TAXLITIGATOR Blog

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Sunday, February 10, 2019

In this article, Horwitz argues that the foreign information reporting penalties under chapter 61 of the code are not a tax and can’t be assessed and collected in the same manner as a tax. In National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB),1 the Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act. To reach the merits, the Court had to clear the […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Sunday, February 10, 2019

Sentencing for all serious federal noncapital crimes begins with the United States Sentencing Guidelines (“USSG” or “Guidelines”). The Guidelines establish a series of escalating sentencing ranges based on the circumstances of the offense, e.g., the crimes for which the defendant has been convicted, and the criminal record of the defendant.[1] For sentencing of federal crimes […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Sunday, February 10, 2019

I recently blogged about Kimble v. United States, where the Court of Federal Claims granted summary judgment in favor of the Government in an FBAR willful case, holding that the taxpayer’s signing a return that incorrectly checked the “no” box to the question whether she had foreign accounts was sufficient to establish willfulness.  The Kimble court has now […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Tuesday, January 22, 2019

We are pleased to announce that Michel Stein will be presenting at an upcoming CalCPA Channel Islands Chapter Ventura CPA discussion group on FBAR Reporting / Cryptocurrency – What You Need To Know Wednesday, January 30, 2019 from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. PST at Carrows Restaurant, 2401 Harbor Blvd., Ventura – (805) 642-3780. Mr. […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Sunday, January 20, 2019

  The United States Supreme Court decides very few tax cases and even fewer criminal tax cases. In Marinello v United States the Supreme Court ruled that the Government’s  ever broadening use of the omnibus clause of Section 7212, the so called “one person conspiracy” statute,  be dialed back.  In January’s issue of Los Angeles […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Tuesday, January 15, 2019

We are pleased to announce that Robert Horwitz will be presenting at an upcoming Knowledge Group webinar on Overcoming FBAR Penalties: Best Practices and Practical Tips, Thursday, January 17, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. (PST)/12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. (EST) Listen as a panel of distinguished tax litigators and experts organized by The […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Friday, January 04, 2019

We are pleased to announce that Steven Toscher and Michel Stein will be presenting at an upcoming Federal Bar Association/myLawCle webinar on New IRS Scrutiny on Cryptocurrency Reporting: Filing Requirements & Exchange Treatment, Thursday, January 10, 2019 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. (PST)/4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. (EST) This presentation will provide tax counsel, […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Friday, January 04, 2019

Federal sentencing reform has been gathering steam over the past few years, as the chorus of voices critical of mandatory minimum sentences has reached a crescendo.  Congress first tackled the disparity between crack and powder cocaine sentences in the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, which addressed a tiny, but important, sliver of oft-criticized drug sentences.  […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Friday, January 04, 2019

In this article, Lacey Strachan discusses how taxpayers can defend a claim of material participation during an IRS examination. Although taxpayers are allowed deductions for some business and investment expenses under sections 162 and 212, section 469 generally prohibits an individual taxpayer from deducting any passive activity loss for the tax year in which the loss is sustained, suspending the loss […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Friday, January 04, 2019

The Court of Federal Claims (CFC) just  issued its Memorandum Opinion and Final Order granting summary judgment to the Government in Alice Kimble v United States, No. 17-421 (December 27, 2018), an FBAR willful case.  The opinion is a stunning victory for the Government: the Court granted summary judgment on the issue of willfulness based solely […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Friday, December 28, 2018

In Bedrosian v United States the plaintiff paid 1% of a $975,789 FBAR penalty.  Not disputing jurisdiction, the Government counterclaimed for the unpaid balance with interest.  The district court held that Bedrosian was not liable for a willful FBAR penalty, even though he had known about the FBAR filing requirement.  The Government appealed to the Third Circuit. […] Read More…

Posted by Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C. Posted on Friday, December 21, 2018

The Tax Court in Estate of Streightoff v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo 2018-178, here, faced two issues: whether an interest in a family limited partnership was an assignee interest and what discount should be applied.  Holding for the Commissioner, it determined that the interest was a partnership interest and not an assignee interest.  And since the expert for […] Read More…