COVID-19 – Reopening Businesses
The Covid-19 virus has dramatically changed the way we relate to each other and the way we do business. As I write this, a million Americans have contracted the disease, sixty-thousand people have died and 30 million have been thrown out of work in under a month. On March 22 the Director of the Ohio Department of Health issued a “Stay at Home” order requiring non-essential...Read More
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Business Succession Planning
I have previously written about the need for succession planning for a small firm, such as an insurance agency, small shop or professional practice. Today, let’s discuss planning for transitions in larger operations. Regardless of the product or service provided, CEOs and key employees of both family companies and public ones retire, take other jobs and sometimes die in the saddle. Plans...Read More
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Qualified Opportunity Zones
After a 10-year U.S. economic expansion, taxpayers hold trillions of dollars in unrealized capital gains. To encourage investment in economically depressed areas, the U.S. Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017 created a program that allows investors to essentially “roll” what would otherwise be taxable capital gains into investments into Opportunity Zones (OZ). These zones were nominated...Read More
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Public Records Requests in Ohio
National publications like the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal have recently considered news of The Vindicator’s closing, and suggest generally that local democracies will go only as far as their local papers will carry them. These articles assume that if the local news dies, so does an informed citizenry. Local news organizations unearth and disseminate truths...Read More
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Selling Your Business
Baby boomers are leaving the workforce in droves. But a business owner who wants to retire cannot simply turn off the lights and head to the beach. Selling a company and getting fair value generally takes several years and careful planning. Step One: Polish the apple. Do not conduct a “Get me the heck out of here” sale. A buyer will not pay full value if it appears a seller is...Read More
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Estate Plans for the Foreign-born
My namesake and great grandfather, Nils P. Johnson, was a Swedish immigrant who settled on “Swede hill” at the top of the Market Street bridge in 1905. He was a wholesale grocer and must have been an affable man. Foreign accent and all, he eventually was elected to the Ohio Senate. Times were simpler then both for immigrants and business people. When great granddad came to town,...Read More
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How Lawyers Help New Businesses
It can be feverishly tempting to set up a new business without first consulting an attorney. With 24/7 online business registration from the Ohio Secretary of State, a new legal entity can be formed in a matter of minutes, day or night. Why then, does our law office receive so many frantic phone calls from individuals who did it themselves? Self-help like this often results in...Read More
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Corporate Culture
Corporate culture is one of those terms that seems like it belongs in a psychology handbook. It’s something that we may not always be aware of, but it really defines our entire work experience. Similar to investing in a quality mattress because, as they say, “You spend half of your life on it,” the prudent businesswoman occasionally examines their corporate culture because they spend...Read More
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