In less than four months, the citizens of the United States will be electing their next President to a four-year term. They will also be deciding which of the two major political parties will “control” the Senate, the House,...more
7/11/2024
/ Apportionment ,
C-Corporation ,
Conservatives ,
Controlled Foreign Corporations ,
Foreign Corporations ,
IRS ,
Moore v US ,
Partnerships ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
Presidential Elections ,
Repatriation ,
S-Corporation ,
SCOTUS ,
Shareholders ,
Sixteenth Amendment ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Deferral ,
Tax Liability ,
Term Limits
It is a basic principle of the income tax that the gain or loss realized by a taxpayer from the conversion of property into cash, or from the exchange of property for other property that differs materially in kind from the...more
6/11/2024
/ Beneficiaries ,
Capital Gains ,
Corporate Restructuring ,
Equity Investors ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Like Kind Exchanges ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Liquidation ,
Partnerships ,
Property ,
Reorganizations ,
Shareholders ,
Tenancy-in-Common ,
Transfer of Assets ,
Trustees ,
Trusts ,
Wills
Assume that X and Y agree to the following: X will transfer ownership of Prop to Y, and Y will transfer cash to X.
What just happened? Obviously, X has sold Prop to Y. If the amount of cash that X receives is greater than...more
5/6/2024
/ Anti-Abuse Rule ,
Disguised Sales ,
Equity Partners ,
Financial Transactions ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Membership Interest ,
Partnership Distributions ,
Partnership Interests ,
Partnerships ,
Promissory Notes ,
Suppliers ,
Tax Avoidance ,
Tax Court
Last week, Sen. Warren reintroduced her “Ultra-Millionaires” wealth tax proposal to the Senate. Query her timing. The measure has the proverbial snowball’s chance in Hell of being enacted by this Congress.Perhaps the Senator...more
3/26/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
Business Entities ,
Business Income ,
Business Losses ,
Capital Gains ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Federal Budget ,
Federal Taxes ,
Income Taxes ,
Investment ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Medicare Taxes ,
NIIT ,
Partnerships ,
S-Corporation ,
Self-Employment Tax ,
Shareholders ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Rates ,
Taxable Income ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Wealth Tax
Few individual owners of a closely held business would be surprised if you explained to them that the IRS and the Federal courts generally will subject many transactions between certain “related” persons to heightened...more
1/17/2024
/ Aggregate Damages ,
Audits ,
Business Losses ,
Capital Gains ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Family Businesses ,
Family Members ,
IRS ,
Partnerships ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Related Parties ,
Tax Deductions
The Office of the New York State Comptroller just released a new report that examines taxpayer migration trends during the pandemic. The report, which builds on an earlier analysis of pre-pandemic taxpayer migration trends,...more
12/8/2023
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Capital Gains ,
Carried Interest ,
Compensation ,
Conciliation ,
Dividends ,
Double Taxation ,
Investment Management ,
K-1 ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
New York ,
Non-Residents ,
Partnerships ,
Relocation ,
Resident Status ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Appeals ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Rates ,
Tax Returns ,
Taxable Income ,
Tribunals
Another Mess-
Congress has only a few days to avert a “shutdown” of the federal government.
It’s not looking good in the House, as Speaker McCarthy has struggled to bring certain members of the majority into line, while...more
9/29/2023
/ Business Assets ,
Capital Assets ,
Distribution Rules ,
Government Shutdown ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Liquidation ,
Partnership Interests ,
Partnerships ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Retirement ,
Speaker of the House
Losses Weren’t Always Bad-
Most tax advisers are aware that, prior to the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (the “TRA”),[i] the Code placed few limitations on the ability of an individual taxpayer to use deductions from a particular...more
7/27/2023
/ Business Losses ,
Capital Contributions ,
Deficit Reduction ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Membership Interest ,
Net Operating Losses ,
Non-Recourse Loans ,
Partnership Interests ,
Partnerships ,
Passive Losses ,
Promissory Notes ,
Tax Court ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Losses ,
Tax Planning ,
Tax Reform
Another Change-
Last week BDO confirmed that it was going to convert from an entity organized as a limited liability partnership under state law to one organized as a corporation.
With that, BDO became the latest in a...more
6/29/2023
/ Attestation Requirements ,
Audits ,
Business Income ,
Business Profits ,
Business Taxes ,
C-Corporation ,
Corporate Conversions ,
Corporate Taxes ,
CPAs ,
Distribution Rules ,
Dividends ,
Earnings Tax ,
Employment Tax ,
Federal Taxes ,
Industry Consolidation ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Mergers ,
Partnerships ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
Reorganizations ,
Restructuring ,
Shareholders ,
State Taxes
Decisions-
It is often the case that the optimal form of legal entity through which a business should operate, at least for income tax purposes, will depend in part upon the stage of its life cycle in which the business...more
6/20/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
C-Corporation ,
Federal Taxes ,
Investors ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Liquidation ,
Partnerships ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
Reinvestment Funds ,
Shareholders ,
State Taxes ,
Tax-Free Transfers ,
Taxable Income
At war with Russia in eastern Europe, a nascent competing world order, mass shootings and bank failures at home, questionable audit practices by the Big 4 . . . everywhere, debt ceilings and the risk of default, inflation,...more
5/12/2023
/ Capital Contributions ,
Capital Gains ,
Capital Investments ,
Fair Market Value ,
Future Profits ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investors ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Liquidation ,
Partnership Interests ,
Partnerships ,
Profits Interests ,
Safe Harbors ,
Tax Court ,
Term Sheets
What Is It?
Where one stands on an issue of tax law may depend upon context and perspective, including the facts and circumstances one finds relevant, and whom one is counseling or representing.
Tax advisers often find...more
3/23/2023
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Capital Assets ,
CCA ,
Charitable Deductions ,
Investors ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
OCC ,
Partnership Interests ,
Partnerships ,
Securities ,
Tax Exemptions
Have you ever wondered whether you were barking up the wrong tree? That the solution to a problem may be found, not in the approach to which you were already committed and invested, but in an altogether different direction?...more
3/9/2023
/ Adjusted Gross Income ,
Business Expenses ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Foreign Corporations ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Joe Biden ,
Partnerships ,
S-Corporation ,
Self Employed ,
Tax Court ,
Tax Evasion ,
Tax Increases ,
Wealth Tax ,
Wire Transfers
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
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
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
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
Don’t Do It-
There are certain generally accepted “dos and don’ts” of which almost every investor is certainly aware. For example, do not put all your eggs in one basket; if an investment seems too good to be true, stay...more
5/31/2022
/ Capital Losses ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Debt ,
Estate Planning ,
Fair Market Value ,
Installment Agreements ,
Intangible Property ,
Investment ,
Investors ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Liquidation ,
Partnerships ,
Related Parties ,
S-Corporation ,
Sale of Assets ,
Shareholders ,
Stocks ,
Tangible Property ,
Tax Liability
Withdrawing Value-
In general, the owners of a closely held business have several options by which they may withdraw money from the business without selling their interest in the business....more
4/26/2022
/ Capital Assets ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Compensation ,
Debtor-Creditor ,
Equity ,
Fund Distribution ,
IRS ,
Liquidation ,
Partnership Distributions ,
Partnership Interests ,
Partnerships ,
Passthru Payments ,
Taxation
“Would I ever leave this company? Look, I’m all about loyalty. In fact, I feel like part of what I’m being paid for here is my loyalty. But if there were somewhere else that valued loyalty more highly, I’m going wherever they...more
2/11/2022
/ Closely Held Businesses ,
Compensation ,
Corporate Officers ,
Directors ,
Employee Stock Purchase Plans ,
Equity ,
ESOP ,
Fair Market Value ,
Family Businesses ,
Forfeiture ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Partnerships ,
S-Corporation ,
Tax Court ,
Tax Shelters ,
Trustees ,
Vested Benefits
Taxes and Snowy Weather?
How many of you awoke Saturday to find that the winter storm about which we had heard so much during the preceding days had lived up to its hype? What was your first thought? “Fudge,” right?...more
2/4/2022
/ C-Corporation ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Liquidation ,
New York ,
Partnerships ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
S-Corporation ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Authority ,
Tax Deductions ,
Taxable Income ,
Unincorporated Business Tax (UBT)
Timing-
I had planned to post this piece during the third week of December, a day or so after the exchange between Senator Manchin and the White House sealed the fate of the Build Back Better plan, at least in its current...more
1/4/2022
/ Business Assets ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
IRS ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
New York ,
Partnerships ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
Private Equity ,
QSub ,
Reorganizations ,
Revenue Procedures ,
S-Corporation ,
SALT ,
Shareholders ,
Tax Increases ,
Tax Liability ,
Transfer Taxes
“I have wondered at times what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the U.S. Congress.” – Pres. Ronald Regan-
That line probably describes the exasperation with which many Americans...more
12/14/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Business Ownership ,
Capital Gains ,
Closely Held Businesses ,
Fair Market Value ,
Federal Budget ,
Income Taxes ,
Partnerships ,
Private Equity ,
Stocks ,
Target Company ,
Tax Code ,
Tax Deferral ,
Tax Increases ,
Tax-Free Exchanges
Not Selling Your Business This Year?
Beginning shortly before the House Ways and Means Committee released its version of the President’s Build Back Better plan, several posts on this blog have explored the uptick in M&A...more
11/29/2021
/ Arms Length Transactions ,
Business Ownership ,
Buy-Sell Agreements ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Equity ,
Estate Tax ,
Fair Market Value ,
Family Businesses ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Life Insurance ,
Liquidity ,
Mergers ,
Partnerships ,
Shareholders ,
Stock Purchase Agreement ,
Tax Increases ,
Transfer of Assets ,
Ways and Means Committee