As the end of the year approaches, there are a number of planning techniques that individuals can consider implementing before December 31, and after the first of the year, to take advantage of estate and gift tax savings opportunities. Gifts to Individuals Individuals may gift away a certain amount of assets to other individuals […]
The October, 2018 USEPA Enforcement Alert opens by asking the following question: “Do you know that if you are not lead-safe certified, disturbing just six square feet of a lead-based paint covered surface could cost you fines and even jail time?” In 2018, USEPA announced 141 federal enforcement actions to protect the public, particularly children, […]
The weather is getting cooler, which means that for the nearly two million homes in New York heated by fuel oil, the first delivery of the season may be on the way soon. My colleague and I represent some home fuel delivery companies and I can tell you that if you live in one of […]
New York State has, at long last, released its final model sexual harassment policy and training materials. Back in April, Governor Cuomo signed into law a bill requiring all state employers to adopt what might be the most stringent mandatory anti-sexual harassment policies in the country and to provide sexual harassment prevention training to all […]
In the last post I explained that New York had passed some pretty significant rules aimed at curbing the problem of sexual harassment in the workplace. The paragraphs that follow give a summary of five of the most significant changes included in the reform package and hopefully provide some guidance for employers looking […]
Sexual harassment in the workplace is not a new phenomenon. It has risen to the forefront of public consciousness many times. At least since the infamous Clearance Thomas Supreme Court confirmation hearings in 1992, the general public has been well aware of the problem. Recent revelations about Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein along with a cavalcade […]
It may be hard to believe, but the anniversary of one of the seminal events in environmental history turned 40 this summer. For the past four decades, Love Canal has been known as one of the most significant environmental disasters in U.S. history. The Love Canal neighborhood, located in Niagara Falls, New York, was home […]
In 2013 the Governor rolled out the Reforming the Energy Vision (“REV”) program, which broadly set forth the state’s energy policies and goals. Two of the central goals laid out in the REV were to have 50 percent of the state’s electricity come from renewable sources and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 60 percent […]
Independence Day, when we get together to commemorate the Declaration of Independence and to celebrate all things American. Our country has really come a long way since rebellious colonists threw off the shackles of monarchical rule in the 18th century. From a humble agrarian nation, it has grown to be the dominant military and economic […]
Janis Joplin famously sang “Please don’t do it to me…won’t you move over?”, and in New York and many other states, her plea to move over has been codified into law. Formally titled the Ambrose-Searles Move Over Act, Section 1144-a of New York’s Vehicle and Traffic Law is commonly called the Move Over Law. […]