Article

Farmers may be feeling like they’re on a roller coaster when it comes to Beneficial Ownership Information reporting requirements of the Corporate Transparency Act. A previously reinstated filing requirement has once again been put on hold.

There was a lot of Corporate Transparency Act news over the holiday period and lots of conflicting information out there on where things stand, so Leah Curtis, Ohio Farm Bureau associate general counsel fills us in, on this Legal with Leah.

Listen to Legal with Leah, a podcast featuring Ohio Farm Bureau’s Policy Counsel Leah Curtis discussing topics impacting farmers and landowners.

Transcript

Ty Higgins [00:00:00] Farmers may be feeling like they’re on a roller coaster ride when it comes to Beneficial Ownership Information reporting requirements of the Corporate Transparency Act. A previously reinstated filing requirement has once again been put on hold. Lots of Corporate Transparency Act news over the holiday period and lots of conflicting information out there on where things stand. So we bring in Leah Curtis, Ohio Farm Bureau’s associate general counsel for this Legal with Leah.

Ty Higgins [00:00:28] Let’s start with where we are, where we were, I guess, when we last spoke about CTA.

Leah Curtis [00:00:35] So as a reminder, CTA requires businesses to report beneficial ownership information. And it’s a law from 2020 which tries to address and curb money laundering. So back in the beginning of December, a district court judge put a temporary nationwide injunction on the enforcement and all deadlines for the Corporate Transparency Act. And so that put that original January 1, 2025 deadline for all businesses that were created prior to 2024 to report their information on hold. And there was no indication of when that would be lifted. It was just kind of out there that there was no deadline at that point.

Ty Higgins [00:01:08] Yeah, we thought things would likely be in place for a while, but we did warn people to be on the lookout. And apparently that was for good reason because we had some significant changes, as I mentioned, over the last couple of weeks.

Leah Curtis [00:01:20] So as we expected, the government did appeal that injunction. They did that through an emergency appeal. And then on Christmas Eve, lots of us were getting ready for the holiday. I personally was wrapping presents. We heard that a panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals had granted the government’s request to stay the injunction, which, you know, that’s legal speak for the CTA was back on. So the government did announce that they would extend the deadline to January 13, but reporting was again required for any businesses or companies that were under that requirement to file their Beneficial Ownership Information.

Ty Higgins [00:01:52] But not for long. Another reversal, because as we were prepping the news story on this development, we got yet another update from the courts.

Leah Curtis [00:02:00] Yes. So we get through Christmas Day, we see lots of companies, law firms, etc., spreading the news of CTA, LinkedIn posts. And as that was happening, another panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issues an order that the nationwide injunction is back in place. So literally, our editor said to me, is this going to change before noon today? So it did not. That is where we stand today. The injunction is in place. There are no deadlines at this time. And they will be moving forward with that litigation to determine how things are going to move forward.

Ty Higgins [00:02:35] So, of course, because of this whiplash, we’re seeing things on social media in particular where some say it’s back on. Others say it’s off again. Give us, please, Leah, a clear view on where we are now and what people should be doing as far as the Corporate Transparency Act is concerned.

Leah Curtis [00:02:50] So currently the Corporate Transparency Act is on hold and there are no deadlines. The court has set an oral argument for March, so it’s unlikely that we will see a change before then. But of course we can’t guarantee that. If you’ve already filed, you have nothing to worry about. Nothing you need to do at this time. We’ll just kind of see what happens with the litigation. If you have not filed and you believe that you may be required to, the deadlines are not being enforced at this time. As we’ve said in the past, it’s probably a good idea to gather that information, understand what you need, have it ready for if things change. But those deadlines are not being enforced. It’s also always, of course, a good idea to visit with your own legal counsel to discuss this and how you should move forward. And as always, if there are changes, we will let you know as soon as we are aware. But this is a good example of sometimes courts move really slow and sometimes they move very fast. And we have to kind of stay up to date on what’s happening with them.