As published in the Winter Park/Maitland Observer, Thursday Jan. 3, 2012 Edition Offers... Read More »
Articles from November 2008
UBS Offshore Tax Fraud Update
This blog post is a follow up to our posts titled U.S Indicts Swiss Executive for Foreign Bank Account Evasion and Will IRS Voluntary Disclosure Practice Help UBS Clients. The New York Times reporter Julia Werdigier reports in UBS Finds Only Limited Tax Fraud Involving Wealthy Americans the following: “Our investigations have uncovered a limited number of cases…
Read Full Article Categorized in: NewsTop 10 Things I’m Thankful For
Happy Thanksgiving Day, everyone. Here are the top 10 things (in no particular order) I am thankful for today: 1. I was lucky enough not to have been born in Ethiopia, Bangladesh, East Timor, Somalia or any one of a thousand other places where parents can’t be sure they’ll be able to feed their children in the…
Read Full Article Categorized in: AnnouncementsBad Books and Records Means IRS Trouble – Outsource Your Accounting Work Now
One of the biggest problems we see is the self-employed taxpayer who tries to do everything himself, including keeping his business books and records. This almost always fails. If you are thinking about starting a business, don’t do it unless you or someone in your employ understands the basics of proper record-keeping and accounting and…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Accounting, Books & RecordsTax Court Update – November 2008 – Badges of Fraud
Thomas J. Barrow v . Commissioner; Barrow, Aldridge & Co. v. Commissioner (BACO) – This case involved several issues. This update deals only with the IRS’s assessment of the civil fraud penalty (the penalty amount is equal to 75% of the understatement) and the Court’s use of the “badges of fraud” test to determine fraudulent conduct. Thomas…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Court CasesIRS Payment Agreement Comparison Table
Whatever you think of the IRS, it’s website is a veritable treasure trove of useful information for taxpayers and the tax professionals who represent them. Here is a table I found that compares the requirements and benefits of the IRS’s various payment and offer arrangements. PAYMENT AGREEMENT COMPARISON TABLE Type of Payment Agreement Total Liability Limit?…
Read Full Article Categorized in: IRS Installment Agreements, Offers in CompromiseIssue #4: Dr. Tax-O-Sphere, Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Tax Code
“Gee, I wish we had one of them doomsday machines” – General “Buck” Turgidson – Quack, Quack, I’m back! Little Doc humor, there. Thanksgiving is once again upon us so I thought it would be fitting for the good Doctor to give thanks for the best tax blog posts of the month. Here we go:…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Dr. Tax-O-SphereFunny Late Night Tax Quotes
The lighter side of taxes from America’s late-night wits: Jay Leno “65% of people say that cheating on your income tax is worse than cheating on your spouse. The other 35% were women.” “Today the IRS gave some guidelines on how to avoid getting audited. Number one, don’t list deductions that will raise a red…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Tax Humor45th Anniversary of the Assassination of (Tax Cutter) President John F. Kennedy
Today is the 45th anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. I found this video clip which gives us a good indication of what that wise man would have done were he faced with today’s economic crisis: I was only six years old when JFK was shot and killed in Dallas. I remember the grainy…
Read Full Article Categorized in: NewsVicky Helle Becomes IRS Enrolled Agent – Hire Vicky Today to Get Your Tax Returns Filed
Congratulations to our Vicky Helle for being admitted to practice before the Internal Revenue Service as an IRS Enrolled Agent. The IRS Enrolled Agent designation is a special status conferred on tax professionals who pass a rigorous examination on the federal income tax laws and IRS practice and procedure. Only IRS Enrolled Agents, CPAs and…
Read Full Article Categorized in: AnnouncementsEconomic Recovery Act and Victims of Hurricanes Katrina, Wilma and Rita
There are a lot of little gems buried within the four corners of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. Here’s another one. IRS Notice 2008-95 allows taxpayers who claimed losses for damage to their primary residences caused by Hurricanes Katrina, Wilma or Rita to elect to amend their returns to reduce those losses by…
Read Full Article Categorized in: NewsTax Freedom Day Song
If you are in the highest tax bracket, your “tax freedom day” is April 23, 2009.
Read Full Article Categorized in: Tax Humor, Tax PolicyWell’s Fargo Rule May Be Reversed (For Everyone But Well’s Fargo)
Joe Kristan blogged yesterday in a post titled Congress Eyes Reversal of Section 382 Bank Notice that, Ways and Means Democrats introduced legislation to repeal the IRS notice (Notice 2008-83) that exempts bad loans from the Section 382 “built-in loss” rules. The legislation would repeal the notice effective on the earlier of passage by Ways and…
Read Full Article Categorized in: C Corporations, Legislative Watch, NewsMississippi Burning: Lawyer Pleads Guilty to Misdemeanor for Failing to File Tax Returns
I wonder what convicted tax felon, Wesley Snipes, thinks about this story: The ABA Journal’s Law News Now reports in Lawyer Pleads to Tax Misdemeanors; Feds Say He Didn’t File Tax Returns Since 1994 that, A Mississippi attorney who allegedly hasn’t filed a federal tax return since 1994 has avoided a trial in the felony tax evasion case…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Tax CrimesNewt Gingrich Urges Obama to Cut Middle Class Taxes by 40%
In a column written for the Wall Street Journal, former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich, says he wants Obama and the 111th Democratic Congress-Elect to put their money where their mouths have been and slash middle-class tax rates rather than give refundable credits to the poor who pay no income tax: For a real middle-class tax…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Legislative Watch, Tax PolicyTax Update – October 2008 – Are Legal Fees Deductible or Capitalizable?
West Covina Motors, Inc. v. Commissioner (T.C. Memo. 2008-237): There were five issues involved in this case, three which dealt directly with the deductibility of legal fees, one which dealt with the write down of inventory and one which dealt with the abatement of penalties. This post deals only with the legal fee issues. Judge Diane…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Deductible Expenses