Do you find yourself counting the hours until the next time you can fire up your outdoor grill or smoker? Do you rework your favorite “go to” grilling menu while sitting in traffic? Do you have a poster of Bobby Flay hanging on your patio? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you’re not alone. Summertime is peak outdoor grilling season — time to put on the apron, find the long tongs, pour a cold beverage and put your best grilling techniques to work. Outdoor cooking is not only fun, it’s also big business. Despite — and perhaps… Read more

Franchising touches virtually every person in America. When you pick up your morning coffee, drop off your dry cleaning, get your eyes tested, buy gas or pick up dinner, chances are it’ll be at a franchise. In a relatively short amount of time, franchising has grown into a predominant method of growing a business. The genius of combining one party’s brand and know-how with another’s capital and work ethic has turned the retail world into a sea of opportunity for people who want to be their own boss. According to published reports by the International Franchise Association, franchising and related… Read more

Although still in its infancy, cloud computing is dramatically changing the way companies perform tasks and manage data. But with the convenience of accessing software services and applications over the Internet inevitably comes additional risks that need to be managed. The buzzword Cloud Computing seems to be everywhere these days. But while there’s certainly a great deal of hype about “the cloud,” it truly is a computing phenomenon that is rapidly and dramatically changing the manner in which many businesses perform essential functions, access vast amounts of data and utilize information technology (IT) resources. In fact, a 2011 international study… Read more

“I am pleased to sign the America Invents Act. This much-needed reform will speed up the patent process so that innovators and entrepreneurs can turn a new invention into a business as quickly as possible.” With those words, President Obama signed the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) this past fall, the first significant reform to the United States patent code in almost 60 years. As reflected by the President’s comments, the goals of the AIA include speeding up the patent process, increasing patent quality, reducing the costs of patent litigation and harmonizing the U.S. patent process with the patent processes… Read more

I started doing triathlons about two years ago after seeing my wife having a great time participating in such events. I have always enjoyed swimming, knew that I would enjoy biking and have always run regularly to keep in shape, so I figured a triathlon was something I would really enjoy doing. I started with the “sprint” triathlon, which typically is a quarter or a third of a mile swim followed by a 13-mile bike ride and a three mile run, before moving up to the Olympic version, which is twice those distances. As soon as I crossed the finish… Read more

On June 24, 2011, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the Marriage Equality Act (the “Act”), thereby granting same-sex couples the right to marry in New York. The Act confers the rights and benefits currently enjoyed by opposite-sex married couples under state law to same-sex married couples. The new law states simply: “A marriage that is otherwise valid shall be valid regardless of whether the parties to the marriage are of the same or different sex. … No application for a marriage license shall be denied on the ground that the parties are of the same, or a different, sex.”… Read more

{photo1-left-caption} As a volunteer for the non-profit organization Canine Assistants, SGR tax and trust attorney Kristen Lewis often sees firsthand the good that can come when you, quite literally, let your money go to the dogs. Specializing in representing families with disabled or special needs children, Kristen first came across Canine Assistants when she noticed that several clients had included charitable bequests to the organization in their wills. Curious to find out more, Kristen took her daughter’s Girl Scout troop on a day trip to the organization’s headquarters in Alpharetta, Ga. and instantly fell in love with the puppies. Involved… Read more

Now that the one-year anniversary of the enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (PPACA) has come and gone, it is an appropriate time to look back at the compliance challenges employers have faced, and to anticipate the challenges still to come. Current Compliance Challenges for Employers PPACA, which was enacted on March 23, 2010, made extensive changes to existing law governing employer-sponsored health coverage (both fully insured and self-insured plans) and individual health insurance coverage. PPACA addresses many different facets of health care coverage, including insurance market… Read more

Let’s face it — nobody’s perfect. Tom Brady occasionally throws an interception, and even the best managers and supervisors sometimes drop the ball on an employment law issue. Whether it is a tricky termination or a problem employee who just happens to have engaged in protected conduct, there is no “magic bullet” when it comes to minimizing the chances for making a mistake in compliance with workplace employment laws. Some common problems tend to arise on a fairly frequent basis, however. By being aware of those issues, an employer can at least minimize the chances of a “fumbled” human resource… Read more

Over the past few years, immigration has become a controversial and fiercely debated topic. Frustrated by an apparent lack of interest and action from the federal government, several states have attempted to take matters into their own hands by implementing their own immigration laws. In Georgia, for example, Governor Nathan Deal recently signed into law the Illegal Immigration Reform and Enforcement Act of 2011 (the “Act”), which will significantly change the way in which the state deals with illegal immigration and will penalize those who break the law. However, the law has been met with strong resistance from citizens and… Read more