Houston Tax Attorney Blog
Donations to Pastor are Taxable Income, Not Gifts
The distinction between taxable compensation and non-taxable gifts comes up in a number of contexts and has led to a number of tax disputes. Severance payments made to workers are an example. The recent Felton v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2018-168, co…
Planning for Start-Up Businesses, Yacht Rental Example
New businesses may not be immediately profitable. To help mitigate the financial risk, many businesses are started by workers who have a day job. If the business is not immediately profitable it can help the owner finance the business if the owner is…
Income Earned by Child Taxed to Parent
If a minor child earns income, is the income taxable to the parent or the child? There have been quite a few tax disputes involving this question. The Ray v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2018-160 court case provides an opportunity to consider these rules…
Conservation Easement Denied for Private Golf Course
Tax benefits can cause investors to put money were they otherwise would not. The conservation easement is one example. Conservation easements reward investors with charitable deductions for putting money into projects that conserve real property. Th…
Line of Credit Standby Fees, to Deduct or to Capitalize?
Many businesses rely on a standby line of credit to cover their expenses, to weather downturns, and to grow. But this credit can be expensive in terms of interest and fees. The fees can be problematic as they may not be deductible for federal income t…
Court Says Partnership is Worth Less, Not Entirely Worthless
The IRS often challenges tax loss deductions. In many cases, it does so by challenging the year in which the loss is allowable. It can be difficult to determine which year the loss should be taken. When an asset is losing value over time, there is a…
Intercompany Fee Arrangement Lacks Economic Substance
If the employees and owners of a profitable C corporation set up a related entity and lease the employee-owner’s services back to the C corporation, can the C corporation deduct the payments? Taking it a step further, what if the related entity …
The Trade or Business Requirement for the Sec. 199A Deduction
The new Sec. 199A deduction that provides a 20 percent benefit for flow through entities has been in the news as of late. The Yaryan v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2018-129, case provides an opportunity to consider one aspect of this new Sec. 199A deduct…
Litigation Award for Damage to Dairy Farm Ordinary Not Capital
If a dairy farmer receives an award for damages to the farm, is the damage award capital or ordinary? The distinction is important. Unlike ordinary income, capital gains are generally afforded lower tax rates and not subject to self-employment taxes….
Whistleblower Using Public Information Cannot Remain Anonymous
We have previously written about the court’s position that serial whistleblowers, those who submit more than one whistleblower claim with the IRS, cannot remain anonymous when litigating the right to their whistleblower claims. In Whistleblower …