HOWARD COUNTY ZONING VIOLATIONS What should you do if you get a zoning violation notice in Howard County? First, some background on the Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning ("DPZ") is useful. DPZ's stated mission is: "To create collaborative, innovative plans and implem...
If you are starting a new company in Maryland, particularly a small business, you may wonder, "why do I need a lawyer?" With the abundance of information readily available on the Internet, couldn't you save money on lawyer fees by not retaining a business lawyer from the outset and just hope leg...
Say you've decided to form a limited liability company, commonly referred to as an "LLC." You've heard that an LLC needs an "operating agreement" in Maryland but you don't know what that means or how to proceed. This article will guide you. The first thing is to be sure...
You're an owner leasing commercial rental property or a tenant wishing to lease. You've agreed on the important lease terms such as square footage, rent, and term. So why should you spend the time and money to involve a lawyer you ask? On both sides, it's advisable. Lease...
SDAT OVERVIEW FOR MARYLAND BUSINESSES Anyone doing or planning to do business in Maryland should be familiar with the State Department of Assessments & Taxation ("SDAT"). As a broad overview, SDAT governs business formation and taxation. The SDAT website, http://www.dat.maryland.gov, provid...
Eminent domain occurs when the state takes an owner's real property for public use. The process is called condemnation. This seems unusual to many. Why, they ask, can the government take my property? It's not that simple and there are safeguards in place to protect an owner facing condemnation. ...
If you're a small business owner, the thought of navigating a potential lawsuit can be scary. As a Maryland lawyer and former CPA who represents small businesses and who has also been a commercial and business litigator in a premier law firm in Baltimore, I know both the business side and litigat...
Is the agreement I just entered into a legally binding contract? In general, a valid contract requires four elements: offer, acceptance, consideration, and performance. The process begins when one party offers the terms for the contract. Next, the other party can accept, reject, or requ...
In this age of smart phones with cameras, instagram, twitter, tumblr and the like, anyone who wishes to plan and hold a private event must take extraordinary actions in the planning stages, or settle for the fact that all activities at the event will end up as 140 character tweets or Instagram po...
Q: Do I have a right to get involved in a situation where the state will be issuing an environmental permit for a property that borders mine?A: You usually have a right to a notice of the impending permit as well as a right to publicly air your views regarding its impact. And in some cases, you m...
Real Estate and Boundary Disputes What should I do if a neighbor's structure encroaches my property? As the saying goes, fences make great neighbors. But sometimes fences (or sheds, home additions, driveways, patios, etc.) cause significant disputes when one owner believes the other owner's...
An independent contractor by definition is a person or can be another company even, who is hired to perform a job for another person or business. How, where, and when the job gets done is under the sole control of the contractor, not the hiring company. On the other hand an employee is a person h...
Whether you decide to sell, retire, or leave your business due to health reasons, it is important that you plan for the day you will no longer be able to run your company. Succession planning is a very important part of business planning and is something that you should address when you first go ...
Taylor Legal represented a client in an administrative appeal of a negative employment action imposed by the Howard County Public School System. Through a careful review of the client's personnel record and detailed meetings with the client to review the facts of the case, a considered,...
Have you been notified or heard about a Pre-Submission Meeting in Your Neighborhood? Wondering what this means?
The SBA estimates that up to 50% of small businesses are run out of a person's home. With...
County zoning regulations establish area (bulk) and use limitations for each zoning district.
Benefit Corporations (also known as B Corps) are corporations formed with the intent to create a beneficial public good. B Corps are held to a higher standard than traditional corporations in that they must create social, environmental and community benefits. The first official B Corp was created...
You own a small business. It may have been a good experience or a headache but for whatever reason, you've decided to sell it. You've never done this before and aren't sure what's involved.
This is the second of a series entitled: "When you don't need a lawyer." Why is a lawyer writing – again -- to tell you when you don't need to hire a lawyer? Because it's a question that many potential clients ask themselves all the time, and one that I frequently answer.
Why is a lawyer writing to tell you when you don't need to hire a lawyer? Because it's a question that many business owners ask themselves all the time, and one that I frequently answer. This is the first in a series of articles that will hopefully guide you as I frequently guide my clients. En...
What is an Easement? An easement is the legal or equitable right of someone to use the land of another for a specific or special purpose, often to travel over the land in question to reach another area of land. An easement is a legal right if it was created by a legal instrument, like a deed. A...
INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR OR EMPLOYEE? Are you an independent contractor or an employee? How do you find out and why does it matter anyway? "Independent contractor" and "employee" are not just insignificant names or labels in Maryland. This distinction is legally important and just cal...
Franchise law is complicated. According to the Maryland Attorney General, Maryland is one of about 15 states that requires "registration" of franchise offerings. What is a franchise? Maryland Annotated Business Regulation Code, Section 14-201 defines it as follows: ...
If you are "self employed" you must pay "self employment taxes." According to the IRS, you are self employed if you are a sole proprietor, independent contractor, member of a partnership, or are otherwise in business for yourself, including part-time businesses. The term "self...
