Recently in a Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals case, Verkuilen v. Mediabank, LLC, the court analyzed the administrative employee exemption to the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). 646 F.3d 979 (7th Cir. 2011). Penny Verkuilen was an account manager for Mediabank, which “provides computer software to advertising agencies.” An account manager’s job is to “go out, understand [the customer’s requirement],…
This past summer, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) issued a series of decisions regarding whether employees were unlawfully discharged for making comments about their employment on Facebook. In all of the cases, the NLRB determined that the employees’ comments were not protected under the National Labor Relations Act. In each case, the NLRB found that the employee’s comments were…
Parr Richey Frandsen Patterson Kruse attorney Kent Frandsen recently advanced to the second round of the 2011 USGA Senior Amateur golf championship. Prior to commencing his second round play, Michael Trostel/USGA, featured a great article on Mr. Frandsen and his various golf achievements throughout the years. Please click here to read the full article at the USGA website.
Review of the IRS 20-Factor Test The 20 factors identified by the IRS and reported in the publication Joint Committee on Taxation, Present Law and Background Relating to Worker Classification for Federal Tax Purposes (JCX-26-07), May 7, 2007 are as follows: 1. Instructions: If the person for whom the services are performed has the right to require compliance with instructions,…
Deficits are high, and taxes need to be higher to pay the high costs of government. But raising taxes is politically difficult. So, where can the IRS look to increase revenues? The “tax gap”. The Tax Gap Misclassification Solution On February 4, 2009, “TIGTA” (Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration) issued a report and recommendation noting, among other things, that…
Effective July 1, 2011, Indiana’s much disputed Senate Bill 590 became law. This bill has been hotly contested since its inception for its harsh response to illegal immigrants in Indiana and those who employ them. Certain provisions are still being litigated in court. Although the bill has been watered down from its most extreme provisions, it still contains many changes…
Indiana utility lawyers took note on June 9, 2011, when the Indiana Court of Appeals issued a decision in United States Steel Corporation versus Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) addressing the issue of when a company becomes a public utility.1 The dispute arose after ArcelorMittal acquired property within U.S. Steel’s large-scale northern Indiana operation and began to purchase certain…
Avon attempted to argue that Indiana Code §36-1-2-23 permits it to regulate the water in the Park because groundwater is a watercourse or body of water within the meaning of the statute. Indiana Code §36-9-1-10 states that a watercourse “includes, lakes, rivers, streams, and any other body of water.” Further, Avon argued that the Township and WCCD’s plan to sell…
On November 12, 2010, the Indiana Court of Appeals issued an opinion in a case affecting Indiana municipal law and Indiana utility law, Town of Avon v. W. Cent. Conservancy Dis., addressing whether an ordinance authorizing a town to regulate the sale or lease of natural resources was valid. The Court also addressed whether an aquifer was a “watercourse,” subject…
In Time Warner, a television cable company assessed late fees against its customers when their payments were not received by the due date. Time Warner’s customers filed lawsuits in order to recover the late fees paid in excess of the company’s actual damages caused by the late payments. 802 N.E.2d at 887-889. The Indiana Supreme Court held in Time Warner…