State & Local

State & Local Tax Takeaways From September

Maria Koklanaris
Senior Tax Correspondent

Action in the state and local tax world in September was centered in courthouses in Massachusetts, Texas, California and elsewhere. Here, Law360 looks at highlights from the past month.

Overseas Income Regs May Cause M&A Headaches

Natalie Olivo
Senior Tax Correspondent

Regulations proposed by the U.S. Treasury Department would provide clean breaks for companies that sell more than 50% of their foreign affiliates, but transactions that fall below this threshold could still expose corporations to post-closing tax risks and deal friction.

Prediction Markets' High Court Clash Looks More Imminent

Alex Lawson

The widespread clash over whether the regulation of prediction markets falls under federal or state jurisdiction was bound to land in the U.S. Supreme Court, and a new circuit split and urgent policy questions may force the justices' hands to take up the issue.

The Courts Are There For A Reason: SALT In Review

From a challenge to Illinois' taxing of digital advertising and social media to the Montana governor's call for a flat income tax, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.

What's Next For Prediction Markets If States Win At High Court

While the Supreme Court hasn't taken up a prediction market case yet, a high court win for the states in their quest to regulate the exchanges would likely mean a wave of state legislature bills and regulatory guidance arriving on different timelines, rather than a single uniform transition, says Howard Herndon at Bradley Arant.

AI Meeting Recaps Pose New Discovery And Privilege Risks

The New York City Bar Association’s recent ethics opinion, cautioning attorneys not to record nonclient conversations with artificial intelligence tools, reflects an emerging view that AI meeting recaps are now a distinct business record category, meaning counsel should set meeting-level controls and apply framework-level updates, says William Wright at Faegre Drinker.

Playing Bid Whist Makes Me A Better Lawyer

As a child, I viewed bid whist as a family tradition and a source of friendly card game competition, but as a lawyer, I see it as a tool that has helped me cultivate skills like communication, teamwork, risk assessment and composure, says Keyonn Pope at Riley Safer.

Md. Digital Tax Ruling Is A Road Map For Future Challenges

Three Maryland Tax Court rulings that recently struck down the state's digital advertising tax suggest constitutional and statutory vulnerabilities that could be used to challenge newly enacted digital services laws or legislation being considered by other states, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

Calif. Bill Goes Too Far In Trying To Regulate Attorney AI Use

California’s first-in-the-nation act regulating how attorneys and arbitrators use generative artificial intelligence will likely soon become law, but read broadly, the provisions may dissuade lawyers from employing AI at all, thereby depriving them of key work tools, says Joshua Wurtzel at Schlam Stone.

Not What The Law Says: SALT In Review

From an appellate ruling on a deduction in Alabama to a California tax credit that would support journalists, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.

What To Expect From Colorado's New Artist Co. Structure

Colorado's newly established class of artist companies, or A-Corps, provides a useful structure for small-scale ventures, but challenges could arise for more complex business plans, and limitations on investor participation may limit widespread adoption, say attorneys at Armstrong Teasdale.

Attorneys Using AI May Have Ethical Duty To Redact Docs

The trajectory of legal ethics guidance in recent years strongly suggests that as redaction technology becomes more accessible, the failure to use it when uploading highly confidential materials into artificial intelligence tools will become increasingly difficult to defend as reasonable, say attorneys at Lewis Brisbois.

Md. Court Got Ad Tax Similarity Analysis Wrong

Decisions striking Maryland’s digital advertising tax are fundamentally flawed because the Maryland Tax Court found similarity between digital ads and other ads without considering deep market distinctions, says Darien Shanske at UC Davis School of Law.

Credit Where It Is Due: SALT In Review

From the Texas comptroller's plan to reform his state's tax system to the reduction of an income tax credit in New York City, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.

NY Tax Talk: Evaluating The Sales Tax Vendor Relief Program

New York state’s new penalty abatement and interest discount program, recently enacted alongside mandated sales tax vendor reregistration, may be most useful for vendors that recently lost a protest or have not yet fully paid all the interest and penalties associated with an assessment, says Elizabeth Cha at Eversheds Sutherland.

Taekwondo Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Taekwondo has taught me to recognize when to fight for a position and when to focus on finding a solution, and that the best outcomes are often achieved by solving problems — all of which has improved my work as a bankruptcy lawyer, mediator and Subchapter V trustee, says Amy Denton Mayer at Berger Singerman.