Since the finalization of the IRS’s “check-the-box” entity-classification regulations nearly 30 years ago, a state law LLC can elect to be taxed an association taxable as a corporation. During the past month, we have heard...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently issued Private Letter Ruling (PLR) 202504006, addressing several important estate and gift tax questions related to the division of a marital trust and the subsequent disclaimer of...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has taken the position that employers may incorporate health savings accounts (HSAs) and student loan payments among the allocation options for employer contributions offered outside of...more
How was your Thanksgiving? I hope you celebrated the holiday in a pleasant setting with folks whose company you enjoyed, and with plenty of good food. I hope you participated in some interesting conversations or joined in...more
Tax advisors to REITs have long pondered the metaphysical question of whether a REIT with no assets or income in its first year can pass the requisite REIT asset and income tests to qualify as a REIT. In a recent private...more
The IRS has recently been urging healthcare entities, particularly those involving physicians and private investors, to seek private letter rulings (PLRs) to clarify the tax implications of their ownership structures. This...more
In private letter ruling (PLR) 202440007, the taxpayer (Taxpayer REIT) elected to be treated as a real estate investment trust (REIT) for its initial tax year. The Taxpayer REIT was formed as a vehicle to invest indirectly...more
On October 4, 2024, the Treasury Department released a private letter ruling (PLR 202440007, or the PLR) addressing whether a real estate investment trust (REIT) without any income and assets in its first year of operation...more
Over the past few months, the IRS has released guidance that may prove helpful for employers planning for open enrollment and Form W-2 reporting. In particular, we discuss how implementing certain SECURE 2.0 and CARES Act...more
On October 4, 2024, the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) released Private Letter Ruling 202440007, which concluded that the lack of income and assets in the first taxable year of an entity that had elected to be treated...more
A much-used but often confusing element of governmental retirement plans are “pick up plans,” where an employer pays -- or “picks up” -- an employee’s required contribution under the State’s public employment retirement...more
Employees increasingly request (and expect) choice in their benefits. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently released Private Letter Ruling 202434006 (PLR), which approved an employer's program allowing employees to...more
Employee benefits or employee benefit issues can arise anytime you are providing employees something of value other than direct cash compensation. Engagement is very important. I hear it talked about a lot at 401(k) committee...more
The IRS recently concluded that certain commercial property assessed clean energy (“CPACE”) assets are “obligations . . . secured by an interest in real property” under Code Section 860G(a)(3) in a private letter ruling...more
The Internal Revenue Service’s new private letter ruling (PLR) concerned a domestication of a Foreign Parent corporation under U.S. ownership—with a few notable twists. First, the PLR applied a substance-over-form analysis to...more
Following the initial public release of private letter ruling (PLR) 20242002 as part of a state rate proceeding, on June 28, 2024, the IRS publicly released that ruling, as well as two companion rulings obtained by other...more
If the IRS challenges the tax-exempt status of a name, image, and likeness (NIL) collective, the collective must understand how best to respond. Our Federal Tax Group details what NIL collectives need to know to make the cut....more
Earlier this month, the IRS released Revenue Procedure 2024-24, which sets forth new requirements for requests for private letter rulings ("PLRs") on corporate spin-off and split-off transactions. (Both spin-offs...more
On May 1, 2024, the Treasury Department (Treasury) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Revenue Procedure 2024-24 (Revenue Procedure), which sets out substantially revised guidelines for private letter ruling (PLR)...more
The IRS recently issued private letter ruling (PLR) 107770-22 that involved a normalization issue of first impression, namely, whether payments received by a utility pursuant to an intercompany tax allocation agreement (TAA)...more
Our Tax Group sheds light on recent IRS rulings that disallow deductions involving success-based fees in M&A transactions. Contrary to common practice, the IRS recently ruled target companies could not deduct success-based...more
Qualified Small Business Stock (“QSBS”) is arguably one of the largest “gifts” Congress has given taxpayers by excluding from a shareholder’s gross income the greater of $10 million or 10 times the shareholder’s basis in the...more
Thanks to two cases about federally mandated observers on fishing boats, judicial deference to agencies is likely to soon get weaker – and more unpredictable – with wide-ranging impacts for employee benefits. Less deference...more
Tax Court Modifies Rushmore Method for Hotel Valuation. The Maryland Tax Court recently modified the traditional Rushmore income approach used to determine the fair market value (FMV) of the real estate component of a hotel....more
In Private Letter Ruling 202352011 (December 30, 2023), the taxpayer asked the IRS to determine the amount that it will realize in a property transaction. The taxpayer will receive the property in an arm’s length exchange...more