Joseph A. Vater, Jr., Quoted on Trib Live

Joseph A. Vater, Jr., Esquire
jav@muslaw.com

Attorney Joseph A. Vater, Jr., was a Panelist at the Mon Yough Area Chamber of Commerce 'lunch and learn' session on the Affordable Care Act on Thursday, July 26th at Auberle.  Mr. Vater was quoted in an article that was published on the Trib Live website.  Please click here for Mr. Vater's quote and a description of the panel discussion.

Ronald Hicks Recognized In The South Pittsburgh Reporter

Ronald L. Hicks, Jr., Esquire
rlh@muslaw.com

Attorney Ronald Hicks was recognized in The South Pittsburgh Reporter for his recent accomplishment of being named a 2013 Super Lawyer.  Please click here to read Ron's full article.

Andrea Geraghty Recognized In IUP Magazine

Andrea Geraghty, Esquire
ag@muslaw.com

Andrea Geraghty was recognized in IUP Magazine for her recent accomplishment of being named a 2013 Super Lawyer and her inclusion on the list of Pennsylvania Top 50 Women Lawyers.  Please click here to read Andrea’s full article.

Business Workshop: FMLA Continues to Expand

Elaina Smiley, Esquire
es@muslaw.com

The Department of Labor continues to expand coverage of the Family and Medical Leave Act.

The Department recently published an interpretation of the Act that makes it easier for qualified employees to take FMLA leave to care for an adult child with a disability.

Shortly afterward, new regulations were published that expand and clarify FMLA-related military leave.

Among other clarifications, the new Labor Department interpretation says that the onset of the child's disability can come at any age -- even after the age of 18. Previously, there was some controversy as to whether the FMLA covered adult children whose disability had occurred or been diagnosed as an adult.

But now, an employee may take FMLA leave to care for an adult child who is incapable of self-care due to a serious, adult-onset health condition.

The Labor Department next issued regulations expanding military related FMLA leave. Significant changes include:

• Expanding the ability of a caregiver to take leave to care for covered service members, who now include veterans discharged within the past five years.
• Expanding the definition of current service member with serious injury or illness to include injuries or illnesses that existed before active duty and were aggravated by service.
• Expanding qualifying exigency leave, which previously included only the National Guard and Reserves, to include the Regular Armed Forces deployed to a foreign county. Exigency leave includes arranging for care for a parent or child, financial and legal arrangements, and other activities.
• Expanding the amount of time from five to 15 days that an employee can spend with a military member on rest and recuperation leave.

Employers should revise their current FMLA polices and carefully consider employee requests that may be covered under these expansions.

For more information on this topic, please contact Elaina Smiley at es@muslaw.com.

This article originally appeared in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Business Workshop section. Business Workshop is a weekly feature from local experts offering tidbits on matters affecting business. Read more:

http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/business/news/business-workshop-fmla-continues-to-expand-697275/#ixzz2aWZJFTjq

Eight Meyer, Unkovic & Scott Attorneys Named Rising Stars

Meyer, Unkovic & Scott is pleased to announce that eight of its attorneys have been named to the Pennsylvania Rising Stars list of the top up-and-coming attorneys in Pennsylvania for 2013.

Meyer, Unkovic & Scott attorneys named in this year’s Pennsylvania Rising Stars are Frank Kosir, Jr. (Real Estate), Joshua Lorenz (Business Litigation – 6th year listed), Chad Michaelson  (Business Litigation – 6th year listed), Andrew Noble  (Business Litigation – 3rd year listed), Antoinette Oliver  (Business Litigation), Brian Sommer  (Business Litigation),  Tony Thompson  (Business Litigation), and Jason Yarbrough (Construction/Surety – 4th year listed).

The Rising Stars lists are published nationwide by Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business rating service that evaluates outstanding lawyers across the nation annually using statewide surveys, independent research evaluations, and peer reviews in more than 70 practice areas.

For the awards, lawyers are asked to nominate the best attorneys who are 40 or under, or who have been practicing for 10 years or less. No more than 2.5 percent of the lawyers in the state of Pennsylvania receive the Rising Star award.

Frank Kosir is a member of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott’s Real Estate and Lending Group, Litigation and Dispute Resolution Group, Corporate and Business Law Group and Construction Law Group.  Mr. Kosir has significant experience in all areas of real property law. He represents clients in a wide range of matters including commercial and residential real estate tax assessment appeals, commercial and residential sales and leasing, oil and gas lease negotiations, boundary line disputes, title defense, commercial and residential landlord-tenant proceedings, quiet title proceedings, eminent domain proceedings, condominium creation and amendment, construction disputes and zoning and land use issues.  He is a graduate of Washington & Jefferson College and Duquesne University School of Law, and resides in Peters Township.

Joshua Lorenz is a member of the firm's Business Litigation, Construction and Real Estate Groups, serving as Co-Chair of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott’s Construction Group. He regularly represents the firm's construction, corporate, municipal and individual clients in their contractual matters, including contract negotiation, review and drafting, as well as handling both the prosecution and defense of their disputes before state and federal courts, arbitration panels and administrative agencies. Mr. Lorenz graduated from Virginia Tech and the Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law, and resides in Murrysville with his family where he serves as an elected member of Murrysville Council.

Chad Michaelson chairs the firm’s Sustainable Development Practice Group and is a member of the firm’s Business Litigation, Construction Law and Tort Litigation Groups. His practice is focused on commercial and construction litigation, including contract disputes, shareholder and partner disputes, tort defense and trade secrets and business protection litigation. He also serves on the Mt. Lebanon Board of Appeals and advises the Seton-LaSalle High School Mock Trial program. He graduated from West Virginia University and the Emory University School of Law, and resides in Mt. Lebanon.

Andrew Noble is a member of the firm’s Business Litigation, Tort Litigation and Intellectual Property Groups. He has represented clients in both state and federal courts on a wide variety of commercial litigation matters. The clients that Mr. Noble has represented range from Fortune 500 companies to small sole proprietorships.  He has handled cases involving breach of contract, copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation, insurance coverage, oil and gas leases and commercial landlord-tenant disputes. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and resides in Oakmont.

Antoinette Oliver is a member of several Meyer, Unkovic & Scott groups including the Intellectual Property Group, Employment Law & Employee Benefits, Litigation & Dispute Resolution Group. Her practice involves representing clients in commercial disputes in both state and federal court, including claims for breach of contract, fraud, negligence, UCC, insurance coverage and collection matters.  She also has substantial experience in defending clients against products liability, personal injury claims and employment law matters. She is a graduate of Smith College and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and resides in Mount Lebanon.

Brian Sommer is a member of the firm’s Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Employment Law & Employee Benefits, Intellectual Property and Sustainable Development Groups.  His practice focuses on commercial litigation, particularly securities litigation, intellectual property disputes, Marcellus Shale litigation, and shareholder rights. He is a graduate of the University of Vermont and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and resides in Squirrel Hill.

Tony Thompson is member of the Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Employment Law & Employee Benefits and Intellectual Property Groups of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott. He counsels clients on a variety of matters, including contract negotiations, trade secrets, labor-management relations, complex commercial litigation, and commercial landlord and tenant disputes.  Mr. Thompson has also represented plaintiffs and defendants in both state and federal courts, as well as in arbitration proceedings. He graduated from Washington & Jefferson College and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and resides in Monroeville.

Jason Yarbrough is a member of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott’s Construction Law, Litigation & Dispute Resolution and Creditors' Rights Groups. Mr. Yarbrough has represented corporate entities, officers, individuals and family-owned businesses in state and federal courts, state agencies and arbitrations on a variety of complex commercial, construction and real estate litigation matters. In his construction practice, Mr. Yarbrough represents owners, contractors, engineers, and code enforcement officials in disputes arising out of both public and private construction projects. He also frequently represents clients in commercial disputes, the sale or lease of commercial and residential real estate and real property tax assessments. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame and from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and resides in Allison Park (Hampton Township).

VisionPittsburgh Luncheon - August 6th

Meyer, Unkovic & Scott is proud to be a sponsor of the VisionPittsburgh luncheon series.  The next luncheon will feature Ed Fritsch, CEO of Highwood Properties, on Tuesday, August 6 from 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.  at the Duquesne Club. 

For additional information, please go to http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/event/85251

The Optimal Buyer for your Business Is Likely to be Large and International

Dennis Unkovic, Esquire
du@muslaw.com

Dennis Unkovic's article "The Optimal Buyer for your Business Is Likely to be Large and International" was published online by The CEO Magazine.  Please click here to read Dennis' article.