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Please Click HerePosted on May 4, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
On August 5, 2010, the Tax Court applied an anti-abuse rule in the Treasury Regulations to hold that a leveraged partnership transaction designed to defer the recognition of gain on a nonrecognition contribution to a partnership was in actuality a “disguised sale” and an immediate taxable sale of assets. The case provides insights into the […]
Posted on May 2, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
Wisconsin’s Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) became law in 1987. The federal FMLA became law in 1993. As almost all Wisconsin human resources (HR) personnel are aware, provisions of the two laws differ in many ways. As a result, complying with both laws has been difficult at best and has caused many HR professionals […]
Posted on April 22, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
In the past, the U.S. Supreme Court issued case rulings which narrowly defined the term “disability” under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This resulted in individuals with certain conditions, such as cancer, diabetes, and epilepsy, not qualifying for protection under the ADA. To establish a broader definition of disability, Congress enacted the Americans with […]
Posted on April 21, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
Many employers have implemented policies to randomly test employees for drugs and alcohol use. The purpose of such policies is, of course, safety. Recently, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a lawsuit against U.S. Steel Corporation alleging that the Company’s random alcohol testing policy violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In the lawsuit, […]
Posted on April 15, 2011 by Derek L. Prestin
In July of 2010, domain name registries began allowing web site owners to register the top level domain “.co” as part of their domain name as an alternative to the ubiquitous “.com” top level domain. Prior to the July launch, the “.co” domain was restricted for use by the Columbian government, similar to the way […]
Posted on April 4, 2011 by Mary Ellen Schill
The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced March 31st that due to the overwhelming response, the early retiree reinsurance program will be closed to new applicants after May 5, 2011. ERRP allows employers that sponsor group health plans to seek reimbursement for certain health care expenses incurred by former employees age 55 and […]
Posted on April 1, 2011 by Mary Ellen Schill
As we wait for some sort of finality out of Madison relating to Wisconsin Act 10 (see our most recent alert “Implementation of Wisconsin Act 10 is Blocked Again by Dane County Circuit Court”), some governmental employers are already faced with the prospect of imposing mandatory Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) contributions upon employees, due to […]
Posted on March 1, 2011 by Mark J. Bradley
The federal estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax rules approved by Congress in December, 2010 are in effect during 2011 and 2012 only. The Treasury Department announced in February, 2011 that President Obama’s 2012 budget proposals presume several important changes in the rules that will take effect on January 1, 2013. In “General Explanations […]
Posted on February 23, 2011 by Mary Ellen Schill
The Internal Revenue Service office of Federal, State & Local Governments (FSLG) has developed a self-assessment tool as a resource to help governmental entities understand and comply with the complex nature of their federal tax responsibilities. FSLG helps coordinate activities with IRS offices to work with governmental employers to resolve tax problems. FSLG developed […]
Posted on February 15, 2011 by Ruder Ware Alumni
Governor Walker has proposed many changes to the Municipal Employment Relations Act (Section 111.70, Wis. Stats.) as part of the Budget Repair Bill to be considered by the Legislature this week. In the Repair Bill, a number of changes are proposed to state and municipal employee collective bargaining laws. While the exact changes are subject […]