April 2, 2020
Article by: Kevin R. Nimmons, Attorney and Partner at Reicker Pfau On April 16, 2019, the Santa Barbara City Council approved an ordinance requiring landlords to offer a minimum 12-month lease term in certain residential leases of “rental units.” Subsequently,
How California’s Tenant Protection Act will Affect Rental Properties
Reicker, Pfau is Proud to Announce that Kevin Nimmons Joined the Firm as Partner in January 2020
Reicker, Pfau, Pyle & McRoy LLP, Santa Barbara’s Business Law Firm, is pleased to announce that Cory Baker has joined the firm as an associate
On January 7, 2020, the Second District Court of Appeal issued a published opinion upholding the trial court’s ruling in favor of Reicker Pfau client Benita Sachs in her capacity as successor trustee to the “Sachs Trust” created by her
Reicker Pfau congratulates Partner Robert Forouzandeh and Associate Cory Baker and its longtime client St. George & Associates (“SGA”) and Edward St. George after they prevailed at trial in the class action case Tran v. St. George & Associates before the Santa Barbara Superior Court.
When a startup is ready to raise its initial round of financing – known as a “seed” or “friends and family” round – the startup and prospective investors must determine how to structure the financing. The conventional way to structure a modest seed round is through the sale and issuance of convertible notes.
Reiker, Pfau, Pyle & McRoy LLP represented Xenon Investment Fund 4, L.P., a software-focused technology private equity firm, in its acquisition of Metricfire.
Partners Michael Pfau and Russell Terry and associates Lauren Wideman and Nicholas Behrman represented Boulder Scientific Company (“BSC”), a specialty chemical company based in Colorado, in its sale to Quad-C Management, Inc.
Reicker, Pfau, Pyle & McRoy LLP represented SimpleLegal, Inc., a leading provider of law firm management software, in its sale to Onit, Inc, with a team led by partners Michael Pfau and Russell Terry and associates Lauren Wideman and Nicholas Behrman.
Reicker, Pfau, Pyle & McRoy LLP, is pleased to announce that Nicholas Behrman has joined the firm and will specialize in transactional law.
Reicker Pfau Partners Michael Pfau and Robert Forouzandeh assist AutoCamp in Strategic Partnership Deal with Whitman Peterson
Reicker, Pfau, Pyle & McRoy is proud to announce that Russell D. Terry became a partner in the firm on January 1, 2019.
It is with great pleasure that Reicker Pfau announces that Mark Carney has joined the firm as a partner.
The California Supreme Court recently attempted to clarify the appropriate criteria for determining whether a worker is an independent contractor, at least with regard to sector-specific “wage orders” that govern issues like overtime, minimum wage, and working conditions.
Reicker, Pfau, Pyle & McRoy LLP is pleased to announce that Meghan K. Woodsome has joined the firm and will specialize in litigation and privacy law.
John G. Busby has joined Reicker Pfau as a partner. Mr. Busby has over thirty-five years experience in the areas of business transactions, estate planning, real estate and taxation. His practice will continue to focus on these areas and he will serve as the head of the firm’s estate planning department.
The statement that the Supreme Court under Chief Justice Roberts, and more specifically the Court majority of five Republican-appointed Justices, has been unusually favorable, even biased, toward business interests is a familiar one in the media and much-repeated among liberal legal commentators (including, with respect to the 2010 Citizens United decision, the President of the United States)
Mike Pfau recently engaged an intimate crowd in a discussion about his experiences, ranging from business activity and formation to mergers and acquisitions. Pfau offered a wealth of stories about his experiences in business and legal ventures that illustrated the strategic steps he believes every entrepreneur and business owner should be aware of in order to maximize control and success.
uppose you own a successful restaurant. Business has been steadily improving and your best customers keep telling you that you should open another store. Maybe they even offer to invest in the venture because they love your food so much.
After nearly four years of anxious anticipation on the part of employers across California, the California Supreme Court issued its ruling in Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court of San Diego County (Hohnbaum) (2012) 53 Cal.4th 1004.
As real property values continue to recover, Californians should be wary of the dangers prescriptive easements pose to their property rights. An easement is a certain narrow right to use the real property of another without owning it
Beginning in the fall of 2012, low-income individuals in Santa Barbara who cannot afford to pay for legal representation will find easier to get free legal representation on matters such as landlord-tenant and family law thanks in part to a new program created by the Santa Barbara Barristers and implemented with Santa Barbara Legal Aid and the Santa Barbara College of Law.
The economic downturn has had an impact on how leases for commercial properties are negotiated in Santa Barbara County. Prior to the downturn, demand for commercial space was robust. Landlords insisted on using their own form leases and made very few concessions to prospective tenants.
Horn sued a couple, whom he had represented in a lot-line dispute for unpaid fees. To no one’s surprise, the couple cross-complained for malpractice and related torts. Horn hired Nemecek & Cole to represent him in the lawsuit.
Reicker, Pfau, Pyle & McRoy, LLP is the premiere business law firm on the Central Coast. The firm provides exceptional business, transactional and litigation services to a wide variety of businesses. The firm has an outstanding reputation for its effective, creative and cost-effective approach to helping businesses with their legal issues and concerns.
Nearly all businesses at some point in time find themselves in a situation that requires the use of business insurance. It’s important to choose carefully because a reliable business insurance company can make all the difference when the going gets tough.
Disability access lawsuits against business and property owners have long been a hotbed for “drive-by” litigation in California. Pursuant to California Senate Bill 1186, the laws pertaining to disability access lawsuits in California have been modified in the hopes of curbing this practice.
The California Building Standards Commission (“CBSC”) recently announced that it has adopted the 2013 California Building Standards Code (the “2013 Code”).1 The California Building Standards Code was last published in 2010, and the 2013 Code will be available online on July 1, 2013
A constant question posed by employers is whether an arbitration provision in an employment contract is enforceable in California. Recently, much of the discussion on this topic has been focused on the enforceability of class action waivers in arbitration provisions which are generally not applicable to small and medium sized employers.
he business law firm often seeks insights from property management firms to help clients who are involved with commercial office, industrial and multi-family residential properties. The goal is to protect client assets, maximize operational efficiencies and maintain a quality environment for creating wealth.
You cannot form, manage and secure your business without following legal obligations enforced by state and/or federal laws. To accomplish this, you need the assistance of an experienced law firm. Below are ten reasons why customers choose Reicker, Pfau, Pyle & McRoy as legal counsel.
On Monday, May 6, 2013, the Senate approved Senate Bill 743, known as “the Marketplace Fairness Act of 2013,”[1] a bill authorizing online retailers that have gross annual receipts in total remote sales in the United States exceeding $1,000,000 to collect a sales tax from residents of states where they sell goods, even if such online retailers do not have a physical presence in these states
One of the many changes to California’s numerous labor laws in 2013 was the modification of California Labor Code Section 1198.5. Pursuant to that statute, an employer must maintain a copy of each employee’s personnel records for at least three years following the end of that employee’s employment.
On Tuesday, July 2, 2013, the Obama Administration announced that it will delay implementing the so-called “employer mandate” of the Affordable Care Act from 2014 until 2015.[1] Section 1513 of the Affordable Care Act added section 4980H of the Internal Revenue Code, which, among other things, imposes a tax on “applicable large employers”
In an unpublished opinion, TransDigm Inc. v. Alcoa Global Fasteners, Inc., 2013 WL 2326881 (Del. Ch. May 29, 2013), the Delaware Court of Chancery has held that even if a buyer disclaims reliance on any representations and warranties outside of a stock purchase agreement, the buyer may nevertheless pursue claims that the seller fraudulently concealed material information.
Santa Barbara County, with its many large parcels of real property is an area rife with potential prescriptive easement claims. A prescriptive easement is just like any other type of easement, except that the person who acquires it does so without the landowner’s consent. The process to acquire a prescriptive easement is similar to, but different from, adverse possession.
A case decided on August 14, Hamilton Beach Brands, Inc. v. Sunbeam Products, Inc. (Fed. Cir. 2013), has held that patent claims may be invalidated when a patent applicant issues a purchase order to a foreign supplier to have products manufactured to the applicant’s specifications and delivered back to the United States.
The lender on a usurious loan is subject to the following civil penalties: (1) forfeiture to the borrower of all interest on the loan, not just the usurious part; and (2) payment to the borrower of triple the amount of interest collected in the year before the borrower brings suit.
A new online privacy law requires operators of commercial web sites or online services that collect “personally identifiable information” (defined below) of California residents to disclose how they respond to “Do Not Track” signals.
o no surprise, in 2014 numerous new regulations will be enacted in California. Here are a brief summary of a few of the new regulations which will impact employer-employee relations:
On December 6, the Supreme Court granted certiori to review CLS Bank Int’l v. Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. to determine the patent eligibility of computer-implemented methods and systems.[1] The Court will address whether claims to computer-implemented inventions, which include claims to systems and machines, processes, and items of manufacture, are directed to patent-eligible subject
Effective July 1, 2014, the TDS has been revised to require disclosure of the seller’s knowledge of certain construction defect claims for newly constructed homes (less than 10 years old). As amended, the TDS will inquire as to whether a seller is aware of any claims or lawsuits involving construction defects threatening to or affecting the real property,
As reported earlier in Robert Forouzandeh’s article New Limited Liability Company Law to Take Effect in 2014 the California Revised Uniform Limited Liability Company Act (“RULLCA”) made substantial changes to California’s limited liability company law and is now in effect.
ection 83 of the Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”) controls the tax treatment of restricted property, including restricted stock, some forms of stock options, and other types of deferred compensation, issued in connection with the performance of, or the refraining from performance of, services
Under California law interest on judgments secured in state court runs at the rate of 10% per annum. (Cal. Code of Civ. Proc. Section 685.010(a).) But what is the rate of interest when a judgment is secured in a diversity action in a federal court located in California?
It seems that over the last few years, large successful family businesses have started developing programs to pull family members back into the business. Perhaps this was triggered by the recession and subsequent jobless recovery, and maybe this was going to happen anyway, but certainly is happening.
RS guidance isn’t “binding precedent” or even sufficient “substantial authority” to get a taxpayer excused from penalties if he follows that guidance and the IRS’s interpretation of the tax law turns out to be wrong. So said U.S. Tax Court Judge Joseph W. Negra on April 15th 2014.
RS guidance isn’t “binding precedent” or even sufficient “substantial authority” to get a taxpayer excused from penalties if he follows that guidance and the IRS’s interpretation of the tax law turns out to be wrong. So said U.S. Tax Court Judge Joseph W. Negra on April 15th 2014.
Even as the Internal Revenue Service continues to evade questions regarding the way it handled applications for tax-exempt status from organizations with the “wrong” political view, on May 27, 2014, a federal judge for the District of Columbia has forced the agency to defend itself in court.
Every business has its own unique culture, and family businesses are no different. What is different about many family businesses though, is the difficulty they have in holding employee/owner family members accountable for their roles in the business. With the lack of accountability comes a lack of consequences when family members fail to deliver for the team.
According to a new study from labor law practitioner Littler, nearly 50 percent of C-suite executives, HR professionals and in-house attorneys said that the stagnant economy is motivating disenchanted employees to bring more lawsuits or claims against their employers.
The annual compilation of the 2014 Top Ranked Law Firms in California is a result of Martindale-Hubbell lawyer and law firm database research. Martindale-Hubbell first identified law firms headquartered in the state with 10 or more attorneys.
Questions typically arise as to how partial day absences from the workplace will affect annual leave hours for exempt employees. A recent decision from the California Fourth Appellate District Court, Rhea v. General Atomics, 2014 DJDAR 9469 has provided some clarification on this issue.
We are offering a comprehensive Trust and Estate Review for $500.00, conducted by a seasoned estate attorney in our Santa Barbara office. Our hope is that this consultation will result in recommendations for revisions or amendments that would ensure that your assets don’t go into probate.
With all this talk about shutting down foreign tax havens and those “unpatriotic” corporate tax inversions, its nice to read something creative, practical and personally beneficial to all of us that are trying to build value and hang onto as much money as possible for our future retirement.
Starting July 1, 2015, many California employers will need to provide paid sick leave benefits to their employees. Governor Jerry Brown approved Assembly Bill No. 1522 on September 10, 2014, enacting the Healthy Workplaces,
amily businesses are just not the same. Not only does a family business need to have all the functionality of a “normal” business, including attending to profits, taxes, operations, sales & marketing, human resources, benefits, etc.,
Three fundamental legal business structures are typically used to form a business. One of the most common question asked by start-ups is, “which one is best for me?” Without getting into all the variations or too much legalese, here are the differences.
Most employers understand that they cannot retaliate against an employee who has filed a report to a government agency regarding any of the employer’s business practices. What most employers do not know is that California law prohibits an employer from retaliating against an employee who the employer simply believes has filed a complaint, even if that employee has not filed such a complaint or the complaint turns out to be false.
Reicker, Pfau, Pyle & McRoy is proud to announce that Robert B. Forouzandeh will become a partner in the firm as of January 2015. Robert will continue his practice in the areas of business, real estate and employment litigation and counseling clients
January usually brings about a slew of additional draconian labor laws in California. January 2015 was no exception. As of January 1, 2015, California restaurants, bars, hotels and other businesses that bring in workers through other companies–such as outside valet parking, security, landscape maintenance and even temp agencies will be liable for the wages of the employees of the service providers
Reicker, Pfau, Pyle, & McRoy LLP is proud to congratulate their partner Robert B. Forouzandeh for being selected to the Pacific Coast Business Times Class of 2015 “40 Under 40 “. Robert handles a variety of business/corporate, real estate and employment litigation matters and serves as outside general counsel for several local companies.
The bill amends Section 1197.5 of the Labor Code in an attempt to ensure equal pay for men and women for “substantially similar work” not just the exact same job, unless the pay differences are based on productivity, merit and/or seniority.
On December 18, 2015, Terroir Capital and Mesa Lane Partners announced the long anticipated commencement of the development of the Inn at Mattei’s Tavern in Los Olivos, CA in Santa Barbara County’s wine region.