Washington D.C. Tax Law Blog

On December 6, 2019, the United States Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York issued a press release announcing that a Lewisboro, New York town justice pled guilty to tax evasion in federal court.1The new release reminds taxpayers all over the country that the authorities are diligently pursuing tax evaders in an effort […]

On December 5, 2019, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released the IRS’s Criminal Investigation division’s (CI) 100th Annual Report.1Besides highlighting significant CI successes and criminal enforcement actions during the fiscal year of 2019, the report unambiguously presents the IRS’s intent to pursue higher conviction rates and focus on cryptocurrency and cybercrime. The report also marks […]

A taxpayer is generally not required to recognize a gain or loss as a result of a like-kind exchange under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) §1031. Significantly, IRC §1031 was amended by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, such that nonrecognition of gain or loss is only applicable to real property exchanges completed after […]

One of the leading resources for public accountants, Accounting Today, recently released a report analyzing some of the top trends when it comes to tax audits. According to the report, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) conducted 991,168 tax audits in 2018. Three of the more important takeaways from the report include: The IRS will likely […]

The IRS understands that the tax code is long and confusing. Therefore, the agency is willing to cut people slack if they make an honest mistake on their taxes. This reasonable attempt to comply with tax code is not a crime but referred to as negligence. However, tax evasion – willfully not paying a tax […]

On November 20, 2019, the IRS posted a series of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) which includes much needed guidance regarding rental real estate in the context of the Qualified Business Income (QBI) deduction under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) §199A.1A few of the particularly noteworthy FAQs include: (1) when rental real estate is treated as a […]

On November 6, 2019, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the capture of a tax fugitive.1 According to the DOJ announcement, the fugitive was a tax fraud promoter who had been on the run since the date he was supposed to start serving a 10-year prison sentence. The agency labeled him a fugitive […]

President Donald Trump recently stated in a Tweet that he was changing his residence to Florida. According to the tweet, the move was the result of poor treatment by politicians in New York even though he “pays millions of dollars in city, state and local taxes each year.” But will the move result in tax […]

The Department of Justice (DOJ) recently announced the arrest, conviction and sentencing of a former Internal Revenue Service (IRS) employee. The crime: tax evasion. What is tax evasion? Tax evasion is more than just a simple mistake on one’s tax returns. When the government accuses a taxpayer of this crime, they are accusing the person […]

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced a new tax payment option for those who have fallen behind on their tax obligations. Although the agency states the option is meant to make it easier for taxpayers to pay their bill, tax professionals have voiced concerns it could lead to abuse. What is this new tax […]