Launching a website or other advertising alone is not enough to prove “use” of a service mark. You must actually render the services you claim in connection with your service mark before you file your federal use-based registration application or statement of use. The Federal Circuit has Continue Reading
Employers: Properly Administer Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans, or You May Be Held Liable to Participants for Adverse Tax Consequences
An employer’s liability to retirees for “improper” FICA tax withholding illustrates the importance of diligent administration of nonqualified deferred compensation plans. In the recent case of Davidson v. Henkel Corp.,1 a federal district court found an employer, Henkel Corporation Continue Reading
SBICs Given Additional Flexibility to Structure Their Investments
Summary The Small Business Administration (SBA) adopted revisions to its regulations, loosening its prohibition on small business investment companies (SBICs) investing in passive businesses. Under the revised regulations an SBIC can now structure its investments through a second passive holding Continue Reading
Private Equity Websites and General Solicitations: A Case of Overzealous Hypersensitivity?
It’s a well-settled law of physics: for every action, there’s a reaction. In some cases, there’s overreaction – generally best avoided, but a phenomenon to which many private equity funds may have fallen victim. Here, we examine ways that private funds can utilize their websites and generally market Continue Reading
New Jersey Supreme Court: No Statute of Limitations for Private Claims for Contribution Under NJ Spill Act
Following principles of strict statutory construction and refusing to “unsettle a decades-long understanding in this State,” on January 26, 2015, the New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously ruled that there is no statute of limitations for private claims for contribution brought under the New Jersey Continue Reading
Private Equity: SEC Custody Rule—One Size Does Not Fit All
As a result of the Dodd-Frank Act, since 2012 investment advisers that operate pooled investment vehicles such as hedge funds and private equity funds with $150 million of assets under management became subject to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the Act).1 An investment adviser that is Continue Reading
Preparing for and Recovering from Winter Storm Juno
Winter storm Juno is expected to hit this evening and last through Wednesday, impacting businesses from the Mid-Atlantic to New England. Millions may be affected by power outages and travel disruptions, and many may suffer property damage because of strong winds, coastal flooding, ice, and heavy Continue Reading
It’s That Time Again! Tax Appeals in Connecticut: Know When to File
The deadline for appealing local property taxes in Connecticut is approaching. If you are considering appealing local property taxes this year, the following is a general explanation of Connecticut’s appeal procedure and deadlines. Real and personal property is assessed as it exists on October 1 Continue Reading
Better SAFE Than Sorry? A New Way to Finance Startups
The game for fledgling companies and their investors is early-round, seed-stage financings, and there’s a new player in town. Already embraced by West Coast venture capitalists and start-ups, SAFEs – Simple Agreements for Future Equity – appear to be headed east and poised to move alongside, and Continue Reading
QSBS Tax Incentives Extended…For Now
What Happened? In the wee hours of December 16th, Congress passed H.R. 5771, the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014 (“TIPA”), a stopgap measure that, among other things, retroactively extends certain tax incentives that expired on December 31, 2013. President Obama signed the bill into law on Continue Reading