Int'l Tax In April: Progress On Tariff Refunds, New Tax Cuts

Molly Moses
Contributing Editor

U.S. Customs and Border Protection continued to make progress in April on its system for paying back the tariffs that President Donald Trump imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Meanwhile, several countries and one U.S. state cut fuel taxes in response to the U.S. and Israel's war with Iran. Here, Law360 looks at those and other international tax developments from the past month.

State & Local Tax Takeaways From April

Maria Koklanaris
Senior Tax Correspondent

While state legislative sessions wound down in April, key tax policy themes began to emerge. Results from the sessions showed that states remain interested in taxing digital advertising and social media. Meanwhile, some states are exploring ways to tax their highest earners. Here, Law360 looks at these and other state and local tax highlights from the past month.

One Certainty As Tariff Refunds Start: 'There Will Be Litigation'

Chris Villani

The launch of the refund process for tariffs struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court marks the start of lengthy and multifaceted court battles as companies fight with consumers — and amongst themselves — about who gets a slice of the $166 billion pie, experts told Law360.

Judges On AI: How Courts Can Survive The Tech Revolution

Colorado Supreme Court Justice Maria Berkenkotter and Colorado Court of Appeals Judge Lino Lipinsky de Orlov discuss how artificial intelligence has already fundamentally altered the legal system and offer tips for courts navigating deepfakes, hallucinations and a gap in access to AI tools.

A Ruling That Defies Logic In New York: SALT In Review

From a ruling on P.L. 86-272 in New York state to the Illinois governor's call to defund his state's independent tax tribunal, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.

3 AI Adoption Mistakes GCs Should Avoid

The pressure in-house legal teams face to quickly adopt artificial intelligence tools, combined with budget constraints and the need to evaluate a crowded market of options, sets the stage for implementation mistakes that are often difficult to undo, says former 23andMe general counsel Guy Chayoun.

4 Emerging Approaches To AI Protective Order Language

Over the last year, at least five federal district courts have issued or analyzed specific protective order provisions restricting the use of generative artificial intelligence platforms with protected materials, establishing that proactive AI-specific provisions are now standard practice and demonstrating that no single model works for every case, says Joel Bush at Kilpatrick.

Heppner Ruling Left AI Privilege Risk For Lawyers Unresolved

While a New York federal judge’s recent ruling in U.S. v. Heppner resolved a privilege question surrounding client-side artificial intelligence use, it did not address how to mitigate the risks that can arise when confidential information enters the operative context of an AI system used by an attorney, says Jianfei Chen at Quarles & Brady​​​​​​​.

Speed Jigsaw Puzzling Makes Me A Better Lawyer

My passion for speed puzzling — I can complete a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle in under 50 minutes — has sharpened my legal skills in more ways than one, with both disciplines requiring patience, precision and the ability to keep the bigger picture in mind while working through the details, says Tazia Statucki at Proskauer.

2 AI Snafus Show Why Attys Can't Outsource Judgment

The recent incident involving Sullivan & Cromwell where citations in a filed motion were fabricated by artificial intelligence, as well as a punitive ruling from the Sixth Circuit in U.S. v. Farris, demonstrate that the obligation to supervise AI has belonged and always will belong to lawyers, says John Powell at the Kentucky School Boards Association.

Do Androids Dream Of Paying No Taxes? SALT In Review

From tax incentives for data centers to Washington state's new income tax on high earners, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.

Improving Well-Being In Law, 10 Years After Landmark Study

An important 2016 study revealed significant substance abuse and mental health issues among lawyers, and while the findings helped normalize the conversation around these topics, a decade later, structural change is still needed, says Denise Robinson at PLI.

Mitigating Multistate Risks As California Expands Tax Reach

Though California's new sourcing rules and extension of the pass-through entity election have created uncertainty, practitioners should file protective returns to respect the law's ambiguity and take certain other steps to protect clients from the costs of losing a future audit, says attorney Delina Yasmeh.

E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On ESI Control

Several recent federal court decisions have perpetuated a split over what constitutes “control” of electronically stored information — with judges divided on whether the standard should turn on a party's legal right or practical ability to obtain the information, say attorneys at Sidley.

Anticipating The Justices' Potential Ruling On Tax Takings

Recent oral arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court case Pung v. Isabella focused on rules for valuation, timing and administrability of tax auction proceeds and whichever method the court adopts for determining just compensation, it will have far-reaching impacts on tax collection, homeowners' equity and the secondary market for tax-foreclosed property, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

2 Discovery Rulings Break With Heppner On AI Privilege Issue

While a New York federal court’s recent ruling in U.S. v. Heppner suggests that some litigants’ communications with AI tools are discoverable, two other recent federal court decisions demonstrate that such interactions generally qualify for work-product protection under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, says Joshua Dunn at Brown Rudnick.