Resources | Articles

David Ruskin’s article “Counseling a Cannabis-Related Business” was featured as the cover story in Practical Law The Journal. This recently updated article is a must-read for anyone from entrepreneurs to veterans in the cannabis industry.

In this article, Aaron L. Hammer, Rick S. Rein, Dan Wen and Claudia Suszczynska provide an overview of the decline in the cryptocurrency industry in 2022, otherwise known as a “crypto winter,” and the potential impacts of a surge in Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings by …

In this article, Rick S. Rein discusses how an equity receivership can be an effective tool to address financial fraud related to a business’s mismanagement or improper use of assets.

With more states and countries legalizing cannabis in varying forms, the industry is likely to continue to expand. However, cannabis remains an illegal drug at the federal level, presenting numerous challenges for cannabis-related companies and their counsel. In his article for Practical Law, David S. …

Bankruptcy fraud, which lessened during the pandemic, could increase this year according to HMB’s Rick S. Rein and Brad Sargent, Founder of The Sargent Consulting Group, LLC. In an article published by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) FRAUD magazine, Rick and Brad provide …

In his article, David A. Hughes discusses how to approach unclaimed property self-audits and provides a brief history and overview of Illinois’s Unclaimed Property Act.

In less than a decade, Illinois went from treating cannabis as a criminal issue to developing a heavily-regulated legal medical and adult use cannabis industry. Illinois law uses cannabis as a blanket term covering regulated products, including cannabis-infused products, such as edibles. Medical cannabis is a term that covers the same types of product as cannabis, but refers to products…

Read the full article by ABA here. Pursuing legal relief against foreign parties and assets is a complex task that requires a well-developed plan to achieve a cross-border recovery. Globalization has created new challenges for parties threatened by, or involved in, cross-border disputes. Internet communication has made electronic transactions seamless and easy to operate anywhere in the world. Tax havens…

In an opinion for our troubled times, Northern District of Illinois Bankruptcy Judge Donald Cassling granted debtor Hitz Restaurant Group (“Hitz”) some reprieve from § 365(d)(3)’s strict requirements due to a combination of COVID-19 shutdown orders and a favorably-worded force majeure clause. (more…)…

In this second of a three-part series, Breslow discusses the Internet Tax Freedom Act and whether the digital world has really been protected from the tax man. Adoption and Intent of the ITFA Initially adopted in 1998 under the Clinton administration with the mantra “no new internet taxes,” the Internet Tax Freedom Act (ITFA) was made permanent on February 24,…

View the PDF from Turnaround Management Association's Journal of Corporate Renewal here. John W. Guzzardo and Nathan E. Delman, with John B. Pidcock of Oxford Restructuring Advisors LLP, discuss how Red South Beach responded to the COVID-19 crisis by quickly taking a number of actions designed not only to survive but to emerge financially stronger once the crisis is over.…

Two thirds of all states and the District of Columbia have, to varying degrees, legalized cannabis. With the recent addition of Illinois, eleven states now allow adult recreational use. But cannabis entrepreneurs’ rush of excitement and dreams of cashing in is met with fierce competition and economic risks that makes the dreams, which look so dank at first, end up…

Read the full article on Tax Notes here (subscription required). Samantha Breslow discusses how the sluggishness of legislation does not often adjust itself to the speed and terminology of technology. However, there are a few states that are adapting to overcome the discrepancies. Download a PDF of the full article here. Debugging the (State Tax) Code: Outdated Sales Tax Terminology…

David provides an overview of the regulation of cannabis and considers the top legal issues faced by a cannabis-related business, focusing on the conflict between federal law and state laws where medical or adult use recreational marijuana is legal.

John Guzzardo and Rick Rein wrote an article for NABT American Bankruptcy Trustee Journal regarding the use of Consent Directives to locate offshore assets. A consent directive is a "rare bird" investigatory tool that litigants in the US may use to discover assets and information from debtors or third parties located anywhere in the world. Recently, the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy…

John Guzzardo and Rick Rein wrote an article for American Bankruptcy Trustee Journal regarding the use of Consent Directives to locate offshore assets.

Cryptocurrency has been all the rage recently in the financial and legal news. Everyone has or knows someone who owns bitcoin (the most common form of cryptocurrency), but what exactly is cryptocurrency?

While distinguishing between tangible personal property and real property is necessary in several contexts, it is not always a simple determination to make, particularly from a tax perspective.

Article by: Diane Yetter Read full article published by Sales Tax Institute on 5/18/18. The  South Dakota v. Wayfair court case has been dominating news cycles lately and in a very short time, much has happened. On April 17th, the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments and this article gets different perspectives on the outcome from five experts on sales…

The use of cryptocurrencies is increasing at a staggering pace. As cryptocurrency use becomes mainstream, its use as a form of payment and storage as an asset will increase across industries and among companies and individuals.

State and Local Tax Attorneys Fred Marcus, Jordan Goodman and Marilyn Wethekam recently authored "Sales and Use Taxes: The Machinery and Equipment Exemption" for Bloomberg BNA's Tax Management Portfolios, 1330 3rd edition. This portfolio discusses sales and use tax incentives for machinery and equipment used in manufacturing operations. HMB offers a limited number of hard copies for clients. Click here to…

The Illinois replacement tax allows an LLC or partnership to deduct from its base income ”personal service income” or a reasonable allowance for compensation paid or accrued for services rendered by the partners.

Rick Rein Contributed to an article discussing Local jurisdictions and establishing a plan of action for achieving an international recovery of an asset.

David’s article explores the ramifications of treating something as tangible personal or real property for sales/use and property tax purposes, specific to the telecommunication industry.

Recent cases have brought to the forefront issues regarding the risks of purchasing art.