Law Commons^™

Irs's Cp-2000 E-Mail Scams - Never In Dubai - Common In Canada & The Uk, Richard Thompson Ainsworth

Faculty Scholarship

On September 22, 2016 the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and its Security Summit partners issued an alert to taxpayers and tax professionals to be on guard against fake e-mails purporting to contain a tax bill related to the Affordable Care Act. Surprisingly, this e-mail scam works. It really should not.

Modern technology is facilitating many contemporary tax scams. In recent years the US has seen false (refund) return scams, phone scammers impersonation IRS agents, and now e-mail scams with fraudulent CP-2000 notices attached to a demand for payment. The same phone and e-mail frauds have appeared in both Canada and …

Small Business Disaster Assistance, Peggy Maisel, Natalie Roman

Faculty Scholarship

When a disaster hits, it affects the entire community. A small business is especially vulnerable because it does not necessarily have the resources to respond to a disaster or to catastrophic damage. In fact, it is reported that approximately 25 percent of small businesses that close due to a disaster never reopen, and 40 percent of small businesses hit directly by a serious natural disaster do not recover. This is true regardless of what kind of disaster is involved, from a hurricane, a tornado, an earthquake, flooding, winter storms, or even civil unrest or terrorism.

Small businesses experience a number …

Rendering Unto Caesar Or Electioneering For Caesar--Loss Of Church Tax Exemption For Participation In Electoral Politics, Alan L. Feld

Faculty Scholarship

The restriction on church participation in political campaigns contained in the Internal Revenue Code operates uneasily. It appears to serve the useful purpose of separating the spheres of religion and electoral politics. But the separation often is only apparent, as churches in practice signal support for a particular candidate in a variety of rays that historically have not cost them their exemptions. Although the limited enforcement by the Internal Revenue Service has reflected the sensitive nature of the First Amendment values present, the federal government should provide more formal elaboration by statute or regulation. Focus on the use of funds …

Abortion To Aging: Problems Of Definition In The Medical Expense Tax Deduction, Alan L. Feld

Faculty Scholarship

Administration of the medical expense deduction has generated its share of litigation and rulings. The major areas of dispute center on two questions. By far the more important question is how to distinguish deductible medical expenses from other expenses that should be characterized as personal, living, or family expenses. The statutory definition of medical care is a broad one, encompassing amounts paid for "diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease, or for the purpose of affecting any structure or function of the body."' ¹⁰ It also includes transportation to obtain medical care." Because normal expenses of a personal nature, …

Divorce, Tax-Style, Alan L. Feld

Faculty Scholarship

In response to the "sham divorce" tactic, the IRS recently issued Revenue Ruling 76-255. The author, professor of law at Boston University School of Law, although sympathetic with the IRS's position in the Ruling, poin4s out situations where the divorce-remarriage may possibly be considered valid because of the existence of nontax effects.