KMK Law Hosted Virtual Third Annual

An accomplished attorney with extensive experience in commercial litigation, Bethany Palmer Recht represents and advises trustees on all concerns relating to the administration of trusts and funds. Since 2010, Bethany Recht has served as a partner and chairman of the diversity committee at the Cincinnati, Ohio-based Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL (KMK Law).

On January 15 and 16 of 2021, the Cincinnati law firm of Keating Muething and Klekamp PLL (KMK Law®) sponsored the third annual Diversity Case Competition for first-year minority law students in collaboration with the University of Cincinnati College of Law's Center for Professional Development. The competition was conducted entirely online.

The competition simulates the experience of working as an associate in the real world, including the assessment and feedback systems that most legal firms employ. Students competed for cash awards using the case model by demonstrating their analytical, communication, and problem-solving abilities – all of which are essential for success in the legal field. Students were also exposed to actual attorneys and Fortune 500 corporate counsel who acted as mentors and judges for the competition.

Pro Bono Opportunities for Lawyers

Named a Southern California Rising Star by Super Lawyers, Bethany Palmer Recht is an attorney and partner at Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL. For her work on pro bono cases, Bethany Recht was awarded the Pro Bono Service Award.

Pro bono cases are handled by attorneys for the benefit and good of the public. The legal services offered in pro bono cases are provided without charge or for a minimal fee. Pro bono cases can help lawyers expand their reach and practice law in areas that are not their usual focus. For example, IP lawyers can help clients with immigration issues and gain more knowledge in this area of the law. In this way, pro bono cases can open career opportunities and paths for a lawyer.

Young lawyers can take pro bono cases to gain more knowledge and experience, as well as build a network by getting to know lawyers in their own or other firms that they wouldn’t otherwise encounter. At many law schools in the US, for a student to graduate, they are required to offer their legal services and perform up to 50 hours pro bono. This introduces them to this type of work, and may even cause them to shift their career focus after graduation.

Breach of Contract Types

An Ohio native, Bethany Palmer Recht holds a juris doctor and served as an attorney and associate at DLA Piper in Los Angeles. A member of the Ohio Women's Bar Foundation and licensed to practice law in California, Massachusetts, and Ohio, Bethany Recht serves as a partner at Keating Muething & Klekamp, PLL, and assists clients with fraud claims and breaches of contracts.

A breach of contract happens when a person does not respect the agreement and violates its terms or conditions. Breaches of contract can include late payments or failures to deliver a product or asset in written and oral contracts. There are several types of contract breaches, such as minor, material, anticipatory, and actual breaches. A minor breach of contract means late delivery of an item, service, or payment.

A material breach of contract happens when a client receives an item or product that is different from the agreement. An anticipatory breach of contract happens when a party advises another of late delivery. An actual breach of contract is when a party doesn't comply with the agreement.

How Class Action Lawsuits and Mass

A partner at Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL, in Ohio, Bethany Palmer Recht represents trustees of qualified settlement funds and settlement trusts. Formerly serving as an attorney for DLA Piper, LLP, Bethany Recht also represents different entities operating in the mass tort space.

Mass torts are similar to class action lawsuits in that they both consist of plaintiffs who share the same grievance with a defendant. The plaintiffs involved in either type of litigation allege that their common defendant caused harm in some way and seek compensation for these damages.

Despite these similarities, however, mass torts and class actions are handled differently and are two distinct types of litigation. With a mass tort, the group of injured plaintiffs is often smaller than in a class action suit. These plaintiffs are each treated as individuals, but they are connected in some way, such as all being from the same geographic area. Since plaintiffs are seen as individuals, they each must prove how the defendant allegedly injured them.

In class action suits, on the other hand, an individual known as a class representative represents the entire group of plaintiffs. The group is seen as a single entity and not as individuals belonging to a group. When a class action is filed, all individuals in the class must be notified. This gives them the opportunity to find their own counsel or opt out of litigation entirely.

Tax Implications for Qualified Settlement Funds

 Bethany Palmer Recht has served as an attorney for more than 15 years. She began her career at Weil, Gotshal & Manges, LLP, and now serves as a partner at Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL, as well as chair of the firm’s diversity committee. At this firm, Bethany Recht represents trustees of both settlement trusts and qualified settlement funds (QSFs).

A QSF, also known as a Section 468B trust, is a trust set up for settlement proceeds. Its purpose is providing funds deposited into the trust to various claimants according to an agreement set up via court order or among the parties involved. Once the funds have all been distributed, the QSF no longer exists, since it’s only a temporary trust.

While QSFs receive special treatment when it comes to taxes, they are not wholly exempt from taxation. Typically, a QSF is viewed as a distinct tax-paying entity and required to make annual tax filings and tax payments. State taxation varies based on the location of the QSF, but federal tax for a QSF’s income is 35 percent.

In addition, QSFs must adhere to different tax liabilities depending on how they operate and how they are set up based on legal documents. In the event the fund pays wages to a beneficiary, it is viewed as an employer and must pay taxes accordingly. For distributions that are not regarded as wages, the QSF has additional tax implications, like reporting the amount of these distributions on its annual tax forms.