Podcast: Discussing and Demystifying the IRS News Release on ESOPs
Investment Management Update – Exit Strategies
At least four lawsuits have recently been filed against employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) fiduciaries alleging a failure to prudently invest cash held in the ESOP trust. While scrutiny of investments in company stock has...more
This alert is a reminder of the approaching deadlines for certain year-end reporting requirements applicable to corporations that issue stock to employees (including former employees) upon the exercise of certain stock...more
The IRS has issued two forms (along with accompanying instructions) that corporations must use to satisfy the return and information statement requirements under Section 6039 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended....more
The Internal Revenue Code requires corporations to provide information statements to employees (including former employees) and information filings to the IRS regarding exercises of incentive stock options (ISOs) by employees...more
This alert serves as a reminder of certain year-end reporting requirements imposed under Section 6039 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, with respect to...more
Annual Reporting on ISO/ESPP Transactions - As originally discussed in our December 16, 2010 blog article, the IRS issued final regulations in 2009 under Section 6039 of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) that require...more
Startups often cannot pay the high salaries of larger companies. By offering stock options, however, they can build competitive compensation packages that align employee and shareholder interests. To help startups and small...more
On this episode of “Just Compensation,” Andrew Graw, Megan Monson, and Jessica I. Kriegsfeld talk about equity plan considerations for public companies. They address various drafting considerations that are specific to public...more
Berman v. Comm’r, released on July 16, 2024, is a great example of making lemonade when life hands you a lemon. Although the taxpayers lost the federal income tax deferral of a stock sale to an employee stock ownership plan...more
On this episode of “Just Compensation,” Darren Goodman, Sophia Mokotoff, and Taryn E. Cannataro discuss equity compensation that can be issued by partnerships, with a special focus on profits interests. Profits interests are...more
The deadline is approaching for the HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) year-end reporting requirements for companies in the UK, US and elsewhere with share options and other share awards granted to – and share acquisitions by – UK...more
A distribution policy is a helpful tool for ESOP companies to comply with distribution requirements while retaining maximum flexibility. In a prior article, we reviewed the rules governing ESOP distributions. In this article,...more
Following up on our prior blog posts (here and here) regarding employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) generally for constructions companies, as well specific issues for consideration, this blog post evaluates the pros and...more
This White Paper highlights some of the principal annual or quarterly reporting requirements for employee stock plans that multinational companies most commonly encounter when offering these programs to their employees in...more
In recent years, a growing number of construction companies have established employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs). The interest in an ESOP is often generated by the need for an exit strategy for one or more of the owners of...more
Requirement to Report For (1) any exercise of an incentive stock option (ISO) during 2023 or (2) transfer during 2023 of a share previously purchased pursuant to a tax-qualified employee stock purchase plan (ESPP), the...more
Companies frequently grant tax-advantaged incentive stock options (ISOs) or sponsor a tax-advantaged employee stock purchase plan (an ESPP) to provide tax-advantaged equity incentives to employees that are U.S. taxpayers. One...more
Stock options are often a significant, and critical, component of a public company’s compensation and benefits programs as they align the interests of employees and stockholders—when the company’s stock price increases,...more
This episode of the Holland & Knight Public Policy & Regulation Group's "Eyes on Washington" podcast series is guest hosted by the co-chairs of the firm's ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plans) practice, Renee Lewis and David...more
ESOPs can pay fair market value for the stock: Stock purchased by an ESOP must be appraised by an independent third party expert working with a trustee for the ESOP who must also be independent from the seller. The ESOP is...more
Consider this fairly typical situation. Four years ago, employee Emma was granted an incentive stock option (ISO) to purchase 100,000 shares with an exercise price of $0.86 per share. Emma’s award is fully-vested and she...more
This blog is the first post in a four-part series. Part I will provide a high-level summary of stock option basics....more
The end of 2022 and the beginning of 2023 have been filled with news of tech layoffs, including the notable FAANG companies (Meta, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Alphabet) and smaller, privately held companies. The cause of these...more
As a reminder, the Internal Revenue Code requires that you furnish an information return to each individual (“optionee”) who exercised an incentive stock option (ISO) during 2022 and to each individual (“transferor”) who...more