If you’ve been paying attention to what Congress is (or isn’t) doing this year, chances are you’ve heard that several advantageous estate and gift tax provisions are set to expire at the end of this year.  However, it’s less likely you’ve heard that the adoption tax credit—one of the largest tax credits available to families–is...

Custody and visitation issues are often the most important and contentious parts of a divorce.  If you and your spouse have embryos in storage at an infertility clinic or other medical facility, the question of who “owns” that stored genetic material may be almost as important as determining the custody of your existing children. As...

st employers know that conducting an exit interview with an employee who has resigned is a good idea. No company wants to lose valued and productive employees without knowing why. But exactly how an exit interview is facilitated will dictate the amount of useful information obtained. For example, a resigning employee may be more willing...

Employers frequently require job applicants to submit to a criminal background check. An applicant’s criminal history can be relevant to an employer in combating theft and fraud, preventing workplace violence, and avoiding potential liability for negligent hiring. However, the use of criminal-history records can constitute unlawful employment discrimination because exclusion from employment of persons with...

MikLin Enterprises, the owner of 10 Jimmy John’s restaurants, recently learned the hard way that retaliating against employees who are engaged in legally protected activity can have serious consequences. In recent years the International Workers of the World (the “Union”), began organizing Jimmy John’s workers at the approximately 1,4000 restaurants nationwide, and 40-50 in the...

Minnesota divorce lawyers are faced with unique and challenging issues when representing farmers in divorce proceedings, especially when dividing up the marital assets and debts. Particularly important in light of today’s farmland prices and other issues contributing to the value of the marital estate, a substantial award of cash or equity in a farm to the...

In part one of Going Nowhere Fast, I talked about the headaches of getting a U.S. passport for a child under the age of 16.  As big of a hassle as the dual parental consent process may be, there are very good reasons for it, which are the topic of this blog entry. Simply put,...