Federal
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July 31, 2024
Senate Dems Urge Passage Of House-Passed Tax Bill
Senate Democrats urged their Republican counterparts Wednesday to pass legislation that would extend the full tax break for research and development costs and expand the child tax credit for multiple years.
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July 31, 2024
Separate Easement Contribution Docs Critical, IRS Atty Says
Conservation easement donors must always keep separate documents from their donees that acknowledge the gifted property to qualify for a charitable tax deduction in the event the IRS requests such information during an audit, according to an agency counsel Wednesday.
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July 31, 2024
Wash. Cannabis Co. Sues Payroll Firm Over Back Taxes
A Puget Sound-area dispensary is suing Greenleaf HR LLC, a payroll provider specializing in the cannabis industry, and another firm, claiming they failed to pay the IRS on its behalf resulting in a nearly $172,500 tax bill, according to a lawsuit removed to Washington federal court.
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July 31, 2024
GOP Sens. Say Direct File Wrongly Expanding IRS' Power
The Internal Revenue Service "should not be focused on unilaterally expanding its own power" by making the free Direct File program permanent without the authorization of Congress, 19 Republican senators led by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., and Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, said Wednesday.
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July 31, 2024
$1.1M Tax Refund Claim Needs More Time, Virgin Islands Says
A man living on the island of St. Thomas who sued the U.S. Virgin Islands Bureau of Internal Revenue for a $1.1 million tax refund is being audited, the agency told a Virgin Islands federal court, urging it not to move forward with the case.
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July 31, 2024
Americans Overseas Launch Residence Taxation Lobby Group
An advocacy group representing U.S. citizens living abroad announced it has officially registered as a lobbyist to continue to push Congress to pass residence-based taxation laws for the benefit of individuals comparable to those for corporations.
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July 31, 2024
Ex-Chicago Alderman Should Serve Full Supervision, Feds Say
A former Chicago alderman and attorney convicted of tax crimes should not be allowed an early reprieve from his court-ordered supervision because it has become his main form of punishment following his compassionate release from prison, the government has told an Illinois federal court.
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July 31, 2024
TaxAct Customers' Attys Want $5.8M Fee For $23M Deal
The attorneys for TaxAct Inc. customers who secured a $23 million deal to resolve claims that the company was secretly sharing confidential taxpayer information with Meta and Google asked a federal judge to award them more than $5.8 million in fees for their work.
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July 31, 2024
Senators Ask Treasury To Limit Biofuel Tax Credit Eligibility
The U.S. Treasury Department shouldn't grant biofuel production tax credits to companies that use foreign-sourced feedstocks, a coalition of Republican and Democratic senators said in a letter published Wednesday.
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July 31, 2024
Judge Won't Undo IRS' Pause On Worker Retention Credits
An Arizona federal judge rejected a tax advisory firm's request to lift the IRS' pause on processing claims for the pandemic-era employee retention credit, saying he wasn't eager to stop the agency from addressing the fraud it alleges has been widespread.
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July 30, 2024
Challenge To IRS Summons in $90M Easement Suit Tossed
A Mississippi federal judge dismissed a company's request to quash IRS summonses related to a $90 million conservation easement deduction, adopting the rulings of three sister jurisdictions that had dismissed the same challenge on grounds the summonses served a legitimate purpose.
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July 30, 2024
IRS Spinoff Guidance Raises Practical Concerns, NY Attys Say
Recent IRS guidance narrowing the corporate spinoff transactions that revenue officials will approve as tax-free ahead of time doesn't adequately consider the practical and commercial factors involved in these transactions, the New York State Bar Association's Tax Section said Tuesday.
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July 30, 2024
Israeli Man Seeks To Avoid Discovery In $3.6M FBAR Case
A federal court should not order the Israeli founder of a pet toy company to show cause for defying its discovery orders in the U.S. government's $3.6 million case over his failure to report foreign bank accounts because he is ending his defense, his attorneys said Tuesday.
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July 30, 2024
Kyocera Chides Gov't Attack On Jurisdiction In $7M Tax Case
The government's attempt to defeat a South Carolina federal court's jurisdiction is improper because it relies on a roughly $44 million assessment lodged months after electronics maker Kyocera filed an amended complaint for a $7 million federal tax refund, according to the company.
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July 30, 2024
Ropes & Gray Adds Partner To Int'l Tax Practice
Ropes & Gray LLP recently added a tax adviser with a wealth of experience navigating transactions, funds and investments for clients as a partner in its New York office, the firm said.
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July 30, 2024
Gold Broker Tells 6th Circ. He's Not Subject To $3M In Tax
A self-employed gold and silver broker told the Sixth Circuit he was "not subject to the jurisdiction of the United States" while he was living in Tennessee and therefore his roughly $3 million in tax liabilities that arose from his failure to file returns for years should be reversed.
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July 30, 2024
Local Leaders Ask Senate To Extend New Markets Credit
Congress should consider making the new markets tax credit permanent and extending opportunity zones as a way to help local governments, local leaders told the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday.
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July 30, 2024
Chubb Says It Would Be Harmed By US-Swiss Treaty
Chubb and its shareholders would be significantly harmed by the terms of a proposed new bilateral tax treaty between the U.S. and Switzerland because it would be denied tax relief despite having been domiciled in Switzerland for over 15 years, the global insurer said in a letter released Tuesday.
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July 30, 2024
Husch Blackwell Hires UB Greensfelder Partner In St. Louis
Several years after Husch Blackwell LLP's newest partner, Garrett Reuter Jr., graduated from law school, he joined Greensfelder Hemker & Gale PC to work alongside his late father. Now, he's bringing clients he grew up watching his father work with, to a new platform.
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July 30, 2024
IRS' Property Seizure OK In $2M Tax Suit, 11th Circ. Told
The Eleventh Circuit should uphold an order allowing the Internal Revenue Service to seize the property of a former attorney who owes $2 million in taxes, the U.S. government said, arguing that he has delayed payment for 30 years on the liabilities.
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July 30, 2024
Pa. Joining IRS' Free E-File Program In 2025
The IRS will make its Direct File free online tax filing program available to Pennsylvania taxpayers for the 2025 filing season, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Tuesday, making it the third state to join the program after a dozen states participated in a pilot version this year.
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July 30, 2024
Gov't Seeks $10M In Taxes From Trucking Co. Owners
A Georgia federal court should find that trucking company owners, one of whom bribed military officials, owe about $10 million in taxes and allow the government to foreclose on liens against their property, the U.S. government said, saying the facts in the case are undisputed.
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July 30, 2024
IRS Issues Final Rules For Substitute Mortality Tables
The Internal Revenue Service published final regulations Tuesday updating the requirements that a plan sponsor of a single-employer defined benefit plan must meet to obtain agency approval to use mortality tables specific to the plan in calculating present value for minimum funding purposes.
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July 29, 2024
Utah Biz Groups Latest To Challenge Corp. Disclosure Law
Several small-business associations in Utah became the latest group to challenge the Corporate Transparency Act's disclosure requirements, telling a federal court Monday the statute violates several constitutional provisions, including the guarantee of due process.
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July 29, 2024
Senate Confirms Second Tax Court Judge In A Week
The U.S. Senate confirmed its second U.S. Tax Court judge in a week on Monday, voting to approve the nomination of a special trial judge to fill a vacancy on the court.
Expert Analysis
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Understanding Discovery Obligations In Era Of Generative AI
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Attorneys and businesses must adapt to the unique discovery challenges presented by generative artificial intelligence, such as chatbot content and prompts, while upholding the principles of fairness, transparency and compliance with legal obligations in federal civil litigation, say attorneys at King & Spalding.
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An Informed Guide To Mastering Retirement Plan Forfeitures
When considering how to allocate departing retirement plan participants’ forfeitures, sponsors should consider recently filed lawsuits that allege Employee Retirement Income Security Act violations for using such funds to offset employer contributions, as well as proposed IRS guidance concerning how and when they must be used, says Eric Gregory at Dickinson Wright.
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The Case For Post-Bar Clerk Training Programs At Law Firms
In today's competitive legal hiring market, an intentionally designed training program for law school graduates awaiting bar admission can be an effective way of creating a pipeline of qualified candidates, says Brent Daub at Gilson Daub.
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IRS Proposal May Help Clarify Donor-Advised Fund Excise Tax
Recently proposed regulations provide important clarifications of the Internal Revenue Code's excise tax on donor-advised fund distributions by providing detailed definitions of key terms and addressing some of the open issues related to their operation and administration, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier
Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.
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Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World
As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.
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General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI
With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.
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Liability Exposure For Unpaid Payroll Taxes May Surprise You
The Ninth Circuit’s recent decision in Richard W. York v. U.S. offers important lessons for business owners and others who may be responsible for a company's checkbook about how someone else's failure to submit payroll taxes can result in their personal liability, says Douglas Charnas at McGlinchey Stafford.
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Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information
As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.
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Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD
Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.
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Unlocking Value In Carve-Out M&A Transactions
Some of the largest mergers and acquisitions in 2023 were carve-out transactions, and despite their unique intricacies and challenges, these transactions offer both buyers and sellers the opportunity to generate outsized returns in an otherwise vigorously competitive landscape, when carefully planned and diligently executed, say Kevin Crews and Rami Totari at Kirkland.
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Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence
Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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1st Tax Easement Convictions Will Likely Embolden DOJ, IRS
After recent convictions in the first criminal tax fraud trial over allegedly abusive syndicated conservation easements, the IRS and U.S. Department of Justice will likely pursue other promoters for similar alleged conspiracies — though one acquittal may help attorneys better evaluate their clients' exposure, say Bill Curtis and Lauren DeSantis-Then at Polsinelli.