Practice and client management

The IRS said a tax break is now available to purchase new motor vehicles in states that do not have a sales tax.

Former BDO Seidman Chairman and CEO Denis Field, and a former BDO tax partner, along with five other lawyers and bankers from outside the firm, have been indicted in a tax fraud case involving tax shelters marketed by the firm that allegedly generated over $7 billion in fraudulent tax losses.

What can we expect from IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman’s proposal to set higher standards of conduct for tax preparers?

Former attorney and CPA Steven Krell has pleaded guilty to a tax charge in connection with the embezzlement of approximately $1,476,900 from two of his clients.

The Treasury Department’s Inspector General for Tax Administration found errors and legal violations in nearly half the IRS taxpayer property seizures it studied for a new report.

Last week I was watching one of the 15 versions of Law& Order that currently air on NBC, when I saw a commercial trumpeting theanticipated resurrection of General Motors.

Motor sports promoter International Speedway Corp. will get back $97 million of the $118 million it deposited with the IRS as part of a tax dispute, plus another $14 million in interest.

Amid complaints and confusion, the IRS is temporarily suspending a new reporting requirement for foreign bank accounts that would have extended the mandate to people who are not citizens or residents of the U.S.

The former chief executive of the investment company Quellos, along with two attorneys, have been indicted in a tax fraud and kickback scheme.

House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee Chairman John Lewis, D-Ga., criticized the IRS’s handling of taxpayer phone calls at a hearing that reviewed IRS operations and budget proposals, with IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman in attendance.

The IRS has filed a tax lien of $819,848 on the 2004 presidential campaign of Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., but his office claims the debt has long been paid.

Former BDO Seidman vice chairman Charles W. Bee Jr., has pleaded guilty to tax fraud charges stemming from tax shelters marketed to the firm’s wealthy clients.

IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman intends to propose a comprehensive set of recommendations by the end of 2009 to ensure “uniform and high ethical standards of conduct for tax preparers” in order to increase taxpayer compliance.

IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman laid out the Obama administration’s plans for cracking down on offshore tax evasion, including extending the statute of limitations.

The new administration released its budget and included its revenue proposals, detailed by the Treasury Department in the "Greenbook." There is quite a bit of material, so I want to focus on the proposals that didn't happen that are of concern to accountants and clients.

A California businessman was sentenced to a five-year jail term for tax evasion and ordered to pay a $75,000 fine, as well as given a tongue lashing by the judge, after he failed to report the profits from his marble tile company on his personal income tax return, claiming the business was owned by a “pure trust.”

Minority-owned businesses were less successful in obtaining awards from the Treasury Department’s New Markets Tax Credits program than non-minority entities in recent years, according to a new government report.

Clifton Gunderson has moved its headquarters from Peoria, Ill., to Milwaukee, making it the largest accounting firm to be based in Wisconsin, as new CEO Krista McMasters takes the reins.

THOMSON REUTERS STARTS TAXWATCH UNIVERSITY

Under the heading, "Nothing in the tax law turns out to be easy," add the temporary motor vehicle sales tax deduction enacted in the 2009 Recovery Act. The concept sounds simple enough: Give consumers a tax incentive to purchase new vehicles in an effort to help the ailing auto industry. Its execution, however, has left many tax advisors scratching their heads over the number of issues that have been raised in connection with this new deduction.