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Corporate Transparency Act—Here It Comes

Among the new laws taking effect in 2024, the Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”) imposes new and extensive annual reporting requirements for most registered small businesses across the United States. Specifically, those registered small businesses – including corporations and LLC’s with less than 20 full-time employees or less than $5,000,000 in annual gross receipts or sales - are required to report personal information for owners that either exercise substantial control over the business entity, or who own 25% or more of the entity. Failure to comply with the CTA’s reporting requirements could result in stringent penalties, including fines and even criminal charges.

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Should My Rentals be in an LLC?

If you own real property – especially residential rental property – you’ve probably given some thought to liability protection. You’ve probably also considered placing properties in a limited liability company (LLC) as a means of liability protection. This makes sense; an LLC does provide you and your personal assets a layer of protection against liabilities and claims that may be made against the LLC. However, an LLC is not necessarily the right choice for every situation – and, in fact, an LLC may add significant expense and may even cause forfeiture of valuable tax benefits.

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Gary R. King Brings His Practice to The Alvarez Firm

It is our pleasure to share with you that Gary R. King has chosen to bring his practice to The Alvarez Firm, establishing a San Juan Capistrano office for The Alvarez Firm.

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Real Estate Transfers Between Parents and Children Are Likely to See Higher Property Taxes Starting in February 2021

In just a few weeks, Proposition 19 will take effect in California – and with it, some of the most significant changes to the state’s property tax laws in nearly 35 years. In particular, the new law eliminates many of the tax protections that, for decades, had been afforded to transfers between parents and children, and grandparents and grandchildren.

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Helping Your Loved Ones Without Losing Your Inheritance

With our aging society, we attorneys are increasingly encountering an ongoing dilemma faced by our clients – that is, how to protect our elderly loved ones who may be showing signs of mental deterioration. Even when family members do recognize the problem, they may be unsure of what to do.

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Potential Business Interruption Coverage For Corona Virus: Shut-Down By Civil Authority

Perhaps – just perhaps – somewhere buried in your client’s commercial property insurance policy is a provision promising coverage for loss of business “due to order of civil authority.” Now is the time to look, because the global calamity caused by the Corona virus has resulted in the shut down of many businesses by civil authority.

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Transferring Your Low Property Tax Bill to Your Children Through a Living Trust

If you own real property in California, Proposition 13 ties the taxable value of your property to the fair market value of your property at the time you acquired it. In other words, as the value of your property rises with the market over the years and over the decades, your property tax bill will not rise significantly.

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How a Letter of Intent Might Save Your Business Deal

Recently, I had a client ask that I draw up a contract for a new business deal he had just negotiated. It was a sophisticated deal, and my client was sure that he had ironed out all the details. But – just to make sure everyone was on the same page – I recommended that we first start with a letter of intent, rather than go straight to a binding contract. And I’m glad my client heeded my advice.

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Happy 4th of July

This week we honor the founding of this great nation, a beacon calling to those throughout the world. And we honor one of this nation’s newest citizens, our very own Jean Claude Razac. Congratulations, JC, on this first 4th of July as a fellow citizen. America is blessed to have you!

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Happy Thanksgiving

As we all prepare to take a moment to gather with our families and express our thanks to God for all that we have received, we at The Alvarez Firm are doing the same.

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Insurance Recovery Attorney David A. Shaneyfelt In Current Issue of California Business News

"It's a lot easier to spend money when it isn't yours." Companies paying their worker's compensation insurance companies under large deductible programs should be wary of claims settlement costs and practices.

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The Homestead Exemption by Sean M. Finerty

The Homestead Exemption - not to be confused with the Homeowner's Exemption¹ - allows a homeowner to protect a significant portion of their home's equity from creditors. The amount of the exemption varies based on certain factors:

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We Are All Negotiators by Paul M. DiPietro

We are all negotiators. Whether it’s over our rent, a new car, a salary, getting out of a ticket, or deciding what movie to see, we negotiate almost every day.

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Christopher P. Young to Speak at NBI Continuing Legal Ed Seminar on "Estate Planning from A to Z"

Mr. Young is set to give a lecture on "Planning for Disability, Incapacity, and End-of-Life Decisions" for the Nation Business Institute's seminar, Estate Planning from A to Z.

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Insurance Recovery Attorney David A. Shaneyfelt To Speak at National Constitution Conference

For the seventh straight year, Alvarez attorney David A. Shaneyfelt has been selected to speak at a webinar on March 29 sponsored by the National Constitution Conferences on “The Insurer’s Reservation of Rights Letter: Responding to the Threat of Denied Coverage.” For more information on the webinar, see here.

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Insurance Recovery Attorney David A. Shaneyfelt Featured On Bridgeport CE Programs

Alvarez attorney David A. Shaneyfelt has been a featured speaker at two recent events hosted by the Bridgeport Continuing Education company. In December, he spoke at Bridgeport’s annual 2016 Wage & Hour Litigation and Management Conference in Los Angeles on “Insurance Coverage Issues for Wage and Hour Class Actions.” In March, 2017, he led a Bridgeport webinar program on "Employment Practices Liability Insurance: Preserving, Defending, and Pressing Your Rights To Coverage." For more information, contact him at dshaneyfelt@alvarezfirm.com

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Tiffany's Trip to the Philippines & Visit to the Barte Medical Clinic

This past summer, twenty members of my mom’s side of the family travelled back to the provincial coastal town my parents grew up in – Albuera, Leyte in the Philippines. It had been over fifteen years since my last visit to the Philippines. Some of my fondest memories of that trip have been providing meals to kids of the town and participating in the family-sponsored Barte Medical Clinic. Now that many of us are older and can contribute, we wanted to host another medical clinic to give back to the town that our parents call “home.”

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