State & Local

  • October 31, 2024

    Ga. Justices Kill Free Speech Challenge To Strip Club Tax

    A Georgia tax on strip clubs that's used to fund child trafficking prevention efforts has been upheld by the state's highest court, which said in a split decision that a First Amendment challenge to the tax by club owners failed to show the levy limited their speech.

  • October 31, 2024

    Madigan Ally Set Up Work For Speaker's Fired Aide, Jury Told

    An ex-lobbyist on trial alongside former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan made arrangements for a political operative that Madigan fired to receive monthly payments while he was unemployed, suggesting he enter into contracts with loyal lobbyists and write up reports on legislators "in case the IRS checks this out," a federal jury heard Thursday.

  • October 31, 2024

    Calif. Gov. Proposes Expansion Of Film And TV Tax Credit

    California would more than double the annual amount of money allocated to its film and TV tax credit program as part of a proposal from Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, the governor's office said.

  • October 31, 2024

    Ind. Tax Dept. Says Ohio Man Wrongly Assessed Income Tax

    A former Indiana resident was wrongly assessed individual income tax, the Department of State Revenue said in a letter of findings, because he was able to present evidence to prove that he lived in Ohio at the time.

  • October 31, 2024

    DC Creates Tax Break For Landscape Architecture Services

    The District of Columbia established a sales tax exemption for landscape architecture services under clarifying legislation enacted without the mayor's signature, though the measure is subject to congressional review before it becomes law.

  • October 31, 2024

    4 Ways Congress Could Try To Close The Tax Gap

    The gap between federal taxes owed and paid — recently estimated at $696 billion for 2022 — could be addressed in several ways, including increasing information reporting or simplifying the tax code, experts told Law360.

  • October 31, 2024

    NY, NJ, Calif. Worst In Tax Competitiveness Study, Wyo. Best

    Wyoming is the best state in the nation for tax competitiveness, the Tax Foundation said in a study released Thursday, with New York earning the title for the worst state, followed by New Jersey and California.

  • October 31, 2024

    Mich. General Revenue Drops $283M In Fiscal 2024

    Michigan general revenue collection from October 2023 through September totaled $283 million less than the state's revenue for the previous fiscal year, according to the state Budget Office.

  • October 31, 2024

    The 2024 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard

    Check out the Law360 Pulse Leaderboard to see which firms made the list of leaders in all-around excellence this year.

  • October 31, 2024

    Firms' Hiring Strategies Are Evolving In Fight For Top Spot

    Competition for top talent among elite law firms shows no signs of slowing down, even amid economic uncertainty, with financially strong firms deploying aggressive strategies to attract and retain skilled professionals to solidify their market position.

  • October 30, 2024

    Judge Embraces 'Law School Geekiness' In Ill. Swipe Fee Row

    An Illinois federal judge said Wednesday that she'd be "going back to law school" to study up after hearing more than two hours of robust arguments about whether she should block a first-of-its-kind Illinois law restricting certain credit card fees, as the banking industry said at least one bank was "freaking out" over possible compliance.

  • October 30, 2024

    Mich. Judges Reject Interest For Unclaimed Property Returns

    A Michigan appellate panel overturned a trial court Tuesday that admitted it was going against the grain by requiring the state to pay interest when it returns seemingly abandoned property, with appellate judges finding state statute was comprehensive enough to supersede the common law idea that "interest follows principal." 

  • October 30, 2024

    Federal Deference Ruling May Mean Less State Tax Guidance

    A U.S. Supreme Court ruling that killed the doctrine known as Chevron deference does not have a direct effect on states, but indirect effects could include that of state tax agencies issuing less guidance, panelists said Wednesday.

  • October 30, 2024

    Texas Justices Quiz Sales Tax Break For Private Prison Co.

    Texas Supreme Court justices questioned Wednesday whether a private prison operator is eligible to receive a sales tax exemption granted to governmental entities, mulling over whether the company functions as an agency or instrumentality of the state.

  • October 30, 2024

    Pa. Authorizes Settlement Process To Resolve Tax Disputes

    Pennsylvania empowered the state Board of Finance and Revenue to oversee a formal settlement process to resolve taxpayer disputes and extended the deadline for taxpayers to appeal personal income tax assessments from the state Department of Revenue under a bill signed by Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro.

  • October 30, 2024

    Va. Amusement Park Wins Property Tax Refund For Rides

    A Virginia amusement park owner is owed refunds of business property tax payments, the state's tax commissioner said, agreeing with the owner that rides and other assets at the park were fixed to real property and not subject to the tax.

  • October 30, 2024

    NJ Cannabis Commission Delays Increasing Excise Fee

    The New Jersey commission that regulates cannabis will not immediately increase the state's social equity excise fee and will instead decide at a later meeting whether to increase the fee, the commission voted on Wednesday. 

  • October 30, 2024

    Real Estate Tax Ballot Initiatives To Watch

    Next week, voters in seven states will be weighing in on a variety of real estate tax ballot initiatives, including various measures that would provide additional property tax relief to veterans.

  • October 30, 2024

    Ohio Justices Say Attorney In Prison Should Not Be Disbarred

    The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that an attorney in federal prison for his participation in a tax fraud scheme should not be disbarred, and should have a chance to reapply for his law license in the future

  • October 30, 2024

    Va. Tax Boss Orders 2nd Look At Co.'s Bank Card Tax Break

    Virginia auditors must take a closer look at a company's sales of debit and credit cards to better evaluate whether the cards were exempt from tax as property to be resold to final customers, the state's tax commissioner said.

  • October 30, 2024

    Va. Biz Wrongly Collected Sales Tax, Commissioner Rules

    A Virginia fabricator of products for construction erroneously collected and remitted sales tax on property it installed in real estate and may seek a credit, but it owes sales tax on its purchases from vendors, the Virginia tax commissioner said.

  • October 29, 2024

    NJ Panel Rejects Man's Ability To Contest Newark Tax Break

    A New Jersey resident doesn't have standing to challenge Newark's tax abatement awarded to a property developer because he doesn't live or own property in the city, a state appeals panel ruled Tuesday.

  • October 29, 2024

    Investments In Energy Tax Credit Boom Could Draw IRS' Eye

    The 2022 climate law's green energy tax incentives sparked a surge of big-ticket development projects nationwide, and tax practitioners expect that the investments could be subject to intense scrutiny from the IRS amid a crackdown on abusive schemes in other areas.

  • October 29, 2024

    Ex-Cleveland Councilman Can't Cut 6-Year Fraud Sentence

    An Ohio federal judge will not allow a former Cleveland city councilman to get out of jail on compassionate release, ruling the ex-politician "has never demonstrated any remorse for his criminal conduct" and should serve the remainder of his six-year fraud sentence.

  • October 29, 2024

    Issues Raised In Wayfair Still Top Targets For Litigation

    Though Wayfair was decided more than six years ago by the U.S. Supreme Court, challenges centered on key issues of the case involving the taxation of remote sellers are still going strong, panelists said Tuesday.

Expert Analysis

  • Understanding Discovery Obligations In Era Of Generative AI

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    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.

  • The Case For Post-Bar Clerk Training Programs At Law Firms

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    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.

  • Ohio Voters Legalize Cannabis — What Comes Next?

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    This month, voters approved a citizen-initiated statute that legalizes marijuana for recreational use in Ohio, but the legalization timeline could undergo significant changes at the behest of the state's lawmakers, say Daniel Shortt and David Waxman at McGlinchey Stafford.

  • Bezos On The Move: SALT In Review

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    From billionaire Jeff Bezos' impending relocation to an important transfer pricing case in Louisiana, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.

  • Mo. Solar Projects Need Clarity On Enterprise Zone Tax Relief

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    In Missouri, enhanced enterprise zones offer tax abatements that could offset the cost of solar project infrastructure, but developers must be willing to navigate uncertainty about whether the project is classified as real property, say Lizzy McEntire and Anna Kimbrell at Husch Blackwell.

  • AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier

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    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.

  • Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

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    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.

  • General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

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    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.

  • Kentucky Tax Talk: Clash Over Industrial Supplies Exemption

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    Recent legislative testimony in Kentucky may cause another battle over the state's sales tax exemptions for industrial supplies, even though the testimony appears to mischaracterize the impact of a major state court ruling that upheld the exemptions, say attorneys at Frost Brown.

  • Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

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    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.

  • Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD

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    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.

  • A Ministry Of Silly Ideas: SALT In Review

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    From proposals before a District of Columbia tax revision panel to the defeat of an income tax cut in North Dakota, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.

  • What Ariz. Ruling Means For Taxation Of Digital Services

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    The Arizona Supreme Court recently declined to review ADP v. Arizona Department of Revenue, letting stand a state appeals court's ruling that software as a service is a taxable rental of tangible personal property, essentially granting the department of revenue power to tax all digital services, say Karen Lowell and Pat Derdenger at Lewis Roca.

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