Robert Celaschi

Back Writer

Robert Celaschi is a freelance writer and editor based in Washington, D.C.

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Litigation Litany

When employers and workers can't get along in today's economy

Even in the best economy, employers fight a financial tug of war with the people who work for them. One side wants more pay and benefits while the other side wants to trim costs. When the economy takes a nose dive, though, the tug of war can get a lot rougher. State and local government jobs are getting much of the attention in Sacramento this year as furloughs and layoffs have increased tension with workers. But Sacramento’s private sector has seen temperatures rise, too.

Oct 1, 2009 Robert Celaschi
Rich Brooks, a partner in Tatum LLC, works for a Tatum division called Kinetic Advisors LLC, a boutique firm for middle-market debtors in distress. Brooks often sits between the borrower and the bank to help the two sides work out a deal.

Rescue Me

Working out a deal when a banker calls

It’s the meeting no business owner wants, an adult equivalent to sitting in the principal’s office.

Only instead of a principal, the person calling you in is a banker. And instead of the dreaded “permanent record,” the folder on the desk is an agreement for a business loan, a line of credit, equipment financing or some other form of borrowed money that helps keep the company afloat.

Sep 1, 2009 Robert Celaschi
Christi Black, managing director, Ogilvy Public Relations found new digs at 1414 K St.

The Tenets of Leasing

The pros and cons of relocating in today's market

The smart landlords are doing whatever it takes to keep old tenants and lure new ones. That includes free rent, bigger allowances for tenant improvements, free signs and plain old cash. “If there is less than two years remaining on the lease, a savvy landlord really should be talking to them about extending,” Frisch says. “Oftentimes landlords and property managers don’t start that conversation until it is much later in the lease term.” But if a tenant is in good enough financial shape to keep paying the rent, very few landlords will renegotiate a deal with more than two years left, Frisch says.

Aug 1, 2009 Robert Celaschi