What is Personally Identifiable Information (or “PII”)?

Personally Identifiable Information (“PII”) has become a buzzword in the privacy law world the last few years, and it is heavily protected by rules and regulations around the world, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Companies that fail to comply with regulations such as the GDPR, or that suffer a data breach, faceContinue reading “What is Personally Identifiable Information (or “PII”)?”

The CCPA – Does it apply to your business?

The California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) became effective at the start of 2020. Its purpose is to protect the personal identifiable information (“PII”) of California consumers. The bad news for businesses is that the California Consumer Privacy Act’s legal requirements are murky at best. And, even in its infancy, the CCPA has been in aContinue reading “The CCPA – Does it apply to your business?”

CCPA – Who are California Consumers?

The California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) has some twisty definitions of who is – and isn’t – considered a California consumer. The text of the CCPA says a business who “alone or in combination, annually buys, receives for the business’s commercial purposes, sells, or shares for commercial purposes, alone or in combination, the personal informationContinue reading “CCPA – Who are California Consumers?”

Profits Interests in a Limited Liability Company – What Are They?

A common question we receive when working with limited liability companies taxed as partnerships under Subchapter K of the federal income tax law (“LLCs”) is, can the company grant stock options to its employees and independent contractors, even though the company isn’t a state law corporation (and is in fact taxed as a partnership underContinue reading “Profits Interests in a Limited Liability Company – What Are They?”

CARES Act: The Affiliation Rules and How They Could Affect Your Eligibility for a PPP Loan

We wrote about the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) component of the CARES Act (“Act”) last week and how it expanded who is eligible for Small Business Administration (“SBA”) loans in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  One of its general qualifications is that the company must have no more than 500 employees.    One issue we areContinue reading “CARES Act: The Affiliation Rules and How They Could Affect Your Eligibility for a PPP Loan”

Update to Statutory Preemptive Rights in Washington Corporations

Joe and I wrote a post last year about how to form a Washington corporation, and the importance of doing away with statutory preemptive rights held by shareholders. If a company did not to do this, all of its shareholders would automatically have the opportunity to participate pro rata in a subsequent issuance of anyContinue reading “Update to Statutory Preemptive Rights in Washington Corporations”

CARES Act: How the Paycheck Protection Program Can Help Your Company

Congress has passed and President Trump signed into law on March 27 the Phase 3 COVID-19 Relief package commonly known as the “CARES ACT” in an attempt to provide financial relief to American businesses and the American people in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and specifically include relief to small businesses through up to $349Continue reading “CARES Act: How the Paycheck Protection Program Can Help Your Company”

SEC Concept Release Letter

The SEC recently solicited the public’s views on its regulations on private offerings, issuing the Concept Release on Harmonization of Securities Offering on June 18, 2019. Our group worked hard to write a fifteen page response letter to the Commission containing our suggestions and overall thoughts. See below! Comments to SEC Concept Release Re FileContinue reading “SEC Concept Release Letter”

Appeals Court Rules Seattle Income Tax Unconstitutional

In a decision issued on July 15, 2019, Division I of the Court of Appeals of Washington ruled that the 2017 City of Seattle 2.25% tax on high-income residents was unconstitutional because it violated the Washington state constitution’s uniformity requirement (Art. VII, Sect. 1).  In striking down the tax, the court relied on a seriesContinue reading “Appeals Court Rules Seattle Income Tax Unconstitutional”

The Rule 701 Math: How to do it

If you are a non-public company granting stock options or other compensatory equity awards, you need to be familiar with Rule 701 Math and in particular its mathematical limitations. Fortunately, they are pretty simple. Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs overlook them with sometimes disastrous consequences. To save you some time, we wrote you a step-by-step guide toContinue reading “The Rule 701 Math: How to do it”