International
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August 14, 2024
Kenya Tax Court Finds Chinese Firm Dodged $7.8M VAT
A Kenyan tax court affirmed an assessment that found a China-based firm used a series of shell companies to dodge over 1 billion Kenyan shillings ($7.8 million) in value-added tax payments, the Kenya Revenue Authority said Wednesday.
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August 14, 2024
Swiss Seeking Input On Delays Of Crypto-Asset Info Exchange
Switzerland's executive body, the Federal Council, is looking for public input on when it should begin automatically exchanging financial information regarding crypto-assets with countries with which it already has set up general automatic exchange of information agreements, its finance ministry said.
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August 14, 2024
EU General Court Jurisdiction Expanded To VAT Cases
The General Court of the European Union will be able to make preliminary rulings in cases involving the EU's common system of value-added taxes starting Oct. 1, following an expansion of the court's jurisdiction.
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August 14, 2024
Pros Lament Lack Of Ownership Clarity In New EU Law
The lack of a clear beneficial ownership definition in new European Union legislation designed to speed up the repayment of withholding taxes represents a missed opportunity — and could cause confusion for investors about whether they are in fact eligible for a refund, tax professionals say.
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August 14, 2024
Other Price Rises Offset German Tampon VAT Cut, Study Says
Germany's reduction in the value-added tax on female sanitary products, such as tampons, has led to higher prices on panty liners, a Munich-based think tank said in a news release Wednesday.
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August 13, 2024
Walz Backed Tax Hikes Funding Plans For Children, Families
As Minnesota's governor, Democrat Tim Walz, now the presumed vice presidential nominee of his party, separated himself from most other governors by signing into law numerous tax increases funding progressive priorities such as a paid family leave plan and the nation's largest child tax credit.
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August 13, 2024
Treasury's Loss Rules Take Broad Approach To Min. Tax Deal
The U.S. Treasury Department recently dashed the hopes of multinational corporations seeking regulations that would have carved out an international minimum tax agreement from interacting with long-standing domestic rules aimed at preventing companies from using the same economic loss twice.
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August 13, 2024
Firm Asks Court To Reconsider $1.5M Freeze In Tax Dispute
A Baltimore law firm that sued the IRS for freezing $1.5 million in its operating account to satisfy a client's tax debts told a Maryland federal court it was "dead wrong" in denying the firm's request to release the money without going to trial.
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August 13, 2024
Developing Countries Defend 3-Year Deadline For UN Tax Pact
Three years is enough time to finish writing a United Nations framework convention on international tax cooperation, Brazil, India, Nigeria and other developing countries said Tuesday in defense of a proposed timeline that was criticized by Canada, the U.S. and France.
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August 13, 2024
Canada Seeking Comments On Global Min. Tax, Capital Gains
Canada's government is seeking comments from the public on a wide range of tax proposals included in its 2024 budget, including the introduction of the OECD's global minimum tax on large multinational corporations and adjustments to the country's taxation of capital gains, the government announced.
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August 13, 2024
HMRC Collected £384M In Soccer Tax Crackdowns, Firm Says
HM Revenue & Customs has recovered £384 million ($494 million) in taxes through investigations into soccer clubs, players and agents over the past five years, including £67.5 million in the past year alone, a U.K. accounting firm said.
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August 13, 2024
Finland Seeking Input On Global Min. Tax Changes
Finland's Ministry of Finance is seeking input on proposed changes to the country's implementation of the OECD's 15% global minimum tax on large multinational corporations, including clarifications, though it said the changes wouldn't impact the core principles of the law.
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August 13, 2024
Int'l Tax Projects Must Seek Consensus, Finance Ministers Say
Any international tax policy project should focus on consensus-based solutions in order to keep competitive conditions fair, a group of finance ministers from German-speaking countries said Tuesday.
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August 12, 2024
US Seeks To Omit Fair Split Of Tax Rights From UN Tax Pact
The U.S. government proposed on Monday dropping the fair allocation of taxing rights as a principle to guide negotiators on the United Nations framework convention on international tax cooperation, saying that the agenda risks duplication, but the organization's African bloc and others opposed its move.
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August 12, 2024
UN Eyes Two Early Changes For Tax Pact In Latest Draft
Diplomats would draft two legally binding protocols under the United Nations framework convention on international tax cooperation while creating the convention itself under the latest draft guidance for negotiators after they select from a shortlist of possible topics, including the digital economy and wealth taxation.
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August 12, 2024
UK Railway Project Forced To Pay £6.2M Tax Bill
A public agency building a high-speed railway in the U.K. had to pay a £6.2 million ($8 million) tax bill for failing to comply with "off-payroll rules" for the contracted employees it engages, according to the agency's annual report.
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August 12, 2024
FedEx Misreads Chevron Ruling In $85M Tax Dispute, US Says
FedEx wrongly believes the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning the Chevron doctrine precludes the U.S. Treasury Department from promulgating regulations to stop tax cheats and prevent FedEx from claiming $84.6 million in tax credits, the U.S. government told a Tennessee federal court.
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August 12, 2024
2 Experts OK'd For Danish Tax Agency In $2.1B Fraud Case
Two experts will be allowed to testify in support of a suit by Denmark's tax agency accusing U.S. pension plans of participating in a $2.1 billion tax refund fraud scheme, a New York federal district court said, overruling the pension plans' objections.
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August 12, 2024
OECD Publishes Transfer Pricing Framework For Lithium
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development published a framework Monday to help multinational corporations price intercompany cross-border transactions involving lithium, including how to identify key economic factors that could influence pricing.
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August 12, 2024
Romania Seen Jumping The Gun On EU's Disclosure Law
Romania's early implementation of the European Union's public tax disclosure law is imposing public reporting on companies without giving them sufficient time to know how data should be shared, tax specialists complained.
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August 12, 2024
VAT Fraudster In Austria Sentenced To 15 Months In Prison
A 55-year-old was convicted of value-added tax fraud while trading in protective masks, Austria's Finance Ministry said in a news release.
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August 10, 2024
Kyocera Targets Treasury TCJA Reg, Seeking $7M Tax Refund
The Treasury Department acted outside its bounds by issuing a regulation changing the effective date of the 2017 tax overhaul, electronics maker Kyocera argued as it urged a South Carolina federal court to void the regulation and approve the company's claim for $7 million tax refund.
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August 09, 2024
Partnership Clarity Expected In First Offshore Profits Rules
Tax attorneys anticipate answers to several questions about how partnerships should properly track, report and attribute foreign income previously taxed in the U.S. when the first round of long-awaited proposed rules is published.
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August 09, 2024
IRS Wrongly Penalizes For Unreported Inheritance, Court Told
The Internal Revenue Service violated the constitutional rights of a California woman when penalizing her $92,000 for failing to report inheriting $350,000 from a parent who had lived in the U.K., the woman told a federal court.
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August 09, 2024
Israel Resident Says She Was Never Notified Of $9M Tax Debt
The daughter of a dead Brooklyn rabbi was a permanent resident of Israel in the early years of this century and never received IRS notices about $9.2 million in taxes and penalties, she told a New York court Friday in arguing that she doesn't owe the money.
Expert Analysis
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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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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.
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4 Legal Ethics Considerations For The New Year
As attorneys and clients reset for a new year, now is a good time to take a step back and review some core ethical issues that attorneys should keep front of mind in 2024, including approaching generative artificial intelligence with caution and care, and avoiding pitfalls in outside counsel guidelines, say attorneys at HWG.
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What The Law Firm Of The Future Will Look Like
As the legal landscape shifts, it’s become increasingly clear that the BigLaw business model must adapt in four key ways to remain viable, from fostering workplace flexibility to embracing technology, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.
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4 PR Pointers When Your Case Is In The News
Media coverage of new lawsuits exploded last year, demonstrating why defense attorneys should devise a public relations plan that complements their legal strategy, incorporating several objectives to balance ethical obligations and advocacy, say Nathan Burchfiel at Pinkston and Ryan June at Castañeda + Heidelman.
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Unpacking The Proposed Production Tax Credit Regulations
Recently proposed tax regulations for claiming the U.S. clean-energy manufacturers' production credit under Internal Revenue Code Section 45X are less stringent than many had feared but fail to define a fundamental eligibility requirement, say Casey August and Jared Sanders at Morgan Lewis.
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10 Considerations For Litigating A New York Tax Case
While some of New York’s recently adopted corporate tax regulations are likely to face legal challenges, aggrieved taxpayers should answer certain questions before deciding to embark on the tax litigation process, say Cyavash Ahmadi and Jeffrey Friedman at Eversheds Sutherland.
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Law Firm Strategies For Successfully Navigating 2024 Trends
Though law firms face the dual challenge of external and internal pressures as they enter 2024, firms willing to pivot will be able to stand out by adapting to stakeholder needs and reimagining their infrastructure, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Consultants.
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Attorneys' Busiest Times Can Be Business Opportunities
Attorneys who resolve to grow their revenue and client base in 2024 should be careful not to abandon their goals when they get too busy with client work, because these periods of zero bandwidth can actually be a catalyst for future growth, says Amy Drysdale at Alchemy Consulting.