There are many reasons why the owners of an LLC or corporation would choose to have their company receive S-corporation tax treatment. Corporations might want to take advantage of the pass-through taxation (shareholders must still report dividends on personal income tax returns). Members (owners) of an LLC might also be attracted to the S-corporation tax treatment due to recent tax reforms. Depending on your reason Read More
What You Need to Know About Boilerplate Contract Terms
Every legal agreement you sign is going to contain boilerplate terms, which are sometimes referred to as the “fine print.” It’s important that you understand these terms before you sign any agreement, because even though they may seem tedious to read, these terms will impact you and your business if and when you ever have to go to court to enforce the agreement. Common Boilerplate Terms Found in Legal Read More
Does Your Estate Plan Protect Your Intellectual Property?
If you own a business, you almost certainly have intellectual property. However, because your intellectual property is intangible, it can be invisible to you and those who aren’t familiar with the nature of intellectual property and its value, so it often gets overlooked, especially when it comes to estate planning. Yet, if you fail to properly document your intellectual property, your estate plan will likely not Read More
Former Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh Dies Without A Will—Part 2
In part one of this series, we discussed how Tony Hsieh became an Internet pioneer, starting two wildly successful companies, LinkExchange and Zappos, the latter of which he sold to Amazon for $1.2 billion. It was as CEO of the online shoe brand Zappos where Hsieh developed his vision for life and business: delivering happiness. A Double Life Hsieh outlined this mission in the 2010 book, Delivering Happiness: Read More
What is a Heggstad Petition Used For?
For all the usefulness of a living trust (revocable and irrevocable) in the context of estate planning, many planners, unfortunately, fail to transfer the title of their assets to the trust after they create it. Living trusts allow property and assets to be distributed to beneficiaries in an efficient manner (outside of probate court) when the trustor passes away or becomes incapacitated. What can you do if a Read More
Former Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh Dies Without A Will—Part 1
On November 27th, nine days after being pulled unconscious from a house fire in a beachfront home in New London, Connecticut, Tony Hsieh, the former CEO of the online shoe retailer Zappos, died due to complications of smoke inhalation. Hsieh, who was single and had no children, was just 46. Although the cause of the fire is still under investigation, law enforcement ruled his death accidental. At the time of Read More
New COVID Stimulus Funding Available For Business Owners in 2021—Part 2
The Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021, which was signed into law on December 27th, 2020, provides another $900 billion in funding for coronavirus relief for individuals and business owners. The new bill serves as an expansion of the 2020 CARES Act, offering additional funding and a number of key changes to both the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program. Although the Read More
New COVID Stimulus Funding Available For Business Owners in 2021—Part 1
The Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021, which was signed into law on December 27th, 2020, provides another $900 billion in funding for coronavirus relief for individuals and business owners. The new bill serves as an expansion of the 2020 CARES Act, offering additional funding and a number of key changes to both the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program. Although the Read More
Why Form a Family Limited Partnership in California?
A business partnership, of which there are several types, is an attractive option for many business owners who know others who share their entrepreneurial visions. There are two main types of business partners — general and limited. General partners have voting rights regarding the direction of the company and are typically charged with managing the day-to-day of the partnership while limited partners do not enjoy Read More
4 Myths and Misconceptions About Business Entities
Setting up the proper legal structure for your business may seem like a boring detail that you won’t need to spend much time on. But the truth is, selecting the right entity for your company is one of the most crucial decisions you can make as a business owner. That said, there are all sorts of myths and misconceptions surrounding business entities that can cause confusion and lead to costly mistakes for those who Read More
