SCOTUS

Sales tax rate changes declined slightly last year, but the trend of more new districts imposing taxes on online transactions continued in 2019.

The Supreme Court vacated and remanded Tuesday an appeals court decision that found under federal common law, a tax refund due from a joint tax return generally belongs to the company responsible for the losses that form the basis of the refund, rejecting a nearly half-century-old precedent.

The justices let stand an appeals ruling that precluded a tax refund to movie producers, deferring to an IRS regulation that ended the common-law mailbox rule for refund claims, even though Clarence Thomas reversed his position on an earlier case.

The court is set to rule whether a parent company or a subsidiary can claim the money.

The year 2019 was a continuation of the banner year of 2018 for major law and administrative changes in sales and use tax compliance, inspired and driven in large part by the Supreme Court’s decision in South Dakota v Wayfair.

SCOTUS will hear arguments in March, and likely rule by the end of June.

A U.S. Supreme Court justice temporarily blocked subpoenas that would force Deutsche Bank AG and Capital One Financial Corp. to turn over years of President Donald Trump’s financial documents to two House committees.

The president wants the justices to decide whether he has to hand over records held by his accounting firm, Mazars.

Lawmakers say Congress has broad authority to investigate misconduct by the president.

The president urged the court for the second time in as many days to insulate him from an investigation.