Saturday, October 31, 2020
This Week's Ten Most Popular TaxProf Blog Posts
- Bryan Camp (Texas Tech), Lesson From The Tax Court: Losing Gambler Gets Twice Lucky In Tax Court
- Columbia Daily Tribune, University Of Missouri President Admits He Didn't Read Promotion & Tenure Committee's Recommendations, But Stands By Rejection Of 7 Faculty Candidates
- Chronicle of Higher Education, Faculty Joined A Day Of Action To Protest Racial Inequality. Now 2 Are In Hot Water.
- Chronicle of Higher Education, 2020 Has Been A Hard Year For Higher Ed With 337,000 Jobs Lost. Could 2021 Be Worse?
- UCR, Gene Simmons Kisses California Goodbye Due To 'Unacceptable' Tax Rates
- Inside Higher Ed, Faculty Confidence in Online Learning Grows
- Press Release, Tax Prof Michelle Drumbl Named Interim Dean At Washington & Lee (Succeeding Tax Prof Brant Hellwig)
- Conference, Black Lawyers Matter: Strategies To Enhance Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion
- Steven Dean (NYU), The Truth About Taxes: George Floyd Died, Donald Trump Got Millions
- Paul Caron (Dean, Pepperdine), Love is Free. Guac is Extra.: How Vulnerability, Empowerment, And Curiosity Built An Unstoppable Team
October 31, 2020 in About This Blog, Legal Education, Tax, Weekly Top 10 TaxProf Blog Posts | Permalink | Comments (0)
Happy Zoom Halloween
Mashable, Dad's Genius Zoom Halloween Costume For His Daughter Is Scary Good:
Greg Dietzenbach — a 42-year-old creative director for a creative design agency in Dubuque, Iowa — created [this Zoom Halloween] for his 12-year-old daughter, Ada
I made a killer Zoom Meeting costume for my daughter. #Halloween2020 pic.twitter.com/bdKbgGZcA5
— Greg Dietzenbach (@GregDietzenbach) October 21, 2020
October 31, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (0)
A Junior Tax Prof Halloween
Tax Profs in Halloween costume dress in yesterday's Junior Tax Scholars Workshop at Utah:
October 31, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education, Tax, Tax News | Permalink | Comments (0)
The Jock Tax: How The NFL Can Level The Playing Field
Mike Dignetti (Penn State), The Jock Tax: How the National Football League Can Level the Playing Field:
There are thirty-two NFL teams located across twenty-three different states. State and local tax rates assessed in the different locations range from 0% to 13.3%. NFL teams play at least sixteen games every year, eight of which are played at opposing team’s locations. Due to this, NFL players can be required to file upwards of nine different state and local tax returns per season. This study analyzes the effects the difference in tax rates have on the competitive landscape of the NFL and proposes a solution to eradicate the competitive advantage state and local taxes currently create within the NFL. Specific player contracts and hypothetical player movements are analyzed to demonstrate the actual effects of state and local taxation on NFL players.
October 31, 2020 in Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (0)
Friday, October 30, 2020
Weekly SSRN Tax Article Review And Roundup: Kim Reviews The Apple State Aid Case By Daly & Mason
This week, Young Ran (Christine) Kim (Utah) reviews a new work by Ruth Mason (Virginia) and Stephen Daly (King's College London), State Aid: The General Court Decision in Apple, 99 Tax Notes Int’l 1317 (Sept. 7, 2020), also published as 168 Tax Notes Fed. 1791 (Sept. 7, 2020).
The recent court case Apple (the full text of the judgement is available here) revolves around an EU doctrine known as “state aid.” Under the state aid principle, member states are prohibited from subsidizing favored actors or industries in the form of, e.g., tax treatment or benefits. Unless the reader is an expert in international tax, the reader might find the details of the Apple case to be overwhelming and difficult to understand because Apple is also a hardcore transfer pricing case. However, for those who are interested in Apple and would like to understand the technical aspects as well as a big picture of the case, I would like to recommend State Aid: The General Court Decision in Apple by Ruth Mason (Virginia) and Stephen Daly (King's College London), published in 99 Tax Notes Int’l 1317 (Sept. 7, 2020), also published as 168 Tax Notes Fed. 1791 (Sept. 7, 2020). The first half of the article offers the summary of the recent decision by the General Court of the European Union (GCEU), and the second half offers the authors' commentary.
October 30, 2020 in Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship, Weekly SSRN Roundup, Weekly Tax Roundup | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tax Policy In The Trump Administration
- Bloomberg, Goldman Says Capital-Gains Tax Hike Would Be ‘Minor’ for Stocks
- Bloomberg, The Trump Tax Cut Wasn’t Just for the Rich
- Cato Institute, Biden’s Radical Capital Gains Tax Increase
- Forbes, If Joe Biden Wins, Get Ready For A Big Battle Over Tax Policy
- The Hill, Biden's Foolish Capital Gains Tax Increase
October 30, 2020 in Tax, Tax Policy in the Trump Administration | Permalink | Comments (0)
Weekly Legal Education Roundup
- ABA Young Lawyers Division & AccessLex, 2020 Law School Student Loan Debt Survey Report
- Paul Caron (Dean, Pepperdine), Love is Free. Guac is Extra.: How Vulnerability, Empowerment, And Curiosity Built An Unstoppable Team
- Conference, Black Lawyers Matter: Strategies To Enhance Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion
- Michelle Lyon Drumbl Appointed Interim Dean of the Washington and Lee School of Law
- Brian Larsen (Texas A&M), DOURS: A Heuristic for Discovering Research Questions
October 30, 2020 in Legal Education, Scott Fruehwald, Weekly Legal Ed Roundup | Permalink | Comments (0)
Florida Hosts 16th Annual International Tax Symposium
The University of Florida Graduate Tax Program hosts its Sixteenth International Taxation Symposium virtually today:
- Shu-Yi Oei (Boston College), Who Joined BEPS? Understanding the Proliferation of International Tax Consensus
- Young Ran (Christine) Kim (Utah), Blockchain Initiatives for Tax Administration
October 30, 2020 in Conferences, Scholarship, Tax, Tax Conferences, Tax Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (0)
Black Lawyers Matter: Strategies To Enhance Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion
I am honored to have the opportunity to update my remarks on A Dean's Perspective on Diversity, Socioeconomics, The LSAT, And The U.S. News Law School Rankings as part of a panel at today's virtual conference on Black Lawyers Matter: Strategies To Enhance Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion (more here):
Moderator:
Leonard M. Baynes (Dean, Houston)
Panelists:
Robert B. Ahdieh (Dean, Texas A&M)
Paul L. Caron (Dean, Pepperdine)
Robert Morse (Chief Data Strategist, U.S. News & World Report)
Victor Quintanilla (Indiana)
Kellye Testy (President & CEO, Law School Admission Council)
Karen Sloan (Law.com), Black Lawyers Matter: The Symposium:
The numbers tell the story of a legal profession divided by race. Less than 8% of first-year law students in 2019 were Black.
In California, 53% of Black bar examinees passed between 2009 and 2018. That figure was 80% for white examinees.
The percentage of 2019 Black law graduates who found jobs requiring a law degree within 10 months was 62%, compared to 80% for white law graduates. And in 2020, white shoe law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore had no Black partners.
October 30, 2020 in Conferences, Legal Ed Conferences, Legal Ed Scholarship, Legal Education, Pepperdine Legal Ed | Permalink | Comments (1)
15th Annual Junior Tax Scholars Workshop Concludes Virtually Today At Utah
Jon Choi (Minnesota), Implied-Utility Tax Analysis
Commentators: Ariel Jurow Kleiman (San Diego), Daniel Schaffa (Richmond)
Hayes Holderness (Richmond), Hate the Sin, Tax the Sinner
Commentators: Shelley Layser (Illinois), Blaine Saito (Northeastern)
Ariel Jurow Kleiman (San Diego) & Emily Satterthwaite (Toronto), Trading a Safety Net for a Living Wage?
Commentators: Ed Fox (Michigan), Goldburn Maynard (Indiana Business School)
Sloan Speck (Colorado), Double Tax Benefits and Targeted Tax Benefits Under the CARES Act
Commentators: Andrew Appleby (Stetson), Ed Fox (Michigan)
Clint Wallace (presenting, South Carolina), Jeremy Bearer-Friend (George Washington), Ari Glogower (Ohio State), & Ariel Jurow Kleiman (San Diego), Tax and the Law-and-Political-Economy Project
Commentators: Jon Choi (Minnesota), Hayes Holderness (Richmond)
Eleanor Wilking (Cornell, presenting) & Jacob Goldin (Stanford), What Are the Distributional Consequences of Federal Income Tax Penalties?
Commentators: Andrew Appleby (Stetson), Christine Kim (Utah)
October 30, 2020 in Scholarship, Tax, Tax Conferences, Tax Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (0)
Biggest Issues Facing College Presidents In Fall 2020 Due To COVID-19
American Council on Education, College and University Presidents Respond to COVID-19: 2020 Fall Term Survey:
In this first survey of the new fall term, which was developed in partnership with our colleagues at the TIAA Institute, nearly 300 presidents* identified their most pressing concerns, reported on their fall reopening plans, and offered an assessment of the impact the pandemic has had on their institution's fall enrollment and financial health. The following is a summary of our key findings.
Most Pressing Issues for Presidents
In our spring and summer surveys, presidents were asked to select up to five issues from a list of about 20 that they deemed to be most pressing. In the September survey, presidents were presented with a list of 19 issues and again asked to select up to five they view to be most pressing for them currently (see Figure 1). Mental health of students (53 percent) was the top concern selected by presidents.
October 30, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Ed Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (0)
Girls Just Wanna Have Funds: Creating Access to Equity Capital For Women-Owned Businesses Through The Tax Code
Cate Gelband (J.D. 2020, Oregon), Comment, Girls Just Wanna Have Funds: Creating Access to Equity Capital for Women-Owned Businesses Through the Tax Code, 98 Or. L. Rev. 229 (2020):
Women-owned businesses have established themselves as a pillar of the American economy and promise significant opportunities for growth. Lack of access to equity capital is a well-documented barrier for women-owned businesses. By amending the scope of key tax expenditures within a gender-neutral tax code, Congress can place women-owned businesses on equal footing with all small businesses and thereby enable women-owned businesses to achieve greater ccess to capital, realize their economic potential, and create benefits for all.
October 30, 2020 in Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (0)
Thursday, October 29, 2020
Glogower: A Constitutional Wealth Tax
Ari Glogower (Ohio State), A Constitutional Wealth Tax, 118 Mich. L. Rev. 717 (2020) (reviewed by Hayes Holderness (Richmond) here):
Policymakers and scholars are giving serious consideration to a federal wealth tax. Wealth taxation could address the harms from rising economic inequality, promote equality of social and economic opportunity, and raise the revenue needed to fund critical government programs. These reasons for taxing wealth may not matter, however, if a federal wealth tax is unconstitutional.
Scholars debate whether a tax on a wealth base (a “traditional wealth tax”) would be a “direct tax” subject to apportionment among the states by population. This Article argues, in contrast, that this possible constitutional restriction on a traditional wealth tax may not matter. If the Court struck down a traditional wealth tax, Congress could instead tax wealth by adjusting a taxpayer’s income tax liability on account of her wealth. This Article describes three general methods for making this adjustment (collectively, “Wealth Integration” methods). A taxpayer’s wealth could affect her taxable income base (the “Base Method”), the applicable rate schedule (the “Rate Method”), or the availability of credits against tax (the “Credit Method”).
October 29, 2020 in Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (0)
Crane Reviews Abreu & Greenstein's Tax Is Different, Not Exceptional
Charlotte Crane (Northwestern), Situating the Tax Law: Exceptions, Not Exceptionalism (JOTWELL) (reviewing Alice Abreu (Temple) & Richard Greenstein (Temple), Tax: Different, Not Exceptional, 71 Admin L. Rev. 663 (2019) (reviewed by Hayes Holderness (Richmond) here)):
Level-headed approaches are rare in discussions of how the administration of tax law should fit into the larger body of administrative law. Alice Abreu and Richard Greenstein’s Tax: Different, Not Exceptional is one of those rare exceptions. All too often, advocates have portrayed the question as having an all or nothing answer, coded as whether tax is “exceptional.” If yes, then the norms of administrative law don’t apply; if no, then they all apply. (And, for many, if these norms all apply, the vast bulk of the work product of the Treasury and the IRS is tainted and should be questioned by the courts.) Abreu and Greenstein persuasively point out that this approach is simply useless.
October 29, 2020 in Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (0)
NY Times: Say Yes To Progressive Taxation
New York Times editorial, Say Yes To Progressive Taxation:
Most Americans accept the common-sense case for progressive taxation: Those who have more ought to contribute more to the society that is the foundation of their prosperity.
In most American states, however, the distribution of taxation is actually regressive. Those who earn less money pay a higher share of income than the rich in state and local taxes.
Voters in Illinois and Arizona, two of the states where taxation is most regressive, now have the chance to make the tax system a little more fair. Ballot measures in both states would shift more of the burden of taxation onto wealthier residents. In California, where the overall distribution of taxation is already progressive, voters can make a change for the better.
A more progressive approach to taxation is necessary to counterbalance the rise of economic inequality, which has reached the highest levels since the 1920s. This imbalance undermines the nation’s foundational commitment to the equality of opportunity, weighs on economic growth and exacerbates political tensions. ...
October 29, 2020 in Tax, Tax News | Permalink | Comments (3)
Women Lawyers Making Progress As Campus Leaders
Patricia E. Salkin (Touro), Women Lawyers Making Progress As Campus Leaders:
The number of lawyers serving as college and university presidents has more than doubled in the last three decades. Just over 200 lawyers led campuses in the 2010s. Along with this increase, women lawyers are taking their rightful place as leaders in the academy. Roughly 70 women lawyers were appointed to a combined 85 presidencies from 1976 to 2020. This number may sound small given there are more than 4,000 colleges and universities in the United States. However, of the lawyers who are presidents, slightly more than one in three are women. Nationally, 30% of all campus presidents are women. ...
October 29, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (0)
The Dramatic Increase In July 2020 MBE Scores
On September 1, the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) issued a press release with surprising news regarding the MBE mean scaled score for those taking the July 2020 bar exam. The score increased by roughly five points from 141.1 for the July 2019 exam to 146.1 for the July 2020 exam – the largest year over year increase ever recorded.
The NCBE rightly noted that the “sample” was much smaller than a typical July bar exam. In 2019, there were 45,334 July bar exam takers across 54 jurisdictions, compared to just 5678 in July 2020, from only 23 jurisdictions.
The NCBE also noted that focusing just on the 23 jurisdictions that offered the July 2020 exam, the increase in the MBE mean scaled score was only about 3.5 points. This suggests that the 2019 MBE mean scaled score across these 23 jurisdictions was roughly 142.6. Notably, even this 3.5 point increase – had it been the “national” increase – would have been an all-time record.
Although the NCBE press release did not provide the number of takers across this group of 23 jurisdictions in 2019, from the NCBE’s 2019 Statistics report, it appears that across these 23 jurisdictions, there were a total of 7680 July test takers. This means, with 5678 test takers in July 2020, the number of July test takers in these 23 jurisdictions dropped by 2002, or over 26%.
A few possible explanations have been offered for this unusual spike in the MBE mean scaled score in July 2020. The NCBE press release noted that test takers included a larger percentage of first-time takers and a corresponding smaller percentage of repeat test takers, which likely contributed to some of the increase, given that first-time takers historically perform better on the MBE than repeat test takers. In an article by Stephanie Francis Ward in the ABA Journal, Mike Sims, the President of BarBri, stated that graduates working with its online study program were more diligent in completing their bar prep work. In the same article, Stephen Foster, the director of academic achievement at the Oklahoma City University School of Law, suggested that with the Covid-19 Pandemic and the civil unrest of the summer, graduates might have found comfort in being able to focus on studying for the bar exam.
Each of these factors may provide a partial explanation for some of the increase in the MBE mean scaled score.
I am writing to observe one thing that does not explain the greatly improved performance on the MBE in July 2020 compared to July 2019 and to suggest one possibility that may explain some of the improved performance (along with the explanations offered above).
The one thing that does not explain the dramatic increase is the academic credentials of the cohort of 2020 graduates from law schools in these 23 jurisdictions compared to the cohort of 2019 graduates from these jurisdictions.
Weighted Average 50th and 25th LSAT/GPA for First-Year Students
in 2016 and 2017 for the Law Schools in the 23 Jurisdictions
that Offered the July Bar Exam in 2020
|
50th LSAT |
25th LSAT |
50th GPA |
25th GPA |
|
|
2016 |
154.25 |
150.42 |
3.41 |
3.11 |
|
2017 |
154.11 |
150.25 |
3.43 |
3.12 |
October 29, 2020 in Jerry Organ, Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (0)
Feds Throw Historic One-Two Punch At Offshore Tax Cheats
Wall Street Journal Tax Report, The IRS Reels in a Whale of an Offshore Tax Cheat—and Goes for Another:
U.S. tax officials have thrown a historic one-two punch at wealthy Americans hiding money offshore.
On Oct. 15, they announced that Robert Smith, the 57-year-old private-equity billionaire who founded Vista Equity Partners, admitted he criminally evaded taxes on more than $200 million of income from 2000 through 2015 by using secret foreign accounts in the Caribbean and Switzerland. Mr. Smith, who is famous for announcing at Morehouse College’s graduation that he would pay off student loans for the class of 2019, will pay $139 million to the Internal Revenue Service in taxes and penalties. He will also forgo claims to $182 million in deductions for charitable donations, which could add more than $65 million to what he owes the IRS. But he won’t be prosecuted.
At the same time, the U.S. officials charged Robert Brockman, a Houston-based billionaire and software CEO who was the sole investor in Mr. Smith’s first private-equity fund, with hiding about $2 billion of capital-gains income from the IRS in secret offshore accounts from 2000 through 2018. Mr. Brockman, 79 years old, pleaded not guilty and was released on $1 million bond.
October 29, 2020 in Tax, Tax News | Permalink | Comments (0)
Pass Rates Are Up Among The First States To Give Online Bar Exams
Karen Sloan (Law.com), Pass Rates Are Up Among the First States to Give Online Bar Exams:
Results are starting to trickle in from states that administered their first-ever online bar exams, and the news is good—for the most part.
Pass rates were up significantly in both Michigan and Indiana, which were among the first three jurisdictions to deliver their exams remotely this summer. Results from Nevada, which was the third, are expected later this week.
October 29, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (0)
Trump’s Tax Returns: Why The Supreme Court Should End Things Now
Richard O. Lempert (Michigan), Trump’s Tax Returns: Why the Supreme Court Should End Things Now:
With front pages devoted to the continuing spread of the coronavirus and with the election so close, it is easy to forget about the ongoing controversy over Trump’s taxes. It is even easier to think that the case no longer matters since an anonymous leaker provided the New York Times with the tax returns sought by New York District Attorney Cyrus Vance, and the Times is sharing that information with the public. Still, it is worth noticing that a three-judge panel of the Second Circuit’s Court of Appeals has just dealt Donald Trump another blow in his effort to prevent his tax accountants, Mazars, from giving his tax returns and related documents to a New York grand jury. The panel judges unanimously agreed with the District Court’s determination that Trump’s effort to prevent the release of his records fails because his second amended complaint (or SAC) failed to state a claim on which relief could be granted. Yet, as both Trump and Vance realize, the grand jury’s ability to get the documents it subpoenaed matters almost as much as it did before the Times’ stories appeared.
Trump has repeatedly asserted that the documents the Times has are false. But if the returns the Times has are genuine and their reporting on them is accurate, they describe situations where Trump’s efforts to secure tax advantages are so aggressive that they come close to and may cross the line that separates the legal from illegal. However, standing alone the information the Times disclosed does not prove illegality. The Mazars subpoena, however, demands documents that might. These include not just Trump’s tax returns, but supporting documents which in conjunction with the returns could show that Trump or members of his family knowingly committed crimes. Information Vance could acquire might reveal which lenders, including foreign interests, loaned Trump money on what terms, and whether Trump’s accountants cautioned Trump about the questionable legality of deductions he claimed. Also, having verified copies of the original documents might be essential should Vance want to introduce any of these documents in a criminal prosecution. ...
I see no good legal argument for why the Supreme Court should accept Trump’s appeal.
October 29, 2020 in Tax, Tax News | Permalink | Comments (3)
Wednesday, October 28, 2020
Crouch Presents The Tax Legislative Process Virtually Today At SMU
Drew Crouch (Senior Tax and ERISA Counsel, Senate Finance Committee) presents The Tax Legislative Process virtually at SMU today as part of its Tax Speakers Series hosted by Christopher Hanna and Orly Mazur:
Drew Crouch will discuss the legislative process for federal tax legislation, including what constitutes regular order and the special role that reconciliation procedures play. Drew will also discuss the role that bipartisanship plays in enacting tax policy, as well as the various career opportunities that are available to new and experienced lawyers who want to work on the Hill.
October 28, 2020 in Colloquia, Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship, Tax Workshops | Permalink | Comments (0)
Number Of Americans Renouncing Their U.S. Citizenship Has Already Hit All-Time Yearly High In 2020
International Tax Blog, 2020 Third Quarter Published Expatriates – 2020 Is Already the Highest Year Ever:
Today the Treasury Department published the names of individuals who renounced their U.S. citizenship or terminated their long-term U.S. residency (“expatriated”) during the third quarter of 2020.
The number of published expatriates for the quarter was 732. The total number of names published during the 3 quarters so far this year equals 6,047. Even without including the fourth quarter, 2020 is already a record year for names published.
Wall Street Journal, More Americans Are Renouncing Their Citizenship:
October 28, 2020 in Tax, Tax News | Permalink | Comments (0)
California Supreme Court To Appoint Blue Ribbon Bar Exam Commission
Press Release, California Supreme Court Approves Charter for Bar Exam Commission:
State Bar will begin recruitment for the Blue Ribbon commission next month, with appointments by the California Supreme Court expected by end of year.
The Supreme Court of California on Monday approved a charter for the commission that will study the future of the Bar Exam, allowing the State Bar to begin recruitment for the group in November.
The Joint Supreme Court/State Bar Blue Ribbon Commission on the Future of the California Bar Exam will develop recommendations “concerning whether and what changes to make to the California Bar Exam, and whether to adopt alternative or additional testing or tools to ensure minimum competence to practice law,” according to the charter.
The commission will also consider whether the Bar Exam, or any of its parts, should be administered online and/or in-person, after the first online Bar Exam was held in October as a result of the COVID-19 health pandemic.
October 28, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (1)
2020 Law School Student Loan Debt Survey Report
ABA Young Lawyers Division & AccessLex, 2020 Law School Student Loan Debt Survey Report:
Pulling from lawyers in the ABA’s database who were identified as having been licensed or graduated law school within the last 10 years, 1,084 newer lawyers and recent law school graduates completed the survey. The survey was conducted from March 1, 2020, to March 31, 2020. The ABA tapped AccessLex Institute to conduct a thorough data analysis of the survey results.
By the time we closed the survey at the end of March 2020, the chaos of a global pandemic had started to take hold. COVID-19’s potential impact was becoming apparent. Law schools were forced into remote learning. Bar exams would be postponed. Associateships and jobs would be rescinded. With COVID-19 as a backdrop, the survey’s results were especially eye-opening. Respondents to our survey were, by and large, people who graduated after the 2008 recession and before the 2020 pandemic. These respondents are a cohort of law graduates who entered our profession under a consistently improving — arguably, at times booming — economy. Yet the results give a view into a generation of lawyers deeply and personally affected by their debt. One can only speculate what the impact of student loans might be on the class of 2020 and subsequent graduates who will be subjected to, at this moment, unknown economic fallout due to a pandemic.
Our goal with this report is to underscore the student loan problem and reiterate the legal profession’s moral and ethical necessity to address it by focusing on the human element. We hope that its recommendations will serve as a guide for those in positions of power who actively choose to help address this issue.
October 28, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (5)
Gene Simmons Kisses California Goodbye Due To 'Unacceptable' Tax Rates
Gene Simmons' 'Palatial Estate' Hits Market For $22 Million:
Having recently stated his desire to leave California, Kiss bassist Gene Simmons has placed his Beverly Hills home on the market, with an asking price of $22 million.
The listing, held by the Altman Brothers of Douglas Elliman, call it a "palatial estate" and an "incredible one of a kind 16,000 square-foot mansion." It features seven bedrooms and bathrooms with a 40-foot foyer, and the 1.84-acre property contains a pool with a 60-foot water slide, full-size tennis court and parking for 35 cars. The house was shown extensively on Gene Simmons: Family Jewels, his reality show that ran on A&E between 2006 and 2012. ...
He'll be moving to another property he owns, a 24-acre estate near Mount Ranier in Washington, due to the lack of a state income tax, his expressed reason for leaving California. “California and Beverly Hills have been treating folks that create jobs badly and the tax rates are unacceptable,” he said earlier this week. “I work hard and pay my taxes and I don’t want to cry the Beverly Hills blues but enough is enough.”
October 28, 2020 in Tax, Tax News | Permalink | Comments (1)
College Tuition Increase Is Lowest In 30 Years Due To COVID-19
Inside Higher Ed, Tuition Rises at Historically Low Rate Amid Pandemic:
Four-year colleges increased prices at the lowest rate in three decades, on average. But the COVID-19 pandemic's greatest effects on pricing, funding and student aid might still be to come.
Scrambling to attract and retain students in the middle of a historic health crisis, many colleges across the country froze or lowered tuition and fees for the current 2020-21 academic year.
The average sticker price nonetheless increased across public and private, two-year and four-year institutions. But the increases were historically low, according to the College Board’s latest Trends in College Pricing and Student Aid report, released today.
Average public, four-year, in-state tuition rates, as well as average tuition rates at private, nonprofit four-year institutions, saw their lowest percentage increases in 30 years before adjusting for inflation, said Jennifer Ma, senior policy research scientist at the College Board and co-author of the report. ...
[A]verage tuition and fees ticked upward nationally this fall, as they have for years. The report shows average full-time undergraduate sticker prices for all institutional types increased by between 0.9 percent — for public, four-year out-of-state tuition — and 2.1 percent [for private, four-year colleges] before adjusting for inflation.
October 28, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (0)
Call For Tax Papers And Panels: SEALS 2021 (Nov. 7 Deadline)
Hello! I miss you all – what a year. I am looking with optimism towards next summer! Tessa Davis is joining me this year in coordinating tax panels and discussion groups for next year’s SEALS Conference. The 2021 SEALS Conference will be held July 26-August 1, 2021 at the Boca Resort in Boca Raton, Florida.
The conference submission tool is now open, and Tessa and I are eager to coordinate people who are interested in presenting tax work at the SEALS conference into relevant panel groups. In addition, we have also had very successful Tax Policy Discussion Groups in recent years. Panels are generally composed of 4 to 5 people speaking for 15 to 20 minutes each. We will attempt to group papers so that panels include papers on similar topics. The Discussion Group includes about 10 people, each speaking for 5-8 minutes on a topic related to tax policy, broadly interpreted. This has often included topics that are not necessarily fully formed paper ideas, but are thoughts the presenter has had on something he or she would like to discuss with a group of smart, informed people in an informal setting. Both types of presentation have been very successful in the past. Each presenter may participate in one Panel AND one Discussion Group.
So, if you are interested in submitting to SEALS and would like us to include you in a group of other tax profs, please email Tessa Davis with the following information:
October 28, 2020 in Conferences, Tax, Tax Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tuesday, October 27, 2020
Oh Presents Wealth Tax Design: Lessons From Estate Tax Avoidance Virtually Today At UC-Hastings
Jason Oh (UCLA) presents Wealth Tax Design: Lessons from Estate Tax Avoidance (with Eric M. Zolt (UCLA)) virtually at UC-Hastings today as part of its Tax Speakers Series hosted by Heather Field and Manoj Viswanathan:
In a remarkably short time period, the wealth tax has evolved from a fringe idea to a major policy option. Two leading candidates for the Democratic nomination, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, included wealth taxes in their policy platforms. To the surprise of many, strong support exists for imposing wealth taxes on the ultra-wealthy, even among Republican voters. The fiscal devastation of the coronavirus pandemic has swollen already huge federal deficits and likely will increase levels of inequality. Given concerns of revenue shortfalls and increasing inequality, the wealth tax merits serious consideration.
The potential revenue is eye-popping. Various projections have suggested that Warren and Sanders proposals would raise several trillion dollars over the next ten years. Critics including Larry Summers and Natasha Sarin have used data from estate tax returns and the relatively small amount of revenue the estate tax currently raises to question these revenue projections. This comparison can be useful only if one carefully considers how specific estate tax strategies translate to an annual wealth tax. This article engages in that exercise. When one takes a closer look at estate tax avoidance and how it maps onto an annual wealth tax, a much more complex narrative emerges.
October 27, 2020 in Colloquia, Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship, Tax Workshops | Permalink | Comments (0)
Rosenthal & Burke Present Taxation Of Corporations And Their Shareholders Virtually Today At NYU
Steve Rosenthal and Theo Burke (Tax Policy Center) present Who’s Left to Tax? US Taxation of Corporations and Their Shareholders virtually at NYU today as part of its Tax Policy Colloquium Series hosted by Lily Batchelder and Daniel Shaviro:
We usually say that corporate earnings are subject to two levels of income tax: first, the corporation pays an income tax on earnings and, second, the shareholders pay an income tax on the dividends they receive and capital gains they realize. The story now is illusory: We tax earnings twice, but badly.
A half century ago, the US corporate income tax was a major source of revenue. Since then, the corporate tax base has eroded and, in 2017, the corporate tax rate was cut sharply from 35 to 21 percent. As a result, corporate tax receipts dropped from 3.6 percent of GDP in 1965 to 1.5 percent in 2017 to 1.1 percent in 2019. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the resultant economic collapse, corporate tax receipts fell further, finishing below 0.8 percent of GDP for the fiscal year 2020, which ended on September 30 (and will finish lower still for the calendar year 2020).
October 27, 2020 in Colloquia, Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship, Tax Workshops | Permalink | Comments (0)
Over 600 U.S. Business School Professors Sign Open Letter Declaring President Trump Is A 'Threat To The Republic'
Deepak Malhotra (Harvard Business School), It’s Time for America’s Business Leaders to Speak Out Against the Threat Trump Poses to Our Republic:
An Open Letter & Call for Action — Signed by Business School Professors from Across America
Polarization in American politics is at record highs, with Republicans and Democrats disagreeing strongly on many issues. But the American people—although disheartened by politics, divided on policy, and deadlocked on ideology—are still able to find common ground where it matters most. Indeed, an unprecedented streak of bipartisanship has emerged in recent weeks, with throngs of prominent citizens—representing a wide range of institutions and professions—speaking out against what they consider an existential threat to our Republic.
Large groups of veterans, generals, soldiers, politicians, scientists, doctors, ambassadors, civil servants, lawyers, journalists, and others have now come out against a President who denigrates science, peddles in lies, incites violence, attempts to delegitimize the press, politicizes everything from the justice department to the CDC to the postal service, and seeks to undermine the integrity of American elections. These bipartisan groups—who disagree on many things—now agree that no positive vision for our country can be realized under the continued presidency of Donald Trump.
It is time for business leaders to follow suit and speak out against the threat Trump poses to our country. For a profession that incessantly proclaims the importance of corporate values, makes much ado about CSR initiatives, and proudly embraces a commitment to everything from sustainability, to inclusion, to ethical business practices, it is unacceptable and immoral to remain silent at this time. As the growing list of open letters and editorial statements from other groups makes clear, publicly supporting the Democratic candidate in this election is not a political act. It is an act of conscience. ...
October 27, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (5)
Colorado Seeks To Hire An Entry Level Or Junior Lateral Tax Prof
The University of Colorado Law School seeks applications and nominations to fill tenure-track or tenured positions (entry-level or lateral). For the current hiring cycle we plan to focus on candidates with an interest and expertise in tax law or race and the law (including critical race theory).
October 27, 2020 in Legal Education, Tax, Tax Prof Jobs | Permalink | Comments (0)
Columbia Journal Of Tax Law Publishes Tax Matters: Taxing Remote Workers
The Columbia Journal of Tax Law has published a new issue of its Tax Matters feature, Vol. 12, No. 1 (Oct. 21, 2020):
Darien Shanske (UC-Davis), Remote Workforce Doctrine and Policy: Short-Term and Long-Term Considerations
The challenge of how to tax employees who commute or work between states did not arise with the current pandemic. A leading state and local tax professor challenged New York’s approach to the issue in 2003, pursuing his claim to the New York Court of Appeals. Congress has been considering bills on the issue for at least ten years. The Multistate Tax Commission, an intergovernmental agency that promotes uniform state tax law (among other things), approved model legislation for a mobile workforce statute in 2011.
Yet, without a doubt, the current crisis has made these issues more pressing, as many more employees are working at home in one state where once they commuted into a neighboring state for work. Some states that stand to lose taxes paid by those employees who are no longer commuting have taken the position that the tax employees would have paid is still due.
- Edward Zelinsky (Cardozo), The Proper State Income Taxation of Remote and Mobile Workers
October 27, 2020 in Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (0)
Faculty Joined A Day Of Action To Protest Racial Inequality. Now 2 Are In Hot Water.
Following up on my previous post, State Auditor Tries To Fire Tenured Professor Who Participated In #ScholarStrike:
Chronicle of Higher Education, Faculty Members Joined a Day of Action to Protest Racial Inequality. Now 2 Are in Hot Water.:
Two tenured professors at different universities are in hot water after participating in the Scholar Strike, a national action meant to call awareness to police brutality against Black people.
At the University of Mississippi, the state auditor, Shad White, told the university to pursue terminating James M. Thomas after the associate professor of sociology engaged, according to White, in an illegal work stoppage. White’s targeting of Thomas — first reported by the Clarion Ledger — has been criticized by other scholars as intimidation and an attempt to score political points in a red state. (White did not respond to a request for comment but said on Twitter that people want him to “give this professor a pass” because they agree with the professor’s politics. “No,” he concluded.)
And at Texas A&M University, the dean reported Wendy Leo Moore, an associate professor of sociology, to the provost after Moore indicated she would participate in a work stoppage. For several days, Moore told The Chronicle, she thought she was going to lose her job.
October 27, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (21)
2020 Has Been A Hard Year For Higher Ed With 337,000 Jobs Lost. Could 2021 Be Worse?
Chronicle of Higher Education, 2020 Has Been a Hard Year for Higher Ed. Could 2021 Be Worse?:
Colleges are now starting to calculate the full costs of the coronavirus, including the fallout from declining enrollments and rising operating costs.
At places like Ithaca College, the impact of the pandemic is accelerating plans for major cuts in faculty jobs and academic programs. Beginning this spring, the college will begin to cut nearly a quarter of its 547 faculty members, said La Jerne T. Cornish, Ithaca’s provost.
The college’s undergraduate enrollment is 4,785 full-time students, more than 900 students fewer than a year ago, a decline of more than 16 percent, according to the college’s figures. At the same time, the college has a budget shortfall of $8 million because of increased operating costs — an amount that could grow before the end of the academic year, Cornish said.
October 27, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (5)
Love is Free. Guac is Extra.: How Vulnerability, Empowerment, And Curiosity Built An Unstoppable Team
We held a wonderful virtual event yesterday with our alum Monty Moran ('93) on his just-released book, Love is Free. Guac is Extra.: How Vulnerability, Empowerment, and Curiosity Built an Unstoppable Team (2020):
Imagine you’re one of 75,000 people working in a huge company, and the CEO wants to talk to you, one-on-one, to get to know and understand you. That’s what Monty Moran did 20,000 times as he built the extraordinary culture that took Chipotle Mexican Grill from a regional burrito chain to a Fortune 500 superstar.
In Love Is Free, Guac Is Extra, Monty shows how he used curiosity, vulnerability, love, and a unique understanding of the true meaning of empowerment to build a distinctive and wildly effective culture. From his teenage days befriending homeless people at a Colorado Dairy Queen to his nuanced navigation of a complex co-CEO relationship, Monty demonstrates a relentless humility and desire to understand the person across from him.
This is not your average leadership book. This is a book about business leadership executed in a way you’ve never encountered before, by becoming the best version of yourself.
Drew Kellogg (CEO, Oath Pizza), Monty Taught Chipotle How To Cultivate Confidence:
Monty is a rare individual with extraordinary presence. A personality that fills the room. When you meet him and shake his hand, he looks you in the eye and within a couple of minutes you are at ease and sharing your life story. The "why are you here's?" and the "what do you want to do's?", big questions. Monty presents them with an approachability as if they are part of every day conversations. In short, Monty's gift is his ability to connect, make you feel part of something special and inspire you. Monty taught Chipotle how to cultivate confidence. On a foundation of Steve's culinary brilliance, Monty's approach fueled Chipotle's meteoric growth and sustained success.
October 27, 2020 in Book Club, Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (1)
Monday, October 26, 2020
Mason & Delaney Present Solidarity Federalism Virtually Today In California
Ruth Mason (Virginia) & Erin Delaney (Northwestern) present Solidarity Federalism virtually today as part of the San Diego-Davis-Hastings Tax Law Speaker Series:
Studies of federalism, especially in the United States, have largely focused on the important role that state autonomy plays in federations, emphasizing what we refer to as the “traditional” values of federalism—diversity, experimentation, pluralism, and competition. This Essay argues that this focus misses an important aspect of Our Federalism; maintaining a federal form of government requires both state autonomy and state solidarity. We therefore introduce a sometimes complementary, and sometimes opposing, set of federalism values, which we call solidarity values, including duties of reciprocity, good faith, and trust. Solidarity federalism operationalizes these values and contributes to our understanding of federation by expanding the notion of a state's self-interest beyond its borders, to include a crucial measure of regard for the whole union.
October 26, 2020 in Colloquia, Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship, Tax Workshops | Permalink | Comments (0)
Bearer-Friend Presents In-Kind Tax Paying: Lessons And Risks Virtually Today At Loyola-L.A.
Jeremy Bearer-Friend (George Washington) presents In-Kind Tax Paying: Lessons and Risks virtually today at Loyola-L.A. as part of its Tax Policy Colloquium Series hosted by Katie Pratt and Ted Seto:
This Article documents and evaluates noncash remittance of tax obligations, referred to as “in-kind tax paying.” Such forms of tax paying include: paying a federal income tax bill by remitting a used, flatbed truck to the IRS; paying a property tax bill by working a few hours a month answering phones at city hall; and, conveying a proportion of all seashells farmed within a state to that state. These are not just hypotheticals, but forms of in-kind tax paying that occur in the United States throughout periods when many taxes are also paid in cash. Nevertheless, despite its long history and prevalence, in-kind tax paying has consistently been overlooked.
By providing a comprehensive account of in-kind tax paying within a cash economy, this Article makes three contributions. First, it improves our definition of tax paying by identifying the wide variety of in-kind remittances that already occur in our current tax system and offering a taxonomy for how to understand in-kind remittances within an economy that relies primarily on cash taxes. Second, it refutes the presumption that in-kind remittance of tax obligations is not viable, thus expanding the tax tools available to local, state, and federal governments and demonstrating how narrow presumptions about tax remittance have predetermined core tax policy choices.
October 26, 2020 in Colloquia, Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship, Tax Workshops | Permalink | Comments (0)
Still More NY Times Coverage Of Trump’s Taxes
Following up on my previous posts:
New York Times, Trump's Tax Returns: Chronic Losses, Years Of Tax Avoidance (Sept. 28, 2020)
- More NY Times Coverage Of Trump's Taxes (Oct. 12. 2020)
New York Times, Trump’s Philanthropy: Big Tax Write-Offs and Claims That Don’t Always Add Up:
In President Trump’s telling, he is a committed philanthropist with strong ties to many charities. “If you don’t give back, you’re never ever going to be fulfilled in life,” he wrote in “Trump 101: The Way to Success,” published at the height of his “Apprentice” fame.
And according to his tax records, he has given back at least $130 million since 2005, his second year as a reality TV star.
But the long-hidden tax records, obtained by The New York Times, show that Mr. Trump did not have to reach into his wallet for most of that giving. The vast bulk of his charitable tax deductions, $119.3 million worth, came from simply agreeing not to develop land — in several cases, after he had shelved development plans.
Three of the agreements involved what are known as conservation easements — a maneuver, popular among wealthy Americans, that typically allows a landowner to keep a property’s title and receive a tax deduction equal to its appraised value. In the fourth land deal, Mr. Trump donated property for a state park.
October 26, 2020 in Tax, Tax News | Permalink | Comments (1)
Tax Prof Michelle Drumbl Named Interim Dean At Washington & Lee (Succeeding Tax Prof Brant Hellwig)
Michelle Lyon Drumbl Appointed Interim Dean of the Washington and Lee School of Law:
Michelle Lyon Drumbl, Robert O. Bentley Professor of Law and director of the Tax Clinic at the Washington and Lee University School of Law, has been appointed to a one-year term as interim dean of the law school effective July 1, 2021.
Drumbl succeeds Brant Hellwig, who has served as dean since 2015 and recently announced his intention to step down at the end of the current academic year.
W&L President William C. Dudley and Interim Provost Elizabeth Goad Oliver announced Drumbl’s appointment, noting that a national search for a new law dean will take place during the 2021-22 academic year.
“I am pleased that Michelle has agreed to serve in this critical role,” said Dudley. “Her clinical and teaching experience and wide-ranging service to the university will be invaluable in her leadership of the law school during this time of transition. I look forward to working with her next year as we search for our next law dean.”
Drumbl joined the law school faculty in 2007. She holds a B.A. in political science from Emory University, a J.D. from the George Washington University School of Law, and an LL.M. in taxation from New York University School of Law.
October 26, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education, Tax, Tax News, Tax Prof Moves | Permalink | Comments (0)
Lesson From The Tax Court: Losing Gambler Gets Twice Lucky In Tax Court
Taxpayers rarely walk away from casinos richer than when they entered. The odds are not in their favor. If a slot machine pays out $1,200 or more, however, the casino will still report that win on a W-2G, even if the taxpayer loses all of it before leaving the casino. The theory is that $1,200 is income to the taxpayer and the taxpayer’s choice to use it for more gambling is no different than the taxpayer’s choice to use that $1,200 for other consumption.
The IRS recognizes that the reality is different from theory and so it permits taxpayers to net their gambling gains and gambling losses for each visit to---or session at---a casino. In the unlikely event they leave the casino a net winner, those wagering gains are gross income which must be reported. If they leave a net loser, they may be able to deduct those wagering losses against wagering gains up to the amount of wagering gains. Tax Court precedents uphold this per-session method of accounting for gambling gains and losses. In addition, plenty of precedent requires taxpayers to substantiate their wagering losses for each session.
In John M. Coleman v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2020-146 (Oct. 22, 2020), Judge Lauber bucked both sets of precedents to allow the taxpayer a gambling loss deduction equal to over $350,000 of gambling wins reported on various W-2Gs. There are good reasons for why Judge Lauber did this, but the bottom line is that this taxpayer got twice lucky. It helped that he was represented pro bono by two high-powered tax attorneys from Morgan Lewis. Let's look at what we can learn from them and from this case. Details below the fold.
October 26, 2020 in Bryan Camp, New Cases, Scholarship, Tax, Tax Practice And Procedure, Tax Scholarship | Permalink | Comments (1)
University Of Missouri President Admits He Didn't Read Promotion & Tenure Committee's Recommendations, But Stands By Rejection Of 7 Faculty Candidates
Columbia Daily Tribune, Choi Admits Mistake In Not Reading Tenure Recommendations:
[Chancellor Mun] Choi didn't apologize, but he did admit to a mistake in not noticing a folder with recommendations of the Campus Promotion and Tenure Advisory Committee when making decisions on faculty promotion and tenure.
The comments from the University of Missouri System president and MU chancellor were made at Wednesday's virtual general faculty meeting. ... "It was my mistake in not recognizing there was not a folder" for the committee recommendations, Choi said. "I did not realize. Of course, going forward, I will read the letter."
It was an oversight and unintentional, he said. ...
The MU Faculty Council last week voted to censure Choi for not following procedures for promotion and tenure of faculty members.
October 26, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (3)
Lawyers Campaign Contributions: 94% Biden, 6% Trump (99.9% / 0.1% At Jones Day)
Reuters, Lawyers Spurn Trump Campaign in Individual Donations, Including From Jones Day:
Lawyers at Jones Day, which has earned millions as outside counsel to U.S. President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign, have donated nearly $90,000 to the campaign committee of Trump’s Democratic rival Joe Biden. Contributions to the Trump campaign by Jones Day lawyers totaled just $50, records show.
A Reuters analysis of Federal Election Commission records shows a wide gulf between individual lawyer donations to the candidates, with nearly $29 million going directly to Biden’s campaign and just under $1.75 million to Trump’s between Jan. 1, 2019 and Aug. 31, 2020. Lawyers at several other law firms representing Trump or his campaign also heavily favored Biden.
October 26, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (5)
TaxProf Blog Weekend Roundup
Saturday:
- This Week's Ten Most Popular TaxProf Blog Posts
- 2020 Law360 Glass Ceiling Report: 'Minimal Progress'
- Connecticut, Maryland, New York, And Pennsylvania To Give Online Bar Exams In February
- Changing The Face Of College Sports One Tax Return At A Time
Sunday:
- The Truth About Taxes: George Floyd Died, Donald Trump Got Millions
- Christians Do Not Fit Into The Two-Party System. And That's A Good Thing.
- Christian College Faculty Aren't Lining Up For Trump
- The Top Five New Tax Papers
October 26, 2020 in Legal Education, Tax, Weekend Roundup | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, October 25, 2020
Dean: The Truth About Taxes — George Floyd Died, Donald Trump Got Millions
Steven Dean (NYU), The Truth About Taxes: George Floyd Died, Donald Trump Got Millions:
This year, each of us has lost something. I am fortunate that my biggest loss has been my faith in our tax system.
In 2014, Eric Garner died at the hands of police officers after being suspected of evading taxes by selling cigarettes without tax stamps. That same year, Donald Trump was also suspected of evading income taxes. But unlike Garner, who was killed by police, Trump reached a favorable legal settlement with the IRS.
The New York Times recently revealed that Trump had not engaged in “smart” tax planning as he had boasted during his 2016 presidential campaign but seems to have simply lied to secure a $72.9 million refund. And, thanks to a highly successful effort by Republicans to weaken the IRS, Trump has gotten away with it for years.
Tax law has long been more a secular religion than a job for me. It embodies the commitment we make to one another as Americans to support our shared values by funding our schools and our troops and caring for our most vulnerable. ...
Among all the horrors we have seen in recent months, I am embarrassed to say that a trivial detail has haunted me. George Floyd’s death came after he fell under suspicion of spending a counterfeit $20 bill. ... We all witnessed the swift, ruthless response to George Floyd’s $20 bill and to Eric Garner’s cigarettes. But after years of controversy, almost nothing seems to have been done about Trump’s suspected multimillion-dollar heist. ...
October 25, 2020 in Legal Education, Tax, Tax News | Permalink | Comments (3)
Christians Do Not Fit Into The Two-Party System. And That's A Good Thing.
New York Times op-ed: How Do Christians Fit Into the Two-Party System? They Don’t, by Timothy Keller (Founder, Redeemer Presbyterian Church, New York):
What should the role of Christians in politics be? More people than ever are asking that question. Christians cannot pretend they can transcend politics and simply “preach the Gospel.” Those who avoid all political discussions and engagement are essentially casting a vote for the social status quo. American churches in the early 19th century that did not speak out against slavery because that was what we would now call “getting political” were actually supporting slavery by doing so. To not be political is to be political. ...
[M]ost political positions are not matters of biblical command but of practical wisdom. This does not mean that the church can never speak on social, economic and political realities, because the Bible often does. Racism is a sin, violating the second of the two great commandments of Jesus, to “love your neighbor.” The biblical commands to lift up the poor and to defend the rights of the oppressed are moral imperatives for believers. For individual Christians to speak out against egregious violations of these moral requirements is not optional.
However, there are many possible ways to help the poor. Should we shrink government and let private capital markets allocate resources, or should we expand the government and give the state more of the power to redistribute wealth? Or is the right path one of the many possibilities in between? The Bible does not give exact answers to these questions for every time, place and culture. ...
Another reason Christians these days cannot allow the church to be fully identified with any particular party is the problem of what the British ethicist James Mumford calls “package-deal ethics.” Increasingly, political parties insist that you cannot work on one issue with them if you don’t embrace all of their approved positions.
This emphasis on package deals puts pressure on Christians in politics. For example, following both the Bible and the early church, Christians should be committed to racial justice and the poor, but also to the understanding that sex is only for marriage and for nurturing family. One of those views seems liberal and the other looks oppressively conservative. The historical Christian positions on social issues do not fit into contemporary political alignments.
So Christians are pushed toward two main options. One is to withdraw and try to be apolitical. The second is to assimilate and fully adopt one party’s whole package in order to have your place at the table. Neither of these options is valid.
October 25, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (0)
Christian College Faculty Aren't Lining Up For Trump
Inside Higher Ed, Christian College Faculty Aren't Lining Up for Trump:
[W]hile recent polls show Trump continues to hold a wide lead over Democrat Joe Biden among religious voters, a bad sign for the president is that some of his support is slipping, including among white evangelicals who, like the faculty at Christian colleges, have a college education.
At the nation’s Christian colleges, a number of professors described in interviews this week their struggle to reconcile their support for a president moving toward ending abortion with their discomfort, and even spiritual revulsion, over him.
October 25, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (2)
The Top Five New Tax Papers
There is quite a bit of movement in this week's list of the Top 5 Recent Tax Paper Downloads, with a new #1 paper and new papers debuting on the list at #3 and #4:
[281 Downloads] Good Tax Governance: International Corporate Tax Planning and Corporate Social Responsibility – Does One Exclude the Other?, by Ave-Geidi Jallai (Tilburg)
- [253 Downloads] The Rise of Cooperative Surplus Taxation, by Allison Christians (McGill) & Tarcisio Diniz Magalhaes (McGill)
- [214 Downloads] Federal Tax Procedure (2020 Practitioner Ed.), by John Townsend
- [151 Downloads] Intangibles and the Transfer Pricing Reconstruction Rules: A Case Study of Amazon, by Antony Ting (Sydney)
- [144 Downloads] Why Is So Much Redistribution In-Kind and Not in Cash? Evidence from a Survey Experiment, by Zachary Liscow (Yale) & Abigail Pershing (J.D. 2020, Yale)
October 25, 2020 in Scholarship, Tax, Tax Scholarship, Top 5 Downloads | Permalink | Comments (0)
Saturday, October 24, 2020
This Week's Ten Most Popular TaxProf Blog Posts
- Stephen Moore (Wall Street Journal op-ed), The Best Stimulus: 0% Income Tax
- National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, Freshmen Enrollment Is Down 16% This Fall
- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pitt Law Adjunct Prof Resigns After Using N-Word In Class On Offensive Speech
- Bryan Camp (Texas Tech), Lesson From The Tax Court: §6662 Penalties Treated As One For Supervisory Approval Requirement
- Brian Frye (Kentucky), Pounded In The Butt By My Self-Plagiarized Tingler Negging Legal Scholarship
- Vox, Mark Zuckerberg Has Spent Over $10 Million To Overhaul California's Proposition 13 Tax Law
- NALP, Bar Passage Required Jobs Rate Of 80% For Whites Compared To 62% For Blacks Shows 'Systemic Preference' For White Law Grads Over Black Law Grads
- Wired, Meet The Excel Warriors Saving The World From Spreadsheet Disaster
- Shaun Ossei-Owusu (Penn), For Minority Law Students, Learning The Law Can Be Intellectually Violent
- The Graphic, Faculty And Staff Find Silver Linings Amid Loss And Isolation During COVID-19
October 24, 2020 in ABA Tax Section, Legal Education, Tax, Weekly Top 10 TaxProf Blog Posts | Permalink | Comments (0)
2020 Law360 Glass Ceiling Report: 'Minimal Progress'
2020 Law360 Glass Ceiling Report:
The Law360 2020 Glass Ceiling Report shows that law firms continue to make only minimal progress in their efforts to dispel the barriers women face, especially as they move up the ranks.
Our rankings of firms, organized by head count, register incremental progress with respect to the percentage of female attorneys and of female equity partners. Roughly 40% of attorneys and about 25% of all partners are women, the data said.
This year, we expanded the survey to include measures such as partner promotions, executive committees and the types of policies that firms have in place specifically for women as part of promoting diversity and inclusion overall. The results provide a benchmark of how female attorneys were faring at U.S. law firms at the end of 2019.
Our detailed breakdown of where they place throughout their firms shows a picture that has barely changed from the previous year, with women representing around 25% of partners, 22% of equity partners and 28% of executive committees.
October 24, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (0)
Connecticut, Maryland, New York, And Pennsylvania To Give Online Bar Exams In February
Karen Sloan (Law.com), New York Joins 3 Other States in Giving February Bar Exam Online:
New York’s February bar exam will be online.
The New York State Court of Appeals announced Wednesday that the upcoming exam would not be offered in person due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, making it among the first jurisdictions to commit to another online test in February. That decision came just two weeks after the state administered its first-ever remote exam, which earned mixed reviews. The court and the New York State Board of Law Examiners have deemed the test a success, while many test takers said it was unfair and riddled with glitches.
“While the Board of Law Examiners continues to gather and study the data, our preliminary assessment is that, despite the novel procedure, this was a very successful administration of the bar examination,” reads the court’s Wednesday announcement. “Of the 5,167 applicants who downloaded the exam software and were scheduled to take the remote exam on October 5 and 6, 2020, all but 17 successfully completed the entire exam.” ...
Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Maryland have also announced this week that they will give online bar exams in February. ...
October 24, 2020 in Legal Ed News, Legal Education | Permalink | Comments (0)
