Tax

Tax-Exempt Orgs, Beware This 403(b) Plan Compliance Pitfall

A recent Internal Revenue Service publication puts 403(b) retirement plan sponsors on notice about a contribution aggregation compliance failure often identified in audits of government and tax-exempt entities, but risk can be minimized by ensuring plan documents and communications address the issue directly, say Greg Needles and Michael Gorman at Morgan Lewis.

Pandora Papers Reveal Need For Greater Tax Enforcement

The recent Pandora Papers leak is a reminder of the importance of transparency laws and proper funding for enforcement efforts against tax evasion as bad actors increasingly operate in the shadows, says Daren Firestone and Kevin Crenny at Levy Firestone.

Girardi Scandal Provides Important Ethics Lessons

The litigation and media maelstrom following allegations that famed plaintiffs attorney Thomas Girardi and his law firm misappropriated clients' funds provides myriad ethics and professional responsibility lessons for practitioners, especially with regard to misconduct reporting and liability insurance, says Elizabeth Tuttle Newman at Frankfurt Kurnit.

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Embracing ESG: Jabil GC Talks Compliance Preparation

Tried-and-true compliance lessons from recent decades can be applied to companies’ environmental, social and governance efforts, especially with regard to employee training and consistent application of policies — two factors that can create a foundation for ESG criteria to flourish, says Robert Katz at Jabil.

3 Ways CLOs Can Drive ESG Efforts

Chief legal officers are specially trained to see the legal industry's flaws, and they can leverage that perspective to push their companies toward effective environmental, social and governance engagement, says Mark Chandler at Stanford Law School.

How Law Firms Can Rethink Offices In A Post-Pandemic World

Based on their own firm's experiences, Kami Quinn and Adam Farra at Gilbert discuss strategies and unique legal industry considerations for law firms planning hybrid models of remote and in-office work in a post-COVID marketplace.

Ohio Tax Talk: Lessons From Apple Commercial Activity Audit

The Ohio Tax Commissioner’s recent audit of Apple, which led to allegations that the company underpaid its commercial activity tax, serves as a reminder for other Ohio taxpayers to educate themselves on the tax's exemptions and the supporting documentation they require, says Edward Rivin at Frost Brown.

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Embracing ESG: Baker Hughes CLO Talks Sustainability Team

For businesses focused on addressing environmental, social and governance considerations, a legal team that can coordinate sustainability efforts across the company can help to manage risk and compliance issues, anticipate and prepare for change, and identify new opportunities, says Regina Jones at Baker Hughes.

What Mainstreaming Of Litigation Finance Means For Industry

The rush of new capital and investors into the litigation funding space is expected to bring heightened competition on price and other key deal terms, but litigants will need to be more in tune with individual financiers' proclivities, says William Weisman at Therium Capital Management.

How Florida Borrowers Can Reduce Mortgage Taxes

The steady growth of Florida development activity involving apartments, retail centers, office buildings and other projects has been accompanied by a corresponding rise in transaction taxes, but there are some strategies that borrowers can employ to reduce mortgage taxes when buying or refinancing, says Gary Kaleita at Lowndes.

What 9th Circ. Privilege Test Means For Dual-Purpose Advice

While the Ninth Circuit's recent ruling in In re: Grand Jury confirms that courts should use the primary-purpose test to determine whether communications with both legal and business purposes are shielded by the attorney-client privilege, questions on the application of the test remain, says Scott Tenley at Michelman & Robinson.

Lifting The Veil On The Supreme Court's Shadow Docket

Following headline-making U.S. Supreme Court emergency orders on Texas’ new abortion law, COVID-19 restrictions and more, Vetan Kapoor, counsel to Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, examines the court's so-called shadow docket and its decision-making procedures, including questions around transparency, timing and precedential effect.

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Embracing ESG: United Natural Foods GC Talks Bottom Line

In prioritizing environmental, social and governance initiatives as strategic value drivers, corporate general counsel can leverage meaningful ESG progress to benefit both the business's bottom line and the wider world, says Jill Sutton at United Natural Foods.

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.