With the swearing in of President Obama, 2009 promises to be a year of change. Not surprisingly, we are already seeing substantial changes in the law and expect more as the year unfolds. Our team of attorneys is well prepared for the upcoming changes. We are ready to work with you to ensure your understanding of the updates and how they will affect you or your business. Outlined below are areas of law experiencing or expecting noteworthy changes in 2009.
ESTATE TAX. The dawn of the New Year brought with it an increase in the exclusion amount for the federal estate tax. For persons dying after December 31, 2008, the exclusion is now $3,500,000, a large increase over the $2,000,000 exclusion of the past year. While the increase is a large benefit to most taxpayers, persons with estate tax exposure may want to look at their portfolios to determine whether it makes sense in this market to take advantage of wealth transfer opportunities.
The federal estate tax rate remains unchanged at 45%.
No Wisconsin estate tax is payable for deaths in 2009.
For more information on 2009 changes on Gift Tax, Generation Skipping Exemptions, Non-Citizen Spouse information and more click here.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
As of the summer of 2008, the U.S. Copyright Office has released new technology and developed new forms to process applications online. This change in forms will potentially impact many filings as the new form replaces six traditional paper application forms. Please contact us if you are thinking of registering a copyright in the future and have any questions about the new process of registering and protecting your ingenuity.
CONSTRUCTION LAW
Any company who regularly works on demolition or renovation projects and/or are directly engaged in asbestos removal activities need to be aware that Wisconsin has adopted some new certification and training rules for asbestos removal. Earlier this month, Wisconsin published the final version of rules which repeal and recreate Chapter HFS 159. Chapter HFS 159 establishes certification and training accreditation requirements for persons who perform asbestos abatement or management activities. The new regulations will go into effect on May 1, 2009.
To read more on the new standards click here.
Labor and Employment law has already seen big changes this year. Effective January 16, 2009, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued revised regulations interpreting the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. These are the first revisions to the regulations since 1995. The new regulations change and clarify some of the former interpretations of the law. They reorganize certain provisions and add brand new regulations addressing leave for Military Caregiver Leave and Military Qualifying Exigency Leave. Highlights include:
- Clarification of "serious health condition"
- New treatment of Holidays (holidays count towards FMLA entitlement when they occur during a week of leave);
- Clarification of the rules on substitution of paid leave;
- Change in rules related to bonus and attendance awards (employers now allowed to deny perfect attendance awards for employees on FMLA leave, provided FMLA and non-FMLA leave are treated the same);
- Consolidation of notice requirements under one section; and
- Provision of new Notice, Eligibility and Medical Certification forms.
Other substantial changes in the Employment arena include changes to the Fair Pay Act, Milwaukee Sick Leave Act, Employee Free Choice Act, Re-Empowerment of Skilled and Professional Employees and Construction Trade Workers' Act (RESPECT ACT) and the Patriot Employers Act. Attorney Dawn Korver has summarized the changes in an article posted on our website. Click here to read the full article.
ENVIRONMENTAL LAW
With the new Obama administration, there are likely to be many developments on the environmental front. What changes are we most likely to see? Clearly, facilities will face a new round of regulation under the Obama administration. As repeatedly referenced throughout the election, President Obama and his "green dream team" are committed to battling climate change and are ready to push for big policy reforms, which is in stark contrast with the Bush administration. There is no question that we will definitely see a push to introduce or improve regulations pertaining to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Mandates coming out of the Obama administration are likely to force various industries to cut releases by 80% below 1990 levels. In fact, one of Obama's first executive orders as President ordered the EPA to approve California's request to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from new cars and trucks. This opens the doors to other states to introduce similar regulations and many states are already lining up to do so.
Click here to read more about expected Environmental Law changes in 2009. |
