Property transactions happen nearly every day. With many different properties going up for sale in the Houston area seemingly overnight, it’s no secret that the real estate market isn’t slowing down anytime soon. While the ongoing influx of real estate transactions brings new businesses and residents to Houston, Texas, it also comes with concerns of wire fraud.
Contracts are very commonplace in business transactions and partnerships. These binding agreements help to ensure the parties’ agreed terms are carried out in full on all sides of the agreement. When a party breaches a contract, it can be damaging to those involved. Recently, Apple sued a former chip designer after he allegedly breached his duty of loyalty and contract with the company.
When fraud occurs, it can cost unsuspecting victims more than they expect. One of the latest types of fraud attacks compromises corporate emails and uses them to manipulate others. Often known as CEO fraud, business email compromise tactics were recently used to scam a Swiss company out of roughly one million dollars by a multinational fraud ring.
Contracts and contract drafting are important for a strong foundation for any business relationship. Ensuring contracts are created concisely and that they detail any and all potential concerns is absolutely essential. Vendor contracts, however, create unique legal issues. Knowing the common pitfalls found within vendor contracts is incredibly important.
The merging of two companies is a fairly common business practice. Mergers and acquisitions can consolidate company funds or assets, help stimulate growth, bring about a competitive advantage, or increase market share. Though a corporate merger is usually beneficial for both parties involved, it’s important to be aware of the amount of time the process can potentially take. In fact, the recent merger between CBS and Viacom has been brewing for nearly 20 years.
When discrimination occurs in the workplace, it makes employees feel uncomfortable. Employment discrimination happens when an employee or an applicant is treated unfairly due to his or her race, skin color, national origin, gender, disability, religion, or age. Earlier this month, it was announced that Riot Games would pay nearly $10 million in a legal settlement after accusations of gender discrimination and sexual harassment came to light.
Mergers and acquisitions are common business occurrences involving the consolidation of companies or assets through various types of financial transactions. Mergers, acquisitions, consolidations, tender offers, and more can all dramatically change the face of a well-known business. In fact, Google recently acquired Fitbit in its largest acquisition to date for about $2.1 billion. This comes as the search engine giant aims to grow its presence in the smartwatch and fitness technology industries.
Fraud is, unfortunately, something that affects many businesses and individuals on a fairly regular basis. One type of fraud that has become more prevalent over the years is the Ponzi scheme. The most well-known example in recent memory is the 2008 arrest of Bernie Madoff for operating one of the largest private Ponzi schemes in history, estimated at $64.8 billion.
When a breach of fiduciary duty occurs, it can be devastating for those involved. This is because fiduciary and beneficiary relationships require a great amount of trust in order to be successful. Recently, an Estee Lauder employee filed a lawsuit against the company after the security of her 401(k) account was breached occurred. The employee accused the business of breaching its fiduciary duty to her after they failed to report the security breach.
Many Houstonians enjoy Tex-Mex eatery El Real for its food and its easily recognizable location in Montrose is a neighborhood landmark. Recently though, after eight years in business, the restaurant closed its doors for good, leaving many patrons questioning why.
