At a Glance ...

State Bar president to address Rochester Bar

The Rochester Bar Association will present State Bar of Michigan President Brian Einhorn as the guest speaker for its Tuesday, March 11 lunch meeting at the Rochester Mills Brewing Company in Rochester.

The event gets underway at 11;45 a.m. in the back meeting room at the restaurant, located at 400 Water Street.

Einhorn will provide an update on the State Bar and related programs.

Cost is a $10 meeting fee, payable to the Rochester Bar Association, or payment of $50 annual dues, which include meeting fees, plus lunch as ordered from the Mills regular lunch menu.

Non-members are welcome.

To register or for additional information, contact RBA President Tom Murphy at tmurphy@murphylawpractice.com or  248.651.9050.

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New law addresses taxes on rebuilt homes

LANSING (AP) — Gov. Rick Snyder has signed a law intended to help residents who rebuild their damaged house after a natural disaster.

The measure clarifies state law to ensure those who lose homes or buildings to “acts of God” won’t be subject to higher property taxes if they rebuild a substantially similar structure within three years.

Republican Sen. Tom Casperson of Escanaba introduced the legislation after the Duck Lake wildfire in the Upper Peninsula destroyed 136 structures.

Current law limits year-to-year increases in the taxable value of property to 5 percent or the rate of inflation, whichever is less. But a property’s value can be adjusted higher for “replacement construction.”
The law ensures people who rebuild won’t be penalized with higher taxes.

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ABA publication focuses on espionage

The American Bar Association Section of Science & Technology Law has released its winter 2014 issue of The SciTech Lawyer, which features stories about espionage.
The publication features  a collection of articles written by some cybersecurity and information privacy experts and technology lawyers, who are available to media outlets seeking sources.
The magazine provides information about recent developments in law, science, medicine and technology and is published quarterly.
The new issues came out February 28.

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New indictments issued in disability fraud case

NEW YORK (AP) — A sprawling criminal case accusing more than 100 retired firefighters, police officers, jail guards and others of scamming the Social Security disability system ensnared 28 more people with charges Tuesday, including sons of some alleged ringleaders.
The case already involved 106 people and $22 million in what the Manhattan district attorney’s office says were ill-gotten psychiatric disability benefits. Prosecutors had estimated, when unveiling the case last month, that it ultimately could encompass hundreds of people and as much as $400 million.
The retirees are accused of falsely claiming they had depression, post-traumatic stress disorder or other psychological problems so crushing they couldn’t work.
Yet some led lives that baldly contradicted their claims -- running a martial-arts studio, flying helicopters, traveling overseas, and more, according to prosecutors.

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