Texas Supreme Court Rejects $4B Oil Spill Tax Refund Bid
The Texas Supreme Court declined Friday to hear an oil company's claim that it is owed a franchise tax refund for $4 billion in settlement expenses it paid due to its stake in the well involved in the Deepwater Horizon disaster.
Key Issues Facing The IRS Amid Looming Budget Cuts
The Internal Revenue Service is facing steep budget cuts in 2026, raising concerns about the agency's ability to handle taxpayer services and enforcement operations that are crucial for bringing in revenue and maintaining compliance with the voluntary system. Here, Law360 looks at the key areas where resource constraints are expected to hamper the IRS and what practitioners can do in response.
Importers Left With Uncertainty After US-China Trade Truce
U.S. importers have welcomed the latest trade truce with China and the ability to obtain key minerals without new licensing requirements for the next year, but continue to have questions about how commitments in the bilateral agreement will be met and concerns about risks of escalation.
Texas Supreme Court Rejects $4B Oil Spill Tax Refund Bid
The Texas Supreme Court declined Friday to hear an oil company's claim that it is owed a franchise tax refund for $4 billion in settlement expenses it paid due to its stake in the well involved in the Deepwater Horizon disaster.
Key Issues Facing The IRS Amid Looming Budget Cuts
The Internal Revenue Service is facing steep budget cuts in 2026, raising concerns about the agency's ability to handle taxpayer services and enforcement operations that are crucial for bringing in revenue and maintaining compliance with the voluntary system. Here, Law360 looks at the key areas where resource constraints are expected to hamper the IRS and what practitioners can do in response.
Importers Left With Uncertainty After US-China Trade Truce
U.S. importers have welcomed the latest trade truce with China and the ability to obtain key minerals without new licensing requirements for the next year, but continue to have questions about how commitments in the bilateral agreement will be met and concerns about risks of escalation.
Federal More
A D.C. federal judge temporarily stopped the IRS on Friday from sharing confidential taxpayer addresses with immigration enforcement officials, saying the agency's disclosures of addresses in August under an i... (more story)
The Internal Revenue Service released final regulations Friday for the excise tax on corporations' stock buybacks and similar transactions without the so-called funding rule that would apply the levy to a U.S.... (more story)
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s recent suggestion that the D.C. Bar would be prevented from reviewing misconduct complaints about U.S. Department of Justice attorneys runs contrary to federal statutes, ... (more story)
The U.S. Supreme Court should let stand the denial of $268 million in excise tax exemptions for a Tennessee truck company, the federal government urged, saying the case doesn't meet any of the traditional requ... (more story)
A Georgia tax official will collect interest on top of a $755,000 slander verdict she won from former reality TV personality and convicted felon Todd Chrisley after a jury found he falsely accused her of uneth... (more story)
The Eighth Circuit’s recent decision invalidating transfer pricing regulations in 3M Co. v. Commissioner may be the most significant tax case implementing Loper Bright's rejection of agency deference as a judi... (more story)
A libertarian organization urged the Sixth Circuit to affirm a finding that the federal government must meet a relatively high bar before it can force nonprofits to reveal the identities of their donors, sayin... (more story)
State & Local More
E-Cig Companies, NYC Agree On $1K Fines For Flavored Vapes
New York City has settled claims with two e-cigarette wholesalers that have agreed to stop pushing flavored vapes within the five boroughs and to pay $1,000 fines for future violations, while litigation contin... (more story)
Biz Group Asks NJ Court To Nix Tax Rule On Internet Activities
A New Jersey regulation that outlines when a company's internet activities exceed P.L. 86-272's protections against state income taxes should be struck down for conflicting with federal law, a business trade g... (more story)
Illinois Takes A Turn Under The Dance Cap: SALT In Review
From Illinois' flirtation with a wealth tax to laudable customer service in several departments of revenue, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
Phillips 66 Loses Appeal Of La. Refinery's $1 Billion Value
Phillips 66 cannot use the sale of a refinery in another state in its arguments for lowering the $1 billion assessment of a refinery in Louisiana, a state appeals court said, rejecting the company's appeal of the valuation.
Rule Amendments Pave Path For A Privilege Claim 'Offensive'
Litigators should consider leveraging forthcoming amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which will require early negotiations of privilege-related discovery claims, by taking an offensive posture... (more story)
Wis. Justices Urged To Grant Tax Break To Catholic Charities
The New Civil Liberties Alliance urged the Wisconsin Supreme Court to grant a group of Catholic charities an unemployment tax exemption in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that the state's application ... (more story)
US Asks To Join Cruise Industry's Challenge To Hawaii Tax
The federal government should be allowed to join a cruise industry trade group's case against the state of Hawaii and several counties over the extension of a transient occupancy tax to cruise passengers, the ... (more story)
Litigation Funding Could Create Ethics Issues For Attorneys
A litigation investor’s recent complaint claiming a New York mass torts lawyer effectively ran a Ponzi scheme illustrates how litigation funding arrangements can subject attorneys to legal ethics dilemmas and ... (more story)
NY Senator Pitches Bill To Regulate, Tax Hemp Beverages
A New York state senator has prefiled a bill to regulate the sale of intoxicating hemp cannabinoid beverages while levying a 10% tax on them.
New York City has settled claims with two e-cigarette wholesalers that have agreed to stop pushing flavored vapes within the five boroughs and to pay $1,000 fines for future violations, while litigation contin... (more story)
A New Jersey regulation that outlines when a company's internet activities exceed P.L. 86-272's protections against state income taxes should be struck down for conflicting with federal law, a business trade g... (more story)
From Illinois' flirtation with a wealth tax to laudable customer service in several departments of revenue, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
Phillips 66 cannot use the sale of a refinery in another state in its arguments for lowering the $1 billion assessment of a refinery in Louisiana, a state appeals court said, rejecting the company's appeal of the valuation.
Litigators should consider leveraging forthcoming amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which will require early negotiations of privilege-related discovery claims, by taking an offensive posture... (more story)
The New Civil Liberties Alliance urged the Wisconsin Supreme Court to grant a group of Catholic charities an unemployment tax exemption in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that the state's application ... (more story)
The federal government should be allowed to join a cruise industry trade group's case against the state of Hawaii and several counties over the extension of a transient occupancy tax to cruise passengers, the ... (more story)
A litigation investor’s recent complaint claiming a New York mass torts lawyer effectively ran a Ponzi scheme illustrates how litigation funding arrangements can subject attorneys to legal ethics dilemmas and ... (more story)
A New York state senator has prefiled a bill to regulate the sale of intoxicating hemp cannabinoid beverages while levying a 10% tax on them.
International More
Trump Excludes Some Brazilian Foods From Higher Tariffs
President Donald Trump has excluded many Brazilian food products from a 40% tariff, including coffee, cocoa, beef and fruits, after receiving word initial progress has been made in ongoing trade negotiations, ... (more story)
UK Inheritance Tax Revenue Up 4% So Far In 2025
The government collected £5.2 billion ($6.8 billion) in inheritance tax between April and October, figures published on Friday by Britain's tax authority show, extending a record-setting trend in the 2025/26 financial year.
EU Needs Unified Tax Benefits For Electricity, Experts Say
The European Union needs a unified approach to tax benefits that would treat electricity more favorably than fossil fuels amid an impasse surrounding its overhaul to the energy taxation system, experts told th... (more story)
FBAR Penalty Against Ex-Prof Is Constitutional, Court Says
A former professor must pay the entire nearly $438,000 penalty the Internal Revenue Service assessed against him for his failure to timely disclose foreign bank accounts, a California magistrate judge held, fi... (more story)
Judge Unlikely To Find Eaton's Debt To Parent Wasn't Real
A U.S. Tax Court judge said Wednesday that he's unlikely to find that the intercompany debt U.S.-based Eaton Inc. owed its Irish parent was unreal and should be recharacterized as equity, all but dismissing an... (more story)
Gov'ts Widely Back Mutual Agreement Procedure In UN Treaty
Governments expressed widespread support for adopting measures to strengthen the mutual agreement procedure within a protocol on dispute resolution in the United Nations tax convention during the latest round of negotiations.
Korea Wins Annulment Of $216M Lone Star Funds Award
South Korea on Tuesday prevailed in its bid to wipe out a $216 million arbitral award issued to an affiliate of Lone Star Funds, though the private equity firm has already vowed to resubmit its claim to a new tribunal.
President Donald Trump has excluded many Brazilian food products from a 40% tariff, including coffee, cocoa, beef and fruits, after receiving word initial progress has been made in ongoing trade negotiations, ... (more story)
The government collected £5.2 billion ($6.8 billion) in inheritance tax between April and October, figures published on Friday by Britain's tax authority show, extending a record-setting trend in the 2025/26 financial year.
The European Union needs a unified approach to tax benefits that would treat electricity more favorably than fossil fuels amid an impasse surrounding its overhaul to the energy taxation system, experts told th... (more story)
A former professor must pay the entire nearly $438,000 penalty the Internal Revenue Service assessed against him for his failure to timely disclose foreign bank accounts, a California magistrate judge held, fi... (more story)
A U.S. Tax Court judge said Wednesday that he's unlikely to find that the intercompany debt U.S.-based Eaton Inc. owed its Irish parent was unreal and should be recharacterized as equity, all but dismissing an... (more story)
Governments expressed widespread support for adopting measures to strengthen the mutual agreement procedure within a protocol on dispute resolution in the United Nations tax convention during the latest round of negotiations.
South Korea on Tuesday prevailed in its bid to wipe out a $216 million arbitral award issued to an affiliate of Lone Star Funds, though the private equity firm has already vowed to resubmit its claim to a new tribunal.