In Internal Revenue Service v. Murphy, No. 17-1601 (1st Cir. 2018), the taxpayer discharged his unpaid taxes in bankruptcy. The IRS continued to try to collect the discharged tax debt. The case is a must read for taxpayers who find themselves in this same situation. The Facts & Procedural History The taxpayer in Murphy filed Chapter……
TX-LW Blogs
Can I Deduct My Clothing Costs?
Can you take a deduction for clothing? What if you purchase the clothing for work and would not otherwise have purchased the clothing? What if the clothing is only worn at work? This is a common dispute that comes up on audit with the IRS. The Farolan v. Commissioner, T.C. Summary Opinion 2018-28, case provides……
Probate and Accessing a Safe Deposit Box in Texas
In our last article, we wrote about how to probate an estate for a missing person and prior to that we wrote about lost wills. In response to these articles, one of our readers asked several questions about safe deposit boxes in Texas. This is another topic worthy of consideration. Texas’ estate laws address safe deposit…
The Ins and Outs of the IRS’s Bank Deposit Analysis
The IRS almost always checks for unreported income when it audits an income tax return. The IRS does this by analyzing the deposits made in the taxpayer’s bank accounts. But what if a deposit was not taxable, as in the case of an amount received for a third party and paid out to a third……
Deducting Mileage for Business With Minimal Activities
Can you deduct car and truck expenses, such as mileage, if your business has minimal activities? The court addressed this in Samadi v. Commissioner, T.C. Summary Opinion 2018-27, which provides an opportunity to consider the question. Facts and Procedural History The facts and procedural history for the case are not unusual. The taxpayer obtained a real……
What Happens if You Lose an Original Will?
We live in a digital world–well, most of our important documents do. Even today there are some documents that have to be kept in paper form. A will is an example. This begs the question, what happens when you lose your original will? Or what happens if you cannot locate the original will for a…
Contesting a Will After the Probate Assets are Distributed
Contesting a Will After the Probate Assets are Distributed There are a number of challenges an executor can face in administering an estate. Will contests are an example. These disputes can be particularly troubling if they are filed after the estate has been administered and the probate assets have been distributed. The court recently considered…
Can the IRS Take Property Purchased in a Business Name?
If you owe the IRS back taxes but want to buy real estate or some other type of property, can you form a legal entity and use it to acquire property and thereby put the property beyond the IRS’s reach? The court recently addressed this in United States v. Jones, No. 8:17-cv-2389-T-24 AEP (M.D. Fla.……
IRS Refuses to Enforce Lien, Leaving Taxpayer Without Recourse
If the IRS has a superior lien on real estate, it should enforce its lien and apply the sales proceeds to reduce the taxpayer’s unpaid taxes. But what if there is a junior lien that acquires the real estate first? Can the IRS work out a deal with the junior lien holder and divert a……