Tax Law Commons^™

Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer Quoted In Propublica "The Irs Moves To Limit Dark Money – But Enforcement Still A Question", Lloyd Mayer

Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer

Lloyd Mayer was quoted in the ProPublica article "The IRS Moves to Limit Dark Money – But Enforcement Still a Question" by Kim Barker. The proposed regulations “are only as good as the extent of compliance with them, which history would indicate requires a realistic threat of enforcement and significant sanctions on the groups involved and probably the individuals running those groups,” said Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer, a law professor and associate dean at the University of Notre Dame who specializes in nonprofits and campaign finance.

Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer Quoted In Propublica "New Tax Return Shows Karl Rove's Group Spent Even More On Politics Than It Said", Lloyd Mayer

Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer

Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer quoted in ProPublica article "New Tax Return Shows Karl Rove's Group Spent Even More On Politics Than It Said" by Kim Barker. Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer, a law professor and associate dean at the University of Notre Dame who specializes in nonprofits and campaign finance, reviewed the Americans for Tax Reform documents at the request of ProPublica and said it was possible that the group was allocating overhead or other costs differently in its tax return than in its FEC filings. "I do not see how any reasonable allocation differences could result in such a large disparity, however," …

Tax In The Cathedral: Property Rules, Liability Rules, And Tax, Andrew Blair-Stanek

Andrew Blair-Stanek

The distinction between property rules and liability rules has revolutionized our understanding of many areas of law. But scholars have long assumed that this distinction has no relevance to tax law. This assumption is flatly wrong. Tax law currently uses both property rules and liability rules, and the choice between them has real consequences. When a taxpayer violates a requirement for a favorable tax status, tax law either imposes additional tax proportionate to the harm (a liability rule) or imposes the draconian penalty of taking away the tax status entirely (a property rule). This recognition has three key implications. First, …

Something Old, Something New: Structuring And Restructuring Deals In 2013 (And Beyond), Stephen L. Owen

William & Mary Annual Tax Conference

No abstract provided.

The Tax Code As Nationality Law, Michael S. Kirsch

Michael Kirsch

This article questions the frequently-asserted axiom that Congress's taxing power knows no bounds. It does so in the context of recently-enacted legislation that creates a special definition of citizenship that applies only for tax purposes. Historically, a person was treated as a citizen for tax purposes (and therefore taxed on her worldwide income and estate) if, and only if, she was a citizen under the nationality law. As a result of the new statute, in certain circumstances a person might be treated as a citizen for tax purposes (and therefore taxed on her worldwide income and estate) for years or …

Taxing Citizens In A Global Economy, Michael S. Kirsch

Michael Kirsch

This Article addresses a fundamental issue underlying the U.S. tax system in the international context: the use of citizenship as a jurisdictional basis for imposing income tax. As a general matter, the United States is the only economically developed country that taxes its citizens abroad on their foreign income. Despite this broad general assertion of taxing jurisdiction, Congress allows citizens abroad to exclude a limited amount of their income earned from working outside the United States. Influential lobbying groups, including businesses that employ significant numbers of U.S. citizens abroad, argue that this exclusion is necessary in order to keep American …

The Congressional Response To Corporate Expatriations: The Tension Between Symbols And Substance In The Taxation Of Multinational Corporations, Michael Kirsch

Michael Kirsch

During the past few years, several high-profile U.S.-based multinational corporations have changed their tax residence from the United States to Bermuda or some other tax haven. They have accomplished these expatriations, and the resulting millions of dollars of annual tax savings, merely by changing the place of incorporation of their corporate parent, without the need to make any substantive changes to their business operations or their U.S.-based management structure. Congress and the media have focused significant attention on this phenomenon. Despite this attention, Congress initially enacted only a non-tax provision targeting corporate expatriations - a purported ban on expatriated companies …

The Limits Of Administrative Guidance In The Interpretation Of Tax Treaties, Michael Kirsch

Michael Kirsch

This Article addresses the increasingly important role of administrative guidance in interpreting the United States' international treaty obligations. The relationship between administrative guidance and treaties raises important issues at the intersection of international law, constitutional law, and administrative law. These issues are explored in the context of the United States' extensive tax treaty network. Tax treaties play an important role in a global economy, attempting to reconcile the complex and ever-changing internal tax laws of different countries. The Treasury Department is considering the increased use of administrative guidance to interpret the meaning and application of tax treaties, particularly in response …

Decoupling Taxes And Marriage: Beyond Innocence And Income Splitting, Michelle L. Drumbl

Michelle L. Drumbl

None available.

Taxation, Craig D. Bell

University of Richmond Law Review

The overall purpose of this article is to provide Virginia tax and general practitioners with a concise overview of the recent developments in Virginia taxation that will most likely impact those practitioners. This article does not, however, discuss many of the numerous technical legislative changes to title 58.1 of the Virginia Code, which covers taxation.

Legal Mirrors Of Entrepreneurship, Mirit Eyal-Cohen

Mirit Eyal-Cohen

Small businesses are regarded the engine of the economy. But just what is a “small” business? Depending on where one looks in the law, the definitions vary and they differ from one section to another. Unfortunately, what these various size classifications fail to assess, are the policy considerations and the legislative intent for granting regulatory preferences to small concerns to begin with.

In the last century, the U.S. government has been cultivating one such policy of fiscal and economic growth. Consequently, Congress and private institutions have been acting to incentivize, support and reward entrepreneurship through the law in order to …

Ethics And Expected Changes To Circular 230, Fred Murray, Richard Goldstein, Matthew Lucey, Jack Manhire, Robert D. Probasco

Robert Probasco

No abstract provided.

Transferee Liability, Robert D. Probasco

Robert Probasco

No abstract provided.

Slump Sale Transactions - Taxation Issues In India, Mubashshir Sarshar

Mubashshir Sarshar

No abstract provided.

Horse Syndication: A Sure Footed Winner In The Investment Sweepstakes, Thomas R. Catanese

Pepperdine Law Review

Recent changes in the scheme of federal taxation coupled with increasing interest in the equine industry has propelled that industry into the forefront of tax sheltered investments. In this article the author takes an in-depth look at the federal securities and tax law aspects of a typical equine syndication as a tax sheltered investment.

The Professional Corporation—Has The Death Knell Been Sounded?, Forest J. Bowman

Pepperdine Law Review

The favorable tax reasons for incorporating a professional practice have been substantially reduced by the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act. The retirement benefits of the professional corporation have effectively been eliminated by TEFRA. In addition, the new allocation of income powers provided by TEFRA may have eliminated the tax incentive for forming a professional corporation. The professional's decision whether to incorporate his practice will now rest with his desires as to how he wishes to carry out that practice. This article discusses the changes that TEFRA has wrought, and its impact on the professionals' decision to incorporate.

Go Abroad, Young Man, Go Abroad: The Economic Recovery Tax Act Of 1981'S Changes In The Treatment Of Foreign Earned Income, Sheldon J. Fleming

Pepperdine Law Review

The Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 made major revisions in the taxation of foreign earned income. The former tax provisions of sections 911 and 913failed in their purpose of equitably compensating individuals for the increased costs of working abroad, and have been replaced with a new section 911. The new law encourages Americans to go abroad by according them the most liberal tax benefits in over fifty years.

California Tax Practitioners Beware: Even The Ninth Circuit's I.R.C. Section 1031 Loophole Has Limits, Laurel A. Tollman

Pepperdine Law Review

Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code provides tax deferred status for like-kind exchanges of investment property. The Deficit Reduction Act of 1984 amends this section to curb the use of the controversial delayed exchange as a tool to suspend tax assessment for an inordinate period of time. California attorneys should beware the fiture structuring of like-kind exchanges;for the amendment revises the lenient procedures for like-kind qualification sanctioned by the permissive Ninth Circuit.

Circular 230 And Rules Of Professional Conduct In Giving Tax Advice, Robert D. Probasco

Robert Probasco

No abstract provided.

Justice For All: Reimagining The Internal Revenue Service, David J. Herzig

Law Faculty Publications

The ability of the Internal Revenue Service to both collect the tax and enforce the initial determination of tax liability in a neutral and fair manner has been compromised by a February 2011 pronouncement issued by the Department of Justice stating that the President and the Department of Justice believe that section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional and that the Department of Justice will no longer defend the statute in courts. The pronouncement results in a disparate treatment of similar taxpayers based solely on the forum of litigation. Through this lens, I examine whether it is …

When Are Damages Tax Free?: The Elusive Meaning Of “Physical Injury”, Ronald H. Jensen

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Part I of this article traces the evolution in the tax treatment of litigation damages from 1918 through the enactment of the 1996 Amendments and reviews the various rationales that have been offered for such treatment. In Part II, I set forth a number of hypothetical cases illustrating some of the issues created by the 1996 Amendments. In Parts III through Part VI, I set forth my analyses of these issues. Finally, In Part VII, I critique the 1996 Amendments and make a proposal that would eliminate much of the uncertainty and inequity that the 1996 Amendments created while satisfying …

Economists Are From Mercury, Policymakers Are From Saturn, Roberta F. Mann

Roberta F Mann

Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus is a book about communication between different types of people in a relationship. Lawyers and economists are different types of people who come together in the legislative and policymaking realm. Although legislators come from many backgrounds, law has been the most common profession of both House members and Senators since 1945. Sometimes policymakers rely on economic analysis to make decisions. Sometimes policymakers use economic analysis to support decisions already made. In particular, economic analysis has played a large role in the formation of tax and budgetary policy. Not only do economists and …

Filing Status And Today's Families, Erik Baines

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.

Death, Taxes, And Property (Rights): Nozick, Libertarianism, And The Estate Tax, Jennifer Bird-Pollan

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

The primary purpose of this Article is to dispute the moral claims to post-death property rights made by libertarians when they argue against the estate tax. As I will show later in this Article, my argument does not necessarily entail enacting an estate tax, nor does it require a particular level of tax. I am merely trying to demonstrate that those who argue that the estate tax is an immoral violation of the private property rights of the deceased are mistaken. This is not to say that the estate of the deceased should necessarily pass to the government. It is …

Tax Advice For The Second Obama Administration, Michael J. Graetz

Faculty Scholarship

Delivered January 18, 2013 as the keynote address at a conference cosponsored by Pepperdine Law School and Tax Analysts.