There has been a bit of upheaval over the past few years, and it doesn’t look like 2023 is going to suddenly calm itself down. That means we continue to have the choice on how we view the external world and act upon our assessment. I propose that there are two dichotomies of options presented that maybe aren’t so opposite as they first seem. The first is the question of Opportunity versus Threat. The second is reactive versus proactive
Continue Reading CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!
We as attorneys are described in many ways. Sometimes flattering, sometimes not. But one way to describe us that will always fit is “constant learners.” The law is notorious for moving slowly, but it is always moving. Occasionally, there is a sea change, but often it is through constant tweaks. There are the laws (we like to call them statutes or ordinances depending on who passed them) created by legislatures. There are regulations created by administrative bodies. Then there
Continue Reading Spell It Out For Me
Three years ago, I went on vacation. When I came back, COVID started, my son Noah was born, our team grew, and shrank, and grew again; time became a vortex. I cannot believe three years has gone by, but it has; time really flies. A lot of things have changed in both our business and personal lives – but not much has changed as far as your rights at the border – you still don’t have any! I’ve dusted
Continue Reading The Border Revisited
Five men. One teenager. Four women. Three dads. Two moms. A significant number of cats. Two dogs. Two toddlers. Three adult children. One five-year-old. Army veteran. Farm owners. City dwellers. Part-time. Ohio. Wisconsin. Michigan. Minnesota. Rural. Northwoods. White. African-Jamaican. Bougie. Snarky. Introvert. Ambivert. Extrovert. Disruptors. Software Engineering. Banking. Retail. Social media. Law School.
Are you wondering what these all have in common? We all work at Ogden Glazer + Schaefer. “Diverse teams are more productive and perform better. The
Continue Reading Our Diversity Makes Us Stronger. Our Inclusion Makes us Better.
Those following the news in Wisconsin may have heard about a December 2022 court decision, which ordered the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) not to enforce Wisconsin law against producers of certain kinds of homemade goods. This blog post intends to break it down a little more to provide the context in which the decision exists, as well as what it does.
What Went Down in Court?
Under Wisconsin law (Chapter 97 of the
Continue Reading Will it Mix?: Wisconsin Law and Homemade Goods
Many of the readers of this blog are busy people—and life only seems to get busier by the day. As Erin discussed in her recent post about delegation and its benefits, time is finite, and taking time to do one task means you can’t do another at the same time. That ties into an idea we discuss often at OG+S— “opportunity cost”—that for every opportunity you embrace and every choice you make, there is a cost, an infinite amount
Continue Reading Time Management Takeaways
After a long hiatus from this blog, I decided it was time to revisit S-Corps. If you are unfamiliar with S-Corps, go check out Collin’s first and second posts on S-Corps, which provide helpful context. With the foundation laid for the basics of S-Corps, we can turn to the main focus of this post: electing to be taxed as an S-Corp and maintaining that status.
The election part is relatively easy. File Form 2553 with the IRS. Assuming the
Continue Reading Checking in on S-Corps
We are a “first to use” jurisdiction for trademarks in the United States. That means, if you are the first to use a trademark in multi-state commerce you have “priority” over those who use the same trademark after you, and are the rightful owner of the mark.
However, we also have a trademark filing system and federal database of trademarks maintained by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Well….what if someone files an application for your trademark even
Continue Reading First to Use or First to File?
We’ve talked about why we should delegate and what and when we should delegate. All of that is great unless we don’t actually do it or do it poorly. So today, we’ll provide some pointers on the how we can delegate successfully.
First, choose the correct person for the correct task. Each team member has a role and a strength. Just because they “can” doesn’t mean they should. Match the task and the delegate.
Second, build parameters and guidelines.
Continue Reading Where The Rubber Meets The Road
Last week, I talked about why we delegate. Great, now we’re sold! But what do we delegate and when?
Not every task can be delegated. Before simply handing off a task (especially menial ones), consider whether you can eliminate it in the first place completely. If it doesn’t need to be done, then we do not need to be losing time (and money) by having someone else do it. A necessity is not always one, and it may not
Continue Reading Delegation: What Do I Give, What Do I Keep?
Delegation is important for proper efficiency for any organization. In a series of three posts, I discuss why, when, and how to delegate. First up, why should we delegate tasks?
Why?
There are two main reasons to delegate: You and Them. A lot of ink is spent on the first, and that is the part that is easy to see. When you delegate, you free up your time and effort to focus on what you should focus on. If
Continue Reading Delegation: Why We Don’t Need to Do it All
“That was good, wasn’t it?” This was the question that Republican Senator John McCain asked Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy, after having one of their heated debates on the floor of the United States Senate. Two men putting aside their staunch differences because of a friendship. Now over the years, I have noticed that more and more of my fellow students have become more politically engaged and opinionated. More than likely a result of our growth, and how we are
Continue Reading The Good Fight with the Good Friends
As another year concludes, a bit of reflection can be in order. For me, there is much to reflect on after completing one year of work as a new lawyer at a busy law firm. Amid the end-of-year deal closings, trademark applications, and other adventures in the practice of law, I wanted to close out the final entry of the OG+S blog for 2022 with a few lessons I learned from this year of work—forged from a mix of
Continue Reading Reflections on a Year of Firm Practice
Christmas and all of its “Christmas magic” is so ingrained in American culture, it can tempting to assume that the holiday is immune from IP considerations. For those who have been reading our blog for a while, you know that this is not the case (shameless plug for my post from last year on a similar topic). However, you might not be aware that there are many registered trademarks related to Christmas. Here are some you might recognize,
Continue Reading A Trademark Christmas
A lot has changed since Wisconsin growers and processors of hemp applied for their first permits from the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection under the 2014 Farm Bill. Now, the growing of hemp in our state is managed by the USDA via their local Farm Services Agencies, among many other changes. In this post we discuss the basic steps for applying for a hemp growing permit from the USDA. If you have dreams and aspirations of growing hemp
Continue Reading Applying for a License to Grow Hemp in Wisconsin – 2022 Edition!
Remember the earlier post by Business Accelerator’s Amanda HarNess about the connection between trust and leadership? If not, go back and read it. Beyond lack of trust, there are other areas where leadership breaks down. Amanda gives us questions to consider whenever leadership is changing for an organization. And, unprodded by me, she recommends building a strategic plan to help guide everyone through. We all know how much I love a strategic plan.
Top 9 areas of breakdown during
Continue Reading Top 9 Areas of Breakdown During Changes in Leadership