Taxing the Rich-
During the last couple of months, as we headed into what most folks – excluding transactional attorneys – call the “Holiday Season,”[i] tax authorities from around the globe have been calling for increased...more
Don’t Be Unreasonable-
Much has been written of late regarding the payment by a business of various personal expenses incurred by its owner or certain key employees. The payment of an owner’s personal expenses appears to...more
12/16/2022
/ Arms Length Transactions ,
Business Expenses ,
Business Ownership ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Compensation ,
Family Businesses ,
IRS ,
Personal Use ,
Reasonable Compensation ,
Selling a Business ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Liability ,
Taxable Income
It wouldn’t be far-fetched to say that, as a species, we humans have a propensity – rooted in our instinctive tendency for self-preservation – toward denying anything we believe may cause us harm. It should come as no...more
To avoid the manipulation of tax consequences to which transactions between certain related taxpayers may be susceptible, the IRS and the Courts generally require that such transactions be closely scrutinized to ensure that...more
12/2/2022
/ Arms Length Transactions ,
Capital Distributions ,
Capital Gains ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Fair Market Value ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Like Kind Exchanges ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Partnerships ,
Tax Avoidance
I am guessing that, later this week, many if not most of us will celebrate our uniquely American holiday, Thanksgiving Day. Hopefully, we will be fortunate enough to spend the day and share a meal with family and friends....more
11/23/2022
/ Business Licenses ,
Gambling ,
Gaming Revenues ,
Holidays ,
Income Taxes ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
New York ,
Recreational Use ,
Retailers ,
Tax Revenues ,
Thanksgiving
The Mid-Terms-
With 50 seats in the Senate, the Dems still control that Chamber. A win in the Georgia runoff, however, may lessen the burden for Majority Leader Schumer by, perhaps, neutralizing the significance of a certain...more
11/17/2022
/ Business Ownership ,
Business Taxes ,
Domicile ,
IRS ,
Jurisdiction ,
Partnership Interests ,
Political Candidates ,
Political Parties ,
Primary Residence ,
State Elections ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Returns
Some folks eagerly await the release of a new album. Others camp outside of big box retailers to get the jump on holiday gifts. There are those who line up at box offices to purchase tickets for a concert that is months away....more
11/11/2022
/ Estate Tax ,
Federal Budget ,
Financial Adviser ,
Gifts ,
Grantor Trusts ,
Green Book ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Priority Guidance Plan ,
Tax Advice ,
Trusts ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Ways and Means Committee
The Key Person-
The closely held corporation is often a fragile creature. Too often, its continued success and well-being are overly dependent upon the continued involvement of one individual – namely, the founder and...more
11/3/2022
/ Closely Held Businesses ,
Estate Tax ,
Grantor Trusts ,
IRS ,
Marital Trusts ,
Revocable Trusts ,
S-Corporation ,
Shareholders ,
Successors ,
Surviving Spouse ,
Testamentary Trust ,
Trusts
At different times over the course of the last thirty days or so, I have seen reports describing various plans to increase income taxes and/or wealth taxes on the “rich” that have either been endorsed or proposed by the likes...more
10/26/2022
/ Board of Directors ,
China ,
General-Business ,
Governor Newsom ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
S-Corporation ,
Shareholder Distributions ,
Shareholders ,
Wealth Tax
On October 6, 2022, the President announced three changes in the Federal government’s policy toward cannabis:
1.He pardoned all prior Federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana; 2.He urged governors to do the same...more
10/18/2022
/ California ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Distributors ,
Drug Possession ,
Excise Tax ,
Joe Biden ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Political Campaigns ,
Popular ,
Presidential Pardons ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Revenues
“Show Me the Money”-
Much has been written in recent months about how well the investment portfolios of private foundations have performed over the last several years.
For example, a study conducted by the Council on...more
10/12/2022
/ Bipartisan Budget Act ,
Business Income ,
C-Corporation ,
Charitable Organizations ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Distribution Rules ,
Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Portfolios ,
IRS ,
Private Foundations ,
Required Minimum Distributions ,
S-Corporation ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Liability
In an effort to help prevent and combat money laundering, terrorist financing, corruption, tax fraud, and other illicit activity, the United States Department of the Treasury just issued a final rule [RIN: 1506-AB49]. ...more
9/30/2022
/ Beneficial Owner ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Disclosure ,
Final Rules ,
FinCEN ,
Money Laundering ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Split-Interest Charitable Trusts ,
Tax Fraud ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Venture Capital
Constructive Transfers-
It is axiomatic that the tax treatment of interactions between a closely held business and its owners will generally be subject to heightened scrutiny by the IRS, and that the labels attached to such...more
9/27/2022
/ Business Expenses ,
Business Taxes ,
C-Corporation ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Deductions ,
Investment ,
IRS ,
Parent Corporation ,
Personal Exemptions ,
S-Corporation ,
Shareholders ,
Tax Court ,
Tax Deductions
Sibling Rivalry-
You have probably encountered family-owned corporations in which the founder’s offspring are involved in the business to varying degrees. They may even own some equity, typically having received such equity...more
9/22/2022
/ Closely Held Businesses ,
Distribution Rules ,
Estate Planning ,
Fair Market Value ,
Family Businesses ,
IRS ,
Popular ,
Reorganizations ,
Shareholders ,
Succession Planning ,
Tax-Free Spin-Offs
The New Jersey Division of Taxation recently provided guidance on registration and licensing requirements, Social Equity Excise Fees, and the Sales & Use tax applicable to companies operating in the cannabis industry.
...more
Last week, Governor Murphy of New Jersey staked out a position on New York City’s congestion pricing proposal, stating that it “can’t be ‘on the backs of New Jersey commuters.’”
“Whether it’s how we’re taxed by our...more
9/15/2022
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Audits ,
Capital Gains ,
Commuting ,
Financial Statements ,
Governor Murphy ,
Information Document Requests ,
New Jersey ,
New York ,
Out-of-State Employees ,
Residency Status ,
State of Residency ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Appeals ,
Tax Tribunal
When is a loan not a loan? When it’s something else – for example, equity.
This is one of those pesky facts and circumstances issues that plague courts, taxpayers, and tax advisers to no end.
Debt- On one end of the...more
9/9/2022
/ Borrowers ,
Debt ,
Equity ,
Fixed-Rate Loans ,
Interest Rates ,
IRS ,
Lenders ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Loan Documentation ,
Loans ,
Partnerships ,
Preferred Shares ,
Tax Court ,
Tax Returns ,
Value Appreciation
Everyone has heard about the affluent, or even not-so-affluent, New Yorkers who have moved to Florida, or to another state, to escape New York’s tax regime, not to mention the cold.
More recently, some of us are...more
8/30/2022
/ Burden of Proof ,
Citizenship ,
Conditional Permanent Residence ,
Domicile ,
Estate Tax ,
Exit Tax ,
Intangible Property ,
Intent ,
New York ,
Non-Residents ,
Primary Residence ,
Relocation ,
State Taxes
It is a fact that the phenomenon of human migration has been a major force in the history of the world.
Indeed, among the themes that have remained constant during my years of practice, there are two that may be...more
8/23/2022
/ Domicile ,
Estate Planning ,
Estate Tax ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Trusts ,
Gift Tax ,
Intangible Property ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Marital Assets ,
Non-Citizens ,
Non-Residents ,
Partnership Interests ,
Residency Status ,
Tangible Property ,
Tax Treaty ,
Transfer Taxes ,
Visas
I recently encountered an interesting situation in which someone suggested that a grantor trust be decanted into a non-grantor trust before the end of the taxable year. The reason? To avoid the special interest charge that...more
8/17/2022
/ C-Corporation ,
Capital Gains ,
Decanting ,
Grantor Trusts ,
Installment Agreements ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Partnerships ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
Spouses ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax-Deferred Exchanges ,
Trusts
Where is the Economy Heading?
According to the data released Friday by the Department of Labor, the U.S. economy added approximately 528,000 jobs in July, reducing the unemployment rate to 3.5 percent. Although this...more
8/9/2022
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Business Taxes ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Federal Reserve ,
Foreign Markets ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
New York ,
Price Inflation ,
Tax Appeals ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Tribunal ,
Unemployment ,
Wages ,
Withholding Tax
Summer Break?
After the last couple of weeks, I’m looking forward to Congress’s summer vacation. I’m pretty sure our elected representatives feel the same way, though it is unclear at this point when they will be heading...more
8/1/2022
/ Acts of Congress ,
Capital Gains ,
Carried Interest ,
Federal Reserve ,
Holding Periods ,
Interest Rates ,
Partnership Interests ,
Partnerships ,
Price Inflation ,
Profits ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Increases ,
Tax Loopholes ,
U.S. Commerce Department
Tax Alchemy?
How many of you remember Section 138509 of the Ways and Means Committee’s markup last September of what would have been the Build Back Better Act? (A moment of silence, please.) Allow me to jog your memory....more
7/26/2022
/ Capital Gains ,
Domestic Partnership ,
Fair Market Value ,
IRS ,
Like Kind Exchanges ,
Partnerships ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
Property Owners ,
S-Corporation ,
Shareholder Distributions ,
Shareholders ,
Stocks ,
Tax Deferral ,
Taxable Exchanges ,
Ways and Means Committee ,
Wealth Tax
“Summertime and the Living” Isn’t Easy-
Summer in the New York Metro Area can be challenging. Some would say it sucks. It gets really hot. When it rains, it pours – no spritz here. The humidity is oppressive. Ironically, a...more
7/20/2022
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Audits ,
Business Licenses ,
Business Ownership ,
Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) ,
Domicile ,
Financial Statements ,
Florida ,
Homestead Exemption ,
Income Taxes ,
Information Document Requests ,
New York ,
Non-Residents ,
Online Gaming ,
Price Inflation ,
S-Corporation ,
Sports Betting ,
State Budgets ,
State Taxes ,
Stock Markets ,
Tax Increases ,
Tax Revenues
Deal Costs, Generally-
Every purchase and sale of a business, whether from the perspective of the seller or the buyer, is about economics, and few items will impact the economics of the transaction more certainly or...more
7/12/2022
/ Capital Assets ,
Capital Losses ,
CCA ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Selling a Business ,
Target Company ,
Tax Benefits ,
Tax Deductions ,
Termination Fees