Business and Tax Lawyer Blog

Small business owners in Florida can benefit from networking and resource opportunities offered throughout the year.

Simon Property Group sponsored a small business expo tour at the Orange Park Mall January 29, 2011. Advice and resources were provided to entrepreneurs looking to establish or develop a small business. Simon Property representatives and small-business resources partners, along with lenders and franchisors, provided workshops free to the public.

Similar business expos will be offered throughout the state in 2011 by various groups. Some upcoming forums that may be of interest - the 2011 Small Business Issues Forum on Monday, March 14th, and the NAVSEA Small Business Conference on February 1st in Miami, providing information to small businesses on how to offer services and products to the US military.

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Exhaustion in the office may not be due to long hours or too many assigned task; it may be due to the actions of your co-workers. Here are some draining behaviors with suggestions on how to change for the better. "Energy Vampires" are the individuals in the office who are rarely happy or supportive and constantly nay-say suggestions. A better way - respond constructively when another offers a suggestion, even if the idea is not a good one, still hear it out. The complain train can also be very draining and very contagious in the office. One person’s complaint resonates in another, who adds complaints, triggering another to throw in more grievances. The whole office will soon be complaining and any work will be accompanied with a bad attitude.

The vicious e-mail or voicemail is another draining behavior due to its ability to last forever, constantly reminding of supposed shortcomings. Instead of an indirect form of communication, try to talk through a conflict in person. This will also make sure that words and tone are not misinterpreted.

To read more on this, visit 12 workplace behaviors that drain energy.

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Apple, Inc. is currently one of the most profitable and recognizable brands in the world. Further, Apple’s CEO, Steve Jobs, enjoys the corporate equivalent of rock star status. In fact, a case can be made that Jobs, with his wire-rimmed glasses and black turtlenecks, is recognizable as an omnipresent figure that defines his company.

Over the weekend, Apple announced that Steve Jobs is taking a second medical leave of absence. The letter, written by Jobs to his employees, does not state his intent to return, while, in 2009, Jobs promised his eventual return to the tech-giant he created. Despite that promise of return, Apple’s stock took a noticeable hit after the initial 2009 announcement.

Jobs, a survivor of pancreatic cancer, stepped away to focus on his recovery. During Jobs’ absence, Tim Cook took over the reigns as Apple’s Chief Operating Officer. While many analysts and industry insiders credit Mr. Cook for introducing more financially accessible laptops, and for improving the speed and features on the iPhone, he remains comparatively obscure.

Despite the impressive team of forward thinking engineers at Apple, the public still sees Jobs as the driving force behind the company’s innovative ideas and designs. It will be interesting to see what affect the uncertainty of Jobs’ return may have on share prices.

Continue reading " The Power of a Company’s Brand: Can a Company’s CEO be Stronger than the Brand Itself? " »

Members of Florida’s journalism community have made complaints against the recently inaugurated governor. Reporters claim that Gov. Rick Scott’s administration is limiting the press’ access to both the governor and to events that have been traditionally viewed as open.

One reason the governor’s actions may be immediately noticeable is the fact that Florida has enjoyed a long tradition of openness in government, dating back to 1909 with passage of what is known as the “Public Records Law.” Then, in 1967, Florida’s Government-in-the-Sunshine Law (the “Sunshine Law”) was enacted. The Sunshine law took what was defined as a public record under the 1909 law, and established the basic right of access to most meetings of boards, commissions, and other governing bodies of state and local governmental agencies or authorities.

The Florida state legislature and the Attorney General’s Office have consistently sought to protect its Government-in-the-Sunshine laws. Therefore, this may be the first time in decades that a government event has occurred to which press members were not invited.

Continue reading " Does Governor Scott’s New Limitations on the Press Conflict with Florida’s Sunshine Laws? " »

The loaded morning inbox can be very daunting and draining for employees already fighting to start the week with a positive attitude. Instead of overloading employees with piecemeal instructions, combine tasks into one email, flagging the most important tasks.

Some thoughts on delegating tasks - the individual who always seems busy, but never completes projects are often the employees given the least work. To avoid overloading your faster worker and under utilizing the procrastinator in your office, keep track of assignments. Delegate fairly, set clear goals and hold everyone accountable for them. Low performers also have a tendency to bring the rest of the team down with them or cause better employees to find alternate employment. Communicate your expectations clearly and do not tolerate low performance. Let those who perform well know that you appreciate and notice their hard work. Poor communication and disorganization can demoralize an office and lead to low productivity and creativity.

Do not rush to get an assignment done, instead, make sure to do the best work first and pay attention to details so time is not wasted in fixing mistakes. Chronically avoiding a deadline can cause low productivity. Passed deadlines can cause everything to be off-track. Reasonably clear deadlines and holding employees responsible will help everyone to be more productive.

To read more on this, visit 12 workplace behaviors that drain energy.

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Last month, federal authorities shut down five websites on possible copyright infringement with no warning and no details of the investigation. The operators of some of the sites have said in interviews that they were innocent of copyright infringement. The investigation stated that the sites were used to “commit or facilitate criminal copyright infringement.” The music and movies on the sites were said to have not been released with the authorization required. However, an operator of one of the sites stated that the songs were for promotional purposes and that someone from the record label provided the songs to the site.

The investigation has been on going since Thanksgiving weekend when the sites were shut down during a crackdown on 82 different domains suspected of copyright infringement and selling counterfeit goods.

The crackdown was a part of a broader U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement initiative called "Operation In Our Sites" which targets internet counterfeiting and piracy. However, this enforcement did not sit well with Peter Eckersley of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a civil liberties group who stated, “It’s a troubling situation where basically any Web site that the Department of Homeland Security doesn’t like and is convinced has too much infringing material on it can just disappear overnight.”

To read more on this article, visit Music Web Sites Dispute Legality of Their Closing, also visit "Operation In Our Sites."

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If you are looking into a second career or just starting out, buying into a Franchise can provide a "jumpstart" to your business life - the key is to look critically and carefully at the Franchise offerings and their willingness and ability to support and protect your local operation.

An example of the best - The Matco Tools Franchise was named best franchise in the “Tools Distribution Category” and 19th in Entrepreneur’s 32nd Annual Franchise 500®. They have even been named the best tool franchise the last four out of five years. Franchisors are judged and measured by certain criteria, including financial strength and stability, development rate, size of the system, number of years the company has been in business, the length of time it’s been franchising, startup costs, litigation, percentage of terminations and whether the company provides financing. Companies that achieve the highest scores join the prestigious Franchise 500.

This is an example of a positive franchise model, benefitting franchisees with low startup costs, internal financing for franchisees and customers, as well as national advertising and customer support.

To read more on this visit Matco Tools Named No. 1 Tool Franchise.

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Until now, it has been up to regulators to decide the amount to pay corporate insiders for providing information of corporate wrongdoing. The total of the whistle-blower payments over two decades were a total of only $160,000. This may seem low as over 90% of the Security Exchange Commission’s enforcement actions over the years have started with whistle-blower tips. Under the new Investor Protection Act, a whistle-blower payment pool has been funded to the amount of $475 million. This would serve to compensate whistle-blowers and could popularize the act of whistle-blowing.

The corporate sector, whose leaders stand to be accused of misconduct, have launched an aggressive counter-attack against the new legislation by instituting their own compliance departments inside the companies. Corporate officials are alarmed for good reason as both corporate and select individual leaders' funds will be at risk as a result of shareholder protections contained in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

To learn more about this article, visit Whistle-Blowing is the Best Way to Fight Corporate Fraud.

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It is easy to underestimate how much money is needed for a new corporation’s startup and failure to determine the correct level of funding can be the biggest barrier to a successful company launch.

There are several steps to determining the "correct" funding needed. First, develop your business plan - in plain English, what do you intend to accomplish? Second, decide what materials, personnel and location will be needed to accomplish that purpose. Third, develop a solid cash flow projection. Remember to include your own salary as a cost of the new endeavor. Lastly, plan to continually revise cash flow projections as making revisions is a necessary and continual process.

For more on estimating your start up capital, visit Tips for Estimating Startup Capital.

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A key tip for business success is empowering your employees. Managers often forget that the key to great leadership is getting subordinates to excel. Too many managers focus on achieving goals and end up doing the work themselves. Other managers have the subordinates do the work but fail to give credit to subordinates, and as an end result, demotivate the employees. Great leadership is about training subordinates and delegating authority. Another key to business success - stay focused. Many businessmen are dreamers, seeing opportunities and wanting to grab them all instead of focusing on first building up the company. After establishing the company, then think about other opportunities and expansion.

To learn more about this topic, visit Three Titans' Tips for Business Success.

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Two Jacksonville area based shipping companies, along with a Charlotte, North Carolina firm, offered a settlement to over 1,700 plaintiffs in an antitrust lawsuit. The total settlement offer was for $52.2 million and the federal district judge in the case has given plaintiffs who wish to opt out of the settlement until February 2, 2011 to do so.

The defendants are accused of price fixing and colluding against customers between 2002 and 2008. If the allegations are true, these actions violate U.S. antitrust laws and, in particular, "The Sherman Antitrust Act."

Many plaintiffs are opting out of the settlement because the figure seems low for the number of plaintiffs involved in the suit. By no means is a plaintiff in a class of Plaintiffs required to accept a settlement offer by a defendant. However, in many instances, it may be wise to do so. To learn more about this article, please visit Anti-trust settlement faces Feb. deadline.

The defendant shipping companies (Growley Maritime Corp., Sea Star Line, LLC and Horizon Lines, LLC) denied the charges but, according to the terms of the settlement proposal, offered the settlement to "avoid the costs and risks of trial."

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Each state has its own set of standards when determining the reasonableness of the restrictions set forth in a Covenant Not to Compete (“CNC”). Over the years, Florida’s laws governing CNC’s have changed, allowing employees more relief from restrictive terms found in most CNC’s.

Prior to June of 1990, Florida’s Anti-Trust Act limited the court’s discretion in how it determined the validity of CNC restrictions imposed on certain trades as defined by F.S.§ 542.33. In part, the statute allowed employers to bind employees, agents and independent contractors from carrying on or engaging in a similar business and from soliciting old customers of such employer within a reasonably limited time and area, so long as the employer remained in the same type of business. When faced with a breach, the damaged party sought equitable relief, typically in the form of an injunction.

At the time (pre - 1990), the Florida Supreme Court had ruled that when an employer could prove a breach of a valid CNC, irreparable damages were presumed, and a court was forced to enjoin the breaching party. When evaluating the terms of a CNC, a court could only consider the extent to which the agreement was reasonable in length of time and area covered. Therefore, the courts could only evaluate and modify the time and area restrictions, if found to be unreasonable.

Continue reading " Florida Non-Compete Agreements, also known as Covenants not to Compete (Part 1 of 4): Florida's Past Approach " »