Personal Damages Calculations and Exposure to COVID-19 Financial experts who, in the past, have been reluctant to take on personal injury economic damages as part of their practice should reconsider that decision today. Not only is the field growing and on the verge of a potentially huge boom driven by the COVID-19 crisis, there are plenty of resources to help you quickly get up to speed performing these types of damages analysis. This article presents three reasons for valuation practitioners to consider adding personal injury, wrongful death, and wrongful termination damages calculations to their practice, and an introduction to resources…
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On May 21, 2018, President Trump signed into law a resolution disapproving the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) guidance on Indirect Auto Lending and Compliance with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. In that Guidance, the CFPB expressed the view that certain indirect auto lenders—that is, lenders that coordinate with dealerships to provide auto loans to consumers—are subject to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and its anti-discriminatory provisions… To read the full article in Consumer Law Round-Up, click: Congress Upends CFPB’s Indirect Auto Lending Guidance, Spares Payday Lending Rule.
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The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018, H.R. 1625, which is the $1.3 trillion spending bill that Congress passed, contains a few tax-related provisions, including funding for the IRS and technical corrections to various recent pieces of tax legislation. It also amends the centralized partnership audit regime and changes the Sec. 199A deduction for farmers who sell grain to agricultural cooperatives. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Federal Spending Bill Includes Tax Provisions.
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U.S. has Leeway on Debt Limit, Economists Say Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has called on Congress to raise the national debt limit before its August recess, but the federal government will not face a crisis if that does not happen, experts say. The U.S. has enough borrowing power to carry it through “sometime in early September,” economists at Wells Fargo said. To read the full article in Bloomberg Markets, click: U.S. Has Until at Least September to Lift Debt Cap, Analysts Say.
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Taxpayers and practitioners are still waiting for Congress to agree on a package extending all currently expired tax breaks. Here’s a look at the expired provisions and the actions that are pending to extend them. Sally P. Schreiber, senior editor for Tax Insider, examines tax incentives for individuals, business, and energy-related provisions. To find out more on The Tax Adviser article, click: Expired Tax Provisions: No Relief In Sight?
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The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) recently sent a letter to the IRS calling a proposed “voluntary” certification program for unenrolled tax return preparers “unlawful and improper”. In a recent ruling, Loving, No. 13-5061 (D.C. Cir. 2/11/14), it was held that the IRS does not have the statutory authority to regulate tax return preparers. In the aftermath, IRS Commissioner, John Koskinen, stated that while the agency may look to Congress to grant the authority it seeks, it was considering implementing a “voluntary certification program” in the meantime, calling it “continuing education”. In a strongly-worded response to the IRS, the…
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Congressional Democrats have proposed financing student-loan legislation by expanding payroll taxes on subchapter S corporations and partnerships. The bill would levy Social Security and Medicare taxes on all business income if the firm is engaged in professional services, such as investment advice, or if 75% or more of the gross income of the firm is attributable to three or fewer shareholders. Investment News’ Mark Schoeff Jr. reports that in Washington parlance, the phrase “pay for” has become a noun, “payfor.” This term trends during the legislative process, as lawmakers seek “payfors” to offset spending or tax cuts contained in bills.…
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Lawyers and Accountants Once Put Integrity First So asserts Mark W. Everson, commissioner of the IRS from 2003 to 2007, in an opinion piece for the Sunday NY Times: Three or four decades ago, investors and regulators could rely on these professionals to provide a check on corporate risk-taking. But over time, attorneys and auditors came to see their practices not as independent firms that strengthen the integrity of capitalism, but as businesses measured chiefly by the earnings of their partners. . . . Recent decades have seen a new model take root: a business plan tied to partner earnings. Obviously,…