Articles

Starting on January 1, 2015, commercial real estate brokers and salespeople in California will have to comply with the agency disclosure requirements that previously only residential brokers had to comply with. This is happening because the state legislature decided to change the legal definition of “real property.” California Legislature Changed the Definition of Real Property…

For many of our clients, determining whether they do business in California is simple, because they either hold substantial real estate here or engage in the majority of their business dealings here. But whether or not your business is doing business in California is not that simple of a question. So we are going to…

The California Assembly has passed a law that will change the form and wording of certificates of acknowledgment, jurat and proof of execution. A jurat is the clause at the bottom of an affidavit that shows when, where, and before whom the affiant swore an oath or made an affirmation. These requirements will affect the…

Business Dictionary.com defines a “right of first refusal” as a “contractual right under which a seller must give a party…an opportunity to match…a price at which a third party agrees to buy a specified asset…on the same terms offered to the third party. So in real estate, this sort of arrangement would require you to…

Starting your own business can be daunting. There can be a seemingly endless list of things you have to consider and decisions you have to make. One of those decisions is whether you are going to strike out with your own concept, or whether you are going to enter into a franchise agreement to become…

All of us who live in or own property in California are well aware of the drought conditions that have been plaguing our state. Recently a new state regulation went into effect that was actually passed before the most recent drought, but that is likely to be strongly enforced due to our current drought conditions.…

The Small Business Administration (SBA) has a seemingly wonderful program under which certain federal contracts are supposed to be reserved for competitions among small businesses, called the “8(a) Business Development Program.” The SBA describes the program as “a business assistance program for small disadvantaged businesses” and states that the program “offers a broad scope of…

In the aftermath of the Affordable Care Act (ACT), which is also colloquially known as “Obamacare,” many small business owners and potential small business owners have been deeply concerned about the cost of employee health insurance. However, there is good news that should help calm some of those concerns. The cost of employee health care…

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti proposed this week that the city raise the minimum wage to $13.25 by 2017. The current minimum wage in Los Angeles is $9.00 per hour. This is the minimum wage for all of California, but some cities throughout the state have enacted even higher minimum wages. For example, San Diego…

Every state wants to attract businesses. Whether it is an existing business, or a brand new startup, politicians are always courting business people to move to their jurisdiction. While there are usually many states (or cities within states) vying for a new business, it used to be uncommon for states to directly attack one another…