Vol. 30 No. 4 - Summer 2011

How Pro Bono Tax Professionals Can Help Low-Income Taxpayers Claim the Earned Income Tax Credit

Kate Leifeld

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is one of the largest sources of welfare benefits in the United States. See Internal Revenue Service, About EITC, available at http://www.eitc.irs.gov/central/abouteitc/. In healthy economic times, the EITC can be used by low-income taxpayers to obtain safe housing, an education, or to keep as a safety net. In our current economic climate, the EITC has become even more important as families are struggling harder to make ends meet. ...

An EITC Case Study

Rodney A. Lake

Given the Service’s high audit rate of Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) claims, pro bono representation of taxpayers is essential to ensure fair treatment and appropriate resolution of their cases. Despite obstacles faced by many taxpayers claiming the EITC—including low literacy and mental health challenges—the Service arguably does little to ensure that its expansive approach to rooting out EITC fraud produces fair results in individual cases. ...

From the Chair

Charles H. Egerton

I write this, my last column as Chair of the Tax Section, having just returned from a presentation to the Texas Federal Tax Institute which has a long-standing practice of inviting the ABA Tax Section Chair to address a luncheon session of the Institute. After completing my remarks, I opened the floor for questions from the audience. One of the questions posed to me was, “How would you assess the health of the ABA Tax Section?” I don’t know whether the questioner was simply curious or was expressing a genuine concern. ...

From the Chair-Elect

William M. Paul

I have the honor and good fortune to serve as Chair of the Tax Section for 2011-2012. I am grateful for this opportunity and look forward to a challenging and (hopefully) productive year. My involvement in the Tax Section dates back to the late 1980s. I have held a number of different positions in the Section over the years, and have benefited greatly from the experience. ...

To the Editor - June 2, 2011

Chuck Grassley

The interview with Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform (Spring 2011), badly mischaracterized how close Congress came in 2006, when I was chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, to enacting legislation to switch to a territorial corporate income tax system. ...

Interview: Kees van Raad

Jasper L. Cummings, Jr.; Alan J.J. Swirski

Kees van Raad is Director of the International Tax Center Leiden (ITC) at Leiden University, in The Netherlands. Leiden is a beautiful, small, and historic town located between Amsterdam and The Hague, not far from the North Sea. It is famous for its university, founded in 1575, and its tradition of intellectual and religious freedom. The International Tax Center sits in the very heart of Leiden, in its own building at Rapenburg 65, on one of Leiden’s many canals. ...

Are Criminal Fines “Collected Proceeds”?

Erica L. Brady

A whistleblower who puts him or herself at risk to provide the Service with information about tax evasion should be paid an award under section 7623(b) based on all of the proceeds collected, including the criminal fines collected. However, the Service has taken the position that whistleblower awards should not be paid on criminal fines. The language of section 7623 expressly refers to criminal prosecutions as one of the actions that can result in payment of an award. ...

N. Jerold “Jerry” Cohen—2011 Distinguished Service Award Recipient

Stanley L. Blend

The Section of Taxation honors N. Jerold “Jerry” Cohen as the 2011 recipient of its Distinguished Service Award in recognition of his outstanding career and contributions to the tax profession, the Section, and the government. Before discussing Jerry’s commitment as a lawyer and tax professional, first some personal notes about Jerry the father and husband. ...

2010 Law Student Tax Challenge Bench Briefs

The 2010 Law Student Tax Challenge problem for the J.D. division focuses on the income tax issues faced by a professional golfer (“Irons”), who became embroiled in scandal. ...

Access to Justice for Underserved Taxpayers

Peter A. Lowy

Pro bono work is the closest most of us tax nerds will ever come to being a super hero. More on that in a moment. But first, several observations: First, the tax bar (with contributions from the ABA Tax Section’s Pro Bono Committee) is making remarkable prog-ress in building a robust infrastructure for delivering pro bono tax services to individual taxpayers who cannot afford an attorney. ...

Sing Along with Tax Bites

Robert S. Steinberg

A few Tax-themed takes on popular songs. ...

Boxscore

Submissions and comments on government regulations, administrative rulings, ABA policy and blanket authorities.

ABA Section of Taxation CLE Calendar

A calendar of upcoming CLE opportunities.