This is the first distribution of the McTexLaw Email Alert, a new service provided by McPherson & Associates, PC. You are receiving this Email because you are either a client or a professional colleague of the firm. McTexLaw Email Alerts are originally written of Mark McPherson, principal attorney of the firm.

WHAT IS A MCTEXLAW EMAIL ALERT

McTexLaw Email Alerts are distributed on or about the 1st and 15th of each month. They contain headlines, and summaries of articles and cases, on topics of interest for business owners, and for owners of commercial real estate.

Each headline is hotlinked to the full article on McTexLaw.com for your convenience. This keeps less content in the Email Alert so you can scan them easier and faster.

The Email Alerts also have editorials and short stories showing the "lighter" side of the law, because truth is indeed often stranger than fiction. Each Email Alert is posted on the website, so the content will live on even after you delete it from your inbox, just in case you want to revisit it later.

New on The McTexLaw Business Owner's Resource Center:

PIERCING THE VEIL: 2 RECENT CASES HOLDING OWNERS LIABLE FOR BUSINESS DEBTS

In 1977 Wyoming became the first US state to establish limited liability companies. It is the "mother state." And so it was "big doings" on May 15, 2002, when the Wyoming Supremes ruled that the remedy of piercing the veil is available even in the absence of fraud, under Wyoming statutes. Kaycee Land and Livestock v. Flahive, Case No. 00-328 (Wyoming, 2002). A similar result recently came out of Louisiana. The question is, would this result be the same in Texas? Click the headline to find out our opinion.

SHOWDOWN AT THE SUPREME COURT: THE 2ND AMENDMENT

Forget the O.K. Corral; there's a bigger showdown brewing in the U.S. Supreme Court about the 2nd amendment. Does the 2nd amendment mean an individual, including those not actively a member of any militia or in active military service or training, has the right to privately possess and bear firearms? The Fifth Circuit said yes, and the U.S. Department of Justice is asking the Super Supremes to make the same ruling. Click the headline to read excerpts from the United States' pleadings, including the controversial memorandum by Attorney General John Ashcroft. Emerson v. United States, Case No. 01-8780, U.S Supreme Court; Haney v. United States, Case No. 01-8272, United States Supreme Court.

Since several of this firm's business owner clients are avid hunters, we closely follow 2nd amendment cases such as these, about the right to "keep and bear arms."

New on The McTexLaw Commercial Real Estate Resource Center:

DON'T TREAD ON ME, OR MY LAND BEFORE I OWNED IT

What may have been the most important land use opinion decided by the Super Supremes this term is also the most controversial. Landowner acquires land after the local government adopts an ordinance restricting its use. Landowner sues the local government for "taking" his land without compensation, which is alleged to be $3.15 million. In all lower courts, the local government wins, because the landowner knew of the restrictions when he took title to this land. First, in time, first with rights. But the Super Supremes knew better and shocked the real estate world by ruling that the landowner's lawsuit could proceed. Click the headline to get familiar with the "rest of the story." Palazzolo v. Rhode Island, Case No. 99-2047, U. S. Supreme Court, decided June 28, 2001.

CAN THEY REALLY DO THAT?!?

It seems that California is particularly ripe with stories of the bizarre (see prior Email Alerts). This time it's from Orange County, one of my favorite places to visit. In 1999, Cottonwood Christian Center, a nondenominational Christian church, bought 17.9 acres of mostly vacant land for expansion. This land thus belonged to a tax-exempt church. Not so helpful to the Cypress city budget. And so, on Tuesday, May 28, 2002, the Cypress city council voted to take the acreage by eminent domain, 4-0. Not necessarily a bad thing if that land is needed and used for public use, but in this case the council plans to sell the land to Costco Wholesale Club, presumably increasing the land's value to the city's tax base, with sales tax revenues to boot. These council members might want to consider sleeping in a lightning bolt-proof shelter, just in case.

What's a church to do? File both state and federal cases, with the federal cases being based on the guarantee of religious freedom. Stay tuned; this one's just begun. This is a "public interest case" with enough support for both parties to afford a visit to the Super Supremes if necessary. And if the city didn't have enough foresight to require Costco to foot their legal bills, it may be many years before they recoup their costs, even if they win, which doesn't seem likely.

BUT HOW MUCH WITHOUT THE STATIC?

The average consumer uses about 320 cell phone minutes per month. Per The Wall Street Journal, Wed., May 22, 2002. Yet another category in which I am well above average.

REFERRAL NETWORKS

Your referrals are a big part of our continued success, and the same is true about this newsletter. Please take a moment to think about friends you know who might enjoy receiving our Email Alerts and forward this to them. Individual subscription information is below.

THE NEW MCTEXLAW.COM

On Monday, May 20, 2002, we launched the third generation of our website, all new, at www.mctexlaw.com. It now features:

The Business Owner's Resource Center: cases, articles, and booklets on topics of interest to business owners, including estate planning. Frequently updated.

The Commercial Real Estate Resource Center: cases and articles on real estate topics for landowners and real estate professionals. Host site of the free Commercial Real Estate Email Discussion Group for real estate professionals. Tracking center for Texas real estate-related bills when the Legislature is in session. Links to Dallas/Fort Worth area development codes, state agencies, and other real estate resources. Frequently updated.

About the Firm: lots of free information about what you should know and be considering as you do what you do in our practice areas. This is not "here we are and here's what we do." It is instead substantive information to help you run your business and protect your family.

Four Booklets for Download: Dying is Not a Prerequisite to Having an Estate, a primer on estate planning, including a special supplement on living trusts; Business Organizations, explaining, comparing and contrasting common business organizations, Buy-Sell Agreements, discussing business succession planning, and The Family Limited Partnership Business and Estate Plan, explaining this popular asset protection, estate tax reduction and succession plan.

Please browse through our new site and see for yourself how helpful it can be for you and your business colleagues.

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