducting layoffs, or even discontinuing a product.

Labor costs may be low and appealing for expanding your business overseas, but the other financial obligations that come with being a foreign employer make the cost of running a global business fall onto a comparable scale to that of U.S. only operations.

When it comes to worker benefits, many countries require employers to provide a month of paid vacation and/or mandatory bonuses. Take the Mexican aguinaldo, for example, a mandatory Christmas bonus provided to every employee in Mexico and equivalent to 15 days wages or more.

When it comes to health insurance for your employees, things may be a little easier. Most countries provide universal health care for workers. This is often partly funded by payroll taxes, which can have high rates, but are typically more cost effective than the continual rise in insurance premiums in the U.S.

There are many other things to consider when looking to expand your business overseas. Check back tomorrow for information on how to protect what keeps your business running, the product your provide.

Pt. 1: Why and Why Not Expand Overseas?
Pt. 3: Protecting Your Product
Pt. 4: Money and Taxes

Source:
• Inc.com: How to Get Started

Resources:
• The International Labour Organization
• U.S. Dept. of Labor (dol.gov): Foreign Labor Trends Reports
• Univ. of Chicago: Foreign Law

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It’s a risk every business owner takes the moment he/she opens their doors - being sued. And there are a lot of reasons your business could be pulled into court - everything from unpaid bills to outrageous claims of fraud against your company.

Anything from the substantial and justified to the frivolous can come against your business at any moment, and if you want to avoid the long, tedious court process, you’d better make sure you’re ready.

CONTRACTS
Attorney Fees Clause
Every contract you have should contain a dispute resolution section. Within that section, it’s a good idea to state that, should any dispute proceed to litigation and you win the case, the client would be responsible for your attorney fees.

This would make any client who doesn’t really have a case against you think twice before filing a lawsuit. On the other end, should you need to sue a client for an unpaid balance, etc., they will probably refrain from fighting you much if they know they will have to pay attorney fees for you.

Limitation of Liability Clause
In addition, consider adding a clause in your contract that limits your liability and damages, should there be a flaw with the product you provide, etc. For example, if you provide a product or service on a regular basis that is worth $5,000.00 then put a clause in your contract that limits your liability to $5,000.

This covers any defective products you may have, avoids needless court proceedings to determine an amount for damages, and keeps you from losing the shirt of your back to pay for non-economic damages.

Arbitration Clause
Another option is to put in the contract that any disputes that cannot be immediately resolved are to be conducted exclusively through Arbitration. More or less, arbitration is another form of mediation.

One party files a form requesting Arbitration and provides the fee up-front, which can be in the ballpark of $750. This sounds like a lot, but can be much less than a trial in court would cost with attorney fees and the like. And, whatever is decided during Arbitration, is held with the same regard as a judgment in court. More information can be found on the American Arbitration Association website.

INSURANCE
It’s important to be aware that your business insurance may cover your liability if there is a dispute. If something comes up, the first thing you should do is check with your insurance company to see if such matters are covered under your policy.

If the situation is covered, the insurance company will take over negotiations on your behalf and, hopefully, settle the matter. Be aware, however, that the insurance provider will only pay out to the extend of the policy limits. You are responsible for anything above that (but they will always try and settle below the policy limits if possible).

Another smart move, before any threat of lawsuit even comes close to your business, is to purchase additional liability insurance through your provider. A typical business policy will, unfortunately, only cover minimal disputes.

There are additional provisions for matters that would be more likely to occur for your specific business - from employment practices liability coverage to advertising practices liability coverage and the like. Be sure to talk to your provider and be aware of all of your options.

Though these steps cannot guarantee that your business won’t go to court over something, they will help to avoid it as much as possible. Keep in mind that the best thing to really do is protect your business and your customer. If you do both honestly and efficiently, then the problems should be minimal.

Always consult with an attorney before changing or developing your business contracts to make sure your business is fully protected under the law. The statements in this article are not to be taken as official guidance, but, rather, as an informational supplement to the legal aspect of your business strategy.

Source:
• Entrepreneur.com: 5 Litigation Secrets

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