Break Into Tax: Introduction To Deductions

Learn or review where deductions are taken in computing an individual's federal income tax liability! This video covers (1) above-the-line deductions, (2) below-the-line deductions, (3) itemized deductions, and (4) miscellaneous itemized deductions. It uses an animated Venn diagram to help illustrate how each of these categories of deductions relate to each other. The video also covers how a tax deduction differs from a tax credit and the basics of computing an individual taxpayer's taxable income. Professor Lederman & Professor Ariel Jurow Kleiman co-host. The end of the video briefly shows the main illustrations and animation again.

Contents of this video:

• 00:00 - Introduction
• 00:19 - Determining An Individual's Federal Income Tax Liability
• 01:01 - Taxable Income
• 01:32 - Adjusted Gross Income (AGI)
• 02:05 - Above-the-Line Deductions
• 02:48 - Below-the-Line Deductions
• 03:18 - The Election To Itemize
• 03:26 - The Standard Deduction
• 04:50 - Non-Itemized Below-the-Line Deductions
• 04:58 - Itemized Deductions
• 05:32 - Miscellaneous Itemized Deductions
• 07:21 - 2 Examples of Miscellaneous Itemized Deductions
• 07:39 - Deductions vs. Credits
• 08:14 - A Venn Diagram of Deductions
• 08:55 - Graphic Depiction of Computing An Individual's Taxable Income
• 09:31 - Conclusion
• 09:44 - Brief Reprise of the Animation and Graphics

Break Into Tax thanks Ariel Jurow Kleiman for the animation and principal graphics in this video. Break Into Tax also thanks Emily Cauble for comments on a draft of the video. 

TaxProf Blog coverage of Break Into Tax videos:

• Christians And Lederman Start YouTube Series Break Into Tax (BiT) (Feb. 16, 2021)
• Christians & Lederman: Should You Get A Tax LLM? (Feb. 24, 2021)
• Christians & Lederman: An Important Tax Tip & #WhyTakeTax? (April 1, 2021)
• Lederman & Christians: Last-Minute Exam Prep (April 24, 2021)
• Lederman & Christians: Tax Papers Unlocked — The Elevator Pitch (May 19, 2021)
• Lederman & Christians: An Overview Of U.S. Federal Tax Controversies (June 21, 2021)
• Lederman & Christians: Tax Papers Unlocked — Rita de la Feria (July 9, 2021)
• Christians & Lederman: How To Read A Tax Statute (July 24, 2021)
• Lederman & Christians: Tax Papers Unlocked — Dan Shaviro (Aug. 2, 2021)
• Christians & Lederman: Tax Careers — The Office Of Chief Counsel And The IRS (August 14, 2021)
• Lederman & Christians: Tax Papers Unlocked — Jon Choi (Aug. 21, 2021)
• Christians & Lederman Launch Season 2 of Break Into Tax (September 18, 2021)
• Lederman & Bearer-Friend: Break Into Legal Academia (September 25, 2021)
• Break Into Tax: Friday The 15th (October 11, 2021)
• Break Into Tax: Talking Tax Careers With The Tax Chick (October 16, 2021)
• Break Into Tax: Tax Papers Unlocked — Victoria Haneman (October 23, 2021)
• Break Into Tax: Exam Tips (November 6, 2021)
• Break Into Tax: Introduction To Deductions (Nov. 20, 2021)
• Break Into Tax: Capital Gains & Losses — An Introduction (Nov. 27, 2021)
• Break Into Tax: The Limitation On Capital Losses (Dec. 4, 2021)
• Break Into Tax: The Capital Gains Preference (Dec. 11, 2021)
• Break Into Tax: The Federal Income Tax Treatment of Debt (Dec. 18, 2021)
• Videos: How To Do Legal Research And Tax Research (Jan. 22, 2022)