News

Identify the Four Tracks of Personal Responsibility

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

The divisions in this country are not just political, they also relate to attitudes toward responsibility. In a survey and study that Persuasion Strategies conducted this past month (July, 2019), we asked respondents about their views of individual...

SEC and FINRA Struggle with Digital Assets; Reg BI Disclosure Duties Explained; and How RIA’s Fail when Hiring Advisors with Black Marks: Regulatory Update for August 2019

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

For Broker-Dealers and Investment Advisers: Yes, Digital Assets are Securities, but no, We’re Not Ready to Let You Deal in Them Yet. The SEC and FINRA issued a Joint Staff Statement on Broker-Dealer Custody of Digital Asset Securities on July 8.  On...

FERC Indefinitely Suspends PJM 2019 Auction to Establish Base Rates

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ordered PJM Interconnection, LLC’s (PJM) on July 25 to suspend its 2019 Base Residual Auction (BRA), which provides for capacity payments to electric generators. FERC found that delaying the auction...

What is an Abusive Tax Trust?

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

In a “legitimate” Trust, the ownership and control of the Trust assets and income is “separate” from a Settlor’s control and benefit. IRS has been reporting that Trusts are used for abusive tax schemes to hide true ownership of assets and income,...

California Court Rejects Zoning Uniformity Claims

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

In Sacramentans for Fair Planning v. City of Sacramento, published on July 18, 2019, the California Court of Appeal rejected challenges to a project based on the principle of zoning uniformity, limiting its application to general law cities and to...

Dramatic Decision on the Taxation of Trusts in Israel

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

The Tel Aviv District Court handed down a decision a few days ago rejecting the Israel Tax Authority’s (ITA) position on the conveyance of real estate properties to trusts. This decision dramatically changes the taxation of trusts in Israel....

HUD Reduces Maximum LTV for FHA Cash-Out Refinance Loans

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

In Mortgagee Letter 2019-11, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it is reducing the maximum loan-to-value ratio and combined maximum loan-to-value ratio on cash-out refinance mortgages from 85% to 80%. The change...

2019 REIT Say-on-Pay Recap: Shareholders Find Their Own Voice

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

REIT Say-on-Pay Results Slide But Still Fare Better Than Most Industries - While shareholder support and Say-on-Pay results stayed effectively flat for the general industry, self-managed REITs saw an increase in negative voting recommendations from...

Adopting smart contracts in construction: what are the practical and legal issues? - More questions than answers?

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

The construction industry is starting to engage more widely with new and emerging technology like Building Information Modelling, drones and 3D printing. Various bodies are now working on the multitude of challenges that implementation of such "new...

Mediation: Avoiding The "S" Word In IP Litigation

By EsqSocial Corporation 02/08/19

The vast majority of even the most hard-fought litigations are resolved through an agreement between the parties. Mediation not only plays a significant role in facilitating settlement, it expands the times when it should be considered. Intellectual...

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