Asset Management

Expert Analysis

• Real Estate Investors, Quintuple Your Deductions Under TCJA

  

  Tax reform, and specifically Internal Revenue Code Section 199A, has created new planning opportunities for real estate investors and brokers. Although the provision is quite complex, there are huge potential savings available to commercial real estate investors, says Steve Moskowitz of Moskowitz LLP.

• A Survey Of LLC Director Obligations In Delaware: Part 1

  

  Recent cases suggest that Delaware courts extend a high degree of deference to limited liability company and partnership agreement provisions. But importantly, the facts and circumstances can also very much affect a court’s decision, say attorneys with Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson LLP.

• Checkbook IRAs And Digital Assets: A Bet Against The House

  

  Since a 2014 tax ruling that permits holding digital currency in tax-deferred retirement accounts, investment companies have sprung up encouraging people to roll their traditional retirement investments into cryptocurrencies. But investment vehicles of dubious legality may lead to loss of tax deferral and penalties for early withdrawal, says Seth Pierce at Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLC.

• US Owners Of Foreign Trusts Face Increased IRS Scrutiny

  

  In light of a recent statement by the IRS Large Business and International division, individuals who have foreign trust reporting requirements now face an increased risk of IRS audit and penalties and should be sure they are in compliance with the complex reporting obligations associated with foreign trusts, say Arielle Borsos and Victor Jaramillo of Caplin & Drysdale Chtd.

• Opinion

  BigLaw's Associate Salary Model Is A Relic Of A Bygone Era

  

  Legal industry compensation practices are once again in the news as BigLaw firms continue to match the new high watermark of $190,000 for first-year associate salaries. The typical model of increasing associate salaries uniformly fails star associates, the firms they work for and, ultimately, the clients they serve, says William Brewer, managing partner of Brewer Attorneys & Counselors.

• Fund Managers Face Tax Hike If Calif. Passes AB 2731

  

  Currently making its way through state assembly committees, California Assembly Bill 2731 would impose an additional 17 percent tax on interest income derived from investment management services. If passed, all asset and fund managers, including those located outside California, could face a significant tax increase, say Kelly Allen and Timothy Gustafson of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP.

• China Agritech: More Than Meets The Eye

  

  There is no doubt that the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in China Agritech v. Resh squarely precludes the viability of untimely successive class actions. But what impact might it have on the viability of timely filed successive class actions? Erica Rutner of Lash & Goldberg LLP explores the question.

• Removing 'Control' From FINRA Quantitative Unsuitability

  

  The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority recently proposed to remove a broker’s “control” of a securities account as an element that must be proven to demonstrate a “quantitative suitability” violation under Rule 2111. This proposal would return the suitability rules to their roots, says Thomas Potter of Burr & Forman LLP.

• #MeToo At Law Firms And What We Can Do About It

  

  While some may say it’s ironic, it’s also embarrassing and enraging that the very industry that offers anti-harassment training, policies and counsel now finds itself the subject of #MeToo headlines. The American Bar Association recommendation that will bring about the greatest change is the call to provide alternative methods for reporting violations, says Beth Schroeder, chair of Raines Feldman LLP's labor and employment group.

• Managing Uncertainty In The SEC Fair Fund Process: Part 2

  

  To cope with the uncertainty inherent in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's complicated fair fund distribution process, respondents can take six actions that will reduce the organizational burden and ultimately shave time, maybe even years, off the distribution timeline, says Alan Friedman of Charles River Associates.