How would you like to pay your lawyer $1500 per hour? This is what Greenwich, Connecticut divorce lawyer Gary I. Cohen charged his client (taking into account a $300,000 bonus). As a result, he is now being investigated by Connecticut disciplinary authorities for charging excessive fees and violating the disciplinary rule that "a lawyer shall […]
Buy-sell agreements are like prenuptial agreements for people in business together; Buy-sell agreements set forth what is going to happen when things go wrong and business partners want to, or have to, separate. As with prenuptial agreements, people tend to overlook their importance or simply don’t want to deal with the subject; after all, they […]
You may have read it in the New York Times, the Legal Reader or on AboveTheLaw, a single comma in a 14- page Canadian contract may decide whether the contract was rightfully cancelled by Atlantic Canada, a telephone company. This decision supposedly is worth 1 million Canadian dollars. The contractual language at issue is as […]
A lot has been said about first impressions in the business of law. Does your letterhead look fancy, are your business cards engraved, is your correspondence well written and free of typographical errors? While all that is still important, I feel one aspect of professional appearance is rarely mentioned. Does your lawyer (or other professional […]
A recent case by a federal court in New York illustrates the importance of choice of law and forum selection clauses in each and every contract or guaranty. In Quebecor v. Harsha Associates (Quebecor World (USA), Inc. v. Harsha Associates, L.L.C., et al (2006 WL 2918797 (W.D.N.Y.)), the court held that a guarantor was not […]
A Polish Google search that resulted in a click to my blog asks: "foreign corp doing business in NY requires registered agent" Here is the belated answer: Nie New York law does not require a foreign corporation (i.e. a corporation not organized under the law of New York) that does business in New York to […]
Q: All of a sudden, I don’t seem to be able to lift my arms and my speech is slurred. What should I do?A: There are numerous books and software that can help you diagnose your own medical condition. A doctor doesn’t need to be brought in; but if you become unconscious and don’t have […]
Aside from the obvious questions such as "what is the name of the entity?", you should think about the following issues before asking your attorney to start drafting your limited liability company operating agreement for your multiple member New York limited liability company ("LLC"). 1. Who is going to manage the business affairs of the […]
Great line by Lema Korshid on Mindpetals: "The only thing that the form contract comes with besides an “idiot tag” is no guarantees." Read the full article "Form Contracts – Use them at your Own Risk". By the way, I think I called her a non-lawyer the other day. From this article it seems that […]
Thankfully, a New York court has held that the following provision in a retainer agreement is unenforceable: "If client fails to pay for charges due under this agreement and the law firm takes legal action and is awarded such charges, client shall owe to law firm costs, expenses and attorneys’ fees (including but not limited […]