| Small Employer Pension Plan Start-up Costs Credit |
| In order to encourage small businesses to establish and maintain retirement savings accounts for employees, Congress has enacted a law that gives a tax credit to eligible small businesses for some of the costs of establishing new eligible retirement plans. The credit equals half of the start-up costs incurred, not to exceed $500 in any tax year, and it may be claimed for qualified costs incurred in each of the three years beginning with the tax year in which the plan becomes effective. More... |
| Partnership Tax Year |
| Generally, a partnership is required to use the same tax year as a majority of its owners. If one or more of the partners having the same tax year owns a majority interest in the business, the partnership must use the tax year of those partners. A majority interest is defined as an interest in more than half of the partnership's profits and capital. When the owners are individuals, their tax year is usually the calendar year.More... |
| Public Disclosure Requirements for Exempt Organizations |
| Tax-exempt organizations other than private foundations are now required to provide copies of certain tax documents to anyone who requests them. If the request is made in person, the organization is usually obligated to provide a copy immediately, and if the request is written, the exempt organization has 30 days to comply. These requirements are in addition to the exempt organization's obligation to make their tax documents available for public inspection.More... |
| Federal Taxation of Workers' Compensation Income |
| Generally, gross income received by an individual is taxable by the federal government. A notable exception is for workers' compensation income. Workers' compensation, either received by the injured worker or his survivors, is completely exempt from federal taxation as long as it is paid under a Workers' Compensation Act or a statute that operates in the nature of a Workers' Compensation Act by providing income for injuries or illness suffered in the course of the worker's employment. Basically, the statute must restrict the payment of benefits to work-related disabilities.More... |
| Abusive Tax Return Preparers |
| Return preparer fraud usually involves the intentional preparation and filing of false income tax returns by unscrupulous preparers who may claim inflated business or personal expenses, false deductions, unallowable credits, or excessive exemptions. Specifically, the IRS has found that dishonest preparers often fill out fraudulent schedules showing false supplemental losses or expenses from a business that have not been paid by a taxpayer in order to offset certain items of income. Another area of abuse is the claim of false or inflated itemized deductions for charitable contributions or medical and dental expenses, along with false claims for earned income credits. The taxpayer may or may not have knowledge of the false items shown on the tax returns; however, it is the taxpayer who has the ultimate responsibility for all the information on the return, no matter who prepared it.More... |
The determination of the need for legal services and the choice of a lawyer are extremely important decisions and should not be based solely upon advertisements, certification, specialization or self-proclaimed expertise. Certifications of specialization are available to Tennessee lawyers in all areas of practice relating to or included in the areas of Civil Trial, Criminal Trial, Business Bankruptcy, Consumer Bankruptcy, Creditor's Rights, Medical Malpractice, Legal Malpractice, Accounting Malpractice, Elder Law, Estate Planning and Family Law. Listing of related or included practice areas herein does not constitute or imply representation of certification of specialization. These disclosures are required by the Supreme Court of Tennessee.