John D. “Don” Fort, the new chief of the IRS Criminal Investigation division (“IRS-CI”), announced that two new programs will be fully operational in 2018: (1) the Nationally Coordinated Investigations Unit, and (2) the International Tax Enforcement Group. Fort also explained that the Criminal Investigation division is—and will be—increasingly focusing on the use of cryptocurrencies. Read more about those programs and the focus on cryptocurrencies below. Continue Reading IRS Criminal Investigation Division Announces New Programs Fully Operational in 2018
Case of the Quarter: Grecian Magnesite Mining Co. v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
Gabby Hirz, a senior attorney in the Tax Controversy Group discusses one of the most notable decisions of third quarter 2017, Grecian Magnesite Mining v Commissioner of Internal Revenue, with Rom Watson, a partner in the Tax Group and co-head of the firm’s International practice group. Grecian Magnesite Mining considered whether a foreign corporation’s proceeds arising from the redemption of an interest in a U.S.-based partnership were taxable in the U.S. as U.S.-source income or income effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business (ECI). In doing so, the Tax Court called into question the validity a 30-year old revenue ruling.