Federal

  • April 24, 2024

    Crypto Mixer Execs Arrested Over $2B In Illicit Transactions

    New York federal prosecutors announced Wednesday that they have arrested the co-founders of crypto mixing service Samourai Wallet over their operation of a crypto service that authorities say executed over $2 billion in unlawful transactions.

  • April 24, 2024

    House Lawmakers Warn Yellen On Donor Fund Rules

    More than 30 lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives told Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen that proposed regulations on donor-advised funds could hinder charitable giving, in a letter released Wednesday.

  • April 24, 2024

    GOP Reps Seek IRS Nonprofit Info After China Reports

    House Ways and Means Republicans asked the Internal Revenue Service to provide information about how it monitors tax-exempt organizations for possible violations of their status after reports China may be funding and improperly influencing nonprofits, according to a letter sent Wednesday.

  • April 24, 2024

    Mass. Golf Course Manager Gets 13 Months For Tax Fraud

    A Massachusetts golf course manager was sentenced to 13 months in prison after pleading guilty to tax charges, following prosecutors' accusations that he manipulated contracts with a home developer to deflate their value.

  • April 24, 2024

    Court Pauses Order To Sell Office Park In $16M Tax Battle

    A New Jersey federal court paused its order allowing the U.S. government to sell a family trust's office park to satisfy a trustee's $16.2 million tax debt Wednesday, giving the family time to appeal a decision approving the sale to the U.S. Supreme Court.

  • April 24, 2024

    Fla. Woman Had Run Out Of Fixes, 11th Circ. Rules

    A district court did not err in dismissing the complaint of a Florida woman after she was given multiple opportunities to address barred claims and failed to adequately do so, the Eleventh Circuit said Wednesday.

  • April 24, 2024

    Tax Court Backs IRS On Accuracy-Related Penalty

    The Internal Revenue Service complied with supervisory approval requirements when it levied a $99,000 accuracy-related penalty on two Florida men, the U.S. Tax Court ruled Wednesday.

  • April 24, 2024

    Philly Tells Justices To Skip Review Of Tax Credit System

    A Philadelphia resident's claims that the city illegally refused to provide her a tax credit for her state income taxes paid to Delaware doesn't warrant U.S. Supreme Court review because case law on the related constitutional issues is thin, the city argued Wednesday.

  • April 24, 2024

    Groups Back Intuit's 5th Circ. Challenge To FTC Over Ads

    Business and conservative groups defended tax software giant Intuit Inc. in its Fifth Circuit constitutional challenge to the Federal Trade Commission's findings that the company engaged in deceptive advertising, saying the agency acts as both prosecutor and jury and that its administrative judges have unchecked power.

  • April 24, 2024

    GOP Reps. Form Work Groups To Address Expiring Tax Law

    Republican members of the House Ways and Means Committee announced plans Wednesday to form 10 teams to study key provisions of the 2017 tax overhaul, aiming to set priorities for legislative action next year as the law is set to expire.

  • April 24, 2024

    R&D Cutbacks Spur Small-Biz Push To Renew Tax Breaks

    Small businesses are pushing the U.S. Senate to quickly approve a House-passed bill that would renew a tax break for research and development, saying its expiration along with the demise of other key provisions has caused reduced investment in research and increased tax bills, threatening future operations.

  • April 24, 2024

    New IRS Unit Will Seek Quicker Tax Dispute Resolutions

    The Internal Revenue Service's Independent Office of Appeals has created an alternative dispute resolution unit that will work with the agency's business operating divisions to help taxpayers resolve tax disputes sooner and more effectively, the IRS announced Wednesday.

  • April 24, 2024

    Treasury Limits Reach Of Look-Through Rule In Final Regs

    The U.S. Treasury Department finalized regulations Wednesday that retain but narrow the scope of a proposal to, in a manner of speaking, look through the corporate owners of real estate investment entities to determine whether they are domestically controlled.

  • April 24, 2024

    IRS Followed Protocol In Choosing Higher IT Bid, GAO Says

    The Internal Revenue Service reasonably assessed proposals for information technology engineering services before choosing an offer that was higher than others, the Government Accountability Office found.

  • April 24, 2024

    TIGTA Helps Stop $3.5B Pandemic Credit Scam, Agency Says

    The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, in conjunction with the Internal Revenue Service, has cracked down on a scheme where individuals potentially improperly claimed $3.5 billion in coronavirus relief tax credits, the office said Wednesday.

  • April 23, 2024

    Treasury Says Aussie Royalty Ruling Contradicts US, OECD

    Australia's updated draft ruling regarding when payments for the rights to distribute software would be considered royalties conflicts with OECD and U.S. standards on the treatment of such deals, a U.S. Department of the Treasury official said in a letter made public Tuesday.

  • April 23, 2024

    Tax Court OKs IRS Notice After Petitioner Spews 'Gibberish'

    The U.S. Tax Court ruled in favor of the Internal Revenue Service on Tuesday after a Nevada woman used "tax protester gibberish," the court said, in an attempt to circumvent more than $37,000 in unreported income.

  • April 23, 2024

    Biz Ownership Law Constitutional, Lawmakers Tell 11th Circ.

    The Corporate Transparency Act is a garden-variety exercise of Congress' powers to address threats to national security, foreign affairs, commerce and tax collection, five Democratic lawmakers told the Eleventh Circuit, disputing a ruling that the law is unconstitutional.

  • April 23, 2024

    DC Circ. Backs Tax Penalties Against Swiss Couple

    A Swiss couple who incurred $500,000 in penalties for failing to report millions of dollars they held in Swiss bank accounts can't get out of paying, the D.C. Circuit ruled Tuesday, rejecting their argument that the IRS didn't properly approve the fines.

  • April 23, 2024

    Int'l Pricing Pact Guidance Is Coming Soon, IRS Official Says

    Updated Internal Revenue Service guidance that would help multinational corporations pursue advance pricing agreements will likely be released in a few months, an agency official said Tuesday.

  • April 23, 2024

    Migrant-Hiring Crimes And Tax Evasion Get Pair Prison, $1.8M Fine

    A Florida federal judge has ordered two men to pay $1.8 million to the U.S. government and sentenced them to three years in prison after they confessed to recruiting migrants without employment authorization and failing to report workers' wages for tax purposes.

  • April 23, 2024

    Tomato Cos. Ask 9th Circ. To Allow Immediate Cost Deduction

    Two companies that supply 40% of U.S. tomato paste and diced tomatoes asked the Ninth Circuit to allow deduction of their facilities' restoration costs during the tax year in which the tomatoes are processed, even though the companies don't pay the restoration costs until later.

  • April 23, 2024

    Atty Can Deduct $303K In Racing Ad Costs, 10th Circ. Told

    A Colorado attorney asked the Tenth Circuit to reverse a U.S. Tax Court decision that prevented him from deducting $303,000 in advertising expenses tied to his automobile racing, saying the lower court incorrectly ruled that the costs were related to a hobby rather than his litigation practice.

  • April 23, 2024

    Feds Want About 3 Years In Prison For LA Bank Embezzler

    The former chief financial officer at a community bank in Los Angeles should spend nearly three years in prison after admitting he embezzled more than $700,000 and used employee identities in a life insurance scheme, the government told a California federal court.

  • April 23, 2024

    Indicted 'Magician' Tax Preparer's Clients Under Scrutiny

    Clients of a New York City-based tax preparer who earned the nickname "the magician," allegedly making $15 million while fraudulently depriving the IRS of $100 million, may also face charges, a prosecutor told the federal judge in charge of the case on Tuesday.

Expert Analysis

  • 2 Tax Decisions Hold Key Transfer Pricing Takeaways

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    Richard Slowinski and Stefanie Kavanagh at Alston & Bird discuss two recent decisions in cases against the IRS — Eaton Corp. from the Sixth Circuit and Medtronic from the Tax Court — that may help clarify when the agency can cancel an advance pricing agreement, but leave unanswered questions about which pricing method applies to high-value intercompany licensing transactions.

  • Patagonia's Succession Plan Is A Blueprint For Biz Owners

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    While not every business owner is interested in giving their company away to a charitable purpose like Patagonia's founder recently did, the outdoor apparel company's unique situation highlights the considerations that should go into any succession plan, says Abosede Odunsi at Freeborn & Peters.

  • The CHIPS Act: Key Takeaways For Semiconductor Industry

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    The Biden administration’s recently signed CHIPS Act signals that the U.S. is making progress toward bolstering the domestic semiconductor industry, and manufacturers must prepare by understanding the requirements of the act and associated Department of Commerce guidance, say attorneys at Miller & Chevalier.

  • Digital Taxation Is Necessary, But Tough To Manage

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    The U.S. government has started to tackle complex new tax laws as the digital economy continues to grow, but this demands guidelines that will facilitate the growth while protecting investors and the government's finances, say attorneys at Cadwalader.

  • 5 Considerations When Seeking Federal EV Funding

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    A recent White House fact sheet shows how federal efforts to support the full scope of the electric vehicle industry have moved the needle, but some details about how to use those funds are still being ironed out, and there are a few issues to watch, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Unpacking The Inflation Reduction Act's Energy Tax Credits

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    Provisions in the recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act that affect how taxpayers can monetize clean energy tax credits will change how clean energy projects are financed, but taxpayers that may not be allowed multiple credits need to determine which type of credit will be the most advantageous, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

  • How COVID Has Changed Project Development And Finance

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    Two and a half years into the pandemic, some COVID-19-specific provisions are now common in the project development and finance markets, while others are still undergoing negotiation, say Nate Galer and Katy McNeil at Mayer Brown.

  • Unpacking The Shift In DOJ Corporate Enforcement Policy

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    Attorneys at Paul Hastings provide takeaways for companies seeking to mitigate increased enforcement risks from the U.S. Department of Justice's recent corporate prosecution policy changes, including greater focus on individuals, requirements for cooperation credits, evaluations of prior misconduct, expectations for compliance programs and factors for determining whether to impose a monitor.

  • What AML Bill Could Mean For Firms, Funds And FinCEN

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    If passed, an amendment within Congress’ annual defense bill would expand the list of institutions subject to anti-money laundering regulations, from law firms to investment funds, creating potential rulemaking and enforcement challenges for the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • How Inflation Reduction Act Will Lift Offshore Wind Projects

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    The Inflation Reduction Act should promote the development of offshore wind energy in multiple ways — including by improving the planning and permitting process for transmission infrastructure, expanding potential lease areas and making beneficial changes to the tax credits available for renewable energy developers, say attorneys at Day Pitney.

  • CORRECTED: New Tax Credits For Renewables Should Offer Investors Relief

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    The Inflation Reduction Act's changes to tax credits for renewable energy projects should finally liberate tax equity investors from the restraints of the complex and onerous federal anti-abuse regime, says Kay Hobart at Parker Poe. Correction: Because of an editing error, a previous version of this article incorrectly characterized tax enforcement regimes in North Carolina and other states. This error has been corrected.

  • Inflation Reduction Act A Boon To Hydrogen, Carbon Capture

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    The Inflation Reduction Act's tax credits and direct payments, extension of existing renewable electricity subsidies, and other benefits will accelerate hydrogen and carbon capture projects across the U.S. — and will likely draw capital into the country that would otherwise have gone to projects elsewhere, say attorneys at Shearman.

  • What The Inflation Reduction Act Has To Do With Crypto

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    The recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act’s $80 billion supplemental funding allotment for the IRS could have unexpectedly significant implications for the cryptocurrency market, which may find itself the target of ramped-up tax audits and enforcement, says cybersecurity consultant John Reed Stark.

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