CAD software for fire alarm design work / comment on Can alarm co get ownership of equipment on take-over by using a lease / 1099 employee and workers comp injury August 11, 2018

KEN KIRSCHENBAUM, ESQ
ALARM - SECURITY INDUSTRY LEGAL EMAIL NEWSLETTER / THE ALARM EXCHANGE
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CAD software for fire alarm design work / comment on Can alarm co get ownership of equipment on take-over by using a lease / 1099 employee and workers comp injury
August 11, 2018
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CAD software for fire alarm design work
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Ken
    I was wanting to know if you could put this message out so I could receive input from someone that might be able to help me. I am looking at different CAD software programs for doing fire alarm design work. A local Architect I know said whatever I get it needs to be autocad 2.0 or higher to be able to work with most Architectural firms. Does anyone have any suggestions on design software. Any pro versus cons on the different software programs that are out there.??
Thank you,
Anonymous 
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comment on can alarm co get ownership of equipment on take-over by using a lease from August 1, 2018 article
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Ken,
    I am often asked to weigh in (even testify) on issues of ownership similar to Wayne’s question in your August 1 2018 thread. Wayne encountered a system that was installed by one company, but another company took over the already installed system and had the subscriber sign a ‘lease’ that gave ownership of the installed system to the ‘takeover’ company. If the ‘takeover’ company truly did take ownership of the system it would have been liable for ad valorem (property) taxes on the value of the system and should have filed property tax returns or renditions with the appropriate authorities. My suggestion would be to challenge the ‘takeover’ company to show that they did, in fact, report the system as their property. Chances are that they didn’t do this. We often encounter situations in which an employee claims that they were given an ownership interest in a company by the owners. We simply challenge them to come up with a tax return showing that they reported and paid taxes on their ‘ownership interest.’
Mitch Reitman
Reitman Consulting Group
Fort Worth, TX
817-698-9999
http://www.reitman.us
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Response
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    I am not sure that every jurisdiction has ad valorem tax on the equipment transfer. Getting tax returns is a difficult way to establish ownership. Better to look to the contract.
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1099 employee and workers comp injury
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Ken
    We have, had, an 1099 salesman who worked for us for over a year. He was full time, only worked for us, but we agreed he was independent and paid as a 1099 subcontractor.      He was attacked by a dog when attempting a sales call and the bite tore his Achilles heal. He has been off his feet for a months now and is not sure when he will be able to resume his sales activities. Since his sale activity is door to door sales he needs to be able to walk. He has no income and no workers comp. We are in a state where the dog's first bite is free, so the homeowner isn't going to be responsible. In any event, the salesman put his foot in the door, uninvited. He is now claiming that we should have covered him under our workers comp policy. We didn't. He thinks we should pay his bills and give him compensation. We don't have a written contract with this fellow.
    What can we do now?
name withheld
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Response
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    Sounds like this sales person was an employee, not independent. As such, he was and is entitled to employee benefits, especially those benefits that are mandated by law. That includes work related disability payments and workers compensation. If you didn't cover him under your policies then you are most likely liable for those benefits.
    If you had used the Independent Sales Affiliate Agreement you would have seen that the relationship with the sales person did not fit the terms of that agreement, and the agreement requires him to carry his own workers comp insurance. Compare it to the Employment Agreement, which is a better fit for the relationship; actually the right contract. 
Advice? Work out a plan with the employee. Get all your existing employees and new hires to sign the proper contract. It's likely to be the Employment Agreement, but if they are truly independent then it's the Independent Sales Affiliate Agreement.
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Ken Kirschenbaum,Esq
Kirschenbaum & Kirschenbaum PC
Attorneys at Law
200 Garden City Plaza
Garden City, NY 11530
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ken@kirschenbaumesq.com
516 747 6700
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