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Welcome From Joanna Bruno, Vice President of New Business for eDocs-Express and President of J.R. Bruno & Associates.
Welcome to the second issue of the monthly eDocs-Express Dispatch!
We recently formed eDocs-Express® to help financial institutions in setting up and running commercial lending operations. While working with my clients, particularly with respect to SBA lending, I came to the conclusion that there was no easy and affordable way for many lenders to document their commercial loans. We also talked to several lenders that had seasonal overflow or other temporary documentation problems.
In our search for a documentation solution, we came into contact with Bob Jett, understatedly said, "I think I know a bit about the subject." Bob along with a team of software engineers literally invented in 1985 the dynamic delivery of legally compliant loan documents. The resultant software product, Laser Pro Lending®, remains the dominant loan documentation software product in the country. For over 15 years Bob directed product management of Laser Pro, a service-marked software product of Harland Financial Solutions.
When Laser Pro was sold to Harland Financial Solutions in 2000, Bob started Prescient Software and continued providing knowledge-based solutions to the financial industry. Bob is an attorney and has worked with numerous financial institutions in solving their documentation needs, ranging in size from de novo's to some of the country's largest financial institutions, including Bank One, Nations Bank, Wells Fargo and Bank of America.
We asked Bob if he thought he could help with our problem and the rest is history. Bob and his company have joined with my company and West One Technology Services to form eDocs-Express, a total solution for short or long-term document outsourcing.
Each month, Bob will write an article that you should find to be educational and practical. Be sure to read this month's article on "Understanding the Legal Structure of Your Customer."
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News and Solutions from eDocs-Express
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Understanding the Legal Structure of Your Customer. How often have you had a customer who didn't know the correct legal name or structure of his or her own company? It can be fairly complicated. That's why it's important to verify this information with appropriate governmental agencies; and, in many cases, to require an opinion of counsel.
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If you don't get it right, you may not be able to go after the entity with the assets or deep pockets. Learn about the differences between sole proprietorships, corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies, trusts, associations and other types of legally recognized entities. Learn who has the power and authority to sign for each of these types of entities.
Did You Miss the First Issue of the Dispatch? If you did, you can visit the eDocs-Express Lending Center on our web site to view past issues.
 eDocs-Express Lending Center
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News from the Commercial Lending World
SBA Comments on New ADA Rules. You are all familiar with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that was enacted on July 26, 1990 by the senior President Bush. The ADA prohibits discrimination and ensures equal opportunity for persons with disabilities in employment, state and local government services, public accommodations, commercial facilities, and transportation.
Public Law 101-336
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The ADA has five primary sections:
Title I - Employment
Title II - Public Services
Title III - Public Accommodations & Services Operated by Private Entities
Title IV - Telecommunications
Title V - Miscellaneous Provisions
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is the primary enforcement agency for the ADA. The DOJ's original regulation implementing Title III of the ADA was printed in the Code of Federal Regulations on July 1, 1994.
ADA Regulation for Title III
On September 30, 2004, the DOJ issued a notice of proposed new rules and guidelines implementing the ADA and the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 (ABA), published by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) on July 23, 2004. The ADA requires the DOJ to adopt enforceable accessibility standards that are "consistent with the minimum guidelines and requirements issued by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board." The DOJ adopts and enforces standards consistent with the Access Board's guidelines under the DOJ's regulations implementing Title II and Title III of the ADA as the ADA Standards for Accessible Design (ADA Standards). Prior to their adoption by the DOJ, the revised Access Board guidelines are effective only as guidance to the DOJ; they have no legal effect on the public until the DOJ issues a final rule adopting the revised ADA Standards.
The purpose of the DOJ's notice is twofold: to solicit public input on various issues relating to the potential application of the revisions to the ADA Standards and to obtain background information for the regulatory assessment that the DOJ must prepare in the process of adopting the revisions to the ADA Standards.
On February 4, 2005, the Advocacy Department of the SBA filed with the DOJ its comments on the proposed rule.
Read the Advocacy's comments about the proposed new rules.
President Bush's Panel on Federal Tax Reform. On January 7, 2005, President Bush appointed a nine-member Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform. Former Senator Connie Mack will chair the group, with recently retired Sen. John B. Breaux acting as vice chairman. Both served on the tax-writing Senate Finance Committee. The panel is charged with studying options for simplifying and changing the federal tax code and has been given a deadline of July 31, 2005 to report its recommendations to Treasury Secretary John W. Snow.
Read the President's Executive Order creating the panel.
The following seven persons were appointed to the panel along with the two former senators:
- William Eldridge Frenzel, former Member of the US House of Representatives. Mr. Frenzel served on the Budget Committee and the Ways and Means Committee. Mr. Frenzel is a Guest Scholar at the Brookings Institute.
- Elizabeth Garrett, Professor of Law, USC. Ms. Garrett served as Legislative director and Tax and Budget Counsel to former U.S. Senator David L. Boren.
- Edward P. Lazear, Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution and Professor of Human Resources, Management and Economics, Stanford University's Graduate School of Business. Mr. Lazear is the founding editor of the Journal of Labor Economics.
- Timothy J. Muris, Foundation Professor, George Mason School of Law and Of Counsel, O'Melveny & Myers LLP. Mr. Muris served as Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission
- James Michael Poterba, Department of Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Mr. Poterba serves as Associate Department Head. He has taught at MIT since 1982.
- Charles O. Rossotti, Senior Advisor, The Carlyle Group. Mr. Rossotti served from 1997 to 2003 as Commissioner of Internal Revenue. He formerly served as the President, CEO and Chairman of American Management Systems.
- Liz Ann Sonders, Chief Investment Strategist, Charles Schwab. Ms. Sonders joined U.S. Trust, a division of Charles Schwab, in 1999 as a Managing Director and member of its Investment Committees.
Former Senators Connie Mack and John Breaux announced on January 31, 2005 that the panel would hold its first meeting on Wednesday, February 16, 2005 at 10 am.
Read the announcement.
We're a bit skeptical of a panel that includes 3 politicians and 4 professors being able to simplify the tax code or even meeting the July 31, 2005 deadline. We wish them well for all our sakes.
Do You Know What the Word "Hawala" Means? No, it's not a special form of Hawaiian luau. Our folks at Prescient Software were asked a few months ago if they could design an Extranet system to replace many of the functions of traditional hawalas.
Their first question naturally was, "What's a hawala?"
A hawala is an ancient remittance system originating in South Asia, that continues today around the world. Unfortunately like any other remittance system, hawalas can, and do, play a role in money laundering.
To learn more, click below to read "The Hawala Alternative Remittance System and Its Role in Money Laundering," published in January, 2000 on the Interpol web site.
Read the article.
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5666 La Ribera Street
Livermore, CA 94550-2501
925-245-4880
www.edocs-express.com ¤ sales@edocs-express.com
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