Do For-Profit Corporations Have Religious Freedom?

In Business Law, Healthcare Reform by Coolidge Wall

A provision under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) has raised the question of whether for-profit corporations have religious freedom. The ACA through guidelines from the Health Resources and Services Administration requires that non-grandfathered group health plans and individual health insurance cover, without cost to the individual, all FDA-approved contraceptive methods. The FDA-approved methods include contraception known as the “morning-after pill” and the “week-after pill”, which the FDA has acknowledged can terminate pregnancy after conception. While exemptions for contraception coverage have been made for religious non-profit corporations, no exemptions are available to for-profit corporations. In Oklahoma (10th Circuit …

Social Media and Employee Rights

In Employment Law by Coolidge Wall

The rise of social media in the last several years has led to a pattern of people pouring out every detail of their personal lives – from the mundane to the potentially damaging – for the world to see. Understandably, this has led to a variety of clashes with employers over issues ranging from social media use at work, to posting of disparaging comments, to workers’ compensation fraud. A recent ruling by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) should give employers throughout the United States a moment of pause. While employees who disparage their employers online might expect that this …

Your Business May be Owed a Tax Return

In Business Law by Coolidge Wall

Getting an unexpected bonus is always nice, especially if you own a small business. On December 18, 2012, Ohio Governor Kasich and Tax Commissioner Joe Testa announced that the Ohio Department of Taxation (ODT) is implementing a new policy of notifying business taxpayers of potential tax overpayments, beginning with the Commercial Activity Tax (CAT). The ODT has already identified about 3,500 CAT taxpayers that may be eligible for refunds totaling $13.7M. ODT believes that approximately 11,000 CAT taxpayers will be eligible for tax refunds. ODT will send letters to all potentially eligible business taxpayers notifying them that they may be …

Employing Minors in Ohio — What You Need to Know

In Employment Law by Coolidge Wall

There was a time when child labor was a major problem in the United States. While that era has largely passed, employers who hire children under the age of 18 are still subject to a number of restrictions. It can be easy for businesses that only periodically employ minors to overlook these statutory requirements, leading to trouble down the road. Ultimately, Ohio’s minor employment laws are not overly burdensome so long as employers are aware that the laws exist and learn about their responsibilities. The Ohio Minor Labor Law considers any person under the age of 18 who has not …