The Creative Industries in Orange County As seen in the December 2016/January 2017 edition of Business Watch (The Orange County Chamber of Commerce Newsletter). When you mention the arts, people naturally think of paintings, galleries, concerts and theaters. Orange County has these, but there is more. Arts are part of what economists call the Creative Industries which…




Update on Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule The United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) has proposed a new rule that would expand the definition of “investment advice fiduciary” under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act 1974 (ERISA). This legislation, which was scheduled to be phased in April 10, 2017, will automatically elevate all financial professionals…




UPDATE: Update to Paid Family Leave: Qualifying Reasons Expanded On June 20, 2018, the New York legislature added a new qualifying reason for eligible employees to take advantage of the Paid Family Leave Act. At the law’s inception, the qualifying reasons were limited to 1) the birth, adoption or new fostering of a child; 2)…




Planning for Business Succession and Exit Congratulations on successfully building and growing your business. The odds were against you surviving more than 5 years[1], but you beat the odds. Have your thoughts now turned to retirement? Or cashing out? Planning for business succession and exit successfully will require as much planning as growing it. Business…




Planning for Business Succession and Exit Congratulations on successfully building and growing your business. The odds were against you surviving more than 5 years[1], but you beat the odds. Have your thoughts now turned to retirement? Or cashing out? Planning for business succession and exit successfully will require as much planning as growing it. Business…




Ballot Selfies are Illegal Voting in New York on Tuesday? Thinking of taking a selfie or a snap chat of your ballot to document your vote? Think again…..You are breaking the law. Ballot selfies are illegal. Publishing a marked ballot on social media is a misdemeanor. New York Election Law §17-130 (10) states “[a]ny person who…




If you rely on your driver’s license for work, read this! Imagine you could no longer drive, effective immediately. What would you do? Living in the Hudson Valley, many of us do not have the option of taking public transportation to work, the grocery store, or the doctor. We require and rely on driving ourselves. You…




Nonprofit Contributions: Aiming at Dark Money, but Hitting Nonprofits Governor Cuomo has just signed into law a measure intended to shine light on so-called “dark money” contributions to political candidates by some nonprofit organizations. The law was immediately criticized by a wide array of nonprofit and other groups as both overbroad and inadequate. The law…



