Taxation & Estate Planning

Tax Court Rejects "Geithner Defense," Says Reliance on TurboTax Does Not Excuse Taxpayer From Penalty for Errors on Tax Return

Posted on April 20, 2010
The Tax Court yesterday rejected the taxpayer's use of the "Geithner defense" and held that blaming TurboTax for errors on her return did not excuse her from penalties. Lam v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2010-82 (Apr. 19, 2010): Petitioners' 2004 and 2005 joint Forms 1040 ...

Gerzog: FLP in the Black

Posted on April 20, 2010
Wendy C. Gerzog (Baltimore) has posted FLP in the Black, 127 Tax Notes 343 (Apr. 19, 2010), on SSRN. Here is the abstract: In Estate of Black [v. Commissioner,133 T.C. No. 15 (Dec. 14, 2009)], because the Tax Court held the Blacks? transfers fell within the bona fide sales exception...

Senate Holds Hearing Today on President Obama's Proposed Bank Tax

Posted on April 20, 2010
The Senate Finance Committee holds a hearing today on The President?s Proposed Fee on Financial Institutions Regarding TARP: Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) will convene the first in a series of hearings to consider a proposed tax on large financial institutions, commonly referred to as the bank tax,...

Vienna University Seeks to Hire a Tax Research Associate

Posted on April 20, 2010
The Institute for Austrian and International Tax Law at the WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business) is offering a position as research associate to a young academic: The Institute is among the largest academic institutions in the world that does research and teaching in tax law with a focus...

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Fleischer Presents Equality of Opportunity and Charitable Giving Today at Michigan

Posted on April 20, 2010
Miranda Perry Fleischer (Colorado) presents Equality of Opportunity and Charitable Giving at Michigan today as part of its Tax Policy Workshop Series coordinated by Reuven S. Avi-Yonah. Here is the abstract: Given the foundational role of equal opportunity as an organizing principle in our society, it is surprising how much...

Benshalom: Global Justice Implications for International Trade and Tax Law

Posted on April 20, 2010
Ilan Benshalom (Hebrew University, Faculty of Law) has published The New Poor at Our Gates: Global Justice Implications for International Trade and Tax Law, 85 NYU L. Rev. 1 (2010). Here is the abstract: This Article explains why international trade and tax arrangements should advance global wealth redistribution in a...

Millar Posts Tax Papers on SSRN

Posted on April 20, 2010
Ethan D. Millar (Alston & Bird, Atlanta) has posted two tax papers on SSRN: Overview of State and Local Taxation, in Strategies for Acquisitions, Dispositions, Spin-Offs, Joint Ventures, Financings, Reorganizations & Restructurings (PLI, Oct. 2009) The Pot of Gold at the End of the Class Action Lawsuit: Can States Claim...

Alan Siegel: It's Time for the IRS to use Plain English

Posted on April 20, 2010
(Hat Tip: Ann Murphy.)

Vanderbillt 2Ls

Posted on April 20, 2010
Two Vanderbilt 2Ls (Patrick J. Lynch and Kyle P. McEntee) have posted A Way Forward: Improving Transparency in Employment Reporting at American Law Schools on SSRN. Here is the abstract: The decision to attend law school in the 21st century requires an increasingly significant financial investment, yet very little information...

Low Income Taxpayer Clinic Grant Recipients

Posted on April 20, 2010
The IRS announced today (IR-2010-51) that it has awarded nearly $10 million in matching grants to Low Income Taxpayer Clinics (LITCs) for the 2010 grant cycle (Jan. 1, 2010, through Dec. 31, 2010). Through the LITC program, the IRS awards matching grants of up to $100,000 a year to qualifying...

Galle & Klick: The AMT as a Counter-Cyclical Fiscal Stabilizer

Posted on April 19, 2010
Brian D. Galle (Florida State; moving to Boston College) & Jonathan Klick (Penn) have posted Recessions and the Social Safety Net: The Alternative Minimum Tax as a Counter-Cyclical Fiscal Stabilizer, 62 Stan. L. Rev. ___ (2010), on SSRN. Here is the abstract: We present an argument from micro-economic foundations suggesting...

Marriage Penalties Increase Dramatically Under ObamaCare

Posted on April 19, 2010
Diana Furchtgott-Roth (Hudson Institute) has published Marriage Penalties Under the New Healthcare Law, 127 Tax Notes 349 (Apr. 19, 2010). Here is the abstract: This article describes the marriage penalties in the new healthcare laws. ... Single earners below 400% of the poverty line who receive premium credits to help...

John Marshall Seeks to Hire Tax Director of Online Estate Planning LL.M. Program

Posted on April 19, 2010
The John Marshall Center for Tax Law and Employee Benefits is seeking to hire an Associate Tax Director to launch its newly formed online LL.M. in Estate Planning degree, beginning in Fall 2011: Initial responsibilities would include: development of new curriculum; marketing of the program; hiring of adjunct instructors to...

Crawford: Taxation, Pregnancy and Privacy

Posted on April 19, 2010
Bridget J. Crawford (Pace) has published Taxation, Pregnancy and Privacy, 17 Wm. & Mary Bill of Rts. J. 327 (2010). Here is the abstract: This Article frames a discussion of surrogacy within the context of existing income tax laws. A surrogate receives money for carrying and bearing a child...

TaxProf Blog Weekend Roundup

Posted on April 19, 2010
Saturday: More on the 47% Who Pay No Income Tax Johnston: Daryl Gates' Real Legacy ABA Tax Section Submits Comment Letters Dorocak: The Constitutionality of the Tax Treatment of Ministers of the Gospel and Same-Sex Couples Sunday: Top 5 Tax Paper Downloads Bogdanski Named Faculty Scholar at Lewis & Clark...

School's Out for Summer!

Posted on April 19, 2010
I taught my last class of the academic year today -- thanks to my students in Federal Income Tax for a wonderful semester! Well we got no choice All the girls and boys Makin' all that noise 'Cause they found new toys Well we can't salute ya Can't find a...

Brody Presents Sunshine and Shadows on Charity Governance Today at Chicago-Kent

Posted on April 19, 2010
Evelyn Brody (Chicago-Kent) presents Sunshine and Shadows on Charity Governance: Public Disclosure of the Forms 990 and IRS Enforcement Activities at Northwestern today as part of its Advanced Topics in Taxation Series organized by Tom Brennan and Charlotte Crane...

The Tax Lawyer Publishes New Issue

Posted on April 19, 2010
The Tax Lawyer has published Vol. 63, No. 2 (Winter 2010): J. Ross Macdonald (Baker & McKenzie, New York), "Songs of Innocence and Experience": Changes to the Scope and Interpretation of the Permanent Establishment Article in U.S. Income Tax Treaties, 1950-2010, 63 Tax Law...

Hanna: Corporate Tax Reform -- Listening to Corporate America

Posted on April 19, 2010
Christopher H. Hanna (SMU) has published Corporate Tax Reform: Listening to Corporate America, 35 J. Corp. L. 283 (2009). Here is the abstract: In the last few years, academics, practitioners and government officials have engaged in serious discussions in reforming the U...

Gershon, Pietruszkiewicz Are Finalists for Mississippi Deanship

Posted on April 19, 2010
Tax Profs I. Richard Gershon (former Dean at Charleston) and Christopher M. Pietruszkiewicz(Vice Chancellor for Business and Financial Affairs and J.Y. Sanders Professor of Law at LSU) are two of the three finalists for the University of Mississippi School of Law deanship...

Thomas: A Charitable Deduction for Volunteerism

Posted on April 18, 2010
Alice M. Thomas (Howard) has published Re-envisioning the Charitable Deduction to Legislate Compassion and Civility: Reclaiming Our Collective and Individual Humanity Through Sustained Volunteerism, 19 Kan. J.L. & Pub. Pol'y 269 (2010). Here is the Conclusion: The proposal--the provision of a charitable tax deduction for volunteerism and the launching of...

The Application of Quill in the Internet Age

Posted on April 18, 2010
Michael R. Gordon (J.D. 2011, North Carolina) has posted Up the Amazon Without a Paddle: Examining Sales Taxes, Entity Isolation, and the Affiliate Tax, 12 N.C. J.L. & Tech. ___ (2010), on SSRN. Here is the abstract: As a result of the Supreme Court?s decision in Quill v...

Top 5 Tax Paper Downloads

Posted on April 18, 2010
There is a bit of movement in this week's list of the Top 5 Recent Tax Paper Downloads, with a new paper debuting on the list at #5: 1. [895 Downloads] Pursuing a Tax LLM Degree: Why and When?, by Paul L. Caron (Cincinnati), Jennifer M. Kowal (Loyola-L...

Bogdanski Named Faculty Scholar at Lewis & Clark

Posted on April 18, 2010
Jack Bogdanski has been named the inaugural Douglas K. Newell Faculty Scholar at Lewis & Clark "in recognition of his commitment to teaching excellence, student achievement, and rigorous scholarship." From Jack's faculty homepage: Professor Bogdanski practiced in Portland as a partner at Stoel Rives...

ABA Tax Section Submits Comment Letters

Posted on April 17, 2010
The ABA Tax Section has submitted comment letters on: Hearings on Federal Wealth Transfer Taxes Technical Correction to ARRA Change in § 1374 Built-In Gain Tax Reform of Federal Wealth Transfer Taxes IRS Funding and Proposed Funding for Assistance to Low-Income Taxpayers Proposed § 706 Partnership Taxable Year Regulations Proposed...

Dorocak: The Constitutionality of the Tax Treatment of Ministers of the Gospel and Same-Sex Couples

Posted on April 17, 2010
John R. Dorocak (California State University, San Bernardino) has published Recent Constitutional Questions in Taxation: Toward a Legislative Solution to Constitutional Problems of Same-Sex Couples and Ministers of the Gospel?, 19 Temp. Pol. & Civ. Rts...

More on the 47% Who Pay No Income Tax

Posted on April 17, 2010
Following up on my post, New York Times, Yes, 47% of Households Owe No Taxes; Look Closer: Neil H. Buchanan (George Washington), When People Pay no Federal Income Taxes: Yesterday was "tax day," the official filing deadline for federal income taxes in the United States...

Johnston: Daryl Gates' Real Legacy

Posted on April 17, 2010
David Cay Johnston has published a riveting non-tax piece, Daryl Gates' Real Legacy, in response to Friday's death of former Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates (at age 83): David Cay Johnston covered the LAPD for the Los Angeles Times during the Gates era, and later won a Pulitzer Prize...

Caron Delivers TePoel Lecture Today on The Costs of Estate Tax Dithering

Posted on April 16, 2010
I am honored be delivering the TePoel Lecture at Creighton University School of Law today on The Costs of Estate Tax Dithering. The lecture is part of the Creighton Law Review symposium on Estate Planning: Moral, Ethical and Religious Perspectives: Panel #1: Moral, Ethical, and Religious Issues in Estate Planning...

Six-Year Anniversary of TaxProf Blog

Posted on April 16, 2010
Yesterday (April 15) marked the 6-year anniversary of TaxProf Blog (and the 15-year anniversary of the TaxProf Email Discussion Group). I hope the blog has at least partially succeeded in its mission (announced in my very first post here) to provide both (1) permanent resources & links, and (2) daily...

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