O'Neil, Cannon, Hollman, DeJong & Laing S.C.

The attorneys at O’Neil, Cannon, Hollman, DeJong & Laing S.C. focus on meeting the many needs of businesses and their owners. Our experienced attorneys work with businesses and their owners at all stages of the business life cycle, helping them start, grow, and transition their businesses. We also assist business owners with their personal legal needs, including tax and estate planning, and family law.

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Latest from O'Neil, Cannon, Hollman, DeJong & Laing S.C.

Businesses can now deduct expenses paid for with the proceeds of a forgiven Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan. The IRS, in Revenue Ruling 2021-2 issued today, reversed its original position that prohibited businesses with PPP loans from “double-dipping” by paying expenses with a forgivable loan, then writing off those expenses. Congress, in the latest COVID-19 relief bill, as we explained further here, explicitly stated that such expenses were deductible, forcing the IRS to reverse course. This ruling is sure to provide a significant tax benefit and relief for many small business owners who had availed themselves of the PPP…
Late Monday, Congress passed a $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill that includes a provision that allows business owners to claim tax deductions for expenses covered by Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan proceeds. The bill goes to President Donald Trump today, who is expected to sign it into law. Among other tax provisions, the bill specifies that business expenses paid with forgiven PPP loans are tax-deductible. This supersedes IRS guidance (as we previously discussed here) that such expenses could not be deducted and brings the policy in line with what the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and hundreds…
In the past week, European data protection authorities have found substantial European Union General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) violations and issued corresponding fines against high-profile companies. These decisions are informative for companies doing business in Europe as they indicate clear future enforcement priorities by European regulators. On December 10, 2020, the French Data Protection Authority (“CNIL”) issued fines against Google (€100M; $120M) and Amazon (€35M; ~$43M) for improper use of cookies on their websites. Specifically, the CNIL found that the tech giants automatically dropped tracking cookies when users visited their French (.fr) websites. Under the GDPR, these tracking cookies cannot…
It is becoming increasingly common for people to get divorced and then remarried. In these situations, one or both spouses entering into a new marriage usually has children from a prior relationship. Anyone who has children from a prior relationship and remarries should review their estate plan and make any necessary updates to ensure their assets are distributed according to their wishes. Under Wisconsin law, the assets of a deceased spouse who dies intestate will automatically pass to the surviving spouse. When there is a second marriage and children from a prior relationship, however, the assets of a deceased spouse…
During the estate planning process, it is important to consider what types of assets make up your estate. Specifically, you should understand the difference between your “probate” and “non-probate” assets. As you might imagine, your probate assets are the ones that must go through probate, a time-consuming and costly process which we previously discussed here. Contrary to popular belief, a Last Will and Testament will not, on its own, help your estate avoid probate. Whether or not your estate is subject to probate depends on whether your estate consists of probate assets. Probate assets are those that are owned…
Yesterday, the U.S. Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service released guidance clarifying the tax treatment of expenses funded with forgiven Paycheck Protection Program loans. This guidance, Revenue Ruling 2020-27 and Revenue Procedure 2020-51, strengthened the Treasury’s prior position in Notice 2020-32, as we previously wrote about here, which stated that expenses funded with forgiven PPP loan funds are not deductible. In Revenue Ruling 2020-27, the IRS answered the question of whether a taxpayer who paid otherwise deductible expenses with PPP funds can deduct those expenses in the taxable year in which the expenses were paid or incurred if, at…
As we have mentioned previously, there is no overarching federal data privacy law in the United States. By contrast, the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) regulates data privacy, including consumer data, in all sectors. Although there is no overarching federal data privacy law in the United States, there are a few sector-specific laws. In health care, for example, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) govern many aspects of privacy. Also, the Telecommunications Act and the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing…
As the development of a potential COVID-19 vaccine continues, so too do questions about the types of vaccines being developed and how they will be administered. Vaccines offer overwhelming public health benefits, but a small number of individuals who receive vaccines are harmed by them. Most claims alleging health problems caused by vaccines must be brought in the “Vaccine Court” of the United States Court of Federal Claims under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, 42 U.S.C. § 300aa-1, et seq. The Act creates the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program to handle vaccine-related claims. The program is administered…
In general, states are considered either “common law property” or “community property” states. Wisconsin, along with a few other states, is a community property state (community property is referred to as “marital property” in Wisconsin). It is important to understand the difference between these two systems for purposes of wealth management planning, estate planning, and divorce. Under the common law property system, assets and debts earned or acquired by one spouse during the marriage belong only to that spouse. With this type of system, only assets and debts that are titled under the name of both spouses are owned by…
Tuesday, November 3, 2020 is Election Day. Although early voting is underway and many individuals have already returned their absentee ballots, many people will want to vote in-person on Election Day. All Wisconsin employers are required to provide employees who are eligible to vote up to three consecutive hours of unpaid leave to vote while the polls are open (from 7 AM until 8 PM), and employees must request the time off prior to the election. Voting leave cannot be denied on the basis that employees would have time outside of their scheduled work hours to vote while the polls …
Medical Malpractice Risk & Telemedicine Policies This article is the second of a two-part series on telehealth in Wisconsin. The first article of this series, available here, highlighted basic standards for regulatory compliance in the design of internal telehealth policies. This second article addresses the practitioner’s obligation to minimize patient harm (and thus practitioner liability) with attention to the medical standard of care when assessing when and how telehealth is appropriate for each patient. A. Maintaining Medical Standard of Care in Telemedicine Wisconsin medical providers must critically evaluate whether their use of a telemedicine platform would permit their evaluation…
There has been a trend recently in the state of Wisconsin, and elsewhere, for attorneys to file lawsuits against hotel owners alleging that their websites are in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) because they are not accessible to disabled individuals. Specifically, the complaints allege that the hotel websites are in violation of the ADA because they fail to identify accessibility features, do not allow for booking of accessible rooms, and do not provide sufficient information regarding accessible rooms and amenities at the hotel. Frequently, the attorneys bringing the lawsuits against the hotel owners will represent the same…
A proper estate plan covers not only what should happen upon your death, but also what should happen if you lose your decision-making skills. While planning for incapacity may be as unpleasant as planning for death, it is an important step in the estate planning process. Planning for incapacity ensures that someone you specifically choose and trust can act on your behalf while you are unable to do so for yourself. In another article, we discussed the importance of a Durable Financial Power of Attorney. Here, we discuss why a Power of Attorney for Health Care is equally as…
As we have previously covered, in our earlier article, Wisconsin businesses may be subject to the requirements of the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). Additionally, many states, including Wisconsin, and the federal government are considering similar data protection bills that may impact Wisconsin businesses. With overlapping obligations, compliance with data protection laws is an increasingly tricky business for most companies. To ensure that your company doesn’t inadvertently violate any current or future laws, consider the following six steps: Step 1: Consider the Applicability of Data Privacy Laws Companies should determine…
I. Expansion of Telehealth to Meet Clinical Need Federal and state governments have resolved traditional barriers to telehealth – including  complexity of billing, lower reimbursement and privacy and security concerns – to facilitate the safe provision of medical services during the COVID-19 pandemic.[i]  The first article in this two-part series highlights basic standards for regulatory compliance in the design of telehealth policies.  The second article will address the practitioner’s obligation to minimize patient harm (and thus practitioner liability) with attention to the medical standard of care when assessing when and how telehealth is appropriate for each patient. II. Mechanics…
Late last week, the Department of Treasury and Small Business Administration (SBA) jointly released a new loan forgiveness application for Paycheck Protection Program loans of $50,000 or less. This new streamlined application removes calculations required on prior forms and simplifies documentation requirements, reliving both borrowers and lenders of the prior compliance burdens present in the older form. Pursuant to an interim final rule, the simper one-page application form, SBA Form 3508S, does not require borrowers to reduce their forgiveness amount for any reductions in full-time equivalent (FTE) employees or in salaries or wages. Additionally, the new form does not…