PDO Law Blog
COMPREHENSIVE CHANGES TO LAND USE AND ZONING LAWS
As part of the 2023 legislative session, the Rhode Island General Assembly passed numerous laws, all with varying degrees of impact on zoning and land use issues. One such bill changes the standard by which municipal zoning boards judge applications for a dimensional...
IRS TARGETS MONETIZED INSTALLMENT SALES IN PROPOSED REGULATIONS
IRS Commissioner Werfel has continued the theme from the Dirty Dozen list published in early 2023 to promulgate regulations regarding monetized installment sales. This particular brand of transaction has been marketed to high income individuals with the promise of a...
KEYS TO THE KINGDOM: BALANCING MERIT VS. INHERIT MODELS IN THE FAMILY BUSINESS
A recent article published by Harvard Business Review outlines the importance of distinguishing between merit compensation and inheritance.1 In most family businesses, the second generation inherit positions and compensation, which is usually a formula for disaster....
THE RISE OF THE ROBOTS: ATTORNEY LAMOUREUX TACKLES CHATGPT ON WPRO’S MATT ALLEN SHOW
Since its recent grand entrance to the world stage, ChatGPT has been infiltrating and proliferating past the tech realm and into the business world. As Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to advance, more companies are turning to these technologies to replace human...
DOES AN AGENT UNDER A POWER OF ATTORNEY HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO CREATE A TRUST IN MASSACHUSETTS?
A Power of Attorney (“POA”) is an important estate planning tool and legally binding document that gives another person, chosen by you, the power to act as an agent on your behalf. Within the last year, the Massachusetts Supreme Court issued a decision effecting the...
HOW CHANGES TO RHODE ISLAND’S DECEPTIVE TRADE PRACTICES LAW MAY IMPACT YOUR BUSINESS
In August of 2021, Governor McKee signed into law a significant change to Rhode Island’s Deceptive Trade Practices law. Prior to August 2021, the state’s Deceptive Trade Practices law was held to be inapplicable to “all those activities and businesses which are...
GOVERNOR MCKEE MAKES LONG-AWAITED ANNOUNCEMENT OF RHODE ISLAND CANNABIS CONTROL COMMISSION NOMINATIONS
After much anticipation, Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee made a move critical to advancing the state’s cannabis legalization efforts by naming his appointments to the new Cannabis Control Commission (“CCC”). The announcement of Kimberly Ahern, the Governor’s...
FIRST CIRCUIT EXPLAINS FLSA OVERTIME REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EMPLOYEES
It is well settled that the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) requires employers to pay certain employees overtime pay at one and one-half times the employees’ regular rate. 29 U.S.C.S. §207(a). However, certain employees are exempt from this overtime requirement,...
EXECUTING A CAREFULLY DRAFTED CONFIDENTIALITY AGREEMENT IN AN M&A TRANSACTION
The execution of a confidentiality agreement - or what is also referred to as non-disclosure agreement (NDA) - is typically the first official stage of any merger or acquisition. Prior to this stage, a general discussion may have already occurred, and relevant...