WeWork’s Loss Balloons to $1.25 Billon

Posted on January 13, 2020 by Camron Hoorfar

Office-space startup WeWork lost $1.25 billion in the third quarter of 2019, as expenses far outpaced revenue growth, draining the company’s cash ahead of a bailout by SoftBank Group Corp. last month, the Wall Street Journal reported. We Co., as the parent company is officially known by, said in a report to debtholders that revenue surged 94 percent in the three months ended Sept. 30 to $934 million compared with the year-earlier period. WeWork’s prior record loss posted in the second quarter for a total of $638 million and is more than double the $497 million loss reported in same year-earlier period. Once considered the most valuable startup in the U.S. with a valuation of $47 billion, WeWork’s attempt to go public was eventually canned due to concerns over mounting losses, as well as the erratic management style of the now-departed chief executive, Adam Neumann, which eventually lead to him being ousted as CEO.

If you are considering starting a business and would like to speak with an attorney, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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Washington County businessman gets prison in tax, bankruptcy, unemployment schemes

Posted on January 10, 2020 by Camron Hoorfar

A judge has sent Washington County business owner George Retos Jr., 71, to federal prison for a year and a day for conspiracy to defraud the IRS and filing a false bankruptcy declaration in connection with his companies, reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The owner of Prime Plastics and Plastic Power in Washington, Pa., also received a two-year probationary term when he gets out via U.S. District Judge Arthur Schwab. In addition to the IRS and bankruptcy frauds, he accepted responsibility for a wire fraud charge in another scheme to fleece the Pennsylvania unemployment compensation system. He did not plead to that charge, but in federal court defendants acknowledge the conduct described in additional counts even if they don’t plead, which can then be used at sentencing. Retos and a person only identified as N.R. in the court records, the nominal president of Plastic Power acting solely at Retos’ direction, failed to pay the IRS payroll and employer taxes for the two plastics companies. Retos has a long history of tangling with the IRS dating back to the 1990s.

If you are considering bankruptcy or have tax issues, don’t be George, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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Colleges Can Be Forced to Return Tuition When Parents Go Bankrupt

Posted on January 9, 2020 by Camron Hoorfar

Colleges can be forced to return tuition payments made for students whose parents can’t cover their own debts, according to a federal appeals court ruling that opens up higher education institutions to more litigation in bankruptcy courts, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. A Boston appeals court said on Tuesday, November 12th, that tuition payments can be taken back and redistributed when a student’s parents declare bankruptcy. The ruling on November 12th sided with a bankruptcy trustee who sued Sacred Heart University of Fairfield, Conn., to regain tuition paid on behalf of a student whose parents were involved in a multimillion-dollar fraud that ended with one parent in prison. The decision said that because parents don’t directly benefit economically for sending adult children to college, the tuition they paid can be claimed. The tuition payments “furnished nothing of direct value” to creditors of the parents, said the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

If you are considering bankruptcy or have any debt issues and would like to speak to an attorney, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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What is Notice?

Posted on January 8, 2020 by Camron Hoorfar

The Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District – SD35818, had a ruling in BOBBY J. CARTER, Petitioner-Appellant vs. DIRECTOR OF REVENUE, STATE OF MISSOURI, Respondent-Respondent regarding “Notice Play”. In a statute governing judicial review of administrative decision, subsections saying that the department’s decision shall be final at 15 days after notice is mailed, or 15 days after driver is notified, mean the same thing. Notice of deadlines to seek judicial review were clear as to both base and commercial privileges. Circuit court did not err in dismissing a petition untimely filed.

If you are thinking of filing an appeal and would like to speak to a lawyer, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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When Service of Process is Bad

Posted on January 7, 2020 by Camron Hoorfar

The Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District – ED107247, had ruled in K.M.R., Respondent, vs. D.G.B., III, Appellant that personal jurisdiction is a condition of a circuit court’s authority to issue an order of protection. Before a hearing on the petition; statutes require three days’ notice from service of a petition or on any ex-parte order of protection.  Actual notice is not a substitute. On a motion to quash, the burden of proof falls on the person asserting personal jurisdiction. Return of service is prima facie evidence of the facts that the return of service alleges, but clear and convincing evidence can rebut such recitations, and the return of service did not even allege service of the petition.

If you have issues with service or a lawsuit and would like to speak to an attorney, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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Defective Service

Posted on January 3, 2020 by Camron Hoorfar

The Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District – ED107247, had a ruling K.M.R., Respondent, vs. D.G.B., III, Appellant. Personal jurisdiction is a condition of a circuit court’s authority to issue an order of protection. Before a hearing on the petition; statutes require three days’ notice, from service of a petition or on any ex-parte order of protection.  Actual notice is not a substitute. On a motion to quash, the burden of proof falls on the person asserting personal jurisdiction. Return of service is prima facie evidence of the facts that the return of service alleges, but clear and convincing evidence can rebut such recitations, and the return of service did not even allege service of the petition. Remanded with directions to dismiss. 

If you have issues with service defection and would like to speak to an attorney, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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Serious Physical Injury Shown

Posted on January 2, 2020 by Camron Hoorfar

The Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District – SD35791 recently passed a ruling regarding serious physical in the STATE OF MISSOURI, Plaintiff-Respondent vs. DANIEL R. CARPENTER, JR., Defendant-Appellant case. injury Elements of assault in the second degree include serious physical injury, which includes protracted physical impairment, which the State showed with evidence that victim’s continuous back pain resulted from appellant running a car head-on into victim’s car, reported MOBAR.org.

If you have been a victim of physical violence and would like to speak to an attorney, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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Restitution Remanded

Posted on December 31, 2019 by Camron Hoorfar

Today we’re going to be visiting a summary of State of Missouri vs. Gilbert Garcia, in the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District – WD81687, regarding restitution. The court ruled the defendant had permission to charge construction items onto the account holder’s account, but had charged personal items to the account. Those facts supported findings on the elements of knowledge and intent on a charge of receiving stolen property; do not constitute multiple acts, because the purchase of all items occurred at once, so the verdict director did not threaten defendant’s right to a unanimous verdict; and support a sentence that includes restitution. The parties agree that the judgment plainly erred in the amount, but rule does not expressly authorize the Court of Appeals to enter the judgment that the circuit court should have, so the Court of Appeals remands to circuit court for re-sentencing to set the corrected amount of restitution, reported MOBAR.org.

If you feel a contractor has falsely charged you or your business and would like to speak to an attorney, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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Defendants Personally Liable

Posted on December 30, 2019 by Camron Hoorfar

Today we’re going to be visiting a summary of Alpha Petroleum Company vs. Hani Daifallah, et al, in the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District – WD82222 and WD82230 rules regarding corporations and other entities. An agent making a contract for a principal remains personally liable on the contract, unless the agent identifies the principal, and defendants’ use of fictitious names did not constitute disclosure of the corporate principal. Evidence favorable to defendants does not require reversal, reports MOBAR.org

If you have questions regarding your business and would like to speak to an attorney, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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Kansas City Company Makes Bid To Acquire Rural Kansas Hospital Out Of Bankruptcy

Posted on December 27, 2019 by Camron Hoorfar

A Kansas City-based company that specializes in turning around financially distressed hospitals is proposing to purchase Hillsboro Community Hospital in rural Kansas for $6.9 million, reported KCUR.org.

Hillsboro Community Hospital was placed in Chapter 11 bankruptcy after its previous owner defaulted on its financial obligations. Rural Hospital Group has submitted a bid for Hillsboro through a subsidiary.The 15-bed hospital operations were acquired by a group of Miami businessmen led by Jorge Perez back in 2017, a group that had acquired control of nearly two dozen distressed rural hospitals across the United States.

About a dozen other hospitals operated by Perez and his associates are now in bankruptcy. Those hospitals remain under the group’s control and their bankruptcy cases have all been consolidated in North Carolina, unlike the Hillsboro hospital.

If you are thinking of filing for bankruptcy and would like to speak to an attorney, contact our law office at 816-524-4949 or visit our website at Hoorfarlaw.com.

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