Federal
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November 14, 2024
Duo Charged With Hacking Tax Firms In Refund Fraud Scheme
Boston federal prosecutors have unsealed charges against two men who allegedly used information hacked and stolen from Massachusetts tax preparation firms to pocket more than $1.3 million from fraudulent tax returns.
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November 14, 2024
DC Circ. Won't Rethink Denial Of Church Tax Exemption
The D.C. Circuit rejected a request to reconsider the tax status of an Iowa church that used a psychedelic drug in its rites, letting stand its decision that because the church uses a federally illegal drug, it isn't entitled to tax-exempt status.
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November 13, 2024
Judge Cites 'Deterrence' In Attys' Tax Scheme Prison Sentence
Two St. Louis tax attorneys and a North Carolina insurance agent's pleas for leniency were largely ignored Wednesday by a federal judge sentencing them for their role in a multimillion-dollar tax avoidance scheme, with the judge declaring that the need for public deterrence was too great to let them off the hook without prison time.
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November 13, 2024
Tax Fraud A Potential Topic In Lame-Duck Session, Aides Say
Congress could include disaster-related tax relief and a legislative fix in a year-end package to address rampant fraud associated with the employee retention tax credit, staffers for the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance committees said Wednesday.
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November 13, 2024
Election Clouds Timing of Final Corp. AMT Rules, Official Says
The Internal Revenue Service's timeline for producing final regulations for the corporate alternative minimum tax will depend on priorities set by whomever President-elect Donald Trump picks to lead the U.S. Department of the Treasury, an IRS official said Wednesday.
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November 13, 2024
Senate Panel To Consider Nominee For Tax Inspector General
The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing Thursday to consider the nomination of David Samuel Johnson to be the inspector general for tax administration, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., announced Wednesday.
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November 13, 2024
$545K FBAR Fine Is Unconstitutional, Ex-Professor Tells Court
An 86-year-old former college professor's penalty of $545,000 for failing to report foreign bank accounts is excessive and violates the Eighth Amendment, he told a California federal court.
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November 13, 2024
3rd Circ. Wary Of Easing Cheesesteak Shop Owner's Sentence
Third Circuit judges seemed mostly skeptical of overturning an extension to the prison sentence of a Philadelphia cheesesteak shop owner who admitted to paying employees off the books, saying during oral arguments it was unclear whether the employees should be considered co-conspirators in the tax fraud.
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November 13, 2024
Trump, GOP Victories May Imperil OECD Global Tax Plan
President-elect Donald Trump's and Republicans' victories in the U.S. elections this month call into question whether the OECD's two-pillar global tax plan can be effectively implemented and whether the plan's minimum tax backstop rule can be applied amid threats of retaliatory tax measures by the U.S.
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November 13, 2024
IRS Issues Corp. Bond Monthly Yield Curve For Nov.
The Internal Revenue Service on Wednesday published the corporate bond monthly yield curve for November for use in calculations for defined benefit plans, as well as corresponding segment rates and other related provisions.
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November 13, 2024
Feds Want 2 Years' Jail For Biz Owner In $2.8M Tax Scheme
A construction company owner who paid workers off the books by pretending they were subcontractors, even after one of them died, should serve two years in prison and pay $2.8 million in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service for the tax loss, prosecutors told a Massachusetts federal court.
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November 12, 2024
Ex-ComEd Exec Asked If Madigan Hires Truly An 'Exchange'
Defense attorneys got their chance Tuesday to grill an ex-Commonwealth Edison executive who testified the utility hired people who did little to no work at the behest of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, asking if it truly traded those jobs for Madigan's action on ComEd legislation or if the company was just building goodwill with a key decision-maker.
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November 12, 2024
House Rejects Bill To Delay Tax Deadlines For Hostages
The U.S. House of Representatives rejected Tuesday a bill that would have delayed tax deadlines and reimbursed late fees for Americans held hostage or unlawfully or wrongfully detained abroad.
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November 12, 2024
Woman Asks Justices To Review IRS Social Security Levy
A Florida woman asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Eleventh Circuit's denial of her challenge to the IRS' garnishment of her Social Security payments, saying in a petition docketed Tuesday that the appellate court wrongly found she had failed to exhaust possible administrative remedies.
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November 12, 2024
Treasury's Energy Tax Perk Regs On Track Despite Trump Win
The U.S. Treasury Department still plans to finalize remaining clean energy tax credit regulations by the end of this year despite President-elect Donald Trump's campaign promise to unravel the 2022 climate law that enacted them, a Treasury spokesperson told Law360 on Tuesday.
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November 12, 2024
Mass. Court Says IRS Deal Didn't Fix Man's State Tax Debt
The former corporate officer of a now-defunct Massachusetts company didn't overpay on his outstanding tax liability despite entering into a settlement agreement with the Internal Revenue Service, a state appeals court said Tuesday.
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November 12, 2024
Tax Court Drills Teacher With Frivolous Argument Penalty
A Georgia high school teacher's claim that roughly $86,000 in income he received didn't qualify as wages was not just incorrect but frivolous, the U.S. Tax Court said Tuesday, upholding the IRS' determination that he owed taxes on that income as well a $25,000 penalty.
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November 12, 2024
Broker Calls 78-Month Sentence For Tax Scheme Unfair
An insurance agent convicted of conspiracy and tax crimes in a multimillion-dollar tax avoidance scheme told a North Carolina federal court ahead of his sentencing, scheduled for Wednesday, that the 78-month prison sentence recommended by prosecutors is harsher than punishments for similar offenders.
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November 12, 2024
Treasury To Host Webinar For Beneficial Ownership Info Filing
The U.S. Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network will host a free webinar Nov. 19 to aid companies that need to file their initial beneficial ownership information under the Corporate Transparency Act by the start of 2025.
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November 08, 2024
Disaster Tax Relief Could Be On Slate In Lame-Duck Session
Congress returns to Washington, D.C., on Tuesday following former President Donald Trump's reelection, and while lawmakers will likely be gearing up for next year's tax negotiations, there are some tax policies that could pass during the lame-duck session, including disaster tax relief.
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November 08, 2024
9th Circ. Says Univ. Wrongly Deprived Of Tax-Exempt Status
The Ninth Circuit on Friday reversed a decision by an Arizona district court backing the U.S. Department of Education's determination that the privately owned Grand Canyon University didn't qualify as a nonprofit institution for classification related to federal loan and grant programs.
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November 08, 2024
Career Butler Snow Attorney Joins Holland & Knight In NYC
Holland & Knight LLP has hired a transactional attorney who focuses her practice on new markets tax credits and other financial matters, and who spent her entire career up to now with Butler Snow LLP, the firm announced Thursday.
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November 08, 2024
Shutts & Bowen Adds Complex Taxation Pro In Sarasota
Shutts & Bowen LLP has brought on a new partner at the firm's growing Sarasota, Florida, office, bringing close to 20 years of private practice tax law experience to the firm's private client services practice group.
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November 08, 2024
Nixon Peabody Helps Boston Supportive Housing Land $153M
A Boston housing development nonprofit, with guidance from Nixon Peabody LLP, obtained $153 million in financing to develop a 19-story, 126-unit supportive housing project in the city, the law firm announced.
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November 08, 2024
Ex-Spouse Entitled To $2.9M Pandemic Tax Refund, Court Told
A woman is entitled to a $2.9 million tax refund under pandemic-era relief provisions for carryback losses shared with her ex-husband, she told a Texas federal court, accusing the Internal Revenue Service of wrongly requiring both of the former couple's signatures on a consent form.
Expert Analysis
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Planning A Defense As IRS Kicks Off Sports Losses Campaign
Sports team owners and partnerships face potential examination under the Internal Revenue Service’s recently announced sports industry losses campaign, and should be preparing to explain what drove their reported losses and assembling documentation to support their tax return positions and accounting methods, say Sheri Dillon and Jennifer Breen at Morgan Lewis.
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What New Calif. Strike Force Means For White Collar Crimes
The recently announced Central District of California strike force targeting complex corporate and securities fraud — following the Northern District of California's model — combines experienced prosecutorial leadership and partnerships with federal agencies like the IRS and FBI, and could result in an uptick in the number of cases and speed of proceedings, say attorneys at MoFo.
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Reimagining Law Firm Culture To Break The Cycle Of Burnout
While attorney burnout remains a perennial issue in the legal profession, shifting post-pandemic expectations mean that law firms must adapt their office cultures to retain talent, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.
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The Legal Industry Needs A Cybersecurity Paradigm Shift
As law firms face ever-increasing risks of cyberattacks and ransomware incidents, the legal industry must implement robust cybersecurity measures and privacy-centric practices to preserve attorney-client privilege, safeguard client trust and uphold the profession’s integrity, says Ryan Paterson at Unplugged.
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As Promised, IRS Is Coming For Crypto Tax Evaders
The IRS is fulfilling its promise to crack down on those who have neglected to pay taxes on cryptocurrency earnings, as demonstrated by recently imposed prison sentences, enforcement initiatives and meetings with international counterparts — suggesting a few key takeaways for taxpayer compliance, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.
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5 Reasons Associates Shouldn't Take A Job Just For Money
As a number of BigLaw firms increase salary scales for early-career attorneys, law students and lateral associates considering new job offers should weigh several key factors that may matter more than financial compensation, say Albert Tawil at Lateral Hub and Ruvin Levavi at Power Forward.
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The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Djerassi On Super Bowl 52
Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Ramy Djerassi discusses how Super Bowl 52, in which the Philadelphia Eagles prevailed over the New England Patriots, provides an apt metaphor for alternative dispute resolution processes in commercial business cases.
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Parsing Treasury's Proposed Clean Hydrogen Tax Credit Rules
Regulations recently proposed by the IRS and the U.S. Department of the Treasury concerning two types of tax credits for clean hydrogen production facilities should resolve many of the most pressing questions around qualification for the credits — albeit in a relatively stringent manner, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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Employee Experience Strategy Can Boost Law Firm Success
Amid continuing business uncertainty, law firms should consider adopting a holistic employee experience strategy — prioritizing consistency, targeting signature moments and leveraging measurement tools — to maximize productivity and profitability, says Haley Revel at Calibrate Consulting.
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6 Practice Pointers For Pro Bono Immigration Practice
An attorney taking on their first pro bono immigration matter may find the law and procedures beguiling, but understanding key deadlines, the significance of individual immigration judges' rules and specialized aspects of the practice can help avoid common missteps, says Steven Malm at Haynes Boone.
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Lessons From Country Singer's Personal Service Saga
Recent reports that country singer Luke Combs won a judgment against a Florida woman who didn’t receive notice of the counterfeit suit against her should serve as a reminder for attorneys on best practices for effectuating service by electronic means, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.
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7 E-Discovery Predictions For 2024 And Beyond
The legal and technical issues of e-discovery now affect virtually every lawsuit, and in the year to come, practitioners can expect practices and policies to evolve in a number of ways, from the expanded use of relevancy redactions to mandated information security provisions in protective orders, say attorneys at Littler.
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5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2024
Over the next year and beyond, litigation funding will continue to evolve in ways that affect attorneys and the larger litigation landscape, from the growth of a secondary market for funded claims, to rising interest rates restricting the availability of capital, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.