Practice Management

The Internal Revenue Service has announced five director-level appointments in its Large and Mid-Size Business Division, which serves corporations, Subchapter S corporations and partnerships with assets greater than $10 million.New directors were named for four of the LMSB's five industries, as well as for the LMSB's pre-filing and technical guidance unit. Among the changes:

Tegra Financial Partners, a subsidiary of Atlanta's Habif, Arogeti & Wynne LLP, announced that it has acquired pension-consulting firm Olson & Swenson Inc.Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Boston-area firm Braver PC announced the acquisition of the practice of CPA Scott A. Kanter, formerly of Brown & Brown LLP. Financial terms were not disclosed.Cynthia Hickey, Kanter's associate for the last 15 years, will lead the transition of the accounting practice from Brown & Brown to Braver, and become Braver's first female shareholder.

Sage Software announced a deal to acquire the mobile division of Corum Corp., a Concord, Ontario-based business partner that specializes in customer relationship management.

The selection by an entity of its company structure, its fiscal year and its method of accounting are the three main mechanisms that a company can employ in performing substantial tax planning, according to Nicholas Crocetti, CPA, a partner in CBiz Accounting Tax & Advisory."The concept of an accounting method is much broader than what many people believe," he said. "Most companies employ a number of accounting methods. First, they have an overall method of accounting - for example, the cash method, accrual or some form of hybrid method. Additionally, companies need accounting methods for every timing item they encounter in their business, such as how to account for inventory, bad debts, vacation pay and self-insured medical expenses."

As part of the recently signed pension bill, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service will have to better define what constitutes "good" condition for donations of clothing or household items.The IRS can deny deductions for donated items such as furniture, appliances, linens or electronics if the items aren't in appropriate condition.

A representative from the Justice Department told a Senate panel that the agency is satisfied with the tactics used by prosecutors to pursue corporate criminals.

Continuing with a push to help its own customers grow their business, Intuit Inc. will include a number of Google Inc. services aimed at boosting the online profile of small businesses in its QuickBooks 2007 product line.

Thomson Tax & Accounting, a Thomson Corp. business, has acquired PassOnline, a provider of electronic continuing professional education.

State and local tax consulting firm Ryan & Co. announced that it has acquired Royal Oak, Mich.-based JohnBernard LLC, as well as combined with Canadian sales tax recovery firm Robert Brakel & Associates Ltd.