In two decisions issued on July 9, 2020, the Supreme Court addressed challenges to several subpoenas that sought the President’s financial records, including tax returns. In a case concerning a subpoena issued by a state district attorney’s office, the Court held that a sitting president is not categorically immune from issuance of a subpoena in
Tax Court Hearings Will Be Conducted Remotely
U.S. Tax Court proceedings will soon resume, however, they will do so entirely remotely until further notice as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. On May 29, the Tax Court announced that via Press Release that all proceedings would be conducted remotely, and that proceedings would be available to the public via telephone dial-in. The
IRS Issues Proposed Regulations on Deductions of Certain Settlement Payments to Governments
On May 12, 2020, the IRS released proposed regulations (REG-104591) affecting the deductibility of payments made to governments in settlement of alleged violations of law. The proposed regulations interpret Sections 162(f) and 6050X of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the Code), as amended and introduced by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), respectively.
Federal, State Tax Authority Enforcement-Related Responses to Covid-19
R&G attorneys outline some practical considerations for taxpayers and their advisers in light of federal and state taxing authorities’ enforcement-related responses to COVID-19 in an article published in Bloomberg Tax.
Please click here to read the full article.
Federal Court Holds Microsoft Documents Not Privileged, Falling Within Tax Shelter Exception
On January 17, 2020, a federal district court in Washington ordered Microsoft Corporation (“Microsoft”) to produce many documents to the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) that Microsoft asserted were privileged. Microsoft had argued that most of the documents were protected by protected by the work product doctrine and the federally authorized tax practitioner privilege set forth
Podcast: State Taxation of Digital Health Products
In this Ropes & Gray podcast, Isabelle Farrar, an associate in the tax controversy group, is joined by Elizabeth Smith, counsel in the tax controversy group, and Jennifer Romig, a partner in the health care group, to discuss the state taxation of digital products, an evolving area in several states. Specifically, they will discuss
IRS Issues New Guidance on Cryptocurrencies for the First Time in Four Years
On October 9, 2019, IRS released Revenue Ruling 2019-24, 2019-44 IRB, which provides new guidance on the Service’s handling of cryptocurrencies and is the first of such guidance to be released since March 2014 when IRS issued Notice 2014-21. The ruling was issued after prodding from a bipartisan congressional coalition. The ruling, and attached Frequently
Overview of Spring Term 2019 Supreme Court Tax Decisions
In its 2019 Spring Term, the Supreme Court published five decisions regarding tax matters, three of which limit states’ taxing authority. In a February decision, Dawson v. Steager, the Court held that a state cannot tax a federal retiree’s pension benefits while declining to tax a similarly situated state retiree. The March decision in
Ninth Circuit Issues Altera Decision, Upholding IRS Regulation on Allocation of Stock-Based Compensation, Reversing the Tax Court (Again)
On June 7, 2019, the Ninth Circuit re-issued a decision in Altera v. Commissioner, upholding an IRS Regulation that had been previously struck down by the Tax Court. (This follows a decision in the same case that had previously been released by the Ninth Circuit on July 24, 2018, only to be precipitously withdrawn
New Final Partnership Audit Regulations
On December 21, 2018, IRS and Treasury issued final regulations implementing the partnership audit regime (T.D. 9844). The final regulations largely adopt, with some changes, the proposed regulations issued in August 2018. By issuing almost 200 pages of preamble, the final regulations provide extensive discussion of which comments were incorporated and why others were