Liens are claims on property for nonpayment. When a lien is placed on a property, the owner of that property can be affected in profound ways. A bank will not give a mortgage to a property with a lien on it, for example. This can be a problem if you are paying for a property to be developed with a construction loan and you need to convert that loan to a permanent one at the end of the project. If a mechanic's lien is put on the property, you may not be able to get your loan to repay the construction loan when construction is complete.
Read MoreA contract creates private law, and the parties to the agreement must abide by all of its terms. You are legally obligated to fulfill the provisions of a contract, just as you are obliged to obey any law which is passed by the government. If you fail to fulfill your obligations, the other party to the contract can use the court system to obtain a legal remedy, including compensation for damages.
Read MoreUnfortunately, shareholder disputes can arise frequently in closely held companies, as well as in larger organizations. When a dispute arises, the future success of the organization could be affected because the disagreement could hurt the company's brand, make it impossible for co-owners to work together, and result in a delay in the making of important decisions.
Read MoreWhen an employee leaves your company, you may consider offering severance pay in exchange for an employee signing a severance contract or exit agreement. The severance pay could be a benefit that the employee is provided in order to create a legally valid and binding contract wherein the employee agrees to certain important contractual terms.
Read MoreThe Equal Employment Opportunity Commission defines sexual harassment as a “ form of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.” Behaviors of an alleged harasser must meet certain criteria in order to be considered unlawful harassment. If a co-worker or supervisor simply asks you on a date, for example, this may not be considered harassing behavior that is actionable. Sometimes harassment is clearly occurring, but in other situations it is a more difficult judgement call to determine whether harassment happened or not.
Read MoreYour residential construction contract needs to be very detailed. It should include complete information on the cost of construction, on the timeline for construction, on who will be performing work, and on when the construction project will be completed. If you wish to ensure a project is completed on time, you may also consider including clauses to provide penalties for delays that result in the project getting off schedule.
Read MoreIt can be difficult to determine why you were not hired, as there may be many reasons why someone would be passed over for a job. However, if discrimination of any type played a role in you not being hired for a position you were qualified for, it becomes very important to understand whether the potential employer violated anti-discrimination laws.
Read MoreGoing to court should generally be a last resort when a partnership dispute arises, and/or should be reserved for cases where an agreement cannot be reached in any other way. Going to court could also become necessary if your partner has committed an egregious violation, such as breach of fiduciary duty or suspected fraud or embezzlement.
Read MoreIf a lien has been put on your property by someone who performed work for you, you need to contact an experienced mechanics lien attorney right away. A mechanics lien can impact your property rights in profound ways and can make you responsible for paying the contractor or subcontractor who put the lien on your property.
Read MoreIf you are going to be doing any type of land development, including new construction or remodeling, you need to make sure you do your due diligence. You want to make certain that your land can be used for the purposes that you intend and that your updates or your improvements are permissible. It is up to you to conduct your due diligence before acquiring property or entering into a contract for remodeling or building so you don't find yourself with land you cannot use or a building that violates the rules.
Read MoreIn May, the Department of Labor instituted new overtime rules by making a change to the definition of “exempt.” Exempt workers are employees who generally are not entitled to receive overtime time. If a worker is classified as an exempt employee, he does not get paid any extra money for hours over 40 per hour. If a worker is not exempt, on the other hand, he generally can get paid time-and-a-half for the extra hours that he works over normal business hours.
Read MoreThe creation of an unreasonably unpleasant working environment on the basis of any unwanted sexual behaviors, including by co-workers and peers, could potentially be unlawful and the company could be held responsible if there were no policies in place to prevent the behavior and if no system was set up to make certain that this type of behavior could be reported.
Read MoreIf your tenants are causing a disturbance, you need to take action because your other tenants could become angry, could complain regularly to you, or could even potentially have grounds for breaking a lease if the tenant who is causing the problems is making the property unsafe or uninhabitable.
Read MoreA Philadelphia commercial real estate lawyer provides assistance with many different aspects of commercial real estate investments and real estate transactions. Owning, investing in, or leasing commercial real estate can be a major investment and can require a substantial commitment on your part.
Read MoreIn general, employers have wide leeway to act in accordance with their own beliefs and theories and to hire and fire anyone for any reason or no reason at all. However, certain groups of people are protected from being fired because of who they are, because these groups of people have historically been discriminated against and treated unfairly by employers.
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