New York City Business Law Blog

Wondering if it's likely that your spouse will file for divorce? One key thing to consider is simply how they treated you on your wedding day.

Wedding photographers, who have a front-row seat to all of these interactions, often say that couples who do not act in a respectful manner toward each other are those who will eventually end up going into court for a divorce. Even if they grit their teeth and get through the wedding day, the way that they do it says a lot about their future.

Deciding to start your own company takes more than an idea or the financial means to make it happen. You also need to have the right personality type.

While there are exceptions to this rule, as with most others, people who succeed in business tend to share a lot of personality traits. Experts call these the "Big Five" personality dimensions. They are:

1. Extraversion: Whether or not you want to be the focus of attention in social settings
2. Openness: Whether or not you're open to new ideas and new experiences
3. Agreeableness: If you want other people to like you
4. Conscientiousness: If you are willing to follow rules and work hard
5. Neuroticism: Your emotional stability or lack thereof

Alimony money gets taxed by the government, which is no surprise, but people often wonder who has to pay those taxes. This question has come up a lot lately since there have been some huge changes to the tax laws. Does the person who pays have to pay the tax first, or does the person who gets the money have to pay the taxes on everything that they receive?

It used to be that the person who received the money then had to list it out on their income tax forms as another type of income. They paid taxes on it just like they would on wages from a part-time job or anything else. Alimony came from a unique source, but it was just income. On the other side, the person paying could write it off on their income taxes as a deduction. This way, they did not have to pay taxes on the money as well, meaning it would not get taxed twice.

Often, unless you have an employment contract, you can be fired with relatively little reason. As long as they don't fire you because of your gender, race, age or another protected class, your boss has a lot of freedom to keep or terminate your employment.

If you do have a contract, that changes things significantly. Many contracts specify that the company has to show cause to terminate that contract, for instance, or they lay out a system of warnings and write-ups that have to be given out before someone's position can be terminated. This gives you far more protection.