Taxpayer Loses Theft Loss Deduction Case

In a recent Tax Court opinion[1], the taxpayer Michael Shaut (“Mr. Shaut”), representing himself, contested the IRS’s determination of a tax deficiency. The court had to decide on several key issues, including whether Mr. Shaut was entitled to deductions for theft loss, legal fees, and net operating losses, as well as whether he was liable…
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Provisions to Consider When Using an LLC for Asset Protection

Holding property in a limited liability company, or LLC, can provide a certain level of asset protection to individuals as opposed to holding such property in their individual capacity. However, that is not to say that a good asset protection plan is as simple as transferring property to a formed LLC and calling it a…
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Will Contests in Mississippi

As previously written upon by my colleague[1], probate is the process of proving a decedent’s Will to be his or her true Last Will and Testament. But, what happens when a decedent executed a Will when he or she lacked mental capacity? Or while under pressure from a certain beneficiary? Or the Will was not…
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The Often-Overlooked Benefits of Qualified Small Business Stock

If you started a business organized as a C corporation, you may be able to avoid some, and possibly all, tax liability when you sell the stock of the C corporation. As previously written upon by Gray Edmondson,[1] Section 1202 of the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”) provides for the exclusion of gain on Qualified Small…
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Yet Another Proposed Listed Transaction – CRATs and Annuities

On March 25, 2024, the IRS issued Prop. Reg. Section 1.6011-15[1], which designates certain transactions involving charitable remainder annuity trusts (“CRATs”) in tandem with single premium immediate annuity (“SPIA”) products as listed transactions[2]. Last year, I wrote an article in which the Tax Court decided against a taxpayer couple who undertook this exact transaction.[3] Now,…
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The 2024 Dirty Dozen – The IRS’s Annual Warning

Every year, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) releases its “Dirty Dozen.” The Dirty Dozen, as written previously about by my colleague, Devin Mills,[1] is a list of twelve prevalent scams the IRS bodes taxpayers to be weary of during tax season, as they “put taxpayers, businesses, and the tax professional community at risk of losing…
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The Corporate Transparency Act Receives its First Blow in Court

The late Justice Antonin Scalia once remarked that federal judges should have a rubber stamp that’s says “Stupid But Constitutional.” The Constitution, in other words, does not allow judges to strike down a law merely because it is burdensome, foolish, or offensive. Yet the inverse is also true – the wisdom of a policy is…
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Intentionally Defective Grantor Trusts – Have your cake and eat it, too

Shortly before his passing, Benjamin Franklin uttered one of his more infamous quotes, “In this world, nothing is certain except death and taxes.” With the certainty of death implicitly comes another: everyone will transfer his or her wealth, whether in life or after death. How a person transfers wealth will affect how the other certainty,…
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Monetized Installment Sales – Proposed Regulations will Lead to Burdensome Reporting Requirements and Increased Scrutiny

Monetized Installment Sales, as previously written upon by Gray Edmondson,[1] have been subject to increased scrutiny by the IRS in recent years, making its “Dirty Dozen” list in each of the last three years.[2] The IRS remains on the offensive in scrutinizing such transactions, issuing proposed regulation under Internal Revenue Code Section 6011 in August…
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Directions

[**Practice Alert: Corporate Transparency Act is Here: What You Need to Know**](https://esapllc.com/practice-alert-cta-mar-2024/)
[**Practice Alert: Corporate Transparency Act is Here: What You Need to Know**](https://esapllc.com/practice-alert-cta-mar-2024/)