On March 23, 2020, the City of Milwaukee Health Department published the Order of the City of Milwaukee Commissioner of Health Imposing A City-Wide “Stay-At-Home” Requirement To Mitigate The Spread of COVID-19 (the “City of Milwaukee Order”)[1]. On March 24, 2020, the State of Wisconsin Department of Health Services published Emergency Order #12...
Borrowers Under SBA 504 and SBA 7(a) Loan Programs Eligible for Deferral of Principal, Interest and Fees for up to Six Months
By: Lawrence J. Glusman and Michael Van Someren To address temporary business interruptions, U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) lenders nationwide have authority to defer payments of principal, interest and servicing fees for up to six months. Borrowers with existing loans under the SBA 504 Loan (Certified Development Company) program and...
Employer Relief May Be in Sight – Senate Bill Includes Forgivable Loans to Maintain Payroll for Next Four Months
By: Michael Van Someren and Lawrence J. Glusman The Senate is currently considering a bill that could greatly increase the ability of employers to retain their employees. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act or “CARES Act” is currently being considered by the U.S. Senate. While it has not yet passed and includes a number of...
COVID-19 and Contract Enforceability
By: Daniel A. Kaminsky and Alexander T. Kay In the coming days, weeks, and months, it is likely that we will see failures to perform under contracts that are related to COVID-19 (e.g., failures to perform arising out of the ongoing temporary closures of businesses and institutions across the State of Wisconsin, the United States of America, and...
Coronavirus Challenges for Commercial Landlords
By: Ethan C. Geis and Mike T. Van Someren The COVID-19 virus is having negative effects on many aspects of life in the world, not least including economics close to home. Unfortunately, commercial real estate and capital markets are not immune to these effects. In light of the modern real estate investment, which almost always includes a...

Bringing On Investors: Using Private Placement Memoranda Can Reduce Risks of Personal Liability
By Michael Van Someren & Joseph E. Tierney IV Under state and federal securities laws, owners and managers of companies raising capital through sale securities (e.g., stock or membership interests in companies) can be personally liable for material misrepresentations and omissions in any description of the business or investment. To reduce...

Fiscal Cliff Avoided
By Gregory S. Sell The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (H.R. 8, as amended) (the "Act") was passed by Congress on January 1, 2013 and was signed into law by President Obama on January 2nd. The Act extends various tax rate cuts (the "Bush Tax Cuts") that were set to expire this year, which would have increased taxes for all taxpayers. The...
New Federal Law Expands the Ability of Companies to Raise Money and Reduces Regulatory Burdens of Going Public
In the last two weeks major legislation has been enacted by the federal government which significantly changes the rules under which companies can access capital markets to raise money for growth, while simultaneously reducing the costs, regulations and burdens of going public. The intent of the new legislation is to stimulate the economy by...
Effect of Bank Credit Downgrades on M&A Deals
Fifteen of the largest "too big to fail" banks recently sustained serious downgrades to their credit ratings from one or more credit rating agencies. M&A transactions that require some level of bank financing will be affected to a limited degree, in the future as lenders attempt to regain their formerly more favorable ratings. These...