HOW HAS YOUR PRACTICE AREA CHANGED
IN THE LAST YEAR? AS TOLD TO ERIK LUNDEGAARD

The federal estate tax law shifted in the last year from a no-estate tax regime to a $5 million estate tax exemption regime.

This change alone necessitated a vast shift in the way estate planning attorneys draft tax-planned wills for married couples. Within two short years, tax planned trusts morphed into various forms with a variety of flexible provisions, in order to meet goals ranging from minimizing capital gains on the future sale of assets in the event the no-estate tax law was in force, to taking full advantage of both spouses’ federal estate tax exemptions when the estate tax exemption returned to $5 million dollars.

The estate tax is a huge political football even though it does not affect the vast majority of Americans—although it will affect many people if the exemption drops to $1 million, a proposal some Democrats are currently circulating in Congress.

SUSAN R. HARRIS / SUSAN R. HARRIS &
ASSOCIATES, GREENWOOD VILLAGE, ESTATE
PLANNING & PROBATE

The National Labor Relations Board imposed new requirements for employers to notify employees of their rights.

Employees now have the green light
to reasonably discuss wages and working
conditions with co-workers without fear of
reprisal. This may even extend to dialogues
on various forms of social media, where the
issues will be whether the talk is “protected
concerted activity.”
As of April 30, 2012, a new Employee
Rights Notice is required to be posted by
many employers to inform employees of
their workplace rights. Even if an employer
has no unionized workers, the posting covers
topics such as the right to organize a union;
to bargain collectively on wages, hours, and
other terms and conditions of employment; or
to choose not to do these activities. Workers
in many various settings are now told that it is
OK to discuss with co-workers concerns about
wages, benefits and other working conditions.
Not only does the National Labor Relations
Act protect these workers, but now they are
alerted to their protections.

This appears to be part of a broadened
effort to educate both sides of the labor issue
of their rights and obligations to avoid conflict
due to a lack of understanding of the law.

ROBERT J. TRUHLAR / TRUHLAR AND TRUHLAR,
CENTENNIAL, EMPLOYMENT & LABOR

The trend has been for hospitals to acquire physician practices and employ physicians.

[This is] largely in anticipation of reimbursement changes and opportunities scheduled to take effect beginning in 2012 under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).

But other factors have also contributed to this trend. The business of running a medical practice has become very costly and burdensome while reimbursement for services is declining. This has been coupled with more aggressive enforcement of existing laws and regulations. It’s not that physicians aren’t complying with the regulations—my clients make every effort at compliance—but the environment is such that honest mistakes, and indeed honest business practices, may be viewed by the government as “fraudulent,” leaving many well-intentioned physicians frustrated. So when a hospital offers to buy a practice and employ the doctor, many are pleased to leave the business challenges behind them and focus on the medicine.

This is not the first time hospitals have adopted a strategy to own and operate outpatient medical practices. The same thing happened in the ’90s for different reasons, only to be unwound within a few years. Perhaps this time around the industry has learned from past experience.