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Post date: Jul 20, 2016 7:27:8 PM
From: Barrett Wilson [mailto:bgwilson53@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, June 13, 2016 5:37 AM
To: Chris Riemer <jcr@knowledgestreet.com>; Lori Falco <lwfalco@optonline.net>; George Otto <g_otto@comcast.net>; Elizabeth Lachowicz <e.lachowicz@verizon.net>; Barrett Wilson <bgwilson53@gmail.com>
Subject: WCI Comm.
Good Morning Everyone,
I had a conversation yesterday w/ Elizabeth that I wanted you to all know about. She still feels strongly that Mark's anonymous legal brief should be presented to our insurance company for review by their legal dept., in the expectation that the response would be that our org. does not need to carry WCI.
I mentioned to her that this issue was discussed by our committee, and the consensus was that for various reasons this was not an avenue we wanted to pursue. Elizabeth countered that there was really no downside for us - no chance of any additional expense - so we really had nothing to lose by making the inquiry. This made sense, so based on that I gave her the go ahead to contact our insurance company, make the submission, and report back to the committee on her findings.
For clarity's sake, let's let Elizabeth be the sole contact on this issue w/ our insurance company. And on the same clarity theme, I would ask that any emails received by any member of the committee from any board member get checked for complete distribution to the whole committee.
I am in the process of working with "Jay's lawyer" to get him what he needs to produce his professional legal opinion, and will update us as things develop. And I believe we still have yet to schedule our next WCI meeting, so I will be sending out a Doodle poll on that, hopefully today (one can always hope....).
I hope all is well with everyone, sorry to have missed our last BoD meeting, and look forward seeing you all sometime soon.
Stay Tuned / Play Nice...
Barrett Wilson
President - The Folk Project
president@folkproject.org
From: Lori Falco [mailto:lwfalco@optonline.net]
Sent: Monday, June 13, 2016 8:29 AM
To: Barrett Wilson <bgwilson53@gmail.com>; Chris Riemer <jcr@knowledgestreet.com>; George Otto <g_otto@comcast.net>; Elizabeth Lachowicz <e.lachowicz@verizon.net>
Subject: Re: WCI Comm.
Going forward with this, we should keep in mind that the decision to carry Work Comp insurance was made by the Board as a whole, through a motion at a Board meeting. Regardless of the outcome of Elizabeth's discussion with our insurance company, any decision about whether we should continue to carry Work Comp insurance needs to be made once again by the Board as a whole.
Lori
From: Chris Riemer [mailto:jcr@knowledgestreet.com]
Sent: Monday, June 13, 2016 9:12 AM
To: 'Barrett Wilson' <bgwilson53@gmail.com>; 'Lori Falco' <lwfalco@optonline.net>; 'George Otto' <g_otto@comcast.net>; 'Elizabeth Lachowicz' <e.lachowicz@verizon.net>
Subject: RE: WCI Comm.
Well, my memory of our discussions is that we didn't feel Mark's brief addressed the real question. Nor did we feel it added much value since it was speaking to a point on which there is no disagreement. We all agree that the performers are contractors. So does Liberty Mutual. That's how we report them each year, as contractors. And it is on those contractor payments that they base our premiums.
We also felt it would make us look amateurish if we go in with one legal opinion this month, which they will likely feel is immaterial, and then come back with another opinion next month. Since the board has agreed to hire a lawyer who will actually sign off on an opinion -- one that WILL address the core question -- I don't see the upside in bringing Mark's brief into the mix.
Chris
From: Barrett Wilson [mailto:bgwilson53@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, June 13, 2016 10:32 AM
To: Chris Riemer <jcr@knowledgestreet.com>; Lori Falco <lwfalco@optonline.net>; George Otto <g_otto@comcast.net>; Elizabeth Lachowicz <e.lachowicz@verizon.net>; Barrett Wilson <bgwilson53@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: WCI Comm.
To Lori - yes, it's understood this is a Board decision, regardless of what our insurance co. does or doesn't say (if they say anything), and also regardless of what "Jay's Lawyer" does or doesn't say. It has always been, and still remains, a Board decision. This was never a question in my mind....
To Chris - I don't see us reporting to the Board with incremental feedback from different sources. I see us gathering all this info, creating a committee consensus (if that's possible) and then going to the Board with a final report. No need for us to look amateurish...
My thinking in giving E. the green light with this was:
1) if our insurance co. receives the anonymous brief and sends it back saying they're not in the business of analyzing and commenting on other lawyers opinions, then we're done, and we know that avenue is a dead end. 2) If they actually do comment, either yea or nay, it's additional information to be stirred into the pot.
Either way, there's no cost other than Elizabeth's time, and in this discovery phase of our committee's work, I'd like to gather as much info from different sources as possible.
Stay Tuned / Play Nice...
Barrett Wilson
President - The Folk Project
president@folkproject.org
NOTE: The PDF attached to this page is the same document referred to at several points earlier in this story.
From: Elizabeth Lachowicz
Date: Jun 13, 2016 12:57:25 PM
Subject: Policy # WC5-33S-357832-033 - legal question
To: ims@libertymutual.com
Dear Sir / Madam,
RE: N.J.S.A. 34:15-36 as it relates to our Policy #WC5-33S-357832-033
The policy holder: The Folk Project is a very small not-for-profit organization that is entirely volunteer run and we host weekly folk music events that involve different musicians every week. These performers get paid for that event only - and if they are lucky & we like them, we may see them again in 2 years or longer. So...they are not employees, and only contractors for that specific event. We have been paying Workers' Comp insurance, believing that we were better safe than sorry, and thinking we had to. Upon review of our expenses and a greater understanding of WC we are now seriously wondering whether we, The Folk Project (www.folkproject.org) really even need it. So, the Board of Directors has been doing research and have found legal opinions stating that in fact, we do not. In learning more about WC, we also understand that due to the very small duration of the engagement, and the equally small payment to the performer, that even if a performer had a claim - the payment is miniscule anyway. We have searched other organizations like ours and in addition to there never having been a claim in their or our histories, they don't even carry WC insurance. Attached is a recent opinion we received and we request you (& your legal department) review it and get back to us, please, as soon as possible. We are small and generate just enough income to cover our expenses so our fiscal responsibility is critical to our existence. I thank you in advance for your expedited review and response. Should you have any questions regarding this matter, please contact me at 908-230-2280.
Respectfully Yours,
Elizabeth Lachowicz
Vice President - The Folk Project
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