The Tax Lawyer Blog: Topical thinking from the lawyers at Moskowitz, LLP

Government Regulation of Cryptocurrency

Posted on June 15, 2018July 12, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Tax: Audits, Litigation & Collection

Governments throughout the world have begun developing regulations for cryptocurrency exchanges. In this post, we will provide an overview of how various U.S. government agencies view cryptocurrencies and what they are doing to prevent their misuse. The Internal Revenue Service Digital currency = property In 2014, the IRS issued Notice...

Cannabis Business Under the New Tax Law

Posted on May 29, 2018May 31, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Cannabis Practice Group, Tax Planning & Compliance

The 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act (TCJA) made significant changes to the U.S. taxation system, and individuals in the marijuana industry should understand how those changes affect them. Here are three of the most significant tax issues that may impact your cannabis business under the new tax law: No...

The Cannabis Cultivation Tax

Posted on May 24, 2018May 25, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Cannabis Practice Group

As of January 1, 2018, a cannabis cultivation tax applies to all harvested cannabis intended for either medicinal or recreational use. The tax must be paid when you sell or transfer the cannabis to a distributor or manufacturer, in accordance with a fee schedule that is based on the category...

Cannabis Licensing Regulations Under Fire

Posted on May 22, 2018May 24, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Cannabis Practice Group

The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) began issuing cannabis cultivation licenses on January 1, 2018, and the lawsuits have already commenced. The California Growers Association filed suit in late January arguing that the CDFA has awarded a disproportionate number of “small grower” licenses to a handful of large...

Advanced 1031 Exchange Techniques

Posted on May 18, 2018May 18, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Real Estate Law

A common misconception about 1031 exchanges is that they can only be conducted in one manner – a sale and then a purchase through a third party facilitator. In fact, 1031 exchanges have evolved to include numerous tax strategies and structures. Here are a few of the many ways to...

1031 Exchange Tax Audits

Posted on May 16, 2018May 16, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Real Estate Law, Tax Planning & Compliance, Tax: Audits, Litigation & Collection

1031 exchanges are among the most closely scrutinized tax issues for auditors – they are widely used and frequently misused, with many investors running afoul of the rules. In this blog post, we will outline the main reasons for most 1031 audits, and what to look out for under the...

Cryptocurrency Holders: Avoid a Tax Audit!

Posted on May 11, 2018May 11, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Tax Planning & Compliance, Tax: Audits, Litigation & Collection

The recent Coinbase, Inc. case marks the beginning of a new phase in IRS investigations, and U.S. taxpayers should beware that our government is unlikely to relinquish its pursuit of digital currency holders. This won't show. The IRS’s success in identifying and pursuing people with foreign accounts has forever changed...

IRS Focus: Tracking Cryptocurrency

Posted on May 9, 2018May 9, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Criminal Tax Law, Tax Planning & Compliance, Tax: Audits, Litigation & Collection

In our recent blogs on the new Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Division (IRS-CI) priorities, we noted that new IRS-CI director John D. Fort has placed his department on high alert for tax fraud involving bitcoin and other digital currencies. Here, we discuss U.S. taxpayer noncompliance and various cryptocurrency tax...

2018 Priorities of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI):
Part II, Two New Initiatives for Identification and Investigation of Tax Crimes

Posted on May 4, 2018May 4, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Tax Planning & Compliance, Tax: Audits, Litigation & Collection

Despite the reduction in its budget, the IRS Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI) has begun to implement two new initiatives that hope to improve the department’s already impressive success rate. Last year, the IRC-CI made 2,251 criminal tax prosecution recommendations, which resulted in a conviction rate that exceeded 90%. On August...

2018 Priorities of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI):
Part I, Types of Cases

Posted on May 1, 2018May 4, 2018 by Liz Prehn Posted in Tax Planning & Compliance, Tax: Audits, Litigation & Collection

Following his appointment as new Chief of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI), John D. Fort announced the 2018 priority areas for IRS-CI enforcement. These goals include pursuit of specific areas of suspected taxpayer noncompliance as well as the implementation of new techniques for identification and investigation. In this post,...

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