The concept of “willfulness” is an important one in the FBAR civil penalty context. Indeed, a taxpayer’s willful failure to file a timely and accurate FBAR may result in significant penalties: the higher of 50-percent of...more
In civil and in criminal cases, the Government must generally act within a certain prescribed time to take action against taxpayers. In legal parlance, this period of time is known as the “statute of limitations.” The...more
2/8/2022
/ Criminal Liability ,
Foreign Bank Accounts ,
Government Investigations ,
Income Taxes ,
Indictments ,
IRS ,
Jury Instructions ,
OVDP ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Tax Evasion ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Planning
Also Referred to as Internal Revenue Code Section 6672; I.R.C. § 6672; Section 6672; Trust Fund Recovery Penalty -
Background. In certain instances, the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) requires persons to withhold...more
Taxpayers have long utilized trust arrangements for the transfer of wealth to beneficiaries or for the protection of assets from creditors. Generally, there is nothing nefarious about these types of arrangements. Rather,...more
1/14/2022
/ Estate Planning ,
Foreign Trusts ,
Grantor Trusts ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
International Tax Issues ,
IRS ,
Tax Amnesty ,
Tax Evasion ,
Tax Planning ,
Tax Returns ,
Voluntary Disclosure
This morning, I woke up to news in the Wall Street Journal that indicated that the United States and the Republic of Malta had entered into a Competent Authority Agreement (“CAA”). Generally, this news would not have caught...more
United States citizens and residents[i] are subject to federal income tax on their worldwide income. For example, even if a United States citizen permanently relocates to a foreign country, he or she will generally continue...more
1/6/2022
/ FBAR ,
FOIA ,
GAO ,
Income Taxes ,
International Tax Issues ,
IRS ,
Offshore Funds ,
OVDP ,
Retirement Plan ,
Revenue Procedures ,
Tax Evasion ,
Tax Planning ,
Voluntary Disclosure
On November 30, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued its opinion in U.S. v. Bittner. Contrary to decisions of other federal courts, the Fifth Circuit concluded that it was proper for the IRS...more
Ordinarily, taxpayers file their income tax returns each year with the IRS and hear nothing more. Rather, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) simply processes the tax return, assesses the reported amount of tax due, and...more
The House Committee of Ways and Means (the “House”) has been busy the last few days. Indeed, the House continues to mark up and work through potential revenue raisers (i.e., tax increases) to help pay for recent legislative...more
10/12/2021
/ Capital Gains Tax ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Foreign Derived Intangible Income (FDII) ,
GILTI tax ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Increases ,
Tax Planning ,
Tax Rates
Our firm has written extensively on the topic of cryptocurrency. Indeed, we have even designated an entire resource page on our website to this always interesting and constantly evolving topic...more
Taxpayers who file false tax returns with the IRS can find themselves in hot water. Indeed, section 7206(1) of the Internal Revenue Code (“Title 26”) makes it a felony to file a false return when the taxpayer knows that the...more
The Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) contains over 150 civil tax penalties for various conduct and non-conduct. One common group of penalties, associated with the late filing of a tax return and the late payment of tax,...more
9/7/2021
/ Amended Complaints ,
Estate Tax ,
Federal Rule 12(b)(6) ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Gift Tax ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Late Payments ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Reasonable Cause Defense ,
Tax Penalties ,
Tax Returns
To levy on Social Security benefits, the IRS generally issues Form 668-W to the Social Security Administration (“SSA”). After receipt of the Form 668-W, Notice of Levy on Wages, Salary, and Other Income, SSA will withhold...more
This program is the first of Freeman Law’s multi-class course designed to prepare CPAs and Enrolled Agents for the Tax Court’s admissions examination. Participants will receive an overview of the Tax Court and will learn...more
8/19/2021
/ CPAs ,
Estate Tax ,
Federal Rules of Evidence ,
Gift Tax ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Legal Ethics ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Tax Court ,
Tax Litigation ,
Webinars
In many cases, taxpayers attempt to transfer assets or property to third persons to shield those assets and property from the federal tax lien or federal tax levy. Predictably, the IRS has various tools at their disposal to...more
8/17/2021
/ Criminal Liability ,
FDCPA ,
Fraudulent Transfers ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Tax Evasion ,
Tax Levy ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Liens ,
Tax Planning ,
Transfer of Assets
Kovel Agreement - The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has broad statutory authority to investigate and audit taxpayers. In many cases, the IRS attempts to fulfill this statutory authority through seeking communications made...more
Federal tax law permits taxpayers to deduct so-called “theft losses,” provided certain requirements are met. Initially, a taxpayer must show that he or she will not receive compensation through insurance or another third...more
Join us as we discuss important developments and bring you up to speed on current initiatives. Many businesses are still facing unprecedented challenges, and we are here to provide insights.
During this information-filled...more
7/23/2021
/ Automatic Stay ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Enforcement ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Reasonable Compensation ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Benefits ,
Tax Court ,
Tax Litigation ,
Tax Planning ,
Webinars
The proper federal tax treatment for any given settlement payment is something of an enigma. Generally, federal courts (and thus, the IRS) respect the terms of a settlement agreement if the terms are clear and the parties...more
Section 7202 of the Code makes it a felony for any person to willfully fail to collect and pay over payroll taxes to the IRS. Put simply, a taxpayer may be subject to jail time if the government merely proves that the...more
A recent Tax Court decision in De Los Santos v. Commissioner illustrates the complexity of split-dollar life insurance arrangements. Taxpayers who participate in these or other types of life insurance arrangements should...more
Some time ago, the IRS issued an Audit Techniques Guide on the taxation of lawsuits, awards, and settlements. As many tax practitioners can attest, there are a multitude of tax issues involving any one of these issues. In...more
5/21/2021
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Compensatory Damages ,
Emotional Distress Damages ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Taxes ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Legal Fees ,
Punitive Damages ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Tax Audits
Federal tax penalties have always been an IRS priority. But, perhaps more so today than three decades ago. For example, in 1987, the IRS reported that it had assessed penalties of approximately $14 billion. Compare that...more
2/4/2021
/ Failure To Pay ,
Failure-to-File ,
Filing Requirements ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
International Tax Issues ,
IRS ,
Tax Fraud ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Penalties ,
Tax Planning ,
Tax Returns
Taxpayers who suffer from physical injuries or physical sickness can generally take advantage of a special provision in the Code that makes such damages non-taxable. See I.R.C. § 104(a)(2). Generally, this can be an easy...more
Over 5 years ago, then President Obama ushered in sweeping changes to the method and manner in which partnerships are audited and partnership tax is assessed and collected through his signing of H.R. 1314, the Bipartisan...more
12/8/2020
/ Audits ,
Bipartisan Budget Act ,
C-Corporation ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Partnerships ,
Proposed Regulation ,
REIT ,
S-Corporation ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Tax Liability ,
U.S. Treasury