Rochester Business Law, LLC

07/08/2026

If you've remarried after having kids, you should take a look at your will and estate documents. And this is especially true if you did estate planning during that marriage and that marriage has ended. Some common issues I've seen:
1) the remarried couple each want their assets to go to their spouse if they die first, then their kids if the spouse has passed, so they both have their will say "to my spouse, and if my spouse predeceases me, to my kids." The problem here is that the survivor's kids wind up with everything, which is almost certainly not the intention. When spouse A passes, it all goes to spouse B, but spouse B's will doesn't mention A's kids, and they are effectively cut out. This can also result accidentally with assets that don't pass through the will. For example, A's will says half to my spouse and half to my kids, but they jointly own their home, so that whole asset passes to the spouse outside of probate and then the spouse's kids get it on the spouse's death. The same could happen with life insurance or financial assets that list the spouse as the primary beneficiary.
2) "We thought about that, so we both included the other person's children in our will." So both A and B say "to my spouse, then after my spouse, half to A's kids and half to B's kids." This can work for as long as everyone is on the same page. But if A dies first and B lives another 20 years, maybe he or she has a change of heart or remarries again. Now A's kids are cut out again. Or a situation I have seen happen is that A and B get divorced but don't get around to updating their documents. The divorce automatically revokes the provision for the ex-spouse in the will, but it doesn't do that for the spouse's kids. So now A may have no further relationship with B's kids and have all of their assets separated, but B's kids still stand to receive half of A's stuff on death.
3) "That's all well and good, but our kids are good people and will do the right thing. They know what we meant, and if B's kids get everything, they'll share with A's or if it's after the divorce, they'll give their share back." Well, they might intend to, which is certainly not guaranteed, but even if they do, there are complications. If they give up half of the assets without a legal obligation to do so, that's a gift and, depending on the circumstances, can result in tax implications for their estates. Also, in another situation I've seen, perhaps one of B's kids is in the middle of a divorce at the time or has some creditors they are dealing with. Now it's not really their call if they can just give up a chunk of assets they received.

In short, stuff can get messy, but it doesn't need to be that complicated if the appropriate planning is done on the front end and revisited from time-to-time. If this is your situation, please call Matt at 507-281-5711 or email me at [email protected] to discuss. If it sounds like someone you know, please share it with them.

03/04/2025

I haven’t posted about the BOI reporting requirement because it’s been a moving target, but we may be approaching some clarity. After being killed and resurrected a number of times in the courts, it appears the Department of Treasury is just going to limit this to “foreign reporting companies,” which I don’t believe has been too clearly defined yet. Anyway, it would appear that at least for US citizens with an interest in LLCs or corporations registered in Minnesota or any other US state, the BOI reporting requirement is going away. We’ll see if it stays dead this time, and whether the courts may yet kill it for whatever “foreign reporting companies” turns out to mean, but for now most business owners don’t need to worry about it. If you don’t know what this BOI thing is, you may not need to learn about it anyway.

The Treasury Department is announcing today that, with respect to the Corporate Transparency Act, not only will it not enforce any penalties or fines associated with the beneficial ownership information reporting rule under the existing regulatory deadlines, but it will further not enforce any penal...

08/10/2023

This is a decent summary of some of the basics regarding trusts; why they can be a good idea, different types, etc. Call 507-281-5711 if you want to discuss whether it might be a good strategy for you.

Estate planning is critical to preserving generational wealth. For many families, a living trust can streamline the process of transferring wealth after you die by eliminating probate and minimizing estate taxes. Read: What To Do If You Owe Back Taxes to the IRS Many people think a revocable or irre...

07/19/2023

https://www.fool.com/investing/2023/07/18/is-a-living-trust-the-most-financially-savvy-way-t/

Google suggested this article to me, and I’m passing it on to all of you. Another factor not referenced in the article, which applies more in some states, such as Minnesota, than others, is the potential to help reduce or eliminate estate tax. Let me know if you’d like to discuss if this could be useful for you. 507-281-5711.

Add control, privacy, and efficiency to your final wealth transfer with this kind of trust.

07/03/2023

Minnesota has banned non-competes effective July 1, 2023. This does NOT, however, apply retroactively to preexisting non-competes. So, if you signed a non-compete before July 1, it is still binding to whatever degree it was before, which is often a complicated question. In other words, if you were restricted from competing with a current or prior employer on June 30, 2023, you still are (unless it happened to coincidentally expire by its own terms on that date). If you have questions regarding to legitimacy of the non-compete in place, feel please reach out at 507-281-5711. The new law also does not ban non-solicitation agreements, including those signed after July 1, 2023.

Business owners: if you have a standard employee or independent contractor agreement you are using now, it may need to be updated. If you are used to relying on a non-compete provision to protect your business and retain employees, you will need to start considering other strategies. Call 507-281-5711 to discuss this as well.