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V O L . X X I N O. X X S E P T E M B E R 7 , 2 0 1 5 26 acknowledges that a signifi cant por- tion of his time also is devoted to resolving compliance issues under the Internal Revenue Code and ERISA for businesses both large and small. He particularly empathizes with small business owners whose primary focus is simply making sure their product is selling in high enough quantities and margins to make a profi t. " e person who is the owner, president, CFO and chief human resources person for their company, in general, they have bigger fi sh to fry than sorting through all the details of their employee benefi ts to make sure they're in full compliance," he says, noting that most small business owners simply don't have the time, or know where to turn, to fi nd those cor- rect answers without expert guidance. But even the larger employers, with full-time HR directors focusing time and attention on the full array of employee benefi t issues that may arise, can feel overwhelmed by the com- plexities of the ACA and other federal benefi ts guidelines, Feibel says. Mergers, acquisitions and ESOPs Hallock, who's been practicing in the area of employee benefi ts for 27 years, says all of the lawyers in the employee benefi ts practice group are well-versed in the intricacies of health benefi ts, retirement plans, profi t sharing and executive compensation options. But they also have particular interests, with two of hers being business suc- cession and employee stock owner- ship plans. " ere are a lot of fi duciary considerations involved," she says of those specialty areas. Given the complexities involved in designing and implementing ESOPs, Wakelin adds, having lawyers with expertise in that arena provides a valuable resource to Maine business owners considering selling their com- pany to employees for the tax benefi ts it provides and the opportunity it gives their workers to share in the com- pany's success. Feibel, for example, was involved in the recent ESOP sale of GAC Chemical Corp. in Searsport. "It would be very diffi cult for another fi rm to say 'Let's go out and get some ESOP work,'" Wakelin says. O'Donovan, a 1991 graduate of the University of Maine School of Law, has staked out mergers and acquisi- tions as a specialty area. In addition to working with banks, investment managers, actuaries and others who can help make those deals happen, she notes that much of her M&A work is involved in making sure everything is in order to allow the transaction to close. "I get pulled in in two ways," she says. "Often there's a transactional law- yer already involved and I'm brought in to do the due diligence on the target company. On the seller's side, I'm often asked to review their employee benefi ts plans to make sure they're in compli- ance with the ACA, HIPAA, COBRA and everything else." Ideally, Feibel adds, that kind of review has already taken place long before an owner decides to sell the company. "But that's rare," he says, not- ing that in his career he's only had one business owner ask him to make sure "all the ducks are in a row" before the company was placed on the market. Another common occurrence, Feibel says, is when a company makes a management change and assumes "the 15-year-old contract that was good enough for Joe should be good enough for Joan." " ey give it to us to review after it's already signed, asking us, 'Is it good?'" he says. More often than not, Feibel says the answer is "no." As a managing partner of Eaton Peabody, Austin says the addition of Wakelin, Hallock and O'Donovan to the law fi rm's employee benefi ts and executive compensation practice group enhances its ability to fully meet the needs of Maine businesses. "We pride ourselves on solving diffi cult issues," he says. " is is an area of growing com- plexity and it's an extremely important element in retaining key executives. ese issues aren't going away. We're incredibly pleased to have Dave and his group join us." J M C , M a i n e b i z s e n i o r writer, can be reached at @ . and @ J M The University of Maine helps support new and existing businesses and ideas. We link businesses and industry experts, facilitate commercialization activities and help innovation across Maine grow. Maine startups and entrepreneurs benefit from: • Incubation facilities • Testing and prototype creation • Business support and education umaine.edu/econdev The Electronic Tuning Fork is a medical device developed by O'Brien Medical in collaboration with the University of Maine. The University of Maine is an equal opportunity/affirmative action institution. Photo courtesy of O'Brien Medical » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is The person who is the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, the owner, president, CFO and chief human resources person for their company, in general ... [has] bigger fish to fry than sorting through all the details of their employee benefits. — Edward F. Feibel

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