Federal
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November 08, 2024
Shutts & Bowen Adds Complex Taxation Pro In Sarasota
Shutts & Bowen LLP has brought on a new partner at the firm's growing Sarasota, Florida, office, bringing close to 20 years of private practice tax law experience to the firm's private client services practice group.
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November 08, 2024
Nixon Peabody Helps Boston Supportive Housing Land $153M
A Boston housing development nonprofit, with guidance from Nixon Peabody LLP, obtained $153 million in financing to develop a 19-story, 126-unit supportive housing project in the city, the law firm announced.
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November 08, 2024
Ex-Spouse Entitled To $2.9M Pandemic Tax Refund, Court Told
A woman is entitled to a $2.9 million tax refund under pandemic-era relief provisions for carryback losses shared with her ex-husband, she told a Texas federal court, accusing the Internal Revenue Service of wrongly requiring both of the former couple's signatures on a consent form.
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November 08, 2024
Weekly Internal Revenue Bulletin
The Internal Revenue Service's weekly bulletin, issued Friday, included registration guidance for manufacturers of energy efficiency improvement products that qualify for a homeowner tax credit.
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November 07, 2024
Vanguard Investors Ink $40M Settlement In Tax Liability Suit
Vanguard investors have asked a Pennsylvania federal judge to give the first green light to a $40 million settlement reached with the firm over it allegedly breaching its fiduciary duty when it triggered a sell-off of assets that left investors with massive tax bills.
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November 07, 2024
Danish Gov't Can't Exclude 2012 Evidence In $2B Tax Case
A New York federal judge allowed U.S. pension plans to present a Danish firm's 2012 opinion as key evidence in an upcoming trial in the Danish government's $2 billion tax fraud case against them, but barred three other pieces of evidence.
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November 07, 2024
Trial Needed In Texas Co.'s $3.5M Dispute, Tax Court Says
There are too many factual disputes between the Internal Revenue Service and a Texas holding company regarding a determination that it owed nearly $2.9 million in deficient taxes plus $622,000 in penalties, and a trial will be needed to resolve them, the U.S. Tax Court said Thursday.
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November 07, 2024
Varian Not Relevant In Liberty Global Case, US Tells 10th Circ.
A U.S. Tax Court decision that granted medical device company Varian Medical Systems a deduction for dividends received from foreign subsidiaries does not support Liberty Global's claims to a $110 million tax refund, the federal government told the Tenth Circuit on Thursday.
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November 07, 2024
IRS Reports Collecting Over $5.1T In Revenue In FY 2024
The Internal Revenue Service collected more than $5.1 trillion in tax revenue and over $98 billion in enforcement revenue in fiscal year 2024, the agency announced Thursday.
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November 07, 2024
Ex-Cop, Brother Admit Energy Contract Kickback Scheme
A former Massachusetts police officer and his electrician brother pled guilty Wednesday to paying off employees of a utility ratepayer-funded energy savings program administrator who steered $36 million in contracts their way, federal prosecutors said Thursday.
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November 07, 2024
Transparency Act Should Exclude Housing Co-Ops, Court Told
A group of housing cooperatives asked a Michigan federal judge to grant them an exemption from the "dragnet" Corporate Transparency Act, claiming the disclosure requirements will deter members from serving on boards that govern affordable housing developments.
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November 07, 2024
Gov't Gets Default In $4.9M Son-Of-Boss Case
A federal judge entered a $4.9 million default against the estate of a Michigan man and his widow after having threatened to dismiss the case, in which the government says the couple avoided taxes by participating in a Son-of-Boss scheme.
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November 07, 2024
Judge Finds No Fraud By IRS In FOIA Fight Over $18M Case
The widow of a man whose offshore businesses were raided by the IRS, giving rise to a nearly $18 million tax judgment, didn't prove the IRS committed fraud against the court in ensuing Freedom of Information Act litigation in which the agency claimed evidence was lost, a D.C. federal court ruled.
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November 07, 2024
IRS To Hold Hearing On Dual Consolidated Loss Regs
The Internal Revenue Service plans to hold a public hearing Nov. 22 on proposed regulations that outline when foreign taxes under the Pillar Two international minimum tax agreement could trigger U.S. rules that aim to prevent companies from double-dipping the same economic loss.
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November 06, 2024
Chicago Pol Urges Narrow Reading Of False Statement Law
The U.S. Supreme Court should narrowly interpret the federal statute barring people from using false statements to influence certain financial institutions because backing the government's broad reading could expose borrowers to criminal liability that was never intended, former Chicago alderman Patrick Daley Thompson argued Wednesday.
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November 06, 2024
After Electoral Defeats, Cannabis Advocates Eye Next Steps
Cannabis industry advocates and reform activists struck a note of cautious optimism Wednesday following an expected Republican electoral sweep of the federal government, while opponents of legalization touted the defeat of multiple statewide ballot measures as proof of their position that marijuana reform efforts were losing support.
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November 06, 2024
Finance Committee Helm Awaits Crapo After GOP Wins Senate
Idaho Republican Mike Crapo is expected to lead the Senate Finance Committee when Congress convenes next year, following President-elect Donald Trump's win Tuesday in the election that also handed Republicans control of the U.S. Senate for the first time since 2021.
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November 06, 2024
Feds Look To Halt Vitamin Co. Payouts Amid $1.4M Tax Fight
A couple who bought a vitamin supplement company shouldn't continue to get payments from the business amid a suit claiming they're liable for a previous owner's $1.4 million tax lien, the U.S. Department of Justice told a Connecticut federal court Wednesday.
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November 06, 2024
Atty Failed To Prove Theft Loss, Tax Court Says
An attorney is not entitled to deduct a theft loss for his legal expenses after a company he managed was sued for fraud, the U.S. Tax Court ruled Wednesday, sustaining the Internal Revenue Service's determination that he owed taxes and penalties.
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November 06, 2024
Transport Co. Owner Failed To Report Income, Tax Court Says
The owner of a medical transportation company didn't report $125,000 of income on his individual tax return as required of disregarded entities with sole shareholders, the U.S. Tax Court said Wednesday in a ruling that sustained a determination by the Internal Revenue Service.
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November 06, 2024
Gov't Urges 11th Circ. To Rethink FBAR Excessive Fine Ruling
The Eleventh Circuit should reconsider its decision that some of the $12.6 million in penalties the Internal Revenue Service imposed on a man for willfully failing to report his foreign bank accounts violated the Eighth Amendment's bar on excessive fines, the U.S. government said.
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November 06, 2024
NJ Employer Admits To Evading $3.5M In Payroll Taxes
A New Jersey owner of a shipping and logistics company pled guilty to having a role in a $3.5 million payroll tax evasion scheme, New Jersey federal prosecutors said.
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November 06, 2024
Tax Court To Rethink $1.9M Deduction Denial Post-Chevron
The U.S. Tax Court agreed to reconsider its denial of a $1.9 million tax break for farming sought by a Texas couple, saying it will examine whether a subsequent U.S. Supreme Court ruling overturning long-standing deference to federal agencies invalidates regulations at issue in the case.
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November 06, 2024
9th Circ. Won't Revisit IRS' Rejection Of Compromise
The Ninth Circuit said it won't reconsider its August decision that a man who owed $50 million in taxes and offered to settle part of his debt was correctly denied a compromise by the Internal Revenue Service.
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November 05, 2024
Trump Victory Boosts GOP Push To Extend 2017 Tax Law
Former President Donald Trump's projected reelection early Wednesday gave GOP lawmakers a strong boost in their efforts to renew major parts of the 2017 tax law that will expire next year, further dimming Democrats' hopes of promoting tax fairness by increasing rates on wealthy corporations and individuals.
Expert Analysis
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Litigation Inspiration: A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment
As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.
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Unpacking FinCEN's Proposed Real Estate Transaction Rule
Phil Jelsma and Ulrick Matsunaga at Crosbie Gliner take a close look at the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's recently proposed rulemaking — which mandates new disclosures for professionals involved in all-cash real estate deals — and discuss best next steps for the broad range of businesses that could be affected.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Forget Everything You Know About IRAC
The mode of legal reasoning most students learn in law school, often called “Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion,” or IRAC, erroneously frames analysis as a separate, discrete step, resulting in disorganized briefs and untold obfuscation — but the fix is pretty simple, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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The Corporate Transparency Act Isn't Dead Yet
After an Alabama federal court's ruling last week rendering the Corporate Transparency Act unconstitutional, changes to the law may ultimately be required, but ongoing compliance is still the best course of action for most, says George Singer at Holland & Hart.
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How New EU Tax And Transfer Pricing Rules May Affect M&A
Companies involved in mergers and acquisitions may need to adjust fiscal due diligence procedures to ensure they consider potential far-reaching effects of newly implemented transfer pricing measures, such as newly implemented global minimum tax and European Union anti-tax avoidance directives and proposals, says Patrick Tijhuis at BDO.
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Employers, Prep For Shorter Stock Awards Settlement Cycle
Companies that provide equity compensation in the form of publicly traded stock will soon have one less day to complete such transactions under U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Nasdaq rules — so employers should implement expedited equity compensation stock settlement and payroll tax deposit procedures now, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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Demystifying IRS' Claims Of $851B Return On Investment
The IRS' recently released analysis, estimating a $851 billion return on the government’s $80 billion investment in the agency, represents a huge increase over its 2022 estimate and that of the Congressional Budget Office and may be best viewed as a best-case scenario, says Joyce Beebe at the Baker Institute.
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How Firms Can Ensure Associate Gender Parity Lasts
Among associates, women now outnumber men for the first time, but progress toward gender equality at the top of the legal profession remains glacially slow, and firms must implement time-tested solutions to ensure associates’ gender parity lasts throughout their careers, say Kelly Culhane and Nicole Joseph at Culhane Meadows.
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A Proposal For Fairer, More Efficient Innocent Spouse Relief
Adding a simple election to the current regulatory framework for innocent spouse claims would benefit both taxpayers and the Internal Revenue Service by alleviating the undue burdens placed on those the program was intended to help and improving agency collections in such cases, says Laurie Kazenoff at Kazenoff Tax.
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7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves
As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.
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Proposed Hydrogen Tax Credit Regs May Be Legally Flawed
While the recently proposed regulations for the new clean hydrogen production tax credit have been lauded by some in the environmental community, it is unclear whether they are sufficiently grounded in law, result from valid rulemaking processes, or accord with other administrative law principles, say Hunter Johnston and Steven Dixon at Steptoe.
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Navigating ACA Reporting Nuances As Deadlines Loom
Stephanie Lowe at Liebert Cassidy walks employers through need-to-know elements of Affordable Care Act reporting, including two quickly approaching deadlines, the updated affordability threshold, strategies for choosing an affordability safe harbor, and common coding pitfalls.
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6 Pointers For Attys To Build Trust, Credibility On Social Media
In an era of information overload, attorneys can use social media strategically — from making infographics to leveraging targeted advertising — to cut through the noise and establish a reputation among current and potential clients, says Marly Broudie at SocialEyes Communications.