Local Law Blogs

Ten Things to Know about Louisiana Executive Branch Lobbying

Posted on January 22, 2009
by Christopher J. Dicharry 1. If you will be contacting any person associated with a state agency or a state board on behalf of your company or any other person, you may be an Executive Branch Lobbyist. Contacting any staff members to advocate anything related to the agency is lobbying...

DC Circuit Upholds Entergy Generating Capacity Allocation, First Refusal Rights Remain Unanswered

Posted on January 21, 2009
by Gordon D. Polozola The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed an order of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approving a new long-term allocation of power-generating capacity among the affiliates of the Entergy system...

Public Service Commission Rule Trumps Louisiana's New Ethics Law

Posted on January 15, 2009
by Gordon D. Polozola In an action exceeding the requirements of Louisiana’s new, stricter ethics laws, pushed through the Legislature by Governor Bobby Jindal, the Louisiana Public Service Commission voted to forbid commissioners and their staff from accepting any food, beverage or entertainment paid for by companies regulated by the Commission or that have business pending before the Commission...

New Law Suspends Required Minimum Distributions for 2009

Posted on January 14, 2009
By Kevin C. Curry On December 23, 2008, President Bush signed the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 (the Act) into law.  Section 201 of the Act waives any required minimum distributions (RMDs) for 2009 from retirement plans that hold each participant's benefit in an individual account, such as § 401(k) plans and § 403(b) plans, and certain § 457(b) plans...

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Employee Free Choice Act

Posted on January 07, 2009
By A. Edward Hardin, Jr. and Scott D. Huffstetler  One likely result of the recent Presidential and Congressional elections is that the executive and legislative branches will be open to pushing the legislative agendas of organized labor.  There is little doubt that the proposed Employee Free Choice Act, H...

D.C. Circuit's Decision Eliminates the Startup, Shutdown, or Malfunction Exemption

Posted on December 23, 2008
By Maureen Harbourt and Tokesha Collins   On December 19, 2008, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a startling ruling vacating the Startup, Shutdown, Malfunction (“SSM”) rules contained within the NESHAP General Provisions, 40 C...

OIG Issues Advisory Opinion on Part-Time Physician Employment Agreements

Posted on December 23, 2008
by Clay J. Countryman The Office of Inspector General ("OIG") issued Advisory Opinion No. 08-22 on December 8, 2008 regarding a proposed arrangement by a non-profit organization to hire two physicians on a part-time basis to perform endoscopies...

New Louisiana Regulation Creates Safe Harbor For Certain Equity-Based Compensatory Plans of Privately-Held Companies

Posted on November 21, 2008
by Dean P. Cazenave Offers and sales of “securities” must be registered unless there is an applicable exemption from the federal and state securities laws. The most commonly known exemption is the private placement exemption set forth in Regulation D promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Securities Act of 1933 (and corresponding private placement exemptions under applicable state “blue sky” laws)...

Department of Labor Issues New Family and Medical Leave Act Regulations

Posted on November 18, 2008
by A. Edward Hardin, Jr. The U.S. Department of Labor has released the new Family and Medical Leave Act regulations. The new regulations will become effective January 16, 2009. The DOL issued its proposed new regulations in February 2008. The DOL received over 20,000 comments regarding the proposed regulations, and the new regulations are over 700 pages long...

OIG Releases Work Plan for 2009

Posted on November 03, 2008
by Clay J. Countryman On October 1, 2008, the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (OIG) released its 2009 Work Plan. The OIG’s Work Plan describes the initiatives and priorities of the OIG for the 2009 fiscal year...

New Louisiana Laws Related to Bidding on Public Works Contracts

Posted on October 30, 2008
By Brian W. Hightower Following the 2008 Regular Session, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal signed House Bill No. 558 ("HB 558") into law. Prior to HB 558(Act No. 726), it was not infrequent that publicly bid contracts were not awarded because all bids exceeded the budgeted funds...

IRS Requires Employer Identification Numbers for Disregarded Entities Beginning in 2009

Posted on October 27, 2008
By Kevin C. Curry Historically, the IRS has said that a disregarded entity could (and maybe should) use the owner's taxpayer identification number for income and other tax purposes. For employment tax reporting, the IRS issued Notice 99-6, 1999-1 CB 321 , which said that employment taxes for employees of a disregarded entity could be reported by a disregarded entity in one of two ways: (1) Calculation, reporting, and payment of all employment tax obligations with respect to employees of a disregarded entity by its owner (as though the employees of the disregarded entity are employed directly by the owner) and under the owner's name and taxpayer identification number; or (2) Separate calculation, reporting, and payment of all employment tax obligations by each state law entity with respect to its employees under its own name and taxpayer identification number...

United States Fifth Circuit Holds that Willful Concealment of a Prior Medical Condition From a Jones Act Employer May Constitute Contributory Negligence

Posted on October 22, 2008
By Clay Cosse While a Jones Act seaman’s willful concealment of a pre-existing medical condition has long been held to preclude a seaman’s recovery for maintenance and cure benefits, willful concealment has never acted as a bar to recovery under the Jones Act...

Federal Court of Appeals Absolves Louisiana Hospital of Liability in Failure to Report Physician Impairment While on the Medical Staff

Posted on October 20, 2008
by Linda G. Rodrigue In May of this year, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit absolved Lakeview Regional Medical Center (“Lakeview”) of any liability, and reversed a damage award against it, in a lawsuit that had been brought against Lakeview and a physician group practice by Kadlec Medical Center, a hospital located in the state of Washington...

The National Flood Insurance Program's S.F.I.P. Proof of Loss Requirement: A Trap for the Unwary

Posted on October 16, 2008
By Clay Cosse In the aftermath of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, homeowners filing flood insurance claims under the National Flood Insurance Program’s (“NFIP’s”) Standard Flood Insurance Policy (“SFIP”) should exercise extreme caution to avoid running afoul of the SFIP’s Proof of Loss requirement...

Three Things Every Contractor Should Know Before Signing That Construction Contract for Building Remediation

Posted on October 13, 2008
by G. Trippe Hawthorne and Mark D. Mese In a perfect world, Contractors would only do business with owners, designers, subcontractors, and material suppliers that they know well and trust. No surprises, misunderstandings, or disasters. In this world, doing business is risky...

GAO Issues Report on HHS Privacy Plan for Electronic Health Information

Posted on October 08, 2008
by Clay J. Countryman In a report issued September 17, 2008, the GAO commented that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has made substantial strides in devising a national plan for protecting the privacy of patients’ electronic personal health information, but that HHS still needs to do more to ensure key privacy principles are fully addressed...

Non-Compete Agreements: Louisiana Takes Another Step Forward

Posted on October 03, 2008
by Melanie M. Hartmann Louisiana's non-competition statute, La. R.S. 23:921, was amended effective August 15, 2008, to provide additional situations in which non-competition agreements may be enforced. The recent amendments allow for the enforcement of certain non-competition and non-solicitation agreements between a corporation and its individual shareholders; between a partnership and its individual partners; and between a limited liability company and its individual members...

Fifth Circuit Reverses $33 Million Judgment Against Physicians and Hospital Arising From Peer Review Actions

Posted on September 30, 2008
by Deborah A. Juneau In a recent case, the Fifth Circuit emphasized the legislative purpose in the Health Care Quality Improvement Act (HCQIA) to improve the quality of health care by protecting physicians who participate in peer review actions, finding they were entitled to immunity from monetary damages...

Amended Rules Governing Dispensation of Medications

Posted on September 29, 2008
by Lyn S. Savoie In the September 20, 2008 issue of the Louisiana Register, the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners amending the rules governing dispensation of medications. The amended rules now forbid dispensing physicians from dispensing any controlled substance or drug of concern, unless the physician practices at a governmental facility or a licensed abuse or addiction treatment facility, or is engaged in a regulated clinical research project or investigational study...

Louisiana Property Tax Assessment Review Procedures Arcane

Posted on September 22, 2008
by Christopher J. Dicharry Local governments in Louisiana are authorized to impose annual ad valorem property taxes on immovable and corporeal movable property. La. Const. of 1974 art. 6, §§ 26, 27 & 30. Property owners are required to file annual renditions prior to April 1 of each year...

Reminders About Louisiana's Contractor Licensing Law for Commercial Property Owners

Posted on September 18, 2008
by G. Trippe Hawthorne As Insurance claims continue to be adjusted and paid out, Louisiana residential, commercial, and industrial property owners will begin the process of contracting with Contractors to repair hurricane damage. As you do so, be mindful of Louisiana’s Contractors’ Licensing law and its potential impact on you...

Louisiana Diversity Forum Scheduled for October 16

Posted on September 18, 2008
On October 16, 2008, the Kean Miller Diversity Council will present the second-annual Louisiana Diversity Forum at the Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center. The Louisiana Diversity Forum provides a platform for distinguished guest speakers to provide their own insights and ideas on diversity-related topics...

Louisiana Mercury Risk Reduction Act - Proposed Rule Released by LDEQ

Posted on September 11, 2008
By Laura Hart I.  LDEQ Recently Issued Proposed Rule Pursuant to Louisiana Mercury Risk Reduction Act to Reduce Use of Mercury-Containing Products and to Force Proper Disposal or Recycling of Mercury-Containing Products In the August 2008 publication of the Louisiana Register, the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (“LDEQ”) issued a proposed rule that will supplement the procedures and requirements set forth in the Louisiana Mercury Risk Reduction Act (La...

Responsibility for Damage Caused by Falling Trees and For Removal of Fallen Trees

Posted on September 09, 2008
By Michael O'Brien and Stephen Hanemann Hurricane Gustav recently wreaked havoc and felled trees throughout the heavily wooded areas of Southeast Louisiana.  As such, many property owners may be concerned who bears the responsibility for a fallen tree...

Property Owners with Hurricane Gustav Damage Entitled to Reduced Property Tax Assessments

Posted on September 08, 2008
 By Chris Dicharry Property taxes in Louisiana are based on the fair market value of taxable property. The assessors make the fair market value determination based upon the status and condition of property as of January 1 of each tax year. Certain types of immovable property are generally revalued every four years; however if market conditions suggest changes in fair market value, adjustments can be made during the four year cycle...

Kean Miller Update - Hurricane Gustav - September 8

Posted on September 08, 2008
Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav.  The Kean Miller Management Team continues to evaluate the effects of the storm on the communities where we live and work. Our main office in downtown Baton Rouge is open and is unaffected by the storm...

Louisiana Economic Development Launches New Tools for Hurricane-Affected Businesses

Posted on September 08, 2008
According to a news release, the Louisiana Department of Economic Development (LED) has established new resources for hurricane-affected businesses in Louisiana.   The LED Business Recovery Call Center was activated on September 8th and offers recovery-related resources for businesses needing help in the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav...

Kean Miller Update - Hurricane Gustav - September 9

Posted on September 08, 2008
Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav.  The Kean Miller Management Team continues to evaluate the effects of the storm on the communities where we live and work. Our main office in downtown Baton Rouge is open and is unaffected by the storm...

Kean Miller Update - Hurricane Gustav - September 5

Posted on September 05, 2008
Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav.  The Kean Miller Management Team continues to evaluate the effects of the storm on the communities where we live and work. Our main office in downtown Baton Rouge is open and is unaffected by the storm...

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