Taxation & Estate Planning

Chronicle: Are Law Schools Churning Out Too Many Lawyers?

Posted on July 09, 2009
Chronicle of Higher Education: Law Schools Mull Whether They Are Churning Out Too Many Lawyers, by Katherine Mangan: At a time when law-school graduates are facing greater debt and fewer job opportunities, the University of Miami School of Law has offered to pay accepted students to stay away?at least for...

Disgraced Former Cravath Tax Lawyer Wants $100m For Police Monitoring After Guilty Plea to Teenage Rape Charges

Posted on July 09, 2009
I previously blogged (links below) the sordid tale of James Colliton, a former tax lawyer at Cravath who plead guilty to statutory rape and patronizing a prostitute. The latest chapter in this sordid tale from the Poughkeepsie Journal: [A] Town of Poughkeepsie man who allegedly paid a mother so he...

Deductibility of Michael Jackson's Funeral Expenses

Posted on July 09, 2009
David Shulman (via the Tax Girl) asks Are Michael Jackson's Funeral Costs Deductible for Estate Tax Purposes? His answer: Everything involved with the funeral (not the public memorial but the private funeral) itself, no matter how extravagant or expensive will be allowed as a deduction...

TaxProf Blog 10,000,000 Page View Milestone

Posted on July 08, 2009
Yesterday, TaxProf Blog passed the 10,000,000 page view milestone, after just five years in operation. I am delighted that so many tax professors and students, tax lawyers in private practice and government, accountants, and others in the tax community find this blog useful...

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Judge Sotomayor's Law Practice: A Tax Dodge?

Posted on July 08, 2009
New York Times: Little Information Given About Solo Law Practice Run by Sotomayor in ?80s: Judge Sotomayor has explained very little about one facet of her legal life: Sotomayor & Associates, the solo law practice she ran out of her Brooklyn apartment for several years in the 1980s...

Lawyer Charged With Forging Brother's Will Pleads Guilty to Tax Charges

Posted on July 08, 2009
The Legal Intelligencer: Lawyer Charged With Forging Brother's Will Pleads Guilty to Tax Charges, by Shannon P. Duffy: Allentown, Pa., attorney John P. Karoly Jr. pleaded guilty Monday to charges of dodging $1.9 million in federal taxes by hiding more than $5 million in income...

DOJ Fights 'Last Minute' Discovery Request From UBS in Tax Case

Posted on July 08, 2009
Blog of The Legal Times, DOJ Fights 'Last Minute' Discovery Motion From UBS in Tax Case: Swiss bank UBS AG wants the federal government to give up information it has on U.S. taxpayers who have failed to disclose and pay taxes on foreign accounts in a motion the Justice Department...

More on Resignation of Villanova Dean Mark Sargent

Posted on July 08, 2009
Following up on Saturday's post, Villanova Dean Resigns, Is Implicated in Prostitution Bust: Legal Blog Watch: The Law Dean and the Prostitute Legal Intelligencer: Questions Arise After Law School Dean's Resignation in Wake of Prostitution Investigation Philadelphia Business Journal: Villanova Dean Resigned Over Prostitution

Does Judge Sotomayor Have a Tax Problem?

Posted on July 08, 2009
Following up on this morning's post, Judge Sotomayor's Law Practice: A Tax Dodge?: the issue was first flagged by Glenn Reynolds (Tennessee), and he notes that he "was just following Ralph Winter?s advice from my Business Associations class in law school: When you see a business arrangement that doesn?t seem...

2009 IRS Research Conference Kicks Off Today at Georgetown

Posted on July 08, 2009
The two-day 2009 IRS Research Conference kicks off today at Georgetown. A list of today's panels, speakers and papers is here and below the fold: Is There a Gap in the Tax Gap Estimates? Moderator: Mark J. Mazur (Director of Research, Analysis, and Statistics, IRS) Edward Emblom (Research, Analysis, and...

Kornhauser: Gender and Capital Gains Taxation

Posted on July 08, 2009
Marjorie E. Kornhauser (Arizona State) has posted Gender and Capital Gains Taxation on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Most countries grant capital gains preferential treatment under their income tax laws by either excluding them from taxation or taxing them at a lower rate than wage or interest income...

Tax Profs For Judge Sotomayor

Posted on July 08, 2009
Columbia today released a letter signed by 1,200 law professors supporting the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court. Among the signatories are these Tax Profs: Nancy Abramowitz (American) Ellen Aprill (Loyola-L.A.) Reuven Avi-Yonah (Michigan) Noel Cunningham (NYU) Barbara Fried (Stanford) Brian Galle (Florida State) Wendy Gerzog...

SSRN Tax Professor Rankings

Posted on July 07, 2009
SSRN has updated its monthly rankings of 601 American and international law school faculties and 1,500 law professors by (among other things) the number of paper downloads from the SSRN data base. Here is the new list (through June 18, 2009) of the Top 25 U...

Call For Tax Papers: Federalist Society Faculty Conference

Posted on July 07, 2009
The Federalist Society has issued a Call for Papers for its 2010 Faculty Conference, held in conjunction with the 2010 AALS Annual Meeting in New Orleans: In past years, we have offered the opportunity to faculty members to present works in progress during 7 minute time slots...

IRS Oversight Board Recommends IRS Funding Increase

Posted on July 07, 2009
The IRS Oversight Board yesterday released its FY2010 IRS Budget Recommendation Special Report. From the press release: The IRS Oversight Board recommends an FY2010 IRS budget of $12.489 billion, an increase of $966 million over the enacted FY2009 amount of $11...

Michael as Elvis: Post-Death Exploitation of Jackson's Name Will Create "Money-Making Machine" to Pay Off Hefty Estate Tax Bill

Posted on July 07, 2009
I previously blogged some of the estate tax issues to be faced by Michael Jackson's estate: Michael Jackson's Looming "Estate Tax Disaster" Settling Michael Jackson's Estate May Be a Thriller for the Lawyers I also previously made available a copy of Jackson's will, which provides that all of his assets...

U.S. News Launches Law Firm Rankings

Posted on July 07, 2009
U.S. News & World Report announced today that it will team with Best Lawyers to start ranking law firms: The venture will kick off with an announcement sent to more than 35,000 lawyers across the United States, followed by a detailed survey that will be conducted this fall...

Law Schools as GM -- The End of the Law Prof 'Salad Days'?

Posted on July 07, 2009
Following up on my prior post, Law School 4.0 (June 29, 2009): ABA Journal: Are Law Schools Like GM? Why Profs Should Mull End of "Salad Days," by Debra Cassens Weiss Conglomerate: The One-Year Law School, by Gordon Smith (BYU) Legal Profession Blog: Law School 4...

House Democrats to Push for Surtax on Those Earning > $250k

Posted on July 07, 2009
Bloomberg: U.S. House May Include Surtax on Wealthy in Health-Care Package, by Ryan J. Donmoyer: House Ways and Means Committee members are likely to propose a surtax on high-income Americans to help pay for an overhaul of the health-care system, according to people familiar with the plan...

Fox on Miami's $5k Offer to Incoming 1Ls to Defer Until Fall 2010

Posted on July 07, 2009
I previously blogged Miami's decision to offer $5,000 to incoming 1Ls to defer enrolling until Fall 2010. Fox Business picks up on the story: 0

Call for Papers: New Tax Profs

Posted on July 06, 2009
The AALS New Law Professor Section has issued a call for papers from new law professors (those who have been full-time law profs for five years or less): Four top quality papers will be selected from those submitted. The author of each of those pieces will be invited to speak...

Lokken: Reporting Foreign Bank Accounts to the IRS

Posted on July 06, 2009
Lawrence Lokken (Florida) has posted The Big, Bad FBAR: Reporting Foreign Bank Accounts to the U.S. IRS on SSRN. Here is the abstract: The IRS and other U.S. agencies have long seen foreign bank accounts of U.S. persons as potential instruments for tax evasion and other violations of U...

TaxProf Blog Holiday Weekend Posts

Posted on July 06, 2009
Friday: Southern Illinois President Reverses Dean's Detenuring of Law Prof Like-Kind Exchanges and Qualified Intermediaries Ayers: The Undertraining of Lawyers and its Effect on the Advancement of Women and Minorities SSRN Faculty Rankings (Law Schools Ranked 22-100 in U...

The Mailbox Rule:

Posted on July 06, 2009
The tax version of the mailbox rule occasinally rears its head in cases (e.g., Trout v. Commissioner, 131 T.C. No. 16 (Dec. 16, 2008)) and articles (e.g.,Burgess J.W. Raby & William L. Raby, Abolishing the Mailbox Rule for Tax Documents, 105 Tax Notes 193 (Oct...

Gerzog: Jorgensen -- A Familiar FLP Story

Posted on July 06, 2009
Wendy C. Gerzog (Baltimore) has posted Jorgensen: A Familiar FLP Story, 124 Tax Notes 79 (July 6, 2009), on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Jorgensen [v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2009-66 (March 26, 2009)] provides a common FLP story with a familiar conclusion...

DePaul Interim Dean Rejects Faculty's Call For His Resignation

Posted on July 06, 2009
Illinois state appellate judge Warren Wolfson, appointed by the University without any consultation with the faculty to become the law school's Interim Dean on August 15 following the University's abrupt firing of Dean Glen Weissenberger, today rejected faculty calls for him to resign in this letter: I have considered your...

McKee Nelson to be Acquired by Bingham McCutchen

Posted on July 06, 2009
The elite specialty law firm of McKee Nelson has agreed to be acquired by Bingham McCutchen: McKee Nelson, which is known as one of the pre-eminent firms for tax planning and tax litigation, was viewed by Bingham as an attractive addition. "It's really rare to find a firm that is...

Illinois Faculty Respond to Tribune's Coverage of "Clout" Admissions

Posted on July 06, 2009
Fifteen Illinois faculty have written this detailed letter criticizing the Chicago Tribune's coverage of the "clout" admissions practices at the University of Illinois and its law school (blogged here, here, and here): We have read with ever increasing dismay the ?State of Corruption: Clout goes to college? series of stories...

GAO: IRS Should Reevaluate Tax Penalties

Posted on July 06, 2009
The Government Accountability Office today released IRS Should Evaluate Penalties and Develop a Plan to Focus Its Efforts (GAO-09-567): Why GAO Did This Study: Civil tax penalties are an important tool for encouraging compliance with tax laws. It is important that the IRS administers penalties properly and determines the effectiveness...

Helping Tax-Exempt Hospitals Keep Their Tax-Exempt Status

Posted on July 05, 2009
Kevin Leo (J.D. 2008 UC-Hastings) has published Note, Defining Substantial Activity: Helping Tax-Exempt Hospitals Keep Their Tax-Exempt Status, 4 Hastings Bus. L.J. 297 (2008). Here is the Conclusion: Until the IRS clarifies its definition of substantial activity regarding ancillary joint ventures, any tax-exempt hospital considering participating in a joint venture...

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