Illinois business owners have been closely following developments under the Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”), particularly given the uncertainty created by conflicting court decisions and shifting enforcement positions. A recent federal appellate ruling provides important legal clarity, although practical compliance obligations for Illinois entities remain limited for now. Federal Appellate Court…
Bellas and Wachowski attorneys chicago illinois suburbs to help you with your business compliance Illinois and the City of Chicago continue to take a firm stance on workplace harassment prevention. For business owners, this means that annual sexual-harassment training is mandatory, and Chicago employers face additional, more extensive requirements each…
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) tried to ban non-compete agreements across the country. That sweeping ban is now effectively dead. A federal judge struck it down, and the FTC recently gave up its appeals. But that doesn’t mean employers are free to use non-competes however they like. The FTC has…
Several new employment laws go into effect in September and will affect employers in every state. Independent Contractors rules: The US Department of Labor adopted a six-factor test in January for classifying independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act. This replaces the previous two-factor approach. The result is more…
A New Era of Tax Policy for Business Owners On July 4, 2025, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) was signed into law, ushering in sweeping changes to the federal tax code. While the law has drawn national attention for its b roader political implications, it contains several key…
Small business owners and startup founders now have a powerful reason to take another look at Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS). A new federal law, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed on July 4, 2025, makes QSBS more valuable than ever for growing companies and their stakeholders. These changes…
Many employers rely on confidentiality agreements to protect sensitive business information. But not all confidentiality provisions are created equal, and if your agreement isn’t drafted properly, it may not hold up in court. While courts tend to scrutinize non-compete clauses, confidentiality provisions are usually enforceable, provided certain legal requirements are…
BIPA Amendment Making Waves in Litigation Trends The landscape of biometric privacy in Illinois is poised for a significant shift following the recent amendment to the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). On August 4, 2024, Governor JB Pritzker signed S.B. 2979 into law introducing a crucial modification that could…
Guest Blogger: Attorney Tracy Ries For parents going through a divorce, the right-now priority is to retain matrimonial attorneys to negotiate or litigate a plan to divide up assets, determine alimony and child support payments, and haggle over children’s residency and visitation schedules. And it’s understandable that’s the top focus…
Aret Smart Contracts Smart? Imagine if the paper on which your business’ contracts are written could somehow come to life and automatically send payments to your collectors—and receive payments from your debtors—at the appropriate times, as different provisions of said contract are triggered. That’s more or less how electronic smart…