Attorney Matt Kane Recognized by 2020 Best Lawyers®

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Matt Kane is selected by his peers for inclusion in the 2020 edition of The Best Lawyers in America© for his work in Commercial Litigation. Matt has been named annually since 2017, a true testament to his work in this area.

Matt represents banks and other financial institutions, businesses and individuals in an array of business law matters and disputes concerning consumer finance, employment, construction, real estate and general litigation as part of the firm’s business litigation practice. He also has considerable experience in consumer financial services litigation, including mortgage and title litigation, civil check fraud, and fair debt collection matters.

Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers® has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers lists are compiled based on an exhaustive peer-review evaluation. Almost 94,000 industry leading lawyers are eligible to vote (from around the world), and we have received over 11 million evaluations on the legal abilities of other lawyers based on their specific practice areas around the world.

For the 2020 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America©, 8.3 million votes were analyzed, which resulted in more than 62,000 leading lawyers being included in the new edition. Lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed; therefore inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor. Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers “the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice.”

Brendan Cox Named Of Counsel to Laredo & Smith

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Laredo & Smith is pleased to announce the addition of Brendan S. Cox as of Counsel to the firm as of July 1, 2019. Brendan is a trial attorney who focuses his practice in business and employment law, as well as criminal defense.

Brendan litigates all aspects of the criminal process from probable cause hearings and arraignments through complex evidentiary motions and trial. He represents clients on a wide range of matters including minor misdemeanors through serious felonies. In his business practice, Brendan advises entrepreneurs and start-up companies across many industries. He advises on employment agreements, business law matters, contracts and intellectual property concerns. Often operating as virtual in-house counsel, Brendan guides clients through important strategic business matters. He takes start-up companies through the entity selection process, drafts founder agreements, develops operational policies and devises business game plans.

Matt Kane Named to Best Lawyers Again in 2019

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Matt Kane was selected by his peers for inclusion in the 2019 edition of The Best Lawyers in America© for his work in Commercial Litigation. Matthew has been named annually since 2017.

Matthew represents banks and other financial institutions, businesses and individuals in an array of business law matters and disputes concerning consumer finance, employment, construction, real estate and general litigation as part of the firm’s business litigation practice. He also has considerable experience in consumer financial services litigation, including mortgage and title litigation, civil check fraud, and fair debt collection matters.

Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers® has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers lists are compiled based on an exhaustive peer-review evaluation. 87,000 industry leading attorneys are eligible to vote (from around the world), and we have received almost 10 million evaluations on the legal abilities of other lawyers based on their specific practice areas around the world. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor and Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers “the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice.”

Employer Alert: Non-Compete Reform Law Passes in Massachusetts

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Effective October 1, 2018, employers must comply with a new Massachusetts non-compete law geared at protecting both employees and independent contractors from undue restrictions on their ability to work, on one hand, while providing employers some leeway to protect their business interests through compliant, reasonably-tailored non-competition agreements. Non-compete agreements are contracts between employers and workers (both employees and independent contractors) that restrict workers from engaging in certain competitive activities for a defined period of time after termination of their relationships with the business.  Read more in this month’s newsletter.

October Newsletter

Matt Kane Selected to Best Lawyers List for Commercial Litigation

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Matthew Kane was selected by his peers for inclusion in the 25th edition of The Best Lawyers in America© for his work in Commercial Litigation.

Matthew represents banks and other financial institutions, businesses and individuals in an array of business law matters and disputes concerning consumer finance, employment, construction, real estate and general litigation as part of the firm’s business litigation practice. He also has considerable experience in consumer financial services litigation, including mortgage and title litigation, civil check fraud, and fair debt collection matters.

Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers® has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers lists are compiled based on an exhaustive peer-review evaluation. 83,000 industry leading attorneys are eligible to vote (from around the world), and we have received almost 10 million evaluations on the legal abilities of other lawyers based on their specific practice areas around the world. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor and Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers “the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice.”

Nancy Johnsen Named Of Counsel to Laredo & Smith

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Laredo & Smith is pleased to announce the firm has added Nancy Johnsen as of Counsel to the firm. Nancy is a corporate attorney who represents businesses and entrepreneurs in connection with both operational and strategic legal matters. Her experience includes corporate law, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, fund management and formation, public company reporting, contracts, data privacy and security and mediation and insolvency.

Nancy works with early stage, mid and late stage start-up companies as well as  established public and private companies. Over her the span of her career, she has counseled clients across several industries including non-profit, private equity, real estate, retail, restaurant, healthcare tech and technology.

Nancy is a professionally trained pastry chef who maintains a deep interest and involvement in the food and restaurant business and is involved in Boston area food policy and entrepreneurship groups. She participates in a number of community, arts and social enterprise organizations through board memberships and volunteer coaching.

Marc Laredo Authors Mass Law Review Article: Shareholder Duties and Disputes in Closely-Held Corporations in Massachusetts Revisited

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Marc Laredo published an article for the Massachusetts Bar Association’s publication Massachusetts Law Review, Volume 99, No. 3.  The article is entitled: “Shareholder Duties and Disputes in Closely-Held Corporations in Massachusetts Revisited.”  Marc discusses recent changes applied to long-time principles in this area of law. He states, “over the past decade, while the fundamental principles have remained the same, Massachusetts courts have refined and built upon principals and addressed previously unresolved issues.”

We invite you to download the full article: Massachusetts Law Review Volume 99, No. 3.

 

Guarantors Beware: Guaranty May Survive Underlying Settlement

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It is not uncommon in a business deal for individuals—owners, for instance— to personally guarantee the business’s obligations to a third party (such as a lender or landlord). These types of arrangements are beneficial in situations where, for example, a lender is unwilling to do business with a startup or similar company that has a few or no assets, but will agree to enter into the deal so long as the business owner personally guarantees that the lender will be repaid on the debt or investment even if the business fails. Read more in this month’s newsletter.

May 2018 Newsletter

Marc Laredo Presents CLE on Closely-Held Businesses

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Marc Laredo spoke for a Boston Bar Association CLE program entitled, “Small Businesses, Big Headaches: Ethical and Practical Challenges in Representing Closely-Held Businesses” in February 2018.  The distinguished panel of litigators and transactional lawyers addressed the special ethical and practical challenges facing attorneys whose practices involve closely held businesses.  Among the topics covered will be:

  • Impact of recent case law, including the WilmerHale,Cesari McKenna and Abrano decisions;
  • Identifying the clients and fiduciary duties owed to them;
  • Engagement letters: forming and terminating the attorney-client relationship;
  • Hot Potato withdrawals of representation;
  • Navigating conflicts among principals, including litigation and alternative dispute resolution; and
  • Representation of stakeholders in unrelated matters – potential future conflicts.

Limited Liability Under the Massachusetts Wage Act for Board Members and Investors

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The Massachusetts Wage Act (Ch. 149, §§ 148-150) permits lawsuits for unpaid wages to be brought against a company’s president, treasurer, or officers or agents having the management of the company. While the terms “president,” “treasurer,” and “officer” are relatively well-defined, until recently there was significant uncertainty about who qualified as an “agent having the management” of a company to be held personally liable under the Wage Act.

Read about the scope of personal liability for two groups of non-officers: investors and board members.

Newsletter_February 2018