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November 2009 |  BY DAVID W. RANDOLPH, PH.D. |  Article

Despite the recent downturn in the American housing market, one of the highestvalue assets owned by most taxpayers remains their home. While many taxpayers have seen the value of their home decline, those in locales where home values have remained relatively strong—such as parts of some Southern and Midwestern states—could still realize a gain upon the sale of their home.

October 2009 |  BY JUSTIN P. RANSOME, ESQ., CPA, VINU SATCHIT, CPA |  Article

Although many investment assets have lost value in the past year, individuals coming to CPAs for estate planning advice often hold highly appreciated assets, and many want to make significant charitable gifts. For that reason, charitable remainder trusts remain a popular method of reducing assets subject to estate tax.

October 2009 |  BY MARK E. POWELL, ESQ. |  Article

Sooner or later, every estate planner comes face to face with the generationskipping transfer tax (GSTT). Many practitioners do not feel up to the challenge because this particular tax has a reputation for being as treacherous as the sea. But after you boil down all the complications, you’re left with a fairly direct set of circumstances to watch for.

October 2009 |  BY ELLEN COOK, CPA, ANNA FOWLER, CPA, PH.D., ANNETTE NELLEN, ESQ., CPA, NORA STAPLETON, CPA, JOSEPH W. WALLOCH, CPA |  Article

Given the breadth and variety of tax relief provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, PL 1115, one or more could affect your clients’ individual returns for the 2009 tax year. Many are intended to provide relief for taxpayers in financial distress, stimulate consumer spending or provide an incentive for more environmentally friendly living.

September 2009 |  BY DAVID A. STOLZ, CPA/PFS, CFP |  Article

When Bill and Jen decided to divorce, they never expected their personal residence to become a major problem. Initially, Jen thought she wanted to stay in the house. She was emotionally attached to the home, and she thought remaining in it would help minimize the impact of the divorce on the couple’s daughter, since the home was the only one their daughter had ever known.

June 2009 |  BY JOHN C. ZIMMERMAN |  Article

The financial collapse of highprofile investment institutions has generated billions of dollars of losses. A recent report notes that federal and state prosecutors “are preparing for a surge of prosecutions of financial fraud.𔄣 A question may arise as to whether these losses for tax purposes are to be treated as investment losses, giving rise to capital loss limitations, or theft losses, which can be deducted without any limitations under the casualty loss rules.

May 2009 |  BY Nell Adkins, B. Charlene Henderson |  Article

The firsttime homebuyer credit, introduced by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, PL 110289 (the 2008 act), has been substantially modified and clarified by two developments this year the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, PL 1115 (the 2009 act), and the issuance of IRS Notice 200912 (IRB 20096).

February 2009 |  Article

The Service on Tuesday issued final regulations on automatic contribution arrangements for 401(k) and other eligible plans. The regulations (TD 9447) adopt with modifications the 2007 proposed regulations (REG13330007) providing guidance on implementing provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 and the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008.

November 2008 |  Article

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a longawaited decision that could make it more challenging to patent business processes such as tax and financial strategies. In a 93 ruling issued on Oct. 30 in the In re Bilski case, the court stated a new, more stringent test for the patentability of business methods.

August 2008 |  BY Daniel R. Finn |  Article

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Longterm care (LTC) insurance benefits are taxfree to the insured for either reimbursement of qualified expenses or payments up to a perdiem limit indexed for inflation—$270 in 2008. Premiums for LTC insurance are taxdeductible according to limits that are also indexed to inflation and increase with the age of the insured.