Legal Updates & Commentary for Tax & Estate Planning
A basic precept of effective estate planning is for a member of an older generation to transfer[i] property to a family member of a younger generation – for example, stock in a closely held corporation – that is reasonably anticipated to appreciate in value over time. In this way, not only…
Do you remember the scene from “History of the World Part I” when Mel Brooks, in the role of Moses, calls out “Hear me, oh hear me! All pay heed! The Lord, the Lord Jehovah has given unto you these fifteen [he drops one of the three tablets cradled in his arms…
A couple of months back, a local business reporter asked whether I could identify one kind of corporate transaction that was occupying more of my time than any other. When I asked whether they were referring to any specific industry, form of M&A transaction,[i] or type of buyer,[ii] they replied that they were…
Over the last few months, we’ve been working on a number of transactions that involve the division of a closely held corporation or partnership.
In each instance, the impetus for the division has been the desire of the business entity’s owners to go their separate ways so as to enable them to…
In theory, the primary purpose of the income tax, as a body of law, is to raise from the governed the resources that the government requires in order to perform its most basic functions.[i] However, as society has evolved and its needs have changed, and as “the economy” has become more…
The IRS continues to issue guidance in the much debated area of corporate spinoffs. A recently published ruling examined the federal income tax treatment of the two steps that comprise a so-called “north-south” transaction.” In doing so, it provides taxpayers with some welcome certainty.
A “north-south” transaction is one in which a parent corporation (…
No, I am not referring to some fleeting summer romance. After all, “. . . summer friends will melt away like summer snows.” (George R.R. Martin, A Feast for Crows).
Rather, I am referring to the abundant guidance that the IRS has issued or proposed this summer regarding the requirements that must be satisfied…
Be sure to start with Part I, here!
Real Estate as an Active Business
The active conduct of a trade or business does not include the holding for investment purposes of land, or other property, or the ownership and operation (including the leasing) of real property used in a trade or business, unless the…
This is a question that we encounter with some frequency in the context of family-owned corporations, and the backdrop against which the issue arises is not uncommon.
In the Beginning
The older generation may have acquired a building many years ago, either as an investment that would generate a stream of rental income from unrelated…
