Fall 2007
Forensic Accounting in Divorce
Actions
Emotions run high in matrimonial engagements. A spouse may be motivated to
cheat his or her spouse out of a fair share of marital property or may wish
to humiliate or emotionally devastate the soon-to-be ex-spouse. Forensic
accountants are often retained by attorneys to help represent the spouse who
didn’t have access to or involvement in the family’s “fiscal matters.”
In order for an equitable distribution of marital assets to occur, a
determination must be made regarding the nature and scope of the marital
assets.
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Court Reverses Itself in
Personal Injury Decision
The federal court
that had previously ruled IRC Sec. 104(a)(2) unconstitutional as to the
taxation of nonphysical personal injury damages unrelated to lost wages or
earnings reconsidered and has decided—in “the broad public interest”—to vacate its own judgment. Thus, the compensatory damages for emotional
distress and loss of reputation at issue are includable in gross income for
income tax purposes.
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Managing Expectations When
Preparing an Expert Witness
Chances are that any
horror story you’ve heard about a disappointing performance by an expert
witness centered around a failure to adequately prepare for their testimony—not a lack of technical or analytical acumen. An expert who doesn’t
connect well with the jury, delivers direct examination testimony that seems
scripted or contrived or becomes flustered under cross-examination most
likely has not had adequate preparation. Avoiding common pitfalls and
implementing lessons learned from past challenges are important for a
litigator preparing for trial.
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Briefs
Spousal Relief in Small Tax Cases
The Tax Court has held that for purposes of qualifying for the small tax
case procedures under IRC Sec. 7463(f)(1), relating to spousal relief under
IRC Sec. 6015(e), the $50,000 threshold is determined by including the total
amount of taxes, interest and penalties for which a taxpayer seeks relief
calculated as of the date the petition is filed.
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more...
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Litigation & Valuation Team News
We
welcome Rex Collins, CPA, CVA to our firm as a Senior Manager. Rex has over
19 years of experience in public practice with several years of focus on
serving dealers and their dealerships. Rex’s specialty areas include
valuations of closely-held businesses, litigation support services, forensic
accounting and estate planning. You may contact him at 317-504-7900 or
rcollins@somersetcpas.com.
About Our Litigation & Valuation Team Services
Litigation Services
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Damage analysis for lost profits, royalties or unjust enrichment
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Measuring economic consequences of losses
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Exhibit development
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Expert testimony
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Due diligence
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Asset searches/ transaction tracing
Valuation Consulting
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Marital dissolution
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Minority shareholder disputes
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Estate planning
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Succession planning
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Goodwill impairment
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Gift planning
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Mergers/acquisitions
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Selling your business
This newsletter is provided by Somerset CPAs for our clients and other interested persons upon request. Since technical information is presented in generalized fashion, no final conclusion on these topics should be made without further review. For additional information on the issues discussed, please contact Steve Riddle, Tom Thieme, Rex Collins or Doug Ayres of our Litigation & Valuation Team.
This document is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used,
for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on the
taxpayer.
Somerset CPAs, P.C.
3925 River Crossing Parkway
Third Floor
Indianapolis, Indiana 46240
317.472.2200 • 800.469.7206
FAX 317.208.1200
www.somersetcpas.com