Tax Law Commons^™

Those Who Know, Those Who Don't, And Those Who Know Better: Balancing Complexity, Sophistication, And Accuracy On Tax Returns, Michelle Lyon Drumbl

Scholarly Articles

Refundable credits, particularly the earned income tax credit (EITC) and the child tax credit, serve an important anti-poverty measure for low-income taxpayers. Annually, millions of taxpayers who do not owe any federal income tax must file a tax return in order to claim these credits that are in the nature of social benefits. The eligibility requirements for refundable credits are complex, and these returns are particularly prone to audit: EITC audits comprise one-third of all individual income tax audits. Because of the large dollar amounts at stake, a taxpayer’s mistaken understanding of the eligibility requirements for these refundable credits can …

Reforming Federal Tax Litigation: An Agenda, Steve R. Johnson

Scholarly Publications

King Vertigorn, it is said, wished to build a castle to defend Britain against invaders. Each day, his mason raised and set the stones. Each night, however, the earth would rumble, bringing the work crashing to the ground. Vexed, Vertigorn asked Merlin for an explanation. Merlin’s mystical divination revealed that, in a cavern far below the surface, there resided two foes, a red dragon and a white dragon. In their perpetual struggle for dominance, first one dragon then the other would gain temporary ascendancy. Their jostling unsettled the ground, rendering all construction temporary.

In federal tax procedure, the red dragon …

Give Taxpayers A Break: Putting The Reliance Element Back Into The Reasonable Reliance And Good Faith Defense, Ronald Z. Domsky

Akron Tax Journal

This Article considers the present law regarding the accuracy related penalties pursuant to I.R.C § 6662 and the reasonable reliance and good faith defense provided for in I.R.C § 6664 using Canal as a prime example of how the courts have treated and penalized taxpayers for relying on tax advisors in planning proposed transactions and in taking positions on returns and proposes a new analysis of a taxpayer's good faith and reasonable reliance. Section II of this Article discusses the current state of the law regarding the Section 6662 penalties, the function and regulations imposed on tax attorneys in advising …

"Are You Ready For Some (Political) Football?" How Section 501(C)(3) Organizations Get Their Playing Time During Campaign Seasons, Daniel C. Willingham

Akron Tax Journal

The purpose of this Article is to analyze the ways in which Section 501(c)(3) organizations take part in lobbying activities while still maintaining their tax-exempt status. This topic is crucial as we revisit these same issues at all levels of government every election season.

This Article examines the Tax Code, treasury regulations, revenue rulings, case law, and scholarly research. Its purpose is to provide a detailed analysis of the current law and how exempt organizations can apply it in practice. To achieve this goal, this Article is broken down into seven parts. Section II provides the statutory framework under which …

Challenges To Federal Income Tax Exemption Of The Clergy And Government Support Of Sectarian Schools Through Tax Credits Device And The Unresolved Questions After Arizona V. Winn: Is The U.S. Supreme Court Standing In The Way Of Taxpayer Standing To Seek Meritorious Redress?, Gabriel O. Aitsebaomo

Akron Tax Journal

Part II of the article begins with a critical examination of the parsonage exemption Act as was originally conceived at inception, the expansion and modification of the Act over the years, and the current statutory framework of the exemption under the Internal Revenue Code ("Code"). Part III evaluates who is considered a minister of the gospel within the meaning of the Code, and whether a minister of the gospel may obtain a parsonage exemption for more than one home at a time. Part IV discusses the various attempts to rid the Code of the parsonage exemption. In this part, the …

Omg! Esd Codified!: The Overreaction To Codification Of The Economic Substance Doctrine, Monica D. Armstrong

Florida A & M University Law Review

No abstract provided.

The End Of Cash, The Income Tax, And The Next 100 Years, Jeffrey H. Kahn, Gregg D. Polsky

Scholarly Publications

No abstract provided.

The Mixed Use Of A Personal Residence: Integration Of Conflicting Holding Purposes Under I.R.C. Sections 121, 280a, And 1031, Christine Manolakas

McGeorge School of Law Scholarly Articles

In light of the fact that the majority of Americans consider their personal residence one of their most important investments, as well as the rapid changes in technology allowing an increasing number of Americans to work from their personal residence, this article reconsiders the non-applicability of Internal Revenue Code (“I.R.C.”) section 1031 to a residence occupied by the taxpayer. I.R.C. section 1031 provides that gain or loss will not be recognized if property held for a business or an investment purpose is exchanged for property of like kind to be held as business or investment property. For this nonrecognition provision …

Auer/Seminole Rock Deference In The Tax Court, Steve R. Johnson

Scholarly Publications

No abstract provided.

Exempt Entities As Government Contractors: Regulation Through Cooperative Federalism, Frances R. Hill

Articles

No abstract provided.

Who's Naughty And Who's Nice? Frictions, Screening, And Tax Law Design, Leigh Osofsky

Articles

No abstract provided.

When Do State Laws Determine Erisa Plan Benefit Rights?, 47 J. Marshall L. Rev 145 (2013), Albert Feuer

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Pursuit Of "Voluntary" Tax Compliance In A Globalized World, Jennifer Hepp

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

Globalization diminishes the U.S. government's ability to enforce the income tax by undermining the Internal Revenue Service's information advantage. U.S. taxpayers are able to hold their money overseas, where the IRS's information-gathering abilities are at their lowest ebb, with increasing ease. Tax treaties aim to rectify the IRS's information disadvantage abroad by encouraging foreign countries, particularly tax havens, to share information with the IRS. However, these treaties have been largely ineffective. Instead, it may be time for the United States to go the way of other developed countries and reform its tax structure to reduce reliance on the income tax …

A Tale Of Two Taxes: A Comparative Examination Of The Individual Income Tax In The United States And The People's Republic Of China, Steven J. Arsenault

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

No abstract provided.

Taxation Of Non-Residents On Business Profits, Jinyan Li

Articles & Book Chapters

The taxation of non-residents on business profits is important to developing countries in terms of raising revenue and encouraging foreign investment and trade. The source country has the legitimate right to tax business profits arising in its jurisdiction. Tax treaties impose no limits on such taxing rights, other than the obligation to tax net profits (instead of gross profits) in some situations, once the threshold for taxation is satisfied. As such, this source of tax revenue belongs to the source country. There is generally little expectation of the residence country of a non-resident taxpayer in sharing the tax revenue. It …

Oil And Water: Mixing Taxable And Tax-Exempt Shareholders In Mutual Funds, Jeffrey M. Colon

Faculty Scholarship

As of 2012, roughly 23% of U.S. households’ assets and 50% of retirement assets are invested in mutual funds, thus making mutual funds one of the most important investment vehicles for U.S. households. The federal taxation of mutual funds and mutual fund shareholders has played a vital role in the development of mutual funds and their appeal to U.S. investors. Despite the significant amount of mutual fund assets held in retirement accounts, there has been very little analysis of the issues that arise when taxable and tax-exempt shareholders invest together in the same mutual fund. A substantial body of research …

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 …

Wealth Transfer Tax Planning For 2013 And Beyond, John A. Miller

Articles

No abstract provided.

Taxation Without Representation: The Illegal Irs Rule To Expand Tax Credits Under The Ppaca, Jonathan H. Adler, Michael F. Cannon

Faculty Publications

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) provides tax credits and subsidies for the purchase of qualifying health insurance plans on state-run insurance exchanges. Contrary to expectations, many states are refusing or otherwise failing to create such exchanges. An Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rule purports to extend these tax credits and subsidies to the purchase of health insurance in federal exchanges created in states without exchanges of their own. This rule lacks statutory authority. The text, structure, and history of the Act show that tax credits and subsidies are not available in federally run exchanges. The IRS rule is …

Economic Justice And The Internal Point Of View, Adam J. Macleod

Faculty Articles

The West is in a tumult about money. In the United States, the Tea Party movement and the Occupy Wall Street movement captured the public's attention, sounding themes of fiscal irresponsibility and material inequality, respectively. Political negotiations over the so-called "fiscal cliff," the debt ceiling, taxes, and entitlement spending, have kept these themes before the public eye. In Europe, the protests have been more dramatic, and the declarations of national leaders that the European Union is in no danger of disintegrating have sounded at times suspiciously forceful.

Despite all of the exhortations that lawmakers should do something, the public debates …