Practice Management

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.

Using one of dozens of scenarios, undercover government auditors were mostly satisfied with the levels of assistance they received at several of the Internal Revenue Service's Taxpayer Assistance Centers.

The Internal Revenue Service announced a record settlement for a long-running a transfer pricing dispute with pharmaceutical giant Glaxo SmithKline Holdings Inc. and the company's subsidiaries.

As previously announced, the Internal Revenue Service will soon begin charging user fees for the residency certification letters commonly used to avoid foreign value added taxes.