Tag: Houston Tax Attorney

When Congress provides a tax benefit contingent on some activity, there is often a question as to whether the activity can be read broadly to encompass many sub-activities or has to be read narrowly.  The NextEra Energy, Inc. v. United States, No. 17-12304 (11th Cir. 2018) case provides a good example of the subjective distinctions taxpayers have make…

Taxpayers voluntarily submit information to the IRS.  The IRS not only evaluates the substance of this information, but also the taxpayer’s candor in preparing and providing the information.  The perception of candor is just as important as the substance in many cases.  The Guess v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2018-97, provides an example of how things can…

You work hard to build a business, you find success over the years, and then you find out that your long term accountant did not remit payroll taxes and you owe a significant balance.  What do you do?  The recent McClendon v. United States, No. 17-20174 (5th Cir. 2018) case provides some answers. The Facts & Procedural…

S corporation’s account for separately stated items that flow through to the shareholder’s tax returns. They are computed on page 3 of the Form 1120S and then listed separately on the Schedule K-1. The idea for breaking these items out separately is that they can impact the shareholder’s individual returns differently. That makes sense, but…

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“TCJA”) made several changes to our tax laws. One such change is that employees are no longer able to deduct unreimbursed expenses incurred as an employee. Given this change, employers and their workers may need to re-evaluate their relationship. For some workers, this may mean re-evaluating whether the worker…

Does the Taxpayer Bill of Rights create a legal right to have a tax dispute considered by the IRS Office of Appeals?  The court recently addressed this question in Facebook, Inc. v. Internal Revenue Service, No. 17-cv-06490-LB (N.D. Calif. 2018), concluding that there is no legal right to have an administrative appeal for a tax dispute. Facts…

During the course of litigating a tax matter, the IRS may increase the amount of tax, penalties, and interest that it alleges the taxpayer owes. The IRS is typically allowed to do this. If it does, the IRS may have a harder time prevailing on this type of issue. This “new matter” rule was recently…

There are a number of difficult questions that come up when one spouse owes the IRS and also owns property jointly with their spouse. The question is often whether the spouses can transfer the property to the non-liable spouse. The answer is, maybe. The court recently addressed this in U.S. v. Gerard, No. 1:14-CV-67-TLS (N.D.…

Instead of requesting a refund, taxpayers can ask the IRS to hold the overpayment and apply it to the taxpayer’s tax liability for the following year. These tax payment credits can result in significant headaches. The recent Schuster v. Commissioner, No. 17-11647 (11th Cir. 2018) case provides an example of why taxpayers should request refunds…

Does a taxpayer commit a felony offense if they pay a babysitter without withholding taxes, fail to keep receipts for charitable donations, or neglect to provide every record to an accountant? A strict reading of the law would suggest that these actions are felony offense. The U.S. Supreme Court recently addressed this in Marinello v.…