Once again, I am gratified to report saving a small mom-and-pop business more than $270,000.00 in workers’ compensation penalty savings.
Without question, small business owners must obey all New York’s laws, especially pertaining to the need to maintain workers’ comp insurance for its workers. However, the state makes no effort to educate small business owners–unless you are big enough to afford a CEO, and a qualified accountant, and a highly-paid manager, you won’t know all your legal obligations.
Then if you don’t have insurance–whether out of good-faith ignorance, or good-faith mistake, or if you have relied on an insurance broker who has made a mistake–the state will hit you with a penalty that threatens to bankrupt you altogether. This is a terrible injustice, and as a small, family-owned law firm, I understand the fear and panic that goes along with receiving a huge penalty notice, even while you are fighting to keep your business running.
So it’s very gratifying to have helped one of the city’s small dry cleaning companies save well over a quarter-million dollars in unjust penalties.