Business Bulletin
Illinois Secure Choice Program
The deadline for all Illinois employers with 5 or more employees to offer their own retirement program or facilitate their employees’ participation in the Illinois Secure Choice Program operated by the Illinois State Treasurer as an Auto-IRA passed in November 2023....
Illinois Equal Pay Registration Certificate
Employers with over 100 Illinois employees and required to file an Employee Information Report (EEO-1) with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) are also required by the Illinois Equal Pay Act to obtain an Equal Pay Registration Certificate (EPRC), even...
Special Needs Trust
Access to many of the government and charity funded programs for children and adults with special physical, emotional, or intellectual needs may only provide those benefits to persons on a financial need basis, and their receipt of gifts and inheritances could...
What to do if Sued
Being served with a summons, subpoena, citation, claim, notice, lien or lawsuit is never good, but they cannot be ignored. As quick action is usually required, you should be prepared. Some initial steps in response to receiving one of these documents include: Stay...
New Illinois Business Laws
With over 300 new laws taking effect January 1, 2024, some that could have a substantial impact on your business include: The Federal Corporate Transparency Act requires a business to file with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. New criminal penalties for...
Requesting Genetic/Medical History Information
The Illinois Genetic Information Privacy Act of 1998 410 ILCS 513/25(c)(1) (GIPA) prohibits inquiries into a person’s family medical history and obtaining genetic information. Like the federal Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act of 2008 (GINA) that regulates...
Inventory/Product Loss
Insurance trade groups report an increasing number of loss claims arising from inventory and product loss – often employee theft. As these losses increase premiums increases will follow. Be sure that any steps taken to prevent such losses are legal, defensible,...
Disclosing a Data Breach
Suffering a data breach could be fatal to your business, but if it isn’t, don’t let your handling the breach make it so. Federal and state laws and trade association standards provide some guidance on when, what type and to whom notices of a data breach must be...
New View on Unfair Competition
A recent Illinois Appellate Court ruling upheld a carpet cleaner’s claim against a competitor that its competitors’ use of cleaning chemicals banned by the EPA that do a better cleaning job than his legal cleaning solutions constituted unfair competition in Illinois....
Negative Pledge in Loan Documents
While it is always important to read and understand the contracts you sign, loan documents, particularly those that look to be the lender’s printed “standard form” can contain hidden provisions. While a loan may say its “unsecured,” not constituting a lien on your...
