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Welcome to the Siegel Brill newsletter.
Knowing you and your businesses is our goal at Siegel Brill. There are always interesting things happening at our firm and people willing to share their knowledge; some of which just might benefit your business. We hope you enjoy our newsletter and getting to know us just a little better.
Welcome Heidi Torvik
 Heidi Torvik has recently joined Siegel Brill, PA. She represents personal injury victims and survivors in wrongful death actions, as well as business owners and individuals in commercial and real estate litigation.
Heidi grew up in Montevideo, Minnesota, with a practicing lawyer as her father. She ultimately determined to follow him in the practice of law and pursued her course of study at the University of Minnesota Law School. After graduation, Heidi began her practice as both the Assistant County Attorney for Chippewa County, Minnesota, and as the Assistant City Attorney for the City of Montevideo.
“My father is a successful attorney,” says Heidi. “When I was growing up my dad was the county attorney. He had an attorney in his firm that went on to be a Congressman in the United States House of Representatives and subsequently, as a judge on the Minnesota Court of Appeals. Another partner became a district court judge in west-central Minnesota. I had some outstanding role models from a very young age. I like PI as a practice area because the ability to help people after something devastating has happened is very meaningful to me. It’s very gratifying to help clients get through a difficult time and get them compensated for something that has happened to them; it just doesn’t get much better than that.”
In her first career, Heidi was a professional flutist. She obtained multiple degrees from The Juilliard School in New York City. In connection with her training, she performed and taught in New York City, across the country, and internationally. Heidi’s performance background, together with courtroom experience as a criminal prosecutor, come together to make her an effective and skilled advocate for her clients.
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Minneapolis Sick Leave Ordinance — What Employers Need to Know
By Katie Pivec
 The City of Minneapolis recently passed an ordinance giving sick and safe leave benefits to all Minneapolis employees. Although these provisions do not take effect until July 1, 2017, employers should be aware of the new requirements so they can update their leave policies accordingly. Below are five answers to questions that employers may have regarding how the new policy could affect their business.
1. Who is covered by the Ordinance?
The Ordinance applies to all employers who have one or more employees working within Minneapolis. The sick and safe leave provisions will benefit both full and part-time employees, as well as both exempt and non-exempt employees.
2. What is Sick and Safe Time?
Sick and Safe Time is leave allotted to employees for use when they or a loved one is sick, injured, or need to seek medical attention. It is closely tied to the sick leave provisions of Minnesota’s Women’s Economic Security Act, which requires certain employers offering sick leave to employees to also allow employees to use such sick leave to care for family members, or to receive assistance related to sexual assault, domestic abuse or stalking. Under the Minneapolis Ordinance, employees are entitled to use Sick and Safe Time to diagnose, treat, prevent, or care for their own or a family member’s mental or physical illness, injury or health condition, or to seek medical attention, obtain services, obtain counseling, seek relocation or take legal action due to domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking of the employee or the employee’s family member. Further, employees may use accrued Sick and Safe Time to care for a family member whose school or place of care has undergone an unexpected closure, such as for weather, power outage, etc.
3. How does Sick and Safe Time work?
Employees accrue one (1) hour of Sick and Safe Time for every thirty (30) hours worked, up to a maximum of forty-eight (48) hours in a year. Exempt employees are deemed to work forty (40) hours each week for purposes of accruing Sick and Safe Time, and unused time carries over from year-to-year. For employers with six (6) or more employees, Sick and Safe Time must be paid. However, employers do not have to pay out Sick and Safe Time to an employee at the time of their separation from employment. For foreseeable uses of Sick and Safe Time, an employer may require up to seven (7) days’ advance notice. If the need is not foreseeable, employees must give notice for the need to use leave as soon as practicable.
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Minnesota’s Revised Limited Liability Company Act
By Sherri L. Rohlf
 The Minnesota Revised Uniform Limited Liability Company Act, Minnesota Statutes Chapter 322C, became effective August 1, 2015. The Revised Act is the most significant revision to the law governing Minnesota Limited Liability Companies since the LLC was first recognized as an entity in Minnesota in 1993.
Transition for New and Existing LLCs.
Limited Liability Companies (“LLCs”) formed on or after August 1, 2015 will be governed by the Revised Act. LLCs that were formed prior to that date can “opt-in” and elect to be governed under the Revised Act at any time. Those that do not will automatically become subject to the Revised Act on January 1, 2018.
Reasons for Change.
In general, the Revised Act is intended to create greater flexibility to address certain areas of governance and liability, with the goal to make Minnesota’s statute more consistent with the majority of other states and, as a result, more attractive for use in multi-state transactions. Minnesota’s previous LLC Act, Minnesota Statutes Chapter 322B, provided for a traditional corporate governance structure that differs from the LLC Acts of most other states. The Revised Act adopts a partnership model for LLCs which is consistent with the LLC statutes in the vast majority of states. As a result, when transactions involved significant parties outside of Minnesota, many were reluctant to agree to use an entity formed under the Minnesota Act due to the unique corporate approach to governance and the perception that Minnesota’s LLC Act offered unusually wide statutory protections for its members.
The most significant changes to the previous LLC Act that were implemented by the Revised LLC Act can be broken down into three categories: (1) changes to the default rules pertaining to governance and the inclusion of a “manager-managed” LLC option; (2) changes to the default rules pertaining to organization, distributions and other matters, all of which can be changed in the Operating Agreement; and (3) increased flexibility in defining fiduciary duties and minimizing the likelihood of a lawsuit for oppressive conduct of members, officers and governors, so as to maximize the predictability of outcomes for these parties.
Management/Governance.
Under the Revised Act, an LLC can be member-managed, manager-managed or board-managed. The default structure is member management. Previously, under 322B, the default structure was board management. The following are the default provisions that apply under each structure unless changed in the Operating Agreement:
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