Client Alerts

The Michigan Legislature approved a ballot initiative on September 5, 2018, called the “Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act,” which increased the minimum wage to $10.00 per hour effective January 1, 2019, and over time, increasing the minimum wage to $12.00 per hour by January 1, 2022. 

The State of Michigan recently unveiled the Universal Symbol of the Medical Marijuana Licensing Facilities Act and provided requirements in conjunction with usage of the Universal Symbol.

Utah has joined a growing list of states to legalize marijuana. With the addition of Utah, thirty-three (33) states plus the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for either medical or recreational purposes.

The United States Trade Representative published a formal notice in the 12/17/2018 Federal Register, “at the direction of the President”, postponing the previously announced increase in List 3 Section 301 tariffs from 10% to 25% until March 2, 2019.

On September 5, 2018, the Michigan legislature enacted the “Earned Sick Time Act,” which generally requires employers to provide paid sick leave to employees, starting in March of 2019. 

It started with two California-based entrepreneurs looking to develop a satellite to enhance internet web access in Africa.

On November 29, 2018, the U.S. Tax Court once again ruled that a corporation engaged in the cannabis industry was not entitled to deduct ordinary and necessary business expenses incurred in the operation of its day-to-day business operations.

As competition within the global marketplace continues to intensify, there has never been a time when protecting your company’s trade secrets has been more important. Recent legal developments underscore that point.

Despite the passage of laws in Michigan and 45 other states that have permitted or decriminalized the use of cannabis-related products for medical or recreational use or both, there remains an 800-pound gorilla known as the federal government that makes it a crime to manufacture, sell or possess marijuana.

On October 31, 2018, a jury in a Colorado federal civil action returned a verdict against a real property owner on its RICO claim against an adjacent cannabis grow operation, concluding that the plaintiff failed to prove financial loss caused from odors emitted from the defendant’s grow operation.

On November 6, 2018, Michigan voters passed a referendum which will make the recreational use and possession of marihuana legal under Michigan law.  The law will take effect 10 days after the official election results are certified, which should occur sometime in early December 2018.  The legalization of recreational use and possession of marihuana raises a number of practical and legal questions, but we will focus here on questions employers may have.

Yesterday, the Michigan Court of Appeals held that the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) storm water drainage fee is permissible and not a tax subject to voter approval under the Headlee Amendment.

After much debate, Michigan voters have voted to permit recreational use of marijuana.  As the first Midwest state to legalize recreational marijuana, other states will be closely tracking how Michigan implements this new law. 

The Internal Revenue Service has recently announced cost-of-living adjustments applicable to dollar limitations for retirement plans (and other items) for 2019. 

On Tuesday, November 6th, 2018, Michigan voters will decide whether to legalize recreational marijuana. If approved, Proposal 1 will brand Michigan the first state in the Midwest to legalize the possession and use of recreational marijuana for adults.

At 12:00 AM on October 17, 2018, Green was a “GO” in Newfoundland Canada. From there, every hour, legalized marijuana went into effect across each province and territory. The Cannabis Act allows for all people 18 or older (in Quebec and Alberta, and 19 or older everywhere else) to possess up to 30 grams of legal marijuana, or “equivalent non-dried form.” 

Iconic American retailer, Sears Holding Company, which operates both the Sears and K-Mart brand locations (including Big-K, Sears Automotive Centers and other related companies) filed Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in the Southern District of New York.

With the election around the corner, nonprofit organizations – especially charities should review the rules about public policy, lobbying, and political activities. Tax exempt nonprofit organizations must be careful about the types of public and political activities they undertake, but charities and other nonprofit organizations don’t have to give up the ability to take positions on public issues or to take action to influence public policy merely because of its exempt status. Federal tax limits on the political activities of tax-exempt organizations are, in fact, often narrower than many people think. Tax-exempt organizations have the right to engage in public debate and make their positions on important issues known, and even 501(c)(3) charities, which are the most heavily regulated, may engage in some political activities that further their tax-exempt, charitable purposes.

On October 4, 2018, the U.S. Department of Transportation released the long-awaited Autonomous Vehicles 3.0 Preparing for the Future of Transportation guidelines (“AV 3.0”). These guidelines build upon the voluntary guidance issued in Automated Driving Systems 2.0: A Vision for Safety and incorporate comments from many stakeholders including manufacturers, suppliers, state and local governments, and infrastructure owners and operators.

On October 1^st the United States reached a deal with Canada and announced the newly minted United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement or “USMCA”. The U.S auto industry, including the UAW and analysts had a mixed initial reaction to the White House announcement of the deal, which it says will make it easier for automakers and suppliers to expand domestic plants by making it more expensive to produce outside the U.S. The newly announced pact is over 100 pages long, and all parties agree needs significant further review to understand how all the details will impact the various sectors.