Forum Discusses Future State of the IRS Nina Olson, the national taxpayer advocate, heard from tax practitioners and taxpayer groups on how the Internal Revenue Service can modernize its taxpayer services.  Troy Lewis, chair of the AICPA's Tax Executive Committee, called for better training and technology and IRS cooperation with stakeholders.  Ann Marie Maloney, AICPA communications manager, reports. To re ...

The Benefits of Active Listening Practicing active listening can be difficult in the distraction-filled business world, but it's critical for engaging employees and letting them know you value their ideas and opinions.  Managers should still ask for input and feedback from their direct reports even if they aren't sure they will be able to fix the issues that are raised.  Samantha White, CGMA Magazine senior ...

The regulator says the firm had "widespread failures" in its anti-money laundering programs for both its employee and independent channels.  This is the largest penalty the regulator has dished out for that type of infraction, describes Andrew Welsch, senior editor of On Wall Street. To read the full article in Financial Planning, click: FINRA Fines Raymond James Record $17M for Compliance Failures. ...

This blog outlines some recent changes to the impairment testing regime which provides corporate finance managers with periodic updates and commentary around several topics including impairment testing.  Lucas Parris, senior member of Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Valuation Group, provides some insight as to what impact this may have. To read the full article in Mercer Capital's Financial Reporting B ...

Estate, Gift, and Tax Projects in the Horizon At the ABA Mid-Years Tax Section Meeting, Cathy Hughes and Melissa Liquerman of the IRS Office of Chief Counsel revealed a number of projects that are underway at the Service. In this article, several of those projects pertinent to valuation analysts are discussed, including the status of sec. 2704 regulations. ...

What is Generally Accepted by the Relevant Community? (Part II of VII) What is the Frye standard? How does it differ from Daubert? In this article the author details the Frye standard and what is “generally accepted”. ...

Could that Opinion Survive a Daubert Challenge? (Part III of III) This is the third and final article of the series. Part I provided background for this thought exercise and identified the size of the hole the 76ers had to climb out of to make the playoffs. Part II addressed the path an expert might take to arrive at his or her opinion. This part addresses the implications of the thought exercise on valuati ...

Use Big Data to Improve Performance Using big data to inform business decisions can give organizations an edge over their competitors, IBM Vice President Paul Zikopoulos said Tuesday at the AICPA's spring council meeting.  Ken Tysiac, JofA editorial director, describes how to start integrating data analytics into your plans. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: IBM Big Data Expert ...

Data Analysis Skills Lacking Among Finance Teams Better training and better hiring practices can help organizations make up for a skills gap related to data analysis.  Keeping pace with rapid changes in technology is a cause of concern amongst CFOs.  So, too, is talent management—finding good talent, keeping it, and nurturing it.  Neil Amato, CGMA Magazine senior editor, explains. To read the full article i ...

CPA Firms Evolving in a Changing Marketplace Technology, specialization, succession issues, and other factors are combining to change the marketplace for CPA firms.  Ken Tysiac, JofA editorial director, explains how focusing on culture, talent, and clients can help firms evolve along with the changes. To read the full article in Journal of Accountancy, click: How CPA Firms can Evolve for Continued Success. ...

(Part I of VII) FRE 702 is the law that federal judge’s must abide by when assessing expert testimony for admissibility. This article gives brief overview of the three leading Supreme Court cases that ultimately influenced the amendment to FRE 702. ...

Could that Opinion Survive a Daubert Challenge? (Part II) This is the second article of a three-part article. Part I provided background for this thought exercise and identified the size of the hole that the 76ers had to climb out of to make the playoffs. Part II addresses the path an expert might take to arrive at his or her opinion. This part of the article has two objectives. First, it attempts to use a ...

Fed Bolsters its Focus on Financial Stability The Federal Reserve has expanded its financial-policy office to include the Division of Financial Stability in an attempt to spot vulnerabilities in the U.S. financial system.  "The change reflects the growth in responsibilities and staffing associated with the board's commitment to identifying and analyzing risks to financial stability and to developing and eva ...

PCAOB Proposes Revised Changes to Auditor's Reporting Model The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board voted Wednesday to propose revised changes to a standard that would modify the auditor's reporting model to give investors more information.  Ken Tysiac, JofA editorial director, discusses that the proposal comes in response to comments from the public. To read the full article in Journal of Accountancy ...

Dell Inc. engaged in a management buyout (“MBO”) in October 2013 that effectively took the Company private, leaving Michael Dell in control (75% of its stock) with a financial sponsor (25% of its stock).  This week, Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster of the Delaware Court of Chancery filed an opinion in In Re: Appraisal of Dell Inc. determining the fair value of the dissenters’ shares.  This post looks to see ...

Part 1: The Income Tax Treatment of Personal Economic Damages Awards Financial experts are frequently asked about the tax impact of damage awards, both paid and received. The complexities of the Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”) and judicial interpretations thereof make determining the taxability of receipts or payments difficult. The same is true when dealing with the taxability of economic damages awarded to ...

Could that Opinion Survive a Daubert Challenge? (Part I) This article is comprised of three parts. Part I provides background for this thought exercise and identifies the size of the hole the 76ers had to climb out of to make the playoffs. Part II will address the path an expert might take to arrive at his or her opinion. Part III will address the implications of this thought exercise on valuation-related D ...

Don't Let Clients Fall into This Social Security Tax Trap Social Security recipients may face disproportionately high tax rates because of the way the IRS calculates income with respect to Social Security.  So-called combined income includes adjusted gross income as well as tax-free income, half of Social Security income and some add-ons.  Paul Norr, certified financial planner with Bucks County Financial P ...

U.S. Dollar's Dominance Seen Compounding Global Debt Problem The biggest-ever burden of peacetime debt worldwide, paired with the U.S. dollar's sustained role as the dominant currency, is raising concern about what will happen when interest rates finally rise.  Mike Dolan explains that the main problem is that the dollar denominates that debt pile. To read the full article in Reuters, click: Why Being the K ...

Using Crowdsourcing to Perfect a Business Idea Some startup businesses are using crowdsourcing services to gather input from a large number of people and test their ideas and business strategies.  This can be a wise strategy, as the best ideas may come from outsiders, said Elizabeth Gerber of Northwestern University. To read the full article in The New York Times, click: Crowdsourcing to Get Ideas, and Perh ...