Why are bankruptcies increasing? The trend is clear both nationwide and in California (the two track each other closely): after having declined every year since 2010, the high-water mark of Great Recession bankruptcy filings, bankruptcies are going up again. Read more »
What happens when the IRS audits a tax attorney, like me? Most clients don’t know this, but I have personally experienced an IRS audit . So I know all too well the stress that accompanies receiving an Audit Notice from the IRS, and the anxiety of putting together documentation and Read more »
California’s FTB is offering amnesty for syndicated conservation easements and captive insurance company tax deductions. Both investments are highly-sophisticated, often-fraudulent tax schemes. I’ve been getting lots of calls recently from taxpayers who invested in one of these for their generous tax write-offs, but who are now under FTB audit. If the FTB finds a syndicated conservation easement or captive insurance company investment is not legitimate, then the taxpayer is subject to a 40 percent penalty, plus a doubling of the interest rate. Unfortunately, many of these transactions are not legitimate Read more »
Most of my clients are surprised when I tell them their credit score may go up when they file bankruptcy. In fact, one of the Top Three Fears of Bankruptcy I hear from clients is the negative impact it’ll have on their credit scores. This is the case especially for renters since so many property management firms and landlords check a potential tenant’s credit score before renting. Read more »
I like doing off-beat things, especially in the Bay Area (which is kind of an off-beat capital), where I’m spending more time these days. After all, my Head Paralegal is a tuxedo cat named Sebastian. So, here’s Sebastian and my lesser-known, or under-appreciated, favorite things to do in the San Francisco Bay Area. Read more »
Many thanks to my seatmate on a recent flight who posed this hypothetical question, worthy of a Harvard Law School Professor: if an artist sells her painting for $1 million, can she then paint an identical copy, donate it to a charity, and claim no income for the tax year, on the assumption that the value of the copy is $1 million (because that’s what she sold the original for)? The answer is “no.” Read more »
As many of you may know, I hold a Certificate of Specialization in Bankruptcy Law and in a Certificate of Specialization in Tax Law from the State Bar of California. You probably also don’t see many California attorneys advertising this. That’s because fewer than five percent of lawyers in California have taken the exam and continuing legal education courses necessary to obtain this certificate. Read more »
An Offer-in-Compromise is a contract between the IRS and a taxpayer to settle a tax debt for less than what is owed. I get lots of calls from folks excited at the prospect of being able to negotiate down what they owe IRS. And then I burst their bubble with the bad news: it is very hard to get an Offer in Compromise (OIC) from the IRS. Read more »
California’s Franchise Tax Board (FTB) publishes a Most Wanted List of delinquent California taxpayers on its website, for both individuals and corporations. The FTB’s Most Wanted List includes the taxpayer’s name, address and amount owed. In order to qualify for placement, a taxpayer must owe the FTB at least $100,000. Read more »
Many debtors in California file chapter 7 bankruptcy with a home that has an IRS tax lien on it. What happens in these cases? If the IRS has a federal tax lien on real property in California prior to a bankruptcy being filed, then that lien will survive bankruptcy. In other words, debtors cannot use bankruptcy to escape an existing federal tax lien on a California property, despite the fact that California bankruptcy law allows chapter 7 filers to take up to $678,000 in equity in a primary residence through bankruptcy. Read more »
