04 March

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Myths About Wages

There are two categories of employees: exempt employees and non-exempt employees. If an employee is exempt under federal or Minnesota’s wage and hour laws that means that employees are exempt from overtime and minimum wage requirements. An employee who is non-exempt under federal and Minnesota’s wage and hour laws means that an employer has to pay that employer overtime and must follow minimum wage requirements. Myth #1: Sue’s Drycleaning, Inc. pays her employees a salary rather than hourly, and therefore the company believes they are exempt from paying overtime. The fact that an employee is paid a salary does not make them...

05 February

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Estate Planning Pitfalls

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Beneficiary designations are a critical part of your estate plan, even if you have a will or a trust. Wills are always probated if there are assets to probate. Probate occurs only on those assets, if any, that do not automatically pass by operation of law and the total value is more than $75,000 and does not include real estate. There are four types of beneficiary-like designations that pass by operation of law: 1) the traditional beneficiary designation - in a life insurance or retirement plan, for example; 2) a payable upon death designation for a bank account; 3) a...

07 January

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Minnesota Paid Leave Applies to Everyone

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML or Paid Leave) is a mandatory state benefit that starts on January 1, 2026. Generally, all businesses are automatically signed up for Paid Leave. The only way for an eligible business to opt-out of the State’s Paid Leave plan is through a written exemption your business received from the State of Minnesota approving your private Paid Leave insurance plan. In other words, you cannot get out of providing Paid Leave to eligible employees by ignoring this mandatory state benefit. If individual employees want to opt-out of Paid Leave they are prohibited from opting-out. If you,...

26 November

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New Employment Laws

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Are you aware that… * it is illegal in Minnesota for employers to misclassify workers as independent contractors when they are actually employees? * in Minnesota the misclassification of workers as independent contractors when they are actually employees is considered wage theft? * in Minnesota the misclassification of workers as independent contractors when they are actually employees has the potential for civil and criminal consequences? * in Minnesota there is a 14-factor test that an employer must meet to show that construction workers are classified correctly as independent contractors? * in Minnesota a sole proprietor and an unincorporated association are included in the definition of...

20 November

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Paid Leave Details

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Paid Leave serves two purposes: 1) payments to the employee that covers a portion of the employee’s usual pay during their leave; and 2) ensure job protection to an employee who has worked for at least 90 days prior to taking leave when they return from leave. It is a social insurance program. That means both employees and employers contribute premiums for the Paid Leave benefit. In an attempt to make things easier for employers, Paid Leave uses the same online reporting system as Unemployment Insurance (UI). Beginning on January 1, 2026, employers will start collecting the employee’s portion of the...

23 October

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Paid Leave Summary

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML or Paid Leave) is coming to Minnesota, and the time to prepare is now. All employers, with limited exception, must provide paid leave to their Minnesota based employees starting January 1, 2026. You can provide Paid Leave through the State of Minnesota or through a private plan that has been approved by the State of Minnesota. However, some insurance companies are closing or have closed their private plans for enrollment. If a private plan is not an option, then you must use the State of Minnesota’s plan. By December 1, 2025, employers must have informed their...

13 August

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Employee Handbook Pitfalls

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Employee handbooks should not be finalized and then set in a drawer to gather dust. Instead, an employee handbook needs to be consulted, followed and revised. An employee handbook should be revised at a minimum one time per year. That is because laws continually change, which requires revisions to the handbook. In addition, circumstances change throughout the course of time in your business, which necessitates updates to the employee handbook. If your business pulled your employee handbook off of the internet or from another business, now is the time to review it. A common mistake that we constantly see is employers...

31 July

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Real Estate Issues Can Haunt Your Estate

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Real estate often involves both a mortgage and a title. The person on the mortgage is the party who is responsible for paying the mortgage note. The name(s) on the title is who legally owns the home. It is important to understand the interplay between the mortgage and the title as a baseline. Hypothetical #1: Jessica owns her house. Her boyfriend, Tom, moves into the home with her. Since he pays her rent, she adds him to the quit claim deed as a joint tenant. Jessica dies. Analysis: Tom owns the home, but has no legal obligation to pay for the home....

25 June

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New Boating and Watercraft Law

Posted by Evon Spangler

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As of July 1, 2025, in Minnesota, some adults and youth who operate motorboats, including personal watercraft, must have a valid watercraft operator’s permit. Those who were born after June 30, 2004, will need to have a permit to operate a boat as of July 1, 2025. A permit is required for anyone 12 years old or older and was born after these dates: June 30, 2024 (starts 7/1/25); June 30, 2000 (starts 7/1/26); June 30, 1996 (starts 7/1/27); and June 30, 1987 (starts 7/1/28). If you do not fall within the dates specified, you do not need a permit. You...

22 May

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The Mistake of a Business Owner Who Does Not Consult an Attorney

Posted by Evon Spangler

in Uncategorized

Impulsivity, urgency, or trusting without making sure you are protected can result in a mistake for a business owner. Like most things in life, some mistakes are small and have minimal consequences while other mistakes are catastrophic and have civil and/or criminal consequences. Hypothetical #1: Gwen and Blake have been friends for decades. Blake is a blacksmith who has his own business, Blacksmith for Life. Times are difficult for blacksmiths, so he asks his friend Gwen to join the business because two owners have to be better than one, he thinks. Gwen wants to help out her friend, and readily, without...

Author: Evon Spangler