Oil and Gas Update: Traps for the Unwary
By Nils P. Johnson Jr.Johnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – A dozen years ago Chesapeake Energy (CHK), fresh from a successful drilling program in the Barnet shale in Texas, launched a massive oil and gas leasing program in…
Oil and Gas Update: Traps for the Unwary
By Nils P. Johnson Jr.Johnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – A dozen years ago Chesapeake Energy (CHK), fresh from a successful drilling program in the Barnet shale in Texas, launched a massive oil and gas leasing program in…
Keep it Personal
By Nils Peter JohnsonJohnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Our brains are shrinking. They are now approximately 10% smaller than they were approximately 300,000 years ago. As reported Sept. 8 in the Wall Street Journal (“Our Big Brains…
Legal Strategies: Will Drilling Come Back?
By Molly JohnsonJohnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – I am constantly asked, “Will the oil and gas shale boom ever come back to Mahoning County?” Alas, it depends on a number of tricky factors. As with any business,…
Legal Strategies: Norfolk Southern Derailment Update
By Nils P. Johnson Jr.Johnson & Johnson Law Firm EAST PALESTINE, Ohio – On Feb. 3, 2023, 38 of 149 railcars of a Norfolk Southern train derailed in East Palestine. The accident was caused by the failure of a wheel…
Decoding the Corporate Transparency Act
By Nils P. Johnson Jr.Johnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The U.S. Congress adopted the Corporate Transparency Act in December 2020, motivated in large part by media reports of how anonymous “shell” corporations have helped certain oligarchs and…
Solar Leasing Update: Issues to Think About
By Nils P. JohnsonJohnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN – A lot has happened since I last wrote about leasing land to solar companies. Ohio has mandated utilities generate a minimum of 12.5% of their energy from renewable sources, such…
Setting Up a Trust to Protect a Child
By Nils Peter JohnsonJohnson & Johnson Law FirmYOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – In a typical trust arrangement, an individual transfers property to a third party with a set of instructions on what to do with the property. The easiest illustration might be…
LLC and Corporations: Are You Protected?
By Jason RebracaJohnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – In my nascent career in litigation, I have come across an alarming number of corporate litigants who – through their own conduct – have compromised the liability shield typically afforded…
U.S. Supreme Court Curbs EPA Authority
By Molly JohnsonJohnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The U.S. Supreme Court curbed the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to limit greenhouse gas emissions from existing power plants (West Virginia v. EPA). In a 6-3 ruling handed down June…
The Age Discrimination In Employment Act
By Nils P. JohnsonJohnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – I have never seen so many job-wanted signs! My business clients all complain they cannot find qualified workers. Much of this of course is attributable to declining birth rates. Also,…
Ohio Simplifies Process To Register Series LLCs
By Nils Peter JohnsonJohnson & Johnson Law Firm YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – On Feb. 11, individuals familiar with the online process of registering a Limited Liability Company with the Ohio secretary of state noticed that the process had changed. Now, with…
Can COVID Shots Be Made Mandatory?
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Businesses want more workers vaccinated, both to keep operations running smoothly and to be able to say to the public, “It’s safe to do business here!” How best to bring this about—with a carrot or a stick? And if…