Bills passed in the 93rd General Assembly reviewed by the State and Local Taxation Section CouncilBy Louise CalvertState and Local Taxation, September 2003Amends the Property Tax Code. Provides that the collector shall collect $12 (now, $10) from the proceeds of each tax sale to cover the costs of registered or certified mailing and the costs of advertisement and publication with respect to the notice of judgment and sale.
Analysis of two recent tax cases decided by the Illinois appellate courtBy Stanley R. KaminskiState and Local Taxation, August 2003In JM Aviation, Inc. v. Department of Revenue, Illinois Appellate Court, First District, First Division (June 2, 2003), the taxpayer, JM Aviation (an Illinois corporation) acquired an aircraft from Southern Aircraft Services, Inc. (SAS) (a Florida corporation).
Recent decisions in real estate tax casesBy Timothy E. MoranState and Local Taxation, August 2003Appellate court reversed decision of Department of Revenue (DOR) granting exemption for residence owned by church group and occupied by "ministry teacher."
Estate and gift tax updateBy Edward J. Schoen, Jr.Federal Taxation, June 2003On December 24, 2002, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued final regulations (T.D. 9032) under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) section 645 regarding the election to treat certain revocable trusts as part of an estate.
Tax administration and procedure updateBy James S. ZmudaFederal Taxation, June 2003The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued temporary and proposed regulations pursuant to Code §§6107 and 6695 to facilitate electronic filing and record keeping by tax return preparers.
Illinois Supreme Court and Appellate Court rulingsState and Local Taxation, May 2003In Blessing White v. Zehnder, 329 Ill. App. 3d 714, 768 N.E.2d 332 (1st Dist., Mar. 29, 2002) the appellate court affirmed the trial court's ruling that the gain from a sale of substantially all of the assets of a corporation was nonbusiness income when the seller ceases operations and distributes the sales proceeds to its shareholders.
Important tax laws & legal rulings of 2002State and Local Taxation, May 2003Public Act 92-0603 (SB 1543, Peterson)--Decouples Illinois from the federal accelerated depreciation rules. A
IRS temporarily halts off-road tax proposal*Mineral Law, May 2003HOUSTON--The Internal Revenue Service has at least temporarily halted its attempts to impose federal retail excise taxes on nonfarm equipment used by the oil and gas drilling and well servicing industries, reports the Association of Energy Service Companies.
Tax rulings and decisionsBy Mark E. ZumdahlTrusts and Estates, May 2003The Tax Court case of Ralph H. Davis v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo 2003-55, reminds us of the danger of placing limitations on the right of a surviving spouse to trust income if a marital deduction is desired.
Will bankruptcy wipe out your taxes? Probably notBy Charles A. KingCommercial Banking, Collections, and Bankruptcy, May 2003Often people and businesses have financial difficulties which result in the need to file for bankruptcy protection.
As good as it gets: Appeals’ fast track mediation, settlement and post-appeals mediation*By Karen V. KoleFederal Taxation, April 2003The Appeals mission is to resolve tax controversies, without litigation, on a basis that is fair and impartial to both the Government and the taxpayer and in a manner that will enhance voluntary compliance and public confidence in the integrity and efficiency of the Service.
Case synopsesBy Stanley R. KaminskiState and Local Taxation, April 2003On December 2, 2002, the Circuit Court's reversed its earlier decision (of February 5, 2002) in favor of Mead Corporation in which it held that "gross receipts" from the sale of investments should be included in the apportionment factor for income tax purposes, rather than the "net income" from such sales.
Corporate and partnership tax updateBy Michael L. EnglishFederal Taxation, April 2003In Seggerman Farms, Inc., 2002 TNT 207-5, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, affirming the Tax Court, has held that shareholders of a family farm corporation must recognize gain on the transfer of assets to the corporation where the liabilities assumed by the corporation exceeds the adjusted basis of the property transferred.
Creative tax strategy for business clientsBy Patrick F. DalyFederal Taxation, April 2003Have you ever had a business client call and tell you that they are moving the business?
Estate planning updateBy Kelli E. MadiganFederal Taxation, April 2003As practitioners await the Tax Court's decision in Strangi, 15 T.C. 478, with respect to the IRS' section 2036 claim to include all of the assets held in the family limited partnership in the estate of the decedent, we see other section 2036 claims approved in Thompson and Kimbell.
Follow-up to previous articles: Further developmentsBy Timothy E. MoranState and Local Taxation, April 2003Follow-up to: "Recent Changes to the Indemnity Fund Act," published in ISBA Tax Trends, April, 2001, Volume 44, Number 4.
Tax Trends digest of topics available on the Web siteBy Karen Dimond & Mary Ann ConnellyState and Local Taxation, March 2003"A Review of the 18th Annual Conference of the National Conference of State Tax Judges" by Judge Alexander White. Judge White reviews the three-day conference and the history and future of the National Conference of State Tax Judges.
Creative tax strategy for business clientsBy Patrick F. DalyBusiness Advice and Financial Planning, February 2003Have you ever had a business client call and tell you that they are moving the business?
Will bankruptcy wipe out your taxes? Probably notBy Charles A. King & Julie-April MontgomeryState and Local Taxation, February 2003Often people and businesses have financial difficulties that result in the need to file for bankruptcy protection.
Are tax returns privileged documents?By William F. MarutzkyFederal Taxation, January 2003Generally speaking, pretrial discovery rules are meant to be interpreted liberally in accordance with the policy favoring broad pretrial discovery
Individual income tax updateBy James S. ZmudaFederal Taxation, January 2003In United States v. Galletti, 298 F.3d 1107, as amended, 2002 U.S. App. LEXIS 23825 (9th Cir. 2002), the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (Ninth Circuit) held an assessment for employment tax liability against a partnership was not an assessment against individual general partners, who were separate taxpayers.
Tax administration and procedure updateBy Thomas F. ArendsFederal Taxation, January 2003The following update contains selected information provided by the IRS Small Business/Self-Employed Taxpayer Education and Communication Group which periodically issues various news releases on IRS rulings, highlights on proposed regulations on tax procedure, and other tax administration announcements that may be relevant to the practitioner community.
Computer-stored data acquired from real estate services: Should the Property Tax Appeal Board allow it into the record?By Christopher B. KaczynskiState and Local Taxation, December 2002The issue presented by this article is not a factual issue, but an issue of law concerning the evidentiary rules of the Property Tax Appeal Board, the rules of evidence in Illinois, and the admission of computer-stored data acquired from real estate services for the purpose of providing evidence of sales of comparable property.