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Kemp Klein Commentator - Winter 2011
Vol. 23, Issue 4
A message from Ralph Castelli
By Ralph A. Castelli, Jr.

Whether you want to admit it or not, we all have “control issues.” If you deeply care about something then you will undoubtedly want control over its outcome. This applies to everything: parenting, investing, your workplace, business ownership, and more. So, much of this edition is dedicated to the topic of control.
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Mine, yours and the IRS
By Gloria M. Chon

If you and your spouse jointly own property in Michigan, there is a good chance that you own the property as “tenants by the entirety.”
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Employee convinces superior to fire co-worker for unlawful reasons
By Thomas L. Boyer

In employment law, the cat’s paw theory is named after an 18th century French fable in which a clever monkey induces an unwitting cat to reach into a fire and retrieve chestnuts. The duped cat burns his paw while the monkey eats the chestnuts.
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Business owners must relinquish some control to reach new level of success
By Cynthia L. Umphrey

Are you a control freak? If you’re an entrepreneur, I bet you are. I know I am, at least a bit. As the head of your business, it’s hard to loosen your grip on every aspect of the company. But sometimes, you have to let others help you succeed.
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Kemp Klein Commentator - Fall 2011
Vol. 23, Issue 3
A message from Ralph Castelli
By Ralph A. Castelli, Jr.

Have you ever heard of “the sandwich generation?” It sounds odd, but it perfectly describes many adults: caught in the middle of caring for their growing children while caring for their aging parents or relatives.
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The “Super Committee” and its effects
By Ralph A. Castelli, Jr.

Unless you have been living in the wilderness, you know that Congress passed, and the President signed, the Budget Control Act of 2011 providing for an initial $1 Trillion round of deficit reduction over fiscal years 2012 through 2021.
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Kemp Klein welcomes Special Counsel
Brian R. Jenney joined Kemp Klein as Special Counsel August 1, 2011. He concentrates his practice in the areas of Elder Law, Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Administration, Special Needs Trusts, Estate and Income Taxes.
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Medicaid attempts to recoup nursing home care costs
By Brian R. Jenney

Do you have a loved one in a nursing home? Is he or she on Medicaid? If yes, Michigan now requires its Medicaid program to try to recover the money that it paid for nursing home services from the estates of Medicaid beneficiaries who have died.
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Planning a Trip Outside the Country?
Don’t Forget Kids’ Passports!
By Amy A. Stawski

The school year is upon us and with it comes the countless activities on the school calendar. If you’re already penciling in a potential vacation abroad for the long December holiday recess or 2012’s mid-winter and spring breaks, you’ll want to add something more than sunblock to your “must take” list – passports.
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Unexpected reasons to make or change your estate plan
By Joseph P. Buttiglieri

In life, there are a few obvious milestones like the birth of a child or a marriage that would trigger the need for an estate plan. But what about the in-between times in life?
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Kemp Klein Commentator - Summer 2011
Vol. 23, Issue 2
A message from Ralph Castelli
By Ralph A. Castelli, Jr.

If you ask most lawyers why they pursued a career in law, many will tell you it was “to help people.” Yes, it might come as a surprise, but lawyers have feelings too!
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Property tax classification appeals
By Richard D. Bisio

Property classification has become a hot issue since 2008, when the Michigan Business Tax and associated amendments gave a tax break to industrial personal property. Since then, assessors have been looking closely at property classification with a view to reclassifying industrial property to commercial, a move that increases personal property tax rates for the property owner.
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Kemp Klein finds Common Ground helping others
“How can we do as much as possible for as many as possible?” Members of the Kemp Klein Foundation board asked this question in 2006 when looking for a local non-profit that would offer their attorneys and staff an opportunity to get personally involved. They found their answer at Common Ground, a 24-hour non-profit agency dedicated to helping youths, families and adults in all types of crisis situations.
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In Memorial: Remembering a true original
It was with great sadness that on May 14, 2011, Kemp Klein said goodbye to Era Arnold.
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Investment losses – arbitration may work for you
By Stuart Sinai

If it were just the bumps (actually cliffs we all fell over) in the market that caused us to lose substantial sums of money that would have been devastating enough but when those losses occurred in broker recommended investments that you now see you should have never been in at all, you feel foolish, outraged and cheated.
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Kemp Klein Commentator - Spring 2011
Vol. 23, Issue 1
A message from Ralph Castelli
By Ralph A. Castelli, Jr.

We are finally putting the long winter behind us and getting ready for the new beginnings of spring. As you make plans for your new beginnings, whether it is a new career path, travel, or growing your family, please remember to talk to us about it.
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New perspective on prenuptial agreements
By Amy A. Stawski

When Kemp Klein began counseling businesses, families and individuals nearly 40 years ago, prenuptial agreements were considered to be against public policy if they addressed divorce. Today, prenuptial agreements are recognized in all fifty states, yet misconceptions remain.
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Good news for businesses seeking simple creditor protection
By Cynthia L. Umphrey

The decision of whether to form an LLC, corporation or other entity used to be primarily driven by tax and other concerns. However, a primary motivation for those using Michigan entities may now be creditor protection.
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Does your business have a blind spot?
By Thomas J. O’Connor

Most small and mid-sized businesses do not apply the same level of scrutiny and cost-benefit analysis to their employees’ retirement benefits as they do with other facets of their business. This can expose business owners and decision makers (a.k.a. “fiduciaries”) to needless personal/corporate liability exposure on top of excessive fees for the business and its employees.
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ALERT:
Impact of the 2010 Tax Act on your estate, gift and GST tax issues
By Cynthia L. Umphrey and Michael D. Umphrey

The “Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010” (the “Act”) is complex, and this Alert only highlights features that are important to Estate, Gift and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax (“GST Tax”) planning.
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