Federal

  • April 12, 2024

    Petition Watch: Judge DQs, 'Excessive' Damages & Price Wars

    A former al-Qaida member has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to clarify disqualification protocol for judges overseeing a case related to their prior work as a government attorney, and energy drink manufacturers want the court to develop a modern-day test to determine if companies qualify as price-discrimination competitors. Here's four high court petitions filed recently that you might've missed.

  • April 12, 2024

    FedEx Not Entitled To $84.6M In Tax Credit Dispute, US Says

    FedEx is not entitled to a judgment of nearly $84.6 million that the company requested in March for its foreign tax credit dispute, the federal government said Friday in a Tennessee federal court filing.

  • April 12, 2024

    4 Takeaways From Tax Court Nix Of Easement Perpetuity Rule

    The U.S. Tax Court's scrapping of an IRS rule on the perpetuity requirements for conservation easements could draw yet more judicial scrutiny to the agency's rulemaking and shift the focus of easement disputes to how the transactions are valued. Here, Law360 examines four key takeaways from the decision.

  • April 12, 2024

    OECD Base Erosion Project Still Percolating, Think Tank Says

    Policymakers should recognize that the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's tax project from roughly a decade ago to reduce base erosion and profit shifting may still be affecting companies' behavior, according to a publication released Friday from the fiscally conservative-leaning Tax Foundation.

  • April 12, 2024

    Woman Pleads Guilty To $1.3M COVID Tax Credit Fraud

    A California woman pled guilty to fraudulently obtaining $2 million in COVID-19 government loans and falsely claiming $1.3 million in tax credits, crimes that could result in a 20-year prison sentence, the U.S. Department of Justice said.

  • April 12, 2024

    Final 'Look-Through' Rules Coming Soon, IRS Official Says

    The IRS is about to release final regulations that would, in a manner of speaking, look through the corporate owners of real estate investment entities to determine whether they are domestically controlled, an agency official said Friday.

  • April 12, 2024

    The Week In Trump: Catch Up On The Ex-President's Cases

    Donald Trump and his legal team proved that they are nothing if not persistent as they repeatedly tried — and failed — to hit the brakes on the former president's porn star hush money trial in Manhattan.

  • April 12, 2024

    Construction Co. Owner Cops To Causing IRS $2.8M Tax Loss

    A Massachusetts construction company owner pled guilty to running an "off-the-books" cash payroll scheme that cost the federal government $2.8 million in tax losses, the U.S. Department of Justice said.

  • April 12, 2024

    IRS Adds 12 Census Tracts For Alternative Fuel Credit

    The Internal Revenue Service added additional census tracts to the list of those where people and businesses can qualify for the alternative fuel vehicle refueling property credit, the agency said Friday.

  • April 12, 2024

    Weekly Internal Revenue Bulletin

    The Internal Revenue Service issued its weekly bulletin Friday, featuring a clarification surrounding qualified student loan bonds.

  • April 12, 2024

    Taxation With Representation: Freshfields, Kirkland & Ellis

    In this week's Taxation with Representation, eBay acquires Collectors' Goldin auction house, Vertex Pharmaceuticals buys Alpine Immune Sciences, Vista Equity Partners purchases Model N and Tradeweb Markets buys Institutional Cash Distributors.

  • April 12, 2024

    IRS Schedules Advisory Council Meeting For May

    The Internal Revenue Service Advisory Council will hold its next meeting May 8, the agency announced Friday.

  • April 12, 2024

    Moses & Singer Hires New Private Clients Chair, Trusts Expert

    Moses & Singer LLP has hired a new chairman of its private clients group, who joins the firm after spending over a decade navigating trusts and estates matters with Kudman Trachten Aloe Posner LLP.

  • April 11, 2024

    Biz Owners Tell House Panel Extending Tax Cuts Is Crucial

    It is essential that Congress extends provisions of the 2017 tax law that are set to expire in 2025, especially the law's pass-through deduction, business leaders told the House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday.

  • April 11, 2024

    Judge Sends Tax Data Suit Against H&R Block To Arbitration

    A man who used H&R Block to prepare his taxes online and then sued the company, along with Google and Meta Platforms Inc., for sharing his private data must pursue his claims against the tax preparation software giant in arbitration, a California federal judge ruled Thursday.

  • April 11, 2024

    Fla. Restaurateur Gets Prison Time For Dodging Payroll Taxes

    The ex-CEO of a defunct Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain was sentenced to 2½ years in federal prison after pleading guilty earlier this year to willfully failing to pay more than $5 million in payroll taxes.

  • April 11, 2024

    Int'l Salesman Stuck With FBAR Fines For Swiss Account

    An agricultural salesman earning money in Ukraine willfully hid a Swiss bank account from the IRS that neither his accountant nor his wife knew about, a Nebraska federal judge said Thursday in upholding more than $600,000 in reporting penalties against him.

  • April 11, 2024

    Tax Controversy Quintet Joins Bradley Arant In Atlanta

    Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP announced that it hired a five-person tax controversy team from Chamberlain Hrdlicka White Williams & Aughtry highlighted by the addition of three experienced partners, including two former Internal Revenue Service trial attorneys.

  • April 11, 2024

    Proskauer Adds Kirkland Partner For Tax, Estate Issues

    Proskauer Rose LLP has added to its private client services department a partner from Kirkland & Ellis LLP who specializes in developing domestic and international tax and estate plans for clients with very high net worth, the firm announced.

  • April 11, 2024

    Burr & Forman Adds Longtime In-House Leader To Fla. Office

    Burr & Forman LLP has brought on an in-house pro with more than $60 billion of transaction experience to its office in Jacksonville, Florida, adding the former general counsel of public company Cannae Holdings Inc. in Las Vegas to its corporate and tax practice.

  • April 11, 2024

    Swiss Bank Probe May Prompt IRS To Revive Disclosure Effort

    Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden's latest investigation into the Swiss banking industry may apply further pressure to federal law enforcement officials to revive a program designed to encourage taxpayers' voluntary compliance in disclosing income held overseas to the IRS.

  • April 11, 2024

    IRS Schedules 6 Taxpayer Advisory Panel Meetings For May

    The Internal Revenue Service announced the schedule Thursday for six Taxpayer Advocacy Panel committee meetings to be held in May.

  • April 10, 2024

    House Panel Leaders Say Tax Bill Delay Hurts Small Biz

    The chairman and the ranking member of the House Small Business Committee both urged the Senate on Wednesday to pass the tax bill held up by Republican senators, saying continuing to delay the proposal's package would further burden small businesses.

  • April 10, 2024

    Plastic Surgeon Owes $7.7M From Offshore Scheme, US Says

    A now-retired plastic surgeon owes the Internal Revenue Service more than $7.7 million after he ran an offshore employee leasing scheme and he and his wife transferred nearly all their assets to their then-11-year-old daughter, who is now a lawyer, the government told an Ohio federal court.

  • April 10, 2024

    8th Circ. Skeptical Of Bid To Reveal IRS Fraud Detection Docs

    Eighth Circuit judges seemed skeptical Wednesday of a retired Harvard law professor's efforts to force the IRS to reveal its techniques for questioning fraud suspects, as two of three judges on a panel highlighted the potential to prevent identity theft by keeping the techniques hidden.

Expert Analysis

  • Tax Equity Requires Reinstating The Home Office Deduction

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    Congress should restore the home office deduction for W-2 workers in the interest of tax equity because permanently remote workers now bear the cost of creating quiet, dedicated work spaces, a pandemic-related shift unforeseen when the deduction was eliminated by 2017's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, say James Mahon and Samantha Lesser at Becker.

  • Keys To IRA Tax Breaks For US Green Energy, EV Production

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    The Inflation Reduction Act includes three powerful tax incentives for domestic production of renewable energy projects and electric vehicles — but there are key questions that investors and manufacturers must ask when evaluating whether they can take advantage of these incentives, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • Crypto Case Failed To Clarify Taxation Of Staking Rewards

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    A Tennessee federal court's recent dismissal of Jarrett v. U.S. — after the IRS issued a refund for taxes paid on cryptocurrency and mooted a greater question about the tax treatment of staking rewards — leaves the crypto industry in need of guidance on the IRS’ position, say attorneys at Cadwalader.

  • How The IRS May Define 'Clean Hydrogen'

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    The Internal Revenue Service is still taking comments on how to define "clean hydrogen" for purposes of Inflation Reduction Act tax credits, but developers can look to the IRA's legislative history — as well as the European Union's struggle to define "green hydrogen" — as guideposts, says Ben Reiter at Nixon Peabody.

  • What To Expect From The Post-Midterms Lame-Duck Session

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    Depending on the results of the midterm elections, the upcoming lame-duck session may be the last chance for Congress to enact meaningful legislation for the next several years, so organizations must push through legislative priorities now, lest they are forced to restart their efforts in a much different environment next year, says James Brandell at Dykema.

  • IRS' Tax Gap Statistics Don't Paint A Full Compliance Picture

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    The Internal Revenue Service's recent report indicating a widening tax gap sheds important light on tax compliance, underlines key pressure points and provides insights into how tax administration could be improved; but tax gap estimates also have their limits, says Joyce Beebe at Rice University.

  • Labor Rules Will Unlock IRA Tax Credits' Full Value

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    Companies that make sure to follow the Inflation Reduction Act's unique labor rules will be in the best position to unlock the law's tremendous tax incentives aimed at promoting renewable energy, lowering greenhouse gas emissions and encouraging carbon sequestration, say Nicole Elliott and Timothy Taylor at Holland & Knight.

  • Making The Most Of New Tax Credits For EV Charging Stations

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    The Inflation Reduction Act recently extended, expanded and renewed the tax credits available for electric vehicle charging station projects — but developers must navigate new challenges, including geographic and prevailing wage requirements, to take full advantage of the updated credits, says James English at Clark Hill.

  • Key Income Tax Issues Triggered By Remote Employees

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    A host of fact-specific tax determinations arise in connection with remote work arrangements, from defining working-condition fringe benefit exclusions to nexus-dependent state withholding obligations, complicating compliance for corporate tax counsel and human resources professionals, say Thomas Cryan and Spencer Walters at Ivins Phillips.

  • An Evaluation Of New Solar Energy Opportunities For REITs

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    The Inflation Reduction Act's changes to investment tax credit rules will make it possible for real estate investment trusts to own solar facilities and also benefit economically from tax credits, but certain limitations remain, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.

  • Cases Show Real-World Laws Likely Apply In Metaverse

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    Although much has been written about the so-called unprecedented legal issues raised by the metaverse, recent federal cases demonstrate that companies can expect metaverse activities to be policed and enforced much like they would be in the physical world, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Justices Poised To Reject Narrowing Unclaimed Property Law

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    After U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments in the so-called MoneyGram case — a dispute between Delaware and several other states over which has the right to about $300 million in unclaimed property — the court seems ready to rule against Delaware, but nuances of the court's reasoning will have a broader sweep, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • How High Court Could Change FBAR Penalty Landscape

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    On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear Bittner v. U.S., a case that will affect many people penalized for failing to file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, and there are important procedural implications should the government's position be reversed, say Reuben Muller and Andreas Apostolides at Cole Schotz.

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