Covering the week’s most noteworthy business news impacting the Filipino-American and Global Filipino community.
Seniors choose Chapter 7 to discharge $30K and $10K credit cards CLIENT is 47, single and a registered nurse. Her income is good at $80K a year. She has no dependents except her mom who lives with her. Despite her good income, she has a default on her mortgage for $50K. She had an affair…
IF you are considering bankruptcy as a last resort to solve your debt problems, it is important for you to have your case evaluated by a professional who can advise you if it is appropriate for your situation. While there are a lot of cases where filing is the only solution, in other cases, there…
THE client is a foreign company that has been doing business with a California company since 2012. The client is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of a certain kind of equipment, which the CA company sells and distributes in the United States. Business was good reaching low million dollar figures until the CA company…
(Employer’s failure to prevent is actionable) COLE H worked as a truck driver for Beverly Fabrics for eight years. During the last 5 years of his employment, he experienced bullying and harassment by a coworker, Dan Rangle. Rangle referred to himself as “Big Swingin’ Dan.” Rangle’s inappropriate comments escalated when he spread gossip among other…
WHEN an audit is completed, you will be notified of the Agency’s determination: 1. No change: IRS accepts your returns as filed. You will be asked to sign the examination report. That concludes your pain and suffering. About 11% of correspondent audits and 8% of field audits end with a no change verdict, a win for…
‘The Cleaners’ to be shown at 8th Human Rights Documentary Film Festival in Hong Kong MILLIONS of new content are uploaded to the internet every single day, entering the timelines and feeds of the internet’s over 4.2 billion users. That includes 500 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute, over 90 million photos added each…
The evolution of the automobile in the United States IF one would imagine a time when there were no cars to take people places, one would have to travel way back in time to be able to fully perceive what it is like. The invention of the automobile has been a game-changer throughout the course…
BUYING a car is a huge decision. Next to a home, it’s probably the second most important purchase anyone can make. But with the influx of new car models and designs being constantly introduced on the market, how do you pick the right one? When choosing a car, the one you want isn’t necessarily the…
Tips and hacks on how to negotiate when buying a car ACQUIRING an automobile to take you places can be a necessity, luxury or privilege. It could even be all of the above. Through the years the automobile industry has been creating ways to provide convenience to transport people from one place to another. However,…
THE new tax law could have an impact on how much your employer should withhold from your paycheck. Too little withholding from your paycheck could mean large unexpected tax bill as you file your tax return in 2019 for Tax Year 2018. If you have not done so, it is time to have a paycheck…
A Filipina-American nurse from Dallas, Texas was sentenced last week for orchestrating a Ponzi scheme that cost victims — many of whom were also Filipino nurses — over $1 million. Nemelee Liwanag Jiao on Wednesday, September 5, was sentenced by a federal judge to eight years and a month, plus three years of supervised release…
YES, it can be. Going to a tax preparer who increases your refunds with phantom deductions is dangerous. You may have to return that nice refund … and more, sometimes much more. A tax preparer who is incompetent can spell trouble for you. Grande problema. If the IRS audits a return prepared by an unethical…
Q:I HAVE been working for 5 years in a Los Angeles company with 52 employees. I requested a leave of absence from work to care for my sick 21 year-old daughter. My boss denied the request and said my position will be given to someone else if I take off. Is this legal? A: No,…
“If you own a home and have assets that may be at risk if you were sued by your creditors, it is in your best interest to find out how you can protect what you have from creditors who are trying to collect from you.” A LOTof people who are contemplating bankruptcy as a solution…
WHAT is the means test in bankruptcy? It’s a method for calculating what your household income is for the purpose of determining if you qualify for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 of the bankruptcy code. By household income, we mean the combined income of husband and wife, if the debtor is married, unless they are…
During his speech in front of the Filipino community in Jordan last Friday, September 7, President Rodrigo Duterte blamed U.S. President Donald Trump as the cause of the current inflation in the Philippines in light of the ongoing U.S.-China trade war. Trump recently declared he was considering tariffs on an additional $267 billion in Chinese…
IN February 2018, the IRS started certification of individuals with delinquent tax debt to the State Department. How will the IRS certification impact you? • Upon receipt of certification. The State Department will either deny application or revoke current passport or both. • You are overseas. Limited validity passport for direct return to the US…
Gov. Brown signs new bill that aims to combat damaging effects of climate change Governor Jerry Brown signed two measures on Monday, Sept. 10 aiming to convert California to 100 percent renewable energy and “carbon neutrality” by 2045, securing the state’s reputation as a national and global leader in clean energy and environmental innovation. SB…
YES, shrinking budget reduces your chance of getting grilled by the IRS. • The main reason for the decline: IRS budget and staff levels are down. • Tax collectors are blaming the massive drop off on budget cuts. • IRS staff shrunk by 20,000 over the past 8 years, despite increase in numbers of returns…
THE client is 50 and got divorced 10 years ago. Her ex-husband decided that working was not good for him so he just disappeared. They had one daughter that client has taken cared of since the divorce. The daughter is about to graduate from college and will be working soon. The daughter, also a single…
(Your rights to reimbursements may be significant) Q: AS part of my work, I travel to clients using my own car and I pay for gas. I also make several business-related calls on my personal cell phone, although since I have an unlimited plan, I do not really incur additional expenses. Should my employer still…
ARE you sick and tired of being in debt and having bad credit? Do you want to start over but simply don’t know where to begin? Is filing bankruptcy an option for you or are other options available? These days, you are constantly bombarded with advertising from companies and other professionals offering you their “solution”….
LA Found is a new initiative aimed to quickly locate individuals with cognitive impairments who wander and go missing Los Angeles County officials and health organizations on Wednesday, Sept. 5 launched a new initiative to help locate those with autism, Alzheimer’s disease or dementia who may have wandered off and gone missing. The initiative, LA…
Real estate tycoon and former politician Manuel “Manny” Villar is now the Philippines’ second richest man after his wealth tripled due to the boom in the construction business that benefited the country’s known magnates. The 68-year-old former senator rose to the ranks with a net worth of $5 billion, a significant leap from the $1.7…
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday, September 6 announce the creation of a department that would ease up the business process in the country for foreign investors. In his speech at a business forum in Amman, Jordan, Duterte disclosed the apparent corruption experienced in the country, however, vowed to provide a convenient procedure for those…
Warning letters for products that looked like juice boxes, cookies and candy part of efforts to protect youth from dangers of nicotine and tobacco product The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced last August 23 that all 17 manufacturers, distributors and retailers that were warned by the agency in May, have stopped selling the nicotine-containing e-liquids…
The governments of the Philippines and the State of Israel have signed three agreements that would strengthen the bilateral ties between the two countries. President Rodrigo Roa Duterte and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu witnessed the signing of the agreements, including a Memorandum Of Agreement on the temporary employment of home-based Filipino caregivers, a Memorandum Of…
MARKETING veteran Arnold T. Gonzales was chosen unanimously by the Board of Directors, chaired by Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat, as Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), following the resignation of TPB COO, Cesar Montano. Gonzales graduated from the University of the Philippines in 1982 with a degree in Tourism. He finished his…
JOIN us at Pechanga Resort Casino this September to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival with our exciting “Harvest Moon Grand Drawing”. There will be 50 winners of EasyPlay and one lucky winner will drive away in a new 2018 Mercedes Benz. In addition, with our three days “Harvest Moon – Swipe & Win” promotion, Club members…
ALEXANDER Brown and Arik Silva worked as retail sales associates at Abercrombie & Fitch Co., a company that operates retail clothing stores throughout the United States. Brown and Silva sued their employer in a class action, claiming that the employer compelled them to patronize Abercrombie products in violation of California law. The employees claim that…
