Tax Law Commons^™

Observing Money, Marriage And Taxation, Ann F. Thomas

Articles & Chapters

No abstract provided.

Flattening The Claims Of The Flat Taxers, Neil Brooks

Dalhousie Law Journal

The idea that income tax rate brackets should be flattened has gained some support among neoclassical economists, right-wing think-tanks and Canadian politicians. Those propounding the idea argue that flattening the rate structure will simplify the tax system and reduce tax avoidance and evasion. They also argue that it would usher in an era of increased economic prosperity by encouraging talented Canadians to work harder, save and invest more, and remain in Canada. In defending progressive taxation, this article takes issue with each of these claims. It concludes that the fundamental differences between those who support flat taxes and those who …

Collapse Section 341, Alan L. Feld

Faculty Scholarship

Simplification of current income tax provisions always runs an uphill course. As a proper standard for evaluating a provision of existing law we should ask whether, if it did not exist, we would need to invent it. Unfortunately, when we move to the task of crafting and altering the details of current law, the blandishments of equity, revenue yield, and special-interest gain easily outshine the sober virtue of simplification; we forget this potentially embarrassing question.

As a modest step toward simplification, I propose the repeal of one section of the code, a section famed among tax cognoscenti for its opaque …

Fewer Tax Returns, Alan L. Feld

Faculty Scholarship

Professor Alan L. Feld presents a proposal for simplifying the income tax by reducing the number of taxpayers who have to file returns.

What Do Women Want: Feminism And The Progressive Income Tax , Marjorie E. Kornhauser

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Comment: What's On Second?, George Mundstock

University of Miami Law Review

No abstract provided.

Selected International Aspects Of Fundamental Tax Reform Proposals, Stephen E. Shay, Victoria P. Summers

University of Miami Law Review

No abstract provided.

Comment On Shay And Summers: Selected International Aspects Of Fundamental Tax Reform Proposals, Reuven S. Avi-Yonah

University of Miami Law Review

No abstract provided.

Sports And Entertainment Figures (And Others) May Be Able To Deduct Legal Expenses For Criminal Prosecutions (And Wrongful Death Suits), John R. Dorocak

Akron Tax Journal

This article, first, explains the Gilmore origin of claim test. Secondly, the extension of the origin of claim to situations where the legal claim is less clearly connected to the taxpayer's business or income-seeking activities will be discussed. Thirdly, this article will analyze the issue of how a criminal prosecution, particularly for a murder in a situation such as Mr. Simpson's, can be connected to business or income-seeking. Fourthly, the issue of whether any government policy would prevent the deduction, especially for an unsuccessful criminal defendant, will be reviewed Fifthly, prior murder cases in which the defendant was not allowed …

The Origin Of The Claim Test: A Search For Objectivity, Edward J. Schnee, Nancy J. Stara

Akron Tax Journal

Recently, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, in United States v. Kroy (Europe) Ltd., used the origin of the claim test to determine the deductibility of financing expenses. At approximately the same time, the Tax Court, in Fort Howard Corp. v. Commissioner, concluded the use of the origin of the claim test to characterize similar expenditures was inappropriate. Given this conflict and the extensive use of this test to evaluate the deductibility of expenditures, this article reviews the development of this test and provides an analysis of the potential conflicts and uncertainties in its application.

Curtailing The Economic Distortions Of The Mortgage Interest Deduction, William T. Mathias

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Many Americans consider the mortgage interest deduction a necessary fixture of the American tax system. In this Article, Mathias examines the economic underpinnings of the deduction and finds that it cannot be justified on purely economic grounds. He then evaluates the major policy arguments for the mortgage interest deduction and concludes that it is inefficient, inequitable, and too costly in its present form to be justified on policy grounds. Finally, the author advocates for the elimination or substantial reduction in the size and scope of the mortgage interest deduction.

The Return To Corporate Tax Evasion In The Presence Of An Income Tax On Shareholders, Graeme S. Cooper

Akron Tax Journal

The paper will proceed in the following stages: Section II will describe a theoretical model of the incentive structure surrounding corporate tax evasion and the implications that the model suggests for the behavior of corporate managers. Section III will analyze how the personal income tax might change the returns to evasion and how this effect could be expected to influence the behaviour of the corporation's managers. Section IV will describe the principal interaction mechanisms between the corporate tax and personal income tax employed in practice. Section V will analyze the effects of each of the interaction mechanisms described. Section VI …

Property Valuation For Transfer Taxes: Art, Science, Or Arbitrary Decision?, Stephen C. Gara, Craig J. Langstraat

Akron Tax Journal

According to the regulations, the value referred to in the IRC is defined as "fair market value." Fair market value is itself defined as the "price at which the property would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither being under any compulsion to buy nor sell, and both having reasonable knowledge of relevant facts."9 The so-called hypothetical "willing buyer/seller" standard is prevalent throughout the case law dealing with this issue."0 Given the importance of this standard, additional discussion is warranted.

The standard requires an analysis of both sides of the transaction. It is not appropriate to …

Interest Deduction For Individuals: Review And Update, Edward Schnee

Akron Tax Journal

This article will review the current cases and rulings involving business, investment and qualified residence interest. It will point out areas of uncertainty as well as planning opportunities and pitfalls.

Tax Rationality And The Independence Of Irrelevant Alternatives, James P. Spica

Akron Tax Journal

Patricia White recently asked a simple question: What is the value of systemic coherence, or rationality, in tax legislation. This is asked along the way of an errand that does not require its answer, but White supposes, in passing, that the value queried is relative: no doubt systemic coherence is desirable, but it may conflict with other values predicable of a tax system, values it cannot invariably trump. This entails, on the one hand, that normative claims for rationality in this sphere regularly imply assignments of weights, and, on the other hand, that systemic coherence ought to be irresistible whenever …

Exempt Organizations: A Study Of Their Nature And The Applicability Of The Unrelated Business Income Tax, John M. Strefeler, Leslie T. Miller

Akron Tax Journal

With the hope of clarifying a difficult issue, this paper examines the traditional categories of exempt organizations (EOs), rationales for their exempt status, tests for gaining and maintaining their exempt status, standard tests used to impose unrelated business income tax (UBIT), and ways in which the traditional tests and standards are changing. Furthermore, this paper predicts areas of future change, discusses ways in which EOs can immediately strengthen their exempt status to avoid unnecessary UBIT, and suggests principled arguments which can be used to halt additional unwarranted incursions by tax "reformers" and "simplifiers."

Nunn-Domenici And Nonprofits, Alan L. Feld

Faculty Scholarship

Context determines the meaning of legal rules, especially tax rules. The Nunn-Domenici proposal to restructure the U.S. income tax system on consumption tax lines (S. 722, 104th Cong.) will have an impact on nonprofits that provides an illustration of this principle.

Distributions From Revocable Trusts And Estate Inclusion, Mark A. Segal

Akron Tax Journal

In this article analysis is made of the tax law and issues concerning the estate tax treatment of distributions made from a revocable trust within three years of death.

Income Tax Practice And Certified Public Accountants: The Case For A Status Based Exemption From State Unauthorized Practice Of Law Rules, Matthew A. Melone

Akron Tax Journal

The purpose of this article is to examine the application of unauthorized practice of law restrictions to certified public accountants engaged in income tax practice. Prior to my admission to the bar, I had been a practicing certified public accountant and, like many of my colleagues, did not believe that the scope of my profession's services in tax matters was subject to serious dispute. However, exposure to attorneys, particularly those not in tax practice, has led me to conclude that the bar has not come to any universally agreed upon conclusions about the role that certified public accountants may properly …

The Effect Of The Statist-Political Approach To International Jurisdiction Of The Income Tax Regime- The Israeli Case, David Gliksberg

Michigan Journal of International Law

This article proceeds from the general to the particular, by first presenting the principles of international jurisdiction of the international taxation regime and their connection with statist thinking, and then examining the rules of international jurisdiction of income taxation in Israel and the influence of the statist conception in Israel on the formation of those rules.

The Income Tax Treatment Of Social Welfare Benefits, Jonathan Barry Forman

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Part I of this Article describes the major social welfare programs in the United States. Part II outlines the basic structure of the federal income tax and describes how social welfare benefits are treated by the income tax system. Finally, Part III surveys some recent proposals to tax particular social welfare benefits and considers the arguments for and against taxing such benefits. The Article concludes that the need for new revenue sources will push the federal government to reconsider the tax treatment of social welfare benefits.

Insurance Tax Policy And Health Care Reform: Back To The Future , Curt W. Fochtmann, Frank E. Plan, Thomas J. Minor

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Innocent Spouse Relief: A Reconciliation Of Conflicting Judicial Interpretations, Donald C. Haley

Akron Tax Journal

This paper reviews the statutory requirements for obtaining the innocent spouse relief, briefly identifies the degree of consensus among the courts in interpreting key provisions of the statute, and then focuses on the major area of conflict in qualifying for relief: the "lack of knowledge" requirement on the part of the alleged innocent spouse. Particular attention is given to the rigid standard utilized by the Tax Court in its interpretation of this critical requirement versus the broader, more flexible standard employed by the U.S. Courts of Appeal for the Eighth and Ninth Circuits. Finally, an analysis of a workable reconciliation …

Bankruptcy Officials Vs. The Internal Revenue Service: The Beat Goes On, Craig J. Langstraat, K. Dianne Jackson

Akron Tax Journal

This author has previously addressed several areas of conflict between bankruptcy officials; i.e., trustees and judges, and the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS"). Due to continued litigation, both in the U.S. Supreme Court and in certain federal courts of appeal, some of these areas will be reevaluated in this article. In addition, new areas of conflict resulting in litigation in various levels of the federal court system will be discussed. Policy and statutory modifications will be suggested to alleviate the growing costly burden of litigation.

The Excludability Of Damages For Personal Injury After The Supreme Court's Decision In Burke, Ray A. Knight, Lee G. Knight, Wayne Nix

Akron Tax Journal

The scope of the personal injury exclusion under Internal Revenue Code § 104(a)(2) has been significantly broadened since the mid-1980's as the result of numerous court decisions in the areas of reputation and discrimination injuries. In our increasingly litigious society, more tax cases contesting the excludability of damages recoveries are expected. In United States v. Burke, decided May 26, 1992, the Supreme Court resolved an important issue regarding excludability from federal taxation of damages received in discrimination cases. Unfortunately, the case was decided on narrow grounds, which may only add to, rather than reduce, the conflict among the lower …

Transfer Pricing, Section 482, And International Tax Conflict: Getting Harmonized Income Allocation Measures From Multinational Cacophony, Robert G. Clark

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Long Overdue: The Single Guaranteed Minimum Income Program, David Allen Larson

Faculty Scholarship

This article provides an overview of income support programs in the United States. The article first examines proposals for a guaranteed income. This initial examination consists of four separate sections. It begins with a summary of negative income tax plans. Second, it discusses legislation introduced in the United States Congress. Third, current guaranteed income proposals are examined. Finally, it concludes with a brief examination of social experiments conducted in several communities. Because no proposal for a comprehensive guaranteed income program has been adopted, this article next discusses the income maintenance programs including a short description and selected statistical information.

The Innocent Spouse Rules, Richard C.E. Beck

Other Publications

No abstract provided.

The Innocent Spouse Rules, Richard C.E. Beck

Articles & Chapters

No abstract provided.

Establishing Reasonableness Of Compensation Difficult In Irs Attackes, Michael P. Watters, Daryl Burckel

Akron Tax Journal

With this in mind, reasonable compensation determinations have developed a different twist for shareholder-employees of Subchapter S corporations. As the payroll tax burden continues to increase, it now appears that the respective positions of the taxpayer and the IRS in issues of reasonable compensation, at least in the case of S corporations, are being reversed. Thus the issue has turned to how small, rather than how large, a shareholder-employee's salary may be and still be considered reasonable.

The topic at hand centers around minimizing the payroll tax burden of the shareholder-employee. In recent years, payroll taxes have increased substantially in …