Practice Areas

  • Our attorneys represent employers and employees in a number of different areas of employment law. Our attorneys welcome employers and employees to contact them to discuss your current situation and develop a plan to address it. Our attorneys do not exclusively represent employers or employees; rather, our attorneys represent clients seeking employment relationships that are fair, ethical, and in accordance with the current law.

    Representation of Employees

    Our attorneys can help employees in all types of employment law issues, including:

    • Wage/Commission disputes

    • Representing employees against overly restrictive and unduly burdensome non-compete agreements

    • Discrimination claims such as wrongful termination or other adverse work actions based on age, race, sex, gender, sex, race, disability, national origin or religion

    • Failure to make an accommodation for a disabled worker under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

    • Failure to treat you appropriately under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

    • Sexual harassment, including hostile work environment claims

    • Representation at Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Michigan Department of Civil Rights mediations

    • Representation before the Unemployment Appeals Board

    Representation of Employers

    Our attorneys can help employers in all types of employment law issues, including:

    • Drafting employment contracts and severance agreements

    • Defense of wage/commission claims

    • Representation at Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Michigan Department of Civil Rights mediations

    • Representation before the Unemployment Appeals Board

    • Defense of Sexual harassment, including hostile work environment claims

    • Drafting fair and enforceable non-compete agreements

    • Advising employers on effectively protecting customer lists and other proprietary information

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    Estate planning is crucial to managing and transferring your assets, in accordance with your wishes and values, upon incapacity or death. Guinan Hayes Bisonet helps its clients accomplish this by creating and implementing separate tactics that, when used in concert, achieve the following:

    • Delegate responsibilities (including appointment of guardians for your children) to persons of your choice

    • Maintain privacy

    • Avoid probate court and its associated costs and fees

    • Provide for minor and special-needs children

    • Provide for the education of children or grandchildren

    • Provide direction as to health care wishes

    • Maintain liquidity to provide for family as well as handle tax liability

    • Provide for the continuation or desired transfer of closely-held and family-owned businesses

    • Properly designate beneficiaries of IRAs, 401(k)s, life insurance policies, and other qualified plans

    • Avoid or reduce estate, gift, and generation skipping transfer taxes

    • Provide for the proper administration of your estate and various trusts

    Our estate planning practice provides an extensive range of services, meeting the needs of a wide range of clients. Guinan Hayes Bisonet provides services for individuals with modest estates in need of relatively simple planning such as wills, powers of attorney, and patient healthcare advocate designations; we also handle planning for individuals and business owners of high wealth requiring progressive and sophisticated estate, business, and tax planning. Many clients seek our services specifically for estate planning. However, several clients initially contact our office for assistance with business or other matters then decide to work with us to develop a comprehensive plan.

    Asset Protection

    Some clients, mainly physicians, owners or principals of closely held businesses, executives, and other professionals, are often concerned with personal liability exposure. The potential of future liability, because of its uncertainty, is understandably unsettling. However, many tactics are available to help insulate professionals from these adverse situations. By analyzing the particular situation and listening to specific needs and objectives, Guinan Hayes Bisonet works with you to establish an appropriate plan. Coupling asset protection and estate planning frequently results in considerable tax savings.

    Business Succession Planning

    Many clients in need of planning commonly own closely-held or family-owned businesses, both small and large. Effectively transferring businesses to family members or other individuals, while maintaining a degree of control, can often be a challenging proposition. However, the integration of estate planning with business succession planning is essential. Guinan Hayes Bisonet takes a holistic approach—we determine business values, personal values, family dynamics, and future goals in order to design and implement a sensible and effective plan.

    Formulation of this plan often involves a team approach—a collaboration of creative strategies formulated by estate planning as well as corporate/business attorneys. Some common as well as progressive methods commonly used at Guinan Hayes Bisonet to achieve our clients’ goals include:

    • Asset Transfers

    • Employment and Consulting Contracts

    • Buy/Sell Agreements’

    • Family Limited Partnerships and Limited Liability Companies

    • Recapitalization

    • Grantor-Retained Annuity Trusts

    • Self-Canceling Installment Notes

    • Discount Valuation Techniques

  • An area of our practice that frequently coincides with estate planning is elder law. Common objectives in elder law include planning for incapacity and the potential need of nursing home care. The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) effectively made the criteria for qualification of Medicaid even more stringent than before. Furthermore, Medicaid laws and procedures are literally changing on a daily basis, making planning more challenging than ever.

    Nonetheless, numerous Medicaid planning techniques remain viable, even after the enactment of the DRA. These techniques can serve to preserve assets and/or provide continued support to a spouse who remains in the community. Clients often consider and request incapacity and Medicaid planning not only for themselves, but also for loved ones such as parents and grandparents. A few of the tools commonly used in our Medicaid planning practice include:

    • Durable Powers of Attorney

    • Living Wills/Patient Advocate Designations

    • Wills

    • Counseling on Retirement Assets (Distribution Plans and Taxes)

    • “Solely for the Benefit Of” Trusts

    • “Lady Bird” Deeds

    • Homestead Planning

    • Excepted Transfers

    the needs of a wide range of clients. Guinan Hayes Bisonet provides services for individuals with modest estates in need of relatively simple planning such as wills, powers of attorney, and patient healthcare advocate designations; we also handle planning for individuals and business owners of high wealth requiring progressive and sophisticated estate, business, and tax planning. Many clients seek our services specifically for estate planning. However, several clients initially contact our office for assistance with business or other matters then decide to work with us to develop a comprehensive plan.

    Asset Protection

    Some clients, mainly physicians, owners or principals of closely held businesses, executives, and other professionals, are often concerned with personal liability exposure. The potential of future liability, because of its uncertainty, is understandably unsettling. However, many tactics are available to help insulate professionals from these adverse situations. By analyzing the particular situation and listening to specific needs and objectives, Guinan Hayes Bisonet works with you to establish an appropriate plan. Coupling asset protection and estate planning frequently results in considerable tax savings.

    Business Succession Planning

    Many clients in need of planning commonly own closely-held or family-owned businesses, both small and large. Effectively transferring businesses to family members or other individuals, while maintaining a degree of control, can often be a challenging proposition. However, the integration of estate planning with business succession planning is essential. Guinan Hayes Bisonet takes a holistic approach—we determine business values, personal values, family dynamics, and future goals in order to design and implement a sensible and effective plan.

    Formulation of this plan often involves a team approach—a collaboration of creative strategies formulated by estate planning as well as corporate/business attorneys. Some common as well as progressive methods commonly used at Guinan Hayes Bisonet to achieve our clients’ goals include:

    • Asset Transfers

    • Employment and Consulting Contracts

    • Buy/Sell Agreements

    • Family Limited Partnerships and Limited Liability Companies

    • Recapitalization

    • Grantor-Retained Annuity Trusts

    • Self-Canceling Installment Notes

    • Discount Valuation Techniques

  • If a person has written a will, the will normally names an executor. It is the executors duty to gather the deceased individual’s assets, pay all debts, and disburse any remaining assets of the estate to the beneficiaries. If there is no will, Michigan’s Estate and Protected Individuals Code (EPIC) sets forth a list of persons who have priority to serve as executor. Many times, executors of an estate need assistance navigating the requirements of EPIC and the probate process. EPIC has stringent requirements including notifying beneficiaries, filing inventories, filing accountings, notifying creditors, and doing so within given timelines. Guinan Hayes Bisonet often helps executors and their families throughout the probate administration process. Probate administration services often include:

    • Tax Counseling and Preparation of Final Tax Return

    • Preparation of Inventories

    • Preparation of Accountings

    • Appraisals and Valuations

    • Transfer of Non-Probate Assets

    • Court Intervention, When Necessary

  • Trusts create a relationship in which one or sometimes multiple persons (trustees) manage assets for one or more persons (beneficiaries). Often times, however, trustees become confused or uncertain as to their duties and responsibilities. Some of these duties may include the management and investment of trust assets as well as the distribution of income, principal, and other assets in accordance with the trust’s terms. Guinan Hayes Bisonet provides services to trustees in need of assistance with what can often be a daunting task. When assisting with the administration of trusts, Guinan Hayes Bisonet often provides services such as:

    • Tax Counseling, Preparation of Individual and Trust Tax Returns

    • Trust Accountings

    • Transfer of Non-Trust Assets

    • Inventories, Appraisals, and Valuations

    • Beneficiary Notices

    • Court Intervention, when necessary

  • The key to operating a successful non-profit organization is to actually be a 501(c)(3) organization as recognized by the Internal Revenue Service. While this may seem like an obvious statement, this is a crucial step that must be taken before an organization can tell its donors that their donations are tax-deductible. From our first meeting with our client, we are focused on drafting all of the organizations formation documents in a way that will be approved by the IRS on the first review.

    In 2009, our firm worked with former Detroit Tiger and current New York Yankee Curtis Granderson to receive the 501(c)(3) designation for his organization, The Grand Kids Foundation. The IRS granted The Grand Kids Foundation its 501(c)(3) upon first review. While all organization are different, we are confident that our approach to non-profit formation will put your organization in the best position to receive 501(c)(3) approval.

    Obtaining 501(c)(3) status on the first review by the IRS saves our clients time and money. In addition, it allows our clients to market itself to potential donors as early as possible. Our focus on receiving the IRS approval from the outset reduces client costs and allows are client's to operate and market itself as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization quickly.mediations

    Representation before the Unemployment Appeals Board

    Representation of Employers

    Our attorneys can help employers in all types of employment law issues, including:

    Drafting employment contracts and severance agreements

    Defense of wage/commission claims

    Representation at Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Michigan Department of Civil Rights mediations

    Representation before the Unemployment Appeals Board

    Defense of Sexual harassment, including hostile work environment claims

    Drafting fair and enforceable non-compete agreements

    Advising employers on effectively protecting customer lists and other proprietary information

  • Companies in the transportation industry have distinct legal issues that need to be addressed. Motor carriers, brokers, shippers, and 3PLs have to deal with federal and state regulatory issues, human resource issues, tort liability issues, cargo liability issues, and contract issues.

    Many attorneys have the background to address human resource or tort liability issues. However, providing sound advice on regulatory, cargo, bankruptcy and contractual matters requires knowledge peculiar to the transportation industry.

    Logistics and Transportation Law Areas of Practice

    The transportation attorneys at Guinan Hayes Bisonet advise and represent clients on:

    • Federal and State regulatory issues

    • Dedicated Service contracts

    • Carrier/Shipper contracts

    • Carrier/Broker contracts

    • Owner-Operator contracts

    • Factoring Agreements

    • Transportation Management Agreements

    • Cargo claims/Carmack Amendment issues

    • Bankruptcy and Preference issues

    • Bill of Lading issues

    • Insurance and Indemnification

    • Employment issues

    • Tort Liability issues

    • Litigating, if necessary, all of the above issues

    • Freight bill collection

  • In addition to the featured practice areas at right, the attorneys of Guinan Bisonet also represent clients in the following practice areas:

    • Appellate Practice

    • Business Litigation

    • Business Formation

    • Business Planning

    • Business Organization

    • Commercial Litigation

    • Construction Law

    • Consumer Protection Litigation

    • Creditor's Rights

    • Landlord-Tenant Disputes

    • Land Use Planning

    • Sports and Entertainment Law