Looper Reed and McGraw - News Feed

Financial Executive: What Obamacare Now Means for Employers

Tue, 16 Oct 2012 19:47:29 +0000

Jennifer Gurevitz and Patrick Souter, attorneys in Looper Reed & McGraw's healthcare and tax sections, were published in the Sept. 2012 edition of Financial Executive magazine on "What Obamacare Now Means for Employers."

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Jennifer Gurevitz serves clients across the broad range of taxation law. In particular, her practice focuses on taxation with a special emphasis on federal income and estate tax transactions and tax controversy work. Her practice involves all aspects of business tax planning including the formation, restructuring and maintenance of partnerships, limited liability companies and corporations. In the area of estate planning, Ms. Gurevitz counsels individuals regarding the preparation of wills and trusts and the creation of family limited partnerships and other entities, with an emphasis on minimizing estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer taxes. Ms. Gurevitz also counsels individuals on the probate process.

Patrick Souter is a member of the Health Care Section at Looper Reed & McGraw. His primary areas of practice are related to Transactional and Administrative Healthcare, Corporate, Securities and Antitrust matters. While primarily representing clients in the health care industry, Mr. Souter also advises non-health care entities in a wide array of industries. A native of Dallas, Texas, Mr. Souter obtained his Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and Juris Doctorate from Baylor University and is currently a candidate in the M.B.A. Program for Health Services Management at the University of Dallas. He is licensed by the State Bar of Texas and has gained admission to practice before the United States District Court for the Northern District and Eastern District of Texas, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Tax Court. Additionally, Mr. Souter is a member of the State Bar of Texas, American Bar Association, Dallas Bar Association, and the American Health Lawyers Association. Mr. Souter is also certified by the American Health Lawyers Association as a Mediator and Arbitrator.

ABOUT LOOPER REED & MCGRAW

Founded in 1985, Looper Reed & McGraw is a full-service, Texas based law firm with more than 120 lawyers practicing in Dallas, Houston and Tyler. Looper Reed & McGraw offers a wide range of legal services including business litigation, corporate transactions, oil & gas, tax planning and litigation, real estate, healthcare, trusts and estates, labor and employment law, family law, intellectual property and bankruptcy. For more information, visit www.lrmlaw.com.

Gair Elected to Board of Directors for AVANCE, Inc.

Wed, 10 Oct 2012 14:04:59 +0000

David Gair, a tax associate at Looper Reed &McGraw, was elected to the national board of directors for AVANCE, Inc. Gair will work with a strong team dedicated to providing early childhood and parenting education to low-income, at-risk Hispanic communities throughout the U.S.

Gair is Board Certified in Tax Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and focuses on tax matters and tax litigation in the United States Tax Court, United States Court of Federal Claims, the United States Bankruptcy Courts and the United States District Courts. Gair's representation involves complex international and domestic civil and criminal matters. He also does a significant amount of administrative controversy work. This often involves representation of clients who are under criminal investigation, a civil audit or who have serious IRS collection concerns. Gair's practice also involves tax planning for entrepreneurs and businesses. This planning is holistic in nature and involves examining solutions that best serve the client from the myriad of taxation, liability concerns, and other regulatory issues.

Since 1973, AVANCE has been committed to providing innovative education and family support services to predominately Hispanic families in underprivileged communities. Dedicated to promoting school readiness and supporting family engagement AVANCE proudly serves as a national model and best practice of early childhood education for parents, teachers, the scientific community and general public.

About Looper Reed & McGraw

Founded in 1985, Looper Reed & McGraw is a full-service, Texas based law firm with more than 120 lawyers practicing in Dallas, Houston and Tyler. Looper Reed & McGraw offers a wide range of legal services including business litigation, corporate transactions, oil & gas, tax planning and litigation, real estate, healthcare, trusts and estates, employment law, family law, intellectual property, and bankruptcy. For more information, visit www.lrmlaw.com.

Houston Chronicle: Adrogue Profiled as Notable Rice University Graduate

Tue, 09 Oct 2012 21:27:55 +0000

Looper Reed & McGraw attorney Sofia Adrogue was profiled in the Oct. 6 issue of the Houston Chronicle as a "Notable Rice University Graduate."

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Adrogue handles complex commercial litigation and multi-party proceedings in state and federal courts as well as in ADR proceedings throughout the United States and abroad. She represents clients in all industries, ranging from entrepreneurs in rural Texas to multinational conglomerates with diversified worldwide business holdings. She also represents parties in peer review proceedings and/or before state regulatory or licensing agencies in the healthcare arena. Adrogue has been profiled by a litany of publications, including: Texas Lawyer (one of Texas' Top "40 Under 40"); Texas Monthly and Law & Politics Magazine ("Texas Super Lawyer"); and Super Lawyers Corporate Counsel Edition ("Texas Super Lawyer"). A native of Argentina, Sofia is a graduate of the Harvard Business School Owner/President Management (OPM) Program and an Alumna of the Harvard Business School.

About Looper Reed & McGraw

Founded in 1985, Looper Reed & McGraw is a full-service, Texas based law firm with more than 120 lawyers practicing in Dallas, Houston and Tyler. Looper Reed & McGraw offers a wide range of legal services including business litigation, corporate transactions, oil & gas, tax planning and litigation, real estate, healthcare, trusts and estates, employment law, family law, intellectual property, and bankruptcy. For more information, visit www.lrmlaw.com.

KHOU-TV: Companies Fighting Back Against Bad Online Reviews .

Fri, 05 Oct 2012 20:58:49 +0000

A company can spend years building up its reputation, but a bad review online can destroy it in a matter of minutes. Looper Reed & McGraw attorney Travis Crabtree, interviews with KHOU 11 in Houston on how some businesses are now fighting back and what it could mean if you post incorrect information.

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Travis Crabtree brings a unique perspective to his internet marketing, online media and commercial litigation practice. Travis graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and spent several years in television news before taking on a law career. Travis explores the emerging legal issues and trends for internet marketing and online media on his blog, eMediaLaw.com, which you can visit by clicking here. His online media and internet law practice focuses on media communications, online defamation, privacy, domain name disputes, policy and governmental compliance, copyrights and trademarks, and related transactional documents for start-ups and established businesses.

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Looper Reed & McGraw Welcomes Jason Luter

Thu, 04 Oct 2012 16:05:32 +0000

Looper Reed & McGraw welcomes Jason Luter as an Associate in the Dallas Tax Section. Luter has extensive experience in all types of executive compensation, ERISA and employee benefit matters. He has represented a diverse group of clients, including Fortune 500 companies, privately-held companies, governmental and quasi-governmental entities and tax-exempt entities. He also handles tax litigation issues and has significant experience in employment litigation and immigration.

Luter received his B.B.A. from SMU in 2004, his J.D. from the SMU Dedman School of Law in 2007 and his LL.M. in Tax from Georgetown University Law Center in 2009.

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Working Pro-Bono: Looper Reed Represents Houston Man with $9,000 Water Bill

Wed, 03 Oct 2012 21:27:04 +0000

Looper Reed litigation Associate, Carter Stern, picked up a case pro-bono for a man in south Houston who received a monthly water bill asking him to pay $9,000.

Jose Valera, whose bill usually averages about $25, says he didn't notice a leak, but he did see some water bubbling on a pipe. Within a day of noticing the bubbling, Valera contacted a plumber who fixed the pipe after the resident notified the city. The $9,000 bill -for 719,000 gallons, came a few days later. It totaled $9,087.98 for one month.

"The facts of this case are outrageous and the City has no mechanism and little incentive to help him out," Stern said. "He needs somebody who can advocate for him and fix this. Otherwise, an already indigent man, a veteran, will be left without any water. That is incredibly unfair and I wanted to help do something about it."

The city turned off the water on Feb. 3, and a plumber fixed the pipe, leaving just four weeks for all that leaking to have happened. It is a one-inch water pipe that runs to Valera's house and in order for the city's number to be true the pipe would have to be completely severed and running at more than 18 gallons per minute.

"The city is attempting to hold Mr. Valera responsible for an outrageous bill without offering any justification other than their readings," Stern said. "There is affirmative evidence from Mr. Valera and the plumber who fixed the pipe that this huge amount of water wasn't discharged on Mr. Valera's property. The City has acknowledged that this is an unusual case but claim they are constrained by the municipal code to only offer the minimal relief they have thus far. The City doesn't want to back down because they are worried that if they do, every citizen with a minor water billing issue will think they can get over on them and will drag them into litigation. I understand this concern, but they are effectively threatening to cut off Mr. Valera's water unless he can pay for all this water and then claiming they are not required to make any affirmative showing that he actually used the water. They have all the leverage in this case because they are "constrained" by the self-serving rules that they themselves wrote to protect themselves. Consumers like Mr. Valera are offered only minimal protection under the municipal code."

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Kelsheimer Elected to Children's Advocacy Centers of Texas Board of Directors

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 14:41:32 +0000

Michael Kelsheimer, a Shareholder in the employment section at Looper Reed & McGraw, was elected to the Children's Advocacy Centers of Texas Board of Directors (CACTX). CACTX is the statewide association for the 66 local children's advocacy centers across the state.

A graduate of Baylor Law School, Kelsheimer has experience in a wide variety of employment and commercial matters during his tenure with Looper Reed. He is the author of the Texas Employer Handbook, a monthly guide and blog for Texas business owners, and is a frequent radio commentator on KRLD and KTRH NewsRadio 740. Prior to joining Looper Reed, Kelsheimer served as a briefing attorney to the United States Federal District Court Judge Sam R. Cummings.

Last year the CACTX gave almost 40,000 children vital services at their advocacy centers across Texas. Each local center works with the local prosecutor, law enforcement, child protective services and medical/mental health professionals to provide a multidisciplinary approach to the investigation of the most challenging of child abuses cases. To find your local children's advocacy center or to learn more, go to www.cactx.org.

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Looper Reed Helps Garner Groundbreaking Judgment Against Paris, France in Reverse Domain Name Hi-Jacking Case

Wed, 26 Sep 2012 20:55:37 +0000

Looper Reed attorney Travis Crabtree served as part of a team that won a judgment against the City of Paris, France that for the first time gave statutory damages to a victim of reverse domain name hijacking under the Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act. Reverse domain name hi-jacking is when an alleged trademark owner overreaches and tries to hijack a domain name to which they do not have rights.

Until now, the victims were only entitled to damages and fees. This time the court granted Looper Reed's client $28,000 in fees and a statutory award in the maximum available amount of $100,000 meant to stymie this type of behavior. The statutory award has always been available to trademark owners when they prevail against cybersquatters, but this is the first award known to Looper Reed for the victims of reverse domain name hi-jacking.

Crabtree worked on the case with domain name attorneys John Berryhill and Paul Keating. You can read more about the groundbreaking judgment from Domain Name Wire and Crabtree's blog at www.emedialaw.com.

Travis Crabtree brings a unique perspective to his internet marketing, online media and commercial litigation practice. Travis graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and spent several years in television news before taking on a law career. Travis explores the emerging legal issues and trends for internet marketing and online media on his blog, eMediaLaw.com. His online media and internet law practice focuses on media communications, online defamation, privacy, domain name disputes, policy and governmental compliance, copyrights and trademarks, and related transactional documents for start-ups and established businesses.

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National Council of Jewish Women Greater Houston Honors Sofia Adrogue

Tue, 25 Sep 2012 16:03:44 +0000

The National Council of Jewish Women Greater Houston Section will honor Looper Reed Member Sofia Adrogue as a Woman of Influence on Friday, Sept. 28. Women of Influence was created to honor an influential woman or women who embody the beliefs of NCJW and put these beliefs into action. Past recipients have included Houston Mayor Annise D. Parker.

NCJW is a grass-roots organization of volunteers and advocates who turn progressive ideals into action. Inspired by Jewish values, NCJW strives for social justice by improving the quality of life for women, children, and families and by safeguarding individual rights and freedoms. For over 110 years, NCJW has been a powerful force for social change across the country and around the globe - stepping forward and speaking out on crucial issues years before others followed its courageous example. Locally, community service projects that have been supported by NCJW include the establishment of Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse, involvement with Preparation for Adult Living, the program that helps give teens a fresh start; Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters; Joy of Reading, story time for children of homeless parents in conjunction with SEARCH, to name a few.

For more information, go to http://www.ncjwhouston.org/.

About Looper Reed & McGraw

Founded in 1985, Looper Reed & McGraw is a full-service, Texas based law firm with more than 120 lawyers practicing in Dallas, Houston and Tyler. Looper Reed & McGraw offers a wide range of legal services including business litigation, corporate transactions, oil & gas, tax planning and litigation, real estate, healthcare, trusts and estates, employment law, family law, intellectual property, and bankruptcy. For more information, visit www.lrmlaw.com.

Dallas Morning News: How to Craft a Will that's Fair to Loved Ones

Mon, 24 Sep 2012 17:40:57 +0000

Looper Reed attorney Norm Lofgren discusses with the Dallas Morning News on how to be fair to all your beneficiaries in your will.

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Norm's practice focuses on taxation, estate planning and family wealth protection and transfer. His experience as a former trial attorney for the IRS coupled with his extensive experience in income, estate, gift, generation-skipping tax matters and tax planning for closely held businesses enables Norm to create solutions that minimize tax exposure and preserve wealth.

About Looper Reed & McGraw

Founded in 1985, Looper Reed & McGraw is a full-service, Texas based law firm with more than 120 lawyers practicing in Dallas, Houston and Tyler. Looper Reed & McGraw offers a wide range of legal services including business litigation, corporate transactions, oil & gas, tax planning and litigation, real estate, healthcare, trusts and estates, employment law, family law, intellectual property and bankruptcy. For more information, visit www.lrmlaw.com.