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Please Click HerePosted on November 4, 2011 by Sara J. Ackermann
Recently, courts have awarded monetary sanctions ranging from $25,000 to $1,000,000 against companies that failed to prevent the destruction of electronic evidence. These sanction amounts reveal that the failure to implement a litigation hold and preserve evidence when required can have serious consequences for your business. Many business owners, managers, and human resources professionals believe […]
Posted on October 21, 2011 by Mary Ellen Schill
The Internal Revenue Service has announced the cost-of-living adjustments for the various qualified retirement plan limits. Unlike 2011, almost all of the limits shown below are changed from last year. Qualified Plan Limit Cost-of-Living Adjustments 401(k) and 403(b) elective deferral limit 2011 – $16,500 2012 – $17,000 $200,000 compensation limit 2011 – $245,000 2012 – […]
Posted on October 19, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
A Wisconsin Court of Appeals recently issued an important decision upholding a lower court ruling to deny medical assistance benefits to a nursing home resident. The denial was made because assets of a trust established by the applicant’s children for her benefit were deemed an available resource. In June 1991, Lucille Hedlund (“Lucille”) and her […]
Posted on October 6, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
Some concern has been expressed regarding two issues with Wisconsin’s new carrying concealed weapons law that was published on July 22, 2011. First, there seems to be a question regarding the effective date of the law. Second, some property owners and business owners are wondering who the law applies to and believe they may be […]
Posted on September 16, 2011 by Mary Ellen Schill
On September 14, 2011 the Internal Revenue Service issued Notice 2011-72, which gives non-taxable de minimis fringe benefit treatment to employer-provided cell phones (and presumably voice and data plans). Prior to 2010, cell phones were considered “listed property” for IRS purposes, and an employer who provided cell phones to its employees had heightened substantiation requirements […]
Posted on August 30, 2011 by Mark D. Munson
In a recent decision, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Wisconsin ruled that inherited IRAs are not protected from a beneficiary’s creditors. Bankruptcy courts in different parts of the country have come to the same conclusion, while others have come to a different conclusion. These cases may stand as they are […]
Posted on August 25, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has issued a Final Rule requiring employers to notify employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act. Under the new rule, effective November 14, 2011, private-sector employers (including labor organizations) whose workplaces fall under the National Labor Relations Act will be required to post the employee rights […]
Posted on August 3, 2011 by Sara J. Ackermann
As we discussed in our previous E-alert “Are You Ready for Conceal and Carry?”, public and private sector employers are facing the question of prohibiting concealed weapons in their place of business. This question, however, lends itself to a number of other considerations for employers, such as: May employers distinguish between prohibitions for employees and […]
Posted on July 29, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
Recently, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) and the Department of Labor (“DOL”) separately proposed new rules aimed at making unionization easier – ignoring the old adage, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” As explained below, the NLRB proposed a new set of representation pre-election procedures, popularly characterized as the “quickie election” rules, while […]
Posted on July 27, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has issued a decision in favor of an employer in a workers’ compensation case for unreasonable refusal to rehire. In doing so, the court emphasized that an employer is not required to make an accommodation to an employee’s personal obligations in order to escape liability under the unreasonable refusal to rehire […]