The trend in health care is increased governmental regulation making it imperative for health care providers and insurers to understand patient rights. The Patient Self Determination Act of 1990 significantly advanced patient rights, while the Affordable Care Act...
PLDO Law Blog
Month: June 2014
As the Pendulum Swings: The Bribery Backlash to the Honest Services Doctrine
'T was not so long ago that we saw an insurance company lobbyist in Massachusetts find himself convicted of Wire and Mail Fraud as a result of his company picking up the tab for golf and entertainment junkets to Puerto Rico by the Chairman of Massachusetts House...
Health Care is Not a Simple Matter
Health care and health insurance are evolving and becoming increasingly more fragmented because of the enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). Prior to the ACA, a majority of U.S. citizens maintained primary health insurance...
Automatic Revocation of Tax-Exempt Status: A New Streamlined Process for Retroactive Reinstatement
Federal law mandates that most tax-exempt organizations file annual returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Following the enactment of the Pension Protection Act of 2006, and commencing in the 2007 tax year, tax-exempt organizations which fail to file...
ONE RISK YOU SHOULDN’T TAKE IS NOT HAVING THE RIGHT LIFE INSURANCE
If you never return from your sailing trip around the globe or reemerge from the deep ocean depths on the submarine destined for the Titanic, will your family receive the death benefit proceeds from your life insurance policy? That answer, as well as the answer to...
HOW TO BUY ULTRA-DANGEROUS ASSETS
It’s never a good idea to buy an asset, like a boat or plane, in your own name or to have multiple parties on the title. First of all, when your name is on the title, you are personally liable for any damage that the asset may cause. For example, you and Joe own a...
SO, YOU WANT TO WRESTLE AN ALLIGATOR?
Before base jumping into the miasma of risk, the first thing you should do is make sure your estate plan, in its current iteration, meets your needs and has adapted to any challenging or changing family situation. A well-rounded estate plan is literally more of a life...
HOW LIFE INSURANCE PROCEEDS COULD AFFECT A COMPANY’S VALUATION FOR ESTATE TAX PURPOSES
A recent case brought to light the impact that a stock-purchase agreement and life insurance proceeds may – or may not - have on the valuation of a closely held company for estate tax purposes. In this case that caused a split between the 8th and 11th Circuits, the...
HASTE MAKES WASTE . . . CASH THE CHECK.
One never knows what corner the grim reaper lies behind. A final illness can often accelerate quickly and deprive a donor of adequate time to complete gifts for tax purposes that he intended to make. In a recent federal court case, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals...