erblawg

Oops, I Did It Again!

Garrett Spangler — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:27:17 +0000

Britney Spears still has the opportunity to get her estate plan together (if she hasn’t already), but many celebrities have failed to put together a proper plan and cost their friends and family both money and grief. You can put it off for countless tomorrows but here are a few lessons that can be learned from celebrities whose families had to find out the hard way how important it is to do a little estate planning.

Lesson 1: Write a Will and Estate Plan

Jimi Hendrix died without writing a will and under state law everything went directly to his father. His father managed to maintain the rights to the music and turn Jimi’s catalog into a small fortune estimated around $80 million before writing his own will and cutting out all of Jimi’s other family members in favor of an adopted daughter from a subsequent marriage. Jimi may have spent his last several years living in a purple haze but even that is no reason to skip writing an estate plan.

Lesson 2: Get a Professional to Help Write Your Plan

Warren Burger, former Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, wrote his own will and the brevity of the 176 words he penned cost his family nearly half a million dollars in estate taxes and lots of legal fees to obtain the rights to sell his real estate holdings on an estate valued at just $1.8 million. The cost of an estates professional is well worth it no matter the size of your estate. Plus, you can take a tax deduction for any fees paid to a professional for tax planning advice so its a win-win.

Lesson 3: Update Your Plan for Life Changing Events

Heath Ledger died with a will. Trouble is, the will was written well before he was in a long-term relationship with Michelle Williams and the birth of their daughter. Everything went to his father and sister at his death and many close to the family questioned whether they would provide for Michelle and their daughter as Heath would have had he updated his estate plan after his child’s birth.

Lesson 4: Put Your Wishes in Writing

Marlon Brando’s long term gal pal Angela Borlaza claimed that he promised her that she could keep the home he bought for her to live in as well as a long-term job with one of his companies after he passed. Problem was, he only made an oral commitment to her and she had to pay his estate an agreed upon settlement to keep her home and it is unclear what she may have received in exchange for not being kept on one of his company’s payrolls.

Lesson 5: Create Proper Codicils for Changes

Ted Williams may be paying an eternal price for conflicts in his burial wishes. His will stated he wished to have his body cremated while two kids from his second marriage produced a greasy, handwritten note that said something about putting his body in biostasis. His eldest daughter sought to have the wishes expressed in his will carried out but couldn’t afford the ongoing legal costs of the will contest and Ted remains cryogenically frozen.
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Charity Begins at Erb Law, December Poll.

Madeline Martin — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 15:56:55 +0000

Cast your vote(s) for the charities below. You may vote as often as you like, through December 31st.

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Charity Begins at Erb Law; November Poll Results

Madeline Martin — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:26:17 +0000

Congratulations to St. Francis Inn Soup Kitchen, winners of the November Charity Begins at Erb Law poll.

A donation will be made to St. Francis Inn in support of all the good work they do.

Thanks for voting - be sure to check out the poll for December!Similar Posts:

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Apple’s Mouse is Now Magic

Erica Intzekostas — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:07:04 +0000

In an earlier blog I reported on how the USPTO granted federal trademark registration to Man & Machine for the brand name Mighty Mouse. I noted that Apple will basically have two choices: seek a license from Man & Machine or come up with a new brand name. Well, it seems that they have opted for the latter, rebranding their popular mouse as Magic Mouse. I learned about this, of course, when I went to purchase my new Apple computer on Black Friday and was asked if I wanted to include a Magic Mouse with my purchase. I declined.Similar Posts:

The Dangers of Serving Alcohol at the Office Holiday Party

Erica Intzekostas — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:33:01 +0000

The month of December is considered the “holiday season” because of so many holidays of various religions falling during December. Offices often use this opportunity to throw an annual office party in an effort to gather all of its employees together for a fun and festive occasion. A common feature at these parties is alcohol. It is served to increase the festive mood and “loosen up” stressed-out employees after a year’s worth of hard work. Unfortunately, when it comes to employer liability, alcohol is like a loaded gun.

If one of your employees is drunk, you could be held liable for any injuries that employee causes to himself or others. An extreme example, but one that, unfortunately, does happen, is if one of your employees drinks at your holiday party, drives home, and kills himself or someone else in a drunk driving accident. There is a possibility that your company could be held liable for that person’s death. Even if your company is located in a state that does not impose liability on employers serving alcohol to adults (so-called “social host” liability), your company could still be held liable for third party injuries on the theory that the employees are acting within the scope of their employment.

There are steps you can take to prevent this kind of tragedy and minimize your company’s liability. The obvious one is not to serve any alcohol. However, if you do decide to serve alcohol, there are measures you can take to decrease the risks. Some suggestions are outlined below.

Have someone in a supervisory position be in change of serving alcohol, rather than allowing employees to self-serve. Better yet, hire a professional bartender.
Instruct those serving alcohol to refuse to serve anyone who is visibly intoxicated.
Limit the number of drinks each person can have by giving each person two drink tickets. Write employees’ names on their tickets to prevent ticket-swapping.
Limit the amount of time alcohol is served (e.g. have a cocktail hour before dinner and then do not offer any more alcohol once dinner is served).
Check personnel records to ensure that no one under 21 is permitted to drink. (This is particularly important from a liability standpoint as most states, including Pennsylvania, do impose liability on “social hosts” who serve alcohol to those under the legal drinking age.)
Arrange transportation to take employees home, either with designated drivers, hired car services, taxis, or even a van.
Hold the party on a Sunday afternoon or during lunch (times when people are less likely to overindulge in alcohol).
Make the party a family affair by including spouses and children.
Be sure to have plenty of non-alcoholic beverages and food available.
Lead by example. Instruct supervisors and all members of upper management to set the tone by either not drinking or drinking in moderation. Ideally, there should be at least a couple of designated non-drinkers to keep an eye on things.
Send a memo to all employees in advance of the party warning them not to drink too much and advising them of the measures the company is taking to ensure everyone’s safety, such as providing for free transportation home. Remind them that while the party is a time to have fun, it is still important to maintain a level of professionalism and the company will not look kindly upon anyone who drinks too much. You may also want to consider having employees sign a release form.
Check your company’s general liability policies to determine what, if any, kind of coverage you have for this kind of event. Many policies specifically exclude coverage for events where alcohol is served. If your policies do not cover your holiday party, you may want to consider a “special events” or “dram shop” policy to cover the event.

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Woman loses Benefits after Facebook Pictures showed her having Fun

Elisa Jaehner — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:36:31 +0000

A little fun doesn’t hurt. And expressing through posts and pictures on facebook that you are having fun shouldn’t hurt either. But if you are claiming to be depressed and getting leave benefits from your employer’s insurer, you should probably consider not posting pictures from your last bar tour, strip club visit or vacation fun.

A canadian woman, who is on leave from her job at IBM in Quebec posted pictures of herself at a Chippendales show and on vacation. And IBM’s insurance company Manulife claims she was definitely having fun in these pictures. Manulife stopped the payment of benefits without notice after seeing the photos and concluded that these pictures showed that the woman was apparently no longer depressed.

According to ABCnews.com the woman, Nathalie Blanchard, wants to take legal action against Manulife, arguing that it was her doctor’s advise to go out with friends and family, and to have fun.Similar Posts:

Pennsylvania More ‘Taxing’ Than Other States

Garrett Spangler — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:01:47 +0000

The tax system in Pennsylvania ranks 9th worst in the nation due to its regressive nature, hitting low and middle income residents the hardest. These are the findings of a new study conducted in Washington, D.C. by The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP).

The results indicated that the poorest 20% of Pennsylvania families earn less than $19,000 each year and pay 11.3% of their income in state and local taxes. Middle income earners, those earning between $35,000 and $56,000, pay 9.6% of their income in such taxes, while the richest pay only 5%. Once these numbers are adjusted for federal deduction offsets the results are 11.2%, 9.1%, and 3.9% respectively.

ITEP concluded that the flat tax Pennsylvania uses to tax its resident’s income instead of a graduated rate contributes to its unfairness. Especially when it does little to offset the inherently more regressive sales and property taxes.

It remains to be seen if Pennsylvania will make changes to the current tax structure. If the residents and their state representatives ask for changes to increase equality there are various options that could be implemented. Implementing a graduated rate is an obvious choice and may be favorable considering Pennsylvania has the 2nd lowest top rate among all states with an income tax. Alternatively, Pennsylvania could increase the income tax rate on investment income, primarily earned by more affluent residents, or delve into the corporate realm and consider adding a combined reporting element to its corporate income tax.

You can find a copy of the ITEP report “Who Pays?”here.

Founded in 1980, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization, based in Washington, DC, that focuses on federal and state tax policy. ITEP’s mission is to inform policymakers and the public of the effects of current and proposed tax policies on tax fairness, government budgets, and sound economic policy. ITEP’s full body of research is available at www.itepnet.org.
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Kelly Phillips Erb on Good Day Philadelphia

Leave MySpace alone

Chris Erb — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:20:05 +0000

The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) is a dinosaur in the IT world, having been enacted in 1984, the same year domain names were invented. An underlying assumption of that law was that computer networks which stretched across state lines were a rarity, and probably had something to do with national security or the federal government. Now, in 2009, that assumption seems quaint - and very problematic. You see, the CFAA is written extremely broadly, and in today’s interconnected world the Act potentially covers data exchanges as trivial as posting a photo or updating a Facebook page.

Not surprisingly, Facebook and other litigants are increasingly interested in turning up the pressure on those who access their networks for reasons other than those intended. The CFAA, which provides for civil and criminal liability in the event of access “without authorization” as well as “exceeding authorized access,” is quite a sledgehammer for those litigants. Notably, courts are not always buying into these arguments, but the prospect of criminal sanctions and a large legal bill may be deterrent enough for some.

The result? Everyone from data scrapers to employees who get in a few last downloads before leaving their worksite should think carefully before typing in that password. Similar Posts:

New Estate Tax Rates On The Horizon?

Garrett Spangler — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:54:14 +0000

A group of senators have stepped forward with a new estate tax proposal as the potential for an estate tax holiday looms ever nearer. The proposal would gradually reduce the current estate tax rate 1% each year from the current 45% to a fixed 35% in 2019. The personal exemption would follow a similar schedule growing $150,000 each year, reaching a cap at $5 million.

With the estate tax set to expire at the end of the year if no action is taken by Congress, tax professionals around the country have been wondering not if, but when a passable proposal would arise. It appears that a bipartisan group of senators have found a solution that just might manage to garner support on both sides of the isle in Washington. It appeared very likely that a vert short extension of the 2009 estate tax would be implemented, covering the next year or so while a more permanent solution is formulated.

According to the Wall Street Journal however, most Republicans and a few Democrats do not want to allow the estate tax matter to be swept under the rug for another year. It appears that the proposal may even gain additional Democratic support if offsets can be found to make up for losses in tax revenue, anticipated to be in the $87 billion range, which is a major sticking point for President Obama and other Congressional Democrats.

Optimism is running high that some tax legislation will get done despite limited time on the Senate floor for matters outside of health care reform. Members of Congress appear motivated to find a permanent solution favorable to small business owners and the wealthy, and are seeking alternatives to raise the needed support. Suggestions to help this proposal have included other tax increases, spending cuts, or tying the legislation to other bills such as reducing R&D credits or trade preferences for businesses.Similar Posts:

Facebook Can Keep You Out of Jail

Garrett Spangler — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:21:01 +0000

Social media can be used for lots of different things. We use it here at the firm to promote ourselves as well as to keep in touch with those in both our professional and personal lives. Well as of this week, Facebook has taken its benefits to a new level by doing its best Monopoly impression and being used effectively as a “get out of jail free” card.

A New York teen, Rodney Bradford, was arrested back in the middle of October for two different crimes. His father and stepmother offered an alibi stating he could not have been involved because he was home with them in their Harlem apartment at the time the crimes were committed. Despite their official statements the charges were not officially dropped against the teen until his attorney presented some very interesting evidence.

According to The New York Times, Rodney’s case continued to move forward until his defense attorney, Robert Reuland, offered a Facebook status update to confirm his alibi. The district attorney subpoenaed Facebook to confirm the update was made from a computer in the Bradford home at the time the crimes took place. Once Facebook made the confirmation the charges were dropped and Rodney was a free man.

Although this is reportedly the first time social media has provided verifiable evidence of an alibi we are likely to see more of it as social networking becomes increasingly popular. And for those who are curious, Rodney was merely looking forward to breakfast, wondering, “Where’s my pancakes?” at the time of the incidents.
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