Six Attorneys Selected for 2017 Ohio Super Lawyers

In News by Coolidge Wall

Coolidge Wall Co., L.P.A. is pleased to announce that six of its attorneys have been selected by their peers for inclusion in 2017 Ohio Super Lawyers®: Michelle D. Bach — Workers’ Compensation Christopher R. Conard — General Litigation Marc L. Fleischauer — Employment & Labor David C. Korte — Workers’ Compensation Stephen M. McHugh — State/Local/Municipal Law David P. Pierce — Business Litigation Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using …

“Blacklisting” Reporting Requirements for Federal Contractors

In Labor by Coolidge Wall

On August 24, 2016, the federal government published the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council’s Final Rule and the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Final Guidance implementing President Obama’s July 2014 Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order 13673. The Final Rule and Guidance imposes numerous and substantial burdens on federal contractors. First, federal contractors, both prime contractors and subcontractors, bidding on new contracts with an estimated value of more than $500,000, must disclose any labor law decision rendered against them in the past three years, regardless of when the underlying conduct occurred. This reporting requirement has often been referred to as the …

A core determinant of business success: a well-executed contract

In Business Organizations by Coolidge Wall

Diverse business clients in Ohio, as well as nationally and across the globe, that the proven attorneys of Dayton-based Coolidge Wall — one of Ohio’s longest-tenured law firms — have successfully represented over many decades centrally share at least one important attribute. And that is this, as noted on a relevant page of our firm’s website: a “good contract.” That likely seems a flat truism to most of our readers, with it being an obvious fact that a successful business relationship between two or more entities is unlikely to ensue and sustain itself in the absence of a clear and …

IRS Extends Due Date for Furnishing Individual Reporting Statements under the Affordable Care Act

In Employee Benefits by Coolidge Wall

On November 18th, the Internal Revenue Service issued Notice 2016-70 which: Extends by 30 days the deadline for providing to employees the 2016 Forms 1095-B (Health Coverage) and 1095-C (Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage) from January 31, 2017 to March 2, 2017; and Extends certain good faith transition relief from penalties that apply to the 2016 ACA information reporting requirements. Form 1095-B must be furnished to individuals by insurers, employers with self-insured health plans, and certain other providers of minimum essential coverage. Form 1095-C must be provided by applicable large employers (those with 50 or more full-time employees, including …

An Overview of New Statute Regarding Disputes Alleging Denial of Access to Public Records

In General by Coolidge Wall

On September 28, 2016, Ohio Revised Code Section 2743.75 went into effect, which gives the Court of Claims exclusive and sole jurisdiction over disputes alleging denial of access to public records. This Section gives aggrieved individuals an alternative to filing a mandamus action if their public records request is denied. If an individual’s public records request is denied, they now have the option to file a complaint in the Court of Claims with a $25 filing fee. When a complaint is filed, a special master will be appointed. The special master will determine whether or not the case should go …

HALTED! Court Stops DOL Overtime Rules From Taking Effect

In Employment Law by Coolidge Wall

In a somewhat surprising and certainly controversial move, a federal court in Texas has issued a preliminary injunction stopping for the time being the DOL’s overtime rules from taking effect on December 1, 2016, as originally contemplated. Moreover, the court’s order applies to all employers on a nationwide basis. The primary DOL regulation at issue would have increased the minimum threshold salary for “white collar” exempt employees from $455 per week ($23,660 annually) to $913 per week ($47,476 annually). In granting an injunction, the court agreed with a number of states, including Ohio, that drastically raising the minimum salary needed …

Wilberding Receives Prestigious Lloyd O’Hara Public Interest Law Award

In News by Coolidge Wall

Merle Wilberding, senior attorney at Coolidge Wall Co., LPA, was presented the Lloyd O’Hara Public Interest Law Award at the 2016 Access to Justice Awards Gala on November 3. The event, held at the Ponitz Center at Sinclair Community College in Dayton, and was presented by Advocates for Basic Legal Equality, Inc. (ABLE), Legal Aid of Western Ohio, Inc. (LAWO) and the Greater Dayton Volunteer Lawyer Project (GDVLP). The annual Awards Gala recognizes individuals and organizations that have provided extraordinary assistance to disadvantaged individuals and families in the Dayton community. Wilberding was honored for his ongoing efforts to educate at-risk …

Coolidge Wall Receives 2017 Best Law Firms First-Tier Ranking

In News by Coolidge Wall

Coolidge Wall Co., L.P.A. has received first-tier Metropolitan ranking in nine practice areas by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers in the 2017 “Best Law Firms” list. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal expertise among ranked law firms. The nine areas for which the firm received first-tier ranking are Corporate Law; Real Estate Law; Banking and Finance Law; Commercial Litigation; Employment Law – Management; Labor Law – Management; Litigation – Labor & Employment; Litigation – Land Use & Zoning; and Litigation – Real Estate. To be eligible for …

IRS Announces 2017 Pension Plan Limitations

In Employee Benefits by Coolidge Wall

On October 27 the IRS announced cost-of-living adjustments for 2017 retirement plan contributions. For 2017, the amounts that individuals will be able to contribute to retirement plans will remain unchanged at $18,000. The catch-up contribution limit for employees age 50 and over will also remain unchanged at $6,000. IRA and SIMPLE retirement plan contribution limits will not change for 2017. Although individual contribution limits will not change for 2017, the IRS has adjusted the maximums that apply to the defined contribution plan annual addition limit, the defined benefit plan annual benefit limit, the annual compensation limit applicable for retirement plan …

Protecting vital interests: noncompete and nondisclosure agreements

In Business Organizations by Coolidge Wall

Diverse businesses operating in virtually every industry in Ohio and across the country contemplate a corporate double-edged sword when it comes to some highly valued employees with key skills and intimate access to proprietary data. And that is this: They obviously want to secure the employment of such individuals, but they must also safeguard the business against the possibility that those singular workers might leave the company in the future and compromise confidential information by revealing it to competitors. We clarify that concern on a website page at the long-tenured Dayton law firm of Coolidge Wall that discusses noncompete and …