Things to Consider Before Buying a Franchise

Franchise operations are everywhere, though some franchise opportunities are better than others. Before buying into any franchise, you should determine if it is a wise investment by considering the following questions:

• What are the upfront costs?
• What fees will I be required to pay on an ongoing basis?
• How does the franchisor make money? Does the franchisor have its own locations? Are the franchisor’s profits fee-driven?
• Are there any restrictions on suppliers?
• How many franchisees fail within a year? Within two years?
• How many franchisees sell within a year or two? What is the resale value?
• Does the franchisor offer any guarantees that no other locations will open within my geographic region? For how long?
• If other franchise locations will be in my geographic region, will I have priority in terms of buying them?
• Does the franchise have a proven track record that shows the business model works?
• Does the franchise manager have ample business experience? In this particular industry?
• Is my geographic region right for this type of business? How big is the potential customer base? What type of advertising will I need to do in order to reach that customer base?
• What options will I have for getting out? Am I allowed to sell? Are there restrictions on to whom I can sell? Are there any fees associated with selling?

Before you get involved in a franchise operation, especially if purchasing a franchise will be your first foray into business ownership, carefully evaluate the opportunity to make sure it is a sound investment and the right one for you. If you need help buying, starting, selling or expanding a franchise, contact a qualified Monmouth County business lawyer today.

Claims Against Contractors

Property owners who believe a contractor knowingly used defective construction materials in their home or commercial property, as well as those who are experiencing unnecessary and costly delays because of a contractor’s refusal to replace deficient materials, may have a claim against the contractor. Furthermore, construction materials sometimes fail after installation because of environmental factors like extreme heat or cold, solar energy, or soil composition. If a contractor used unsuitable materials in your home or commercial property or failed to anticipate and warn you of potential problems, you may be entitled to compensation.

Claims Against Manufacturers and Suppliers

Some manufacturers and suppliers knowingly sell defective construction materials, while others unknowingly sell products they should know to be defective. In either case, you may have a claim against a manufacturer or supplier if you experience financial losses because of a supplier or manufacturer sold you or your contractor a defective product.

Chinese Drywall

One defective construction product that has been of particular concern in recent years is Chinese drywall. Defective Chinese drywall gives off rotten egg-like fumes that can lead to respiratory problems. It can also cause corrosion damage to electrical wiring, pipes, AC units and household appliances. An estimated 60,000 homes nationwide that were built, remodeled or repaired between the years 2000 and 2009 may contain defective Chinese drywall. Removing and replacing it can be very expensive.

Lawsuits have already revealed that some manufacturers and suppliers knowingly distributed defective Chinese drywall in the U.S. Homeowners harmed by this defective product may be entitled to financial compensation from the manufacturer, supplier or contractor who sold, distributed or installed the problem drywall.

Construction Material Disputes Are Complicated

Successfully resolving a dispute over defective construction materials requires a deep understanding of commercial law, the construction industry and city codes. Both sides need a qualified business attorney who will work to protect their respective rights. If you have a defective construction material claim or have had such a claim filed against you, contact a Monmouth County business lawyer with construction litigation experience today.

Benefits of Having an Employee Handbook

Employee handbooks serve a number of important functions. They:

• Set expectations for both employer and employee
• Establish rules and procedures that employees must follow
• Establish consequences for employees who violate the company’s rules or procedures
• Outline employee benefits and incentives
• Provide a formal, written document employees can refer to when they have questions
• Prevent disputes by creating uniform policies for all employees
• Give employers a place to communicate information they are legally required to provide to employees (such as information about the Family and Medical Leave Act)

An employee handbook that clearly outlines policies and procedures can protect an employer in many situations. New Jersey employers are not legally required to have an employee handbook, but most employers should. An experienced Monmouth County business lawyer can help you determine if having an employee handbook would be in your business’s best interests and assist you in creating one that meets your company’s particular needs.

Information Typically Included in an Employee Handbook

Although they vary in length, content and comprehensiveness, most employee handbooks include at least some information about:

• Payroll matters
• Benefits, including insurance and retirement
• Incentive programs
• Dress codes
• Leave policies and procedures
• Drug and alcohol policies
• Workers compensation
• Performance reviews
• Safety protocols
• Discipline policies
• Human resources issues

When creating an employee handbook, a company’s size, philosophy and employee needs should all be taken into consideration, as well as state and federal employment laws. Furthermore, because employment laws are ever-evolving and companies often grow and change over time, employee handbooks should be reviewed regularly.

To ensure your employee handbook is comprehensive, well-written and protects the interests of your company, contact a qualified Monmouth County business attorney today.

Employee Rights Under FMLA

Under the Family Medical Leave Act, employers with 50 or more employees are required to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year to employees. FMLA leave can be used for:

• Prenatal care
• Complications from a pregnancy that are considered a serious health condition
• Parental leave by either parent following the birth or adoption of a child

As stated above, FMLA leave is unpaid. If you are concerned your rights under the Family Medical Leave Act have been violated, or if an employee has brought an FMLA claim against you, let a qualified Monmouth County business lawyer fight for you.

Employee Rights Under New Jersey Law

In New Jersey, employees are not only entitled to unpaid leave under the Family Medical Leave Act, state law also allows for temporary disability insurance benefits to be paid to employees for medical reasons including pregnancy and childbirth. To apply for these benefits, you must file a claim with the Department of Labor and Workforce Development after your doctor has certified you are temporarily disabled and unable to work and you have actually stopped working. Benefits are usually available for up to four weeks before your expected delivery date and up to six weeks after your actual delivery date. If your doctor certifies you are disabled for a longer period of time, your benefits may be extended. You may be entitled to extended benefits if you:

• Experience pregnancy complications
• Deliver by c-section
• Have another, simultaneous disability
• Are physically unable to perform the duties of your regular job

Understanding your rights under FMLA and other employment laws can be tricky, and sometimes employers make mistakes and find themselves at the receiving end of an employment lawsuit. If you are an employee whose rights have been violated or an employer involved in a discrimination or harassment claim, contact a dedicated Monmouth County business attorney today to ensure your rights are protected.

Why File a Mechanic's Lien?

The mere threat of a mechanic's lien motivates many property owners to pay contractors and subcontractors. When a property owner does not pay, a mechanic's lien helps contractors and subcontractors collect the monies they are owed for a completed project. If you are a contractor or subcontractor who is not being paid for a construction project, a Monmouth County business attorney with construction litigation experience can help you understand all available legal remedies and assist you in filing a mechanic's lien.   

Filing a Mechanic's Lien in New Jersey

In New Jersey, a contractor or subcontractor should file a mechanic's lien when the construction work has been completed. The rules for filing a mechanic's lien vary from state to state, and in New Jersey, the lien must be perfected. To perfect a lien for a residential project, you must follow certain steps:

• File a Notice of Unpaid Balance and Right to File Lien—you must time the filing of this notice carefully, because you have to complete the mechanic's lien process and file your lien within 90 days of the last day of work
• Send a Notice and Demand for Arbitration to an arbitrator to have the lien valued—the arbitrator will have 30 days to make his or her decision
• File a lien claim with the county clerk where the work was completed within 10 days of receiving a decision from the arbitrator—the lien amount must be the amount determined by the arbitrator and the lien must be filed within 90 days of the last day of work
• Serve the lien claim on the property owner within 10 business days of filing it

To avoid making costly mistakes during the mechanic's lien process that could render your lien unenforceable, work with a qualified Monmouth County business lawyer. Obviously, you do not want to miss your window for filing a mechanic's lien, so contact an experienced attorney as soon as you run into collection problems.

The federal government recently ordered New Jersey Transit to pay a former employee more than half a million dollars for its retaliatory actions against the employee. The employee was suffering from a work-related illness after witnessing a fatal accident involving another employee. NJ Transit brought charges against the employee and, in addition, suspended and cut the employee’s pay.

In another New Jersey whistle blowing incident, the federal government ordered New Jersey Trinitas Regional Medical Center to pay $3.02 million to the government to settle a lawsuit that a whistleblower brought to the government’s attention. The whistleblower learned that the hospital was defrauding Medicare by inflating its reimbursement claims. The whistleblower has been involved in several other Medicare fraud hospital cases in New Jersey, including Cooper University Hospital, Warren Hospital, Raritan Bay Medical Center, Cathedral Healthcare System, and Bayonne Medical Center. A Monmouth County business lawyer can protect your rights if you have faced retaliatory action for your whistleblowing.

Whistleblowing – Knowing Your Rights

Unknown by many, New Jersey already has strong whistleblower laws in place. Some of the important considerations to remember are:

• Employers cannot fire employees for bringing attention to the employer’s illegal conduct. This applies whether the employee is complaining to management of the company or to a federal agency.
• The law protects employees even if their allegations turn out to be incorrect. The allegations just need to be reasonable.
• Common problem areas include fraudulent accounting practices, covering up dangerous side effects of pharmaceuticals, or any other conduct that is unethical and not necessarily rising to the level of illegal or fraudulent.
• Judges have been interpreting state and federal whistleblower laws in an increasingly liberal manner to ensure that employees have nothing to fear by coming forward.

Now more than ever, whistleblowers do not have anything to fear. Their actions can save lives and set precedents that positively affect other employees for years to come. Contact a Monmouth County business attorney at Klafter & Mason LLC for guidance on employer actions about which you are feeling uncomfortable.

As part of the Family Entertainment and Preservation Act, individuals who record movies in such a manner are breaking the law. Selling copyrighted material is also in violation of patent, trademark and copyright laws. Those convicted of such crimes can be sentenced to time in prison and hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.

New Jersey Business Designation

The state of New Jersey Trade Names, Trademarks and Unfair Trade Practices Statute requires specific disclosures of any business using certain designations on its business name. Any company that is conducting business in New Jersey utilizing the words “and company” or “& Co.” as part of its business name must file a sworn certificate with both the New Jersey Secretary of State’s office and the county clerk in the county of operation.

This certificate must outline the names and addresses of all the principals of these businesses. A qualified New Jersey business law attorney can help any individual or business that needs to file such a certificate. Qualified New Jersey business lawyers know the laws that are specific to individual industries and can keep businesses legal and in good standing.

Using Real Names for Business

The New Jersey Trade Names Statute requires all individuals conducting business in the state to use their true, given names or the names of their businesses as registered with the Secretary of State. Individuals wishing to conduct business using names other than their true names or using a business name other than what is registered with the Secretary of State must first file a certificate under the original name and outline the additional name by which the individual is conducting business.

A qualified New Jersey business law attorney can assist any individual or business wishing to change a business filing status with the state. Business lawyers in New Jersey who have experience with such matters can make sure an individual or business remains in good standing with customers and with the state of New Jersey.

The New Jersey workers compensation insurance program indicates that he was to have full medical insurance for the remainder of his life. However, the man claims it’s a routine battle with the state to pay for his numerous medications and for his medical needs.

New Jersey Workers Compensation

Workers compensation cases in New Jersey begin when there is an accident while someone is at work or when a worker acquires a medical condition due to working for a company. In order for an incident or a condition to be considered for coverage in the New Jersey workers compensation system, the incident must be determined to have been caused by an event or events that are work related.

Individuals hurt on the job are entitled to receive 70 percent of the worker’s typical wages as temporary disability benefits. If an employer refuses to pay such benefits, a Motion for Temporary Disability may be filed. Those who are denied medical treatment or disability benefits by their employers are typically denied for one of the following reasons:

• No treatment was required for the injury
• The injury was not great enough for the worker to miss any work
• The injury was not related to work

Needing an Attorney

Workers who are injured on the job often determine that they are in need of legal representation by a qualified New Jersey workers compensation attorney, if they:

• Need immediate treatment for a work-related condition
• Are unable to work temporarily or permanently
• Are injured to an extent that causes them to be unable to work in the future

Qualified New Jersey workers compensation attorneys are familiar with the courses of action needed in order to have medical claims paid, medications covered and lost wages recovered. The more serious the injury of an employee, the more likely the injury will cause problems for the worker in the future. There often are unforeseen medical bills for such prolonged injuries.

The workers were caught when other public employees wrote down the license plate number of one of the personal vehicles at a public-run pump. The suspect’s information was sent on to the New Jersey State Police corruption unit. An official state audit found more than 600 such gasoline purchases were made for higher numbers of gallons of gasoline than the public vehicles’ tanks held.

Improving Hiring Processes

The application process is the first place a New Jersey business can cut down on fraud within a company. A company may conduct a criminal, civil and credit background check of an applicant with the applicant’s written permission. Doing so gives the hiring manager a better understanding of the applicant’s history.

Conversations with previous employers also can cut down on employee fraud. Inquiring of previous supervisors can give the hiring manager a perspective of what the applicant will be with the new company. Some relevant questions to ask previous employers include:

• What were the applicant’s job duties?
• How did the worker perform at these duties?
• What were the strengths of the applicant that truly benefited the organization?
• What weaknesses of the applicant prohibited true success?

Improving Legal Documentation

When hiring individuals for a new position it is imperative that a business has a legal contract of some sort and fashion. It doesn’t need to be complex, but the legal documentation of hiring an employee outlines the nature of the work relationship between the company and the worker.

Other legal documents required of businesses include binding contracts with clients, distributors and suppliers. These documents outline the nature of the agreements of the moving of products and services through the organization. It is imperative that businesses have these documents composed by a qualified New Jersey employment law attorney. Experienced New Jersey employment lawyers work with businesses to construct necessary legal documents.

Because of the wording of non-compete agreements in the sale of the sold business and because of carefully crafted business formation documents, the group’s new business is legally enacted. Careful planning of the initial business structure permitted this success. It will likely take some effort, however, before the group reaches the sales levels of the old business.

New Jersey Business Formation

Individuals forming businesses in New Jersey need to take specific steps to abide by state rules and regulations. The primary obligation of such organizations is to structure and register their efforts with the New Jersey Secretary of State. These principals should classify their business operating structure as either a:

• Corporation
• Partnership
• Proprietorship

In addition, there are numerous sub-classifications from which business owners should choose:

• Limited liability partnership
• Limited liability corporation
• Professional corporation
• Franchise corporation
• Not-for-profit corporation
• Charitable foundation
• Charitable trust

New Jersey Business Planning and Organization

Planning a business is more complex than just having a good idea and getting to work. Qualified New Jersey business planning attorneys can work with new business owners to conduct continuity planning, tax efforts, the structure of corporate ownership, the map of the decision making processes and the structure of corporate governance. Well-thought-out businesses have beginning planning efforts, proper documentation, skilled and informed leadership and a succession plan.

Qualified New Jersey business formation attorneys work with business owners, the Secretary of State and the IRS to review laws overseeing the specific industries. These lawyers draft the plans and documents necessary for an organization to conduct business.

The business formation process is the first step to running a successful business. The plan of a business should be reviewed regularly, so a business’s goals are kept in mind and met. A qualified New Jersey business formation attorney can be the extra hand a company needs to protect itself from the legal proceedings that can arise during the natural course of conducting business.