Law Commons^™

Public Employee Strikes In Ohio: The Ferguson Act Reconsidered, Donald J. Hoffman, Donald J. Newman

Akron Law Review

A SOCIETY CHANGES through normal evolutionary processes, the laws by which that society elects to be governed must also be changed.2 The diminution of the rationale for a given law tends to render that law vacuous. Impossibility of effective enforcement of the law will often render a law impotent. Failure by the appropriate legislative body to revise or repeal such laws to more accurately accommodate the current consensus results in a general deterioration of society's respect for law. An example is the Ferguson Act, which unequivocably prohibits any public employee in Ohio from striking. It has become clear that the …

Income Tax Considerations In The Transition To A Professional Corporation, Harvey Dunn

Akron Law Review

[T]he tax considerations in the formation and operation of a professional corporation are numerous and, unfortunately, there are many areas which lack definite guidelines so as to enable the practitioner to give as definite an answer as he would like to. However, as with any new area of tax law, it will take time, decisions and rulings to develop what one may term as reasonable guidelines for reaching a conclusion. In the meantime, there is little doubt that with careful planning in the formative stages and close observation of the operation of a professional corporation, the risk of problems with …

International Joint Ventures And The U.S. Antitrust Laws, James R. Atwood

Akron Law Review

This paper deals with only a limited class of international joint ventures and with only one body of law. It is therefore incomplete but more manageable in scope. I address only questions under United States antitrust laws, excluding those raised by foreign or international antitrust. Also, consistent with the Symposium's topic I limit myself to joint ventures involving foreign business activities by U.S. companies. This excludes joint ventures between solely foreign firms, and those between U.S. companies and foreign entities where the locus of the venture is to be the United States. These other forms of joint ventures present competitive …

Recent Developments In International Antitrust, Joel Davidow

Akron Law Review

IN THIS ERA of relative peace, many nations, including our own, are focusing more attention on important international economic issues rather than on military or political questions. These current issues include how to control abuses by multinational corporations, how to deal with commodity cartels, how to achieve a satisfactory transfer of technology to less developed nations, and how to create additional export opportunities for nations with a shortage of foreign exchange. In a broad sense, all these subjects can be viewed as involving issues of international antitrust or competition policy.

Trends In Nonprofit Corporation Law In 1976

Akron Law Review

THE INTEREST OF most Americans in nonprofit, and especially in charitable, organization work has long been a notable feature of American society - having been remarked upon as early as the 1830's in Baron de Tocqueville's analysis of American democracy.' That tendency continues today, even in times of economic recession.2 The economic crunch of 1975-76 saw an increase, not a decrease, in American donations to charitable organizations:' specifically, a 6.5 percent increase in charitable donations ($26.88 billion in 1975, compared to $25.23 billion in 1974), though contributions by foundations and businesses declined by 4.7 and 4 percent respectively. Religious charities …

Trends In Nonprofit Corporation Law In 1976

Akron Law Review

THE INTEREST OF most Americans in nonprofit, and especially in charitable, organization work has long been a notable feature of American society - having been remarked upon as early as the 1830's in Baron de Tocqueville's analysis of American democracy.' That tendency continues today, even in times of economic recession. The economic crunch of 1975-76 saw an increase, not a decrease, in American donations to charitable organizations:' specifically, a 6.5 percent increase in charitable donations ($26.88 billion in 1975, compared to $25.23 billion in 1974), though contributions by foundations and businesses declined by 4.7 and 4 percent respectively. Religious charities …

The Business Purpose Doctrine In Corporate Divisions, Stephen Rigsby

Akron Law Review

The corporate division, however, lends itself to schemes for avoidance of tax. These schemes are attempts to convert ordinary income into income taxable at capital gains rates. An elaborate statutory mechanism has been created to prevent this conversion. In addition, the courts have created judicial doctrines which sometimes work by adding to the statutory framework and sometimes overlap. The resulting confusion of statute and judicial doctrine is the subject of this article. The investigation will focus on that part of the statute known as the device clause and its interaction with the judicial doctrines which together are known as the …

Unreasonable Compensation In The Professional Corporation, Vincent J. Falcone

Akron Law Review

This comment will discuss the federal income tax issue of unreasonable compensation as it affects the incorporated professional. Discussion will first center on the modus operandi of the professional corporation, and how the compensation issue arises. Unreasonable compensation will then be defined and explained in that context. Next, the actual considerations used in determining whether compensation is excessive or not will be discussed. Then, the additional requirement that the remuneration be compensation in fact, and not a return on investment, will be investigated. The applicability of the 50% maximum tax on personal service income will also be analyzed. Finally, some …

Savings And Loan Service Corporations: Regulations In Ohio, Ronald E. Alexander

Akron Law Review

The purpose of this article is to examine Ohio's scheme for regulating service corporations. This examination includes the history of service corporation regulation in Ohio, the scope of permissible business activities of these corporations, investment limitations for parent savings associations and the supervisory authority of the Ohio Division of Building and Loan Associations [Division]. Perhaps this article will also provide a useful vehicle for judging whether the risks perceived by the GAO and FHLBB can arise from a single state's regulatory scheme for service corporations. It must be remembered that any such risks inherent in Ohio's scheme threaten not only …

Search: A Computer Program For Legal Problem Solving, Robert Hellawell

Akron Law Review

This article describes a computer program called SEARCH which is designed to assist a lawyer in legal analysis. SEARCH deals with a single subject in corporate taxation, but its approach can be used for a variety of legal problems. SEARCH's subject is the attribution rules of section 318 of the Internal Revenue Code (hereinafter Code). These rules, heartily disliked by many, are seemingly complex and often both difficult and time consuming to apply. Essentially, the attribution rules provide that a taxpayer, in certain cases, will be considered to own corporate shares that he does not actually own. Such shares are …

Incorporation Of Professionals In Ohio: Past, Present, And Future, M. Thomas Arnold

Akron Law Review

In 1961 the Ohio General Assembly enacted Chapter 1785 of the Ohio Revised Code authorizing the creation of professional associations. This legislation was deficient when enacted. Yet, despite criticism of the act and adequate opportunity, the Ohio Legislature has failed to reform this chapter of the Revised Code. This article will look at some of the background out of which the Ohio professional association legislation arose and at the substance and deficiencies of that legislation. Comments will be made on how the proposed Ohio Professional Corporation Act, promulgated in 1979 by the Corporation Law Committee of the Ohio Bar Association, …

The Attorney-Client Privilege As Applied To Corporate Clients, Elinore Marsh

Akron Law Review

After sixty-six years of struggle and controversy surrounding the application of the attorney-client privilege to corporate clients the United States Supreme Court has taken one step in laying many questions to rest. Upjohn Co. v. United States was accepted by the Court to resolve differences in the circuits as to how far the privilege extends horizontally and vertically within the corporate structure. This comment discusses the ramifications of extending the privilege to an entity which operates only through its agents, the history of the privilege, the effect of the Upjohn decision and the questions which remain as yet unsolved.

Partnership Sales: When Nonrecourse Debt Exceeds Fair Market Value, Commissioner V. Tufts, Joseph Perkovich

Akron Law Review

The United States Supreme Court has used its decision in Commissioner v. Tufts to settle a conflict between circuits and to fine tune an ambiguity which it created thirty-six years ago in Crane v. Commissioner. The circumstances focus on a taxpayer who sells his partnership interest by having the purchaser assume nonrecourse debt to which the partnership property is subject.

Shareholder Liability In Ohio: Confounding Attorneys And Others, South High Development Limited V. Weiner, Lippe & Cromley Co., L.P.A., Timothy J. O'Hearn

Akron Law Review

The purpose of this article is to explore the soundness and ramifications of South High Development Limited v. Weiner, Lippe & Cromley Co., L.P.A. To begin, the case holding will be summarized and the history of professional corporations reviewed. Special emphasis will be placed on Ohio legal professional corporations. A critique of the court's rationale and analysis of its implications will then follow.

Title Vii Discrimination Actions: Applicable Or Inapplicable To The Partnership Decision? Hishon V. King & Spalding, Gus Yogmour

Akron Law Review

An underlying premise of a partnership is that it is a strictly voluntary association between two or more persons for a business purpose. The concept that a partnership can be forced against its will to accept another individual into the organization as a partner is repugnant to the underlying premise of voluntariness of association. One purpose of Title VII of The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex and to place men and women on an equal footing. In order for this equal footing to exist, an individual's capabilities can be the only …

The Rejection Or Modification Of Collective Bargaining Agreements Under 11 U.S.C. § 1113, Pierce Richardson

Akron Law Review

The controversy intensified after the Supreme Court decision in NLRB v. Bildisco and Bildisco. The decision outraged union leaders and led to the passage of 11 U.S.C. § 1113. This comment will explore the issues arising from efforts by businesses to reject or modify collective bargaining agreements under section 1113. The comment will review the history of such efforts, and will then discuss the Bildisco decision. The comment will then examine section 1113 and offer suggestions as to its interpretation.

The Process And Outcome Of Negotiations With Multinational Corporations: A Conceptual Framework For Analysis, T. M. Ocran

Akron Law Review

The essential purpose of this paper is to provide a conceptual framework for case studies aimed at outlining the main stages in the process of negotiations; indicating some of the main factors affecting the relative bargaining position of the parties to negotiations with multinational corporations; and providing indices for evaluating the resulting structure of the distribution of gains from the projects contemplated by such negotiations. The paper thus combines elements from the second, third and fourth categories of studies on negotiations.

Attorneys Beware: Increased Liability For Providing Advice To Corporate Clients Issuing Securites, Joseph Reece

Akron Law Review

Although the law in this area is rapidly evolving, a general overview of recent case law seems to indicate that attorneys may be liable even though their participation in the issuance of securities only involved rendering routine services to a corporate client. If an attorney were to have an active part in activities such as business planning or the promotion of securities, their exposure to potential liability would increase dramatically. As a result of this rapid change in the law, there is a degree of uncertainty concerning the potential liabilities attorneys may face when assisting their corporate clients in issuing …

Shareholders Do Not Have Standing To Bring An Individual Action Against Third Parties Who Have Damaged The Corporation: Adair V. Wozniak, Frank Carrino

Akron Law Review

Apart from the context of a derivative action, can a shareholder in a corporation sue individually for wrongful acts committed against the corporation by third parties?

The general rule of corporate law states that a shareholder cannot attain standing for such a suit. This rule is grounded on the theory that all shareholders should incur loss from third party wrongdoing in proportion to the amount of shares he or she holds, and likewise should proportionately benefit when the corporate entity wins an action. In addition, courts are fearful that if this rule were not in force, then there would be …

One Step Forward And Two Steps Backward - Goodwill As A Distributable Asset Of A Law Partnership, Jean Hoffman

Akron Law Review

The Ohio Supreme Court examined both the traditional and modern views of goodwill as an asset in a law partnership and held that it was not against public policy to include measurable goodwill as an asset upon the dissolution of a law partnership. The court also concluded that ethical considerations did not preclude finding goodwill in a law partnership. However, the court held that goodwill could be distributed upon the dissolution of the partnership only when it was specifically provided for in the partnership agreement. This paper will examine the Spayd v. Turner, Granzow and Hollenkamp court's findings and the …

The Ohio Control Share Acquisition Act: Has Its Time Finally Come?, Bryan J. Green

Akron Law Review

The objective of this article is to inform the reader of what Ohio has done over the past six years to address the perceived danger of hostile takeovers. This comment will focus almost exclusively on the Ohio Control Share Acquisition Act, since it is the author's belief that this Act represents the strongest legislative barrier to hostile takeovers. This article will commence by discussing the circumstances in which the Ohio Control Share Acquisition Act was created, continue by examining its most important provisions, and conclude by depicting the Act's constitutional battles in the federal courts.

Flaugher V. Cone Automatic Machine Co.: The Ending Of A Trend In Successor Liability Or A Minor Setback For Product Liability Claimants?, Bryan J. Green

Akron Law Review

This Casenote analyzes the recent Ohio Supreme Court decision in Flaugher v. Cone Automatic Machine Co. to evaluate both its impact on the field of successor corporate liability and the opinion's fundamental soundness. The Flaugher court identified three issues: (1) whether the facts demanded application of one of the traditional exceptions to the rule of successor non-liability, (2) whether the court should adopt the "product line" theory of liability, and (3) whether the defendant corporations had a duty to warn plaintiff of the alleged defect in the machine which injured her. The court affirmed the lower court's decision by …

Business Ethics, Law, And The Corporate Use Of Laboraory Animals, David Hoch

Akron Law Review

This paper will examine, first, the fundamental theories pertaining to animal interests; then the relevant laws and the recognition of animal interests the laws require of corporate laboratories; and finally, how (if at all) these claims to interests for animals impinge upon corporate ethics. Perhaps a consideration of these matters will clarify the validity of the unorthodox proposition that corporate responsibility extends to nonhumans.

Statutory Limits On A Corporation's Right To Make Distributions To Shareholders: The Law Of Distribution In The 1984 Revised Model Business Corporation Act, Philip Mcgough

Akron Law Review

The purpose of this paper is to review the law of distribution in the 1984 Model Business Corporation Act. As we shall see, the 1950 MBCA's basic stance was that distributions should be made from earnings and that any distribution from contributed capital should require notification and approval of shareholders. The 1984 MBCA rejects the original stance and provides for minimal restrictions on distributions. What follows is in two parts: the first is a general survey of the law of distribution, the second compares the 1950 and 1984 versions of the MBCA in how they regulate distributions to shareholders.

Alternative Relief Available To Dissenting Shareholders Of A Cash-Out Merger, Edwin Davila

Akron Law Review

This article relates to the standing and right of a minority shareholder, who has dissented from a cash-out merger and commenced an appraisal proceeding, to pursue a separate individual claim of fraud in the merger through an action for rescissory damages against the participants for breaches of fiduciary duties to the shareholder. This issue arises from a cash-out merger of the minority shareholder. The situation encompasses two suits: a first filed statutory appraisal proceeding (the "Appraisal Action"); and a later filed shareholder's individual suit for damages for alleged fraud, conspiracy, self-dealing and waste of corporate assets (the "Fraud Action").

Qualification Of Securities In California: Hostile Territory For Foreign Issuers, James K. Roosa

Akron Law Review

The purpose of this article is to outline these policies and to discuss the threat which compliance poses to the issuer's shareholders as well as the corporation law of the issuer's home state. Although much of the discussion is couched in terms of Ohio law and Ohio issuers, it applies equally to other jurisdictions whose corporation laws are similar to Ohio's.

Disputes Among Partners: Problems In Rebutting The Presumptions Of The U.P.A. And The U.L.P.A. And Modifying A Partnership Agreement, Leonard Charles Schwartz

Akron Law Review

The Uniform Partnership Act (U.P.A.) and the Uniform Limited Partnership Acts (U.L.P.A.) contain many presumptions on the mutual rights and duties of partners. These presumptions create many problems regarding the formation and modification of partnership agreements. This article concerns some of the problems.

Section I discusses the issue of whose consent is necessary to rebut a presumption or modify a partnership agreement. Section II discusses the issue of what evidence is sufficient to rebut a presumption or modify a partnership agreement.

Dissenting Shareholders' Statutory Right To Fair Cash Value, Michael G. Schinner

Akron Law Review

On October 30, 1981, the opening salvo in what became "the largest action for relief to dissenting shareholders in the judicial history of Ohio" was launched.' It took six long years for the smoke to clear, but by elucidating a theoretically and practicably cogent analysis of the Ohio appraisal statute, the Armstrong case has provided plentiful ammunition for the lower courts in Ohio to combat the inevitable onslaught of dissenting shareholders resulting from the proliferation of corporate takeovers.

Subchapter C Reform Of Mergers And Acquisitions After General Utilities: Now What Is Congress Waiting For?, John R. Mcgowan

Akron Law Review

One of the latest and most comprehensive studies in this area was released on May 20, 1985 as the final report of the Senate Finance Committee.' This proposal, called the "Subchapter C Revision Act of 1985," represents perhaps the largest examination of the fundamental rules in the Internal Revenue Code relating to the Federal income taxation of corporations and their investors. In this study, numerous proposals were very favorably received, among them were the proposals covering mergers and acquisitions (M & A). For example, the Treasury Department stated: "[the acquisitions] proposals have substantial merit in that they provide greater consistency …

Procuring Trial Testimony From Corporate Officers And Employees: Alternative Methods And Suggestions For Reform, Richard J. Oparil

Akron Law Review

This article discusses the situation under the current Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, including some alternative methods of obtaining testimony at trial. The article then discusses various ways the problem could be solved through rule changes to help ensure live trial testimony by corporate officials.