Tax

3 Attorney Ethics Considerations For Litigation Funding

The growth of the litigation finance industry has generated questions on the obligations of counsel when their clients are seeking outside capital to fund litigation, which litigators must understand when providing information to a third-party funder and discussing legal strategy with a client, says Matthew Oxman at LexShares.

How ABA Opinion Shifts Alternative Biz Structure Landscape

A recent American Bar Association opinion approving lawyers' passive investment in nonlawyer-owned firms eliminates a hurdle for law firms wishing to scale their practice through alternative business structures, but aspiring investors should follow a few best practices, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Deepika Ravi at Harris Wiltshire.

Telehealth Providers Must Beware Of Fraud As Industry Grows

A recent fraud charge against a telehealth executive highlights the rise we're seeing in telefraud scams during the industry's pandemic growth, and there are some steps that all health providers should take to stay clear of potentially illegal arrangements, says LaTawnda Moore at Dinsmore.

Texas Tax Talk: Alarming Redefinition Of Nontaxable Services

In a concerning trend following two rulings from the Texas Comptroller, taxpayers in a variety of industries are facing audits that attempt to reclassify traditionally nontaxable service agreements as taxable equipment rentals, thereby unexpectedly increasing businesses' sales tax exposure, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

Series

Embracing ESG: HPE Counsel Talk Effective Board Oversight

Governance teams can more effectively shape board oversight of environmental, social and governance issues by ensuring organizationwide agreement on the most relevant issues, building a materiality framework that reflects stakeholder input, and monitoring the integration of ESG into operations, say Rishi Varma and Derek Windham at Hewlett Packard Enterprise.

Parsing New Int'l Tax Reporting Rules For Pass-Throughs

Attorneys at Grant Thornton unpack the Internal Revenue Service’s new pass-through entity reporting requirements for international tax matters and the accompanying guidance for penalty relief, and suggest how companies should prepare for what may be the most significant change to the partnership compliance function in decades.

Opinion

Justice Gap Demands Look At New Legal Service Models

Current restrictions on how lawyers structure their businesses stand in the way of meaningful access to justice for many Americans, so states should follow the lead of Utah and Florida and test out innovative law firm business models through regulatory sandboxes, says Zachariah DeMeola at the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System.

Series

Embracing ESG: Leidos GC Talks Social Responsibility

Recent criticisms of corporate commitments to stakeholders such as employees and communities — implicitly opposing environmental, social and governance initiatives — are fundamentally flawed and display a serious misunderstanding of contemporary investor priorities and dynamics, says Jerald Howe at Leidos.

Lessons In Crisis Lawyering 20 Years After 9/11

Dianne Phillips at Holland & Knight recounts her experiences as in-house counsel at a liquefied natural gas company in the tumultuous aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, and details the lessons she learned about lawyering in a crisis, including the importance of careful forethought and having trusted advisers on speed dial.

Why Structured Data Is Increasingly Important To Your Case

During discovery, legal teams often overlook structured data — the rows of information found in financial ledgers and similar corporate systems — and consider it secondary to emails and other anecdotal evidence, but this common mistake could mean litigators are missing key elements of a dispute, say consultants at Alvarez & Marsal.

Kentucky Tax Talk: Confusion Over Manufacturing Exemptions

The Kentucky Court of Appeals' recent opinion in Century Aluminum v. Department of Revenue grappled with the state's sales and use tax exemptions for machinery, equipment and supplies used in manufacturing — but the decision seems to be at odds with an earlier court ruling, leaving taxpayers with unclear guidance, say attorneys at Frost Brown.

Series

Embracing ESG: AIG Counsel Talks SEC Risk Alert

As the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission responds to the changing landscape on environmental, social and corporate governance investing, including with its recent risk alert, it is imperative that the regulator take a measured approach, says Kate Fuentes at AIG.

A Look At Global Tax Enforcement Developments: Part 2

Excerpt from Practical Guidance

Sean Craig at LexisNexis examines recent investigations by the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement and their impact on U.S. taxpayers, as well as the growing significance of transfer pricing disputes and policies for future enforcement.

A Look At Global Tax Enforcement Developments: Part 1

Excerpt from Practical Guidance

Sean Craig at LexisNexis looks at how international initiatives, such as the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement, are addressing cryptocurrency-related tax evasion, and how the COVID-19 pandemic and increasing demands for governmental welfare programs are driving global tax policy.

What The Judiciary's Font Recommendations Can Teach Us

The D.C. Circuit's recent soft prohibition on Garamond and the ensuing debates about courts' font preferences should serve as a helpful reminder of a larger point — every departure from convention in legal writing carries some level of risk, says Spencer Short at Stradley Ronon.