Former State Rep. Girod Jackson, pleaded guilty to three counts of tax evasion and tax fraud before a federal judge Thursday. Jackson’s firm came under scrutiny during a federal probe of the Jefferson Parish Housing Authority. Jackson resigned on August 22, after the charges were filed. Jackson’s plea was expected […]
Author: Lawrence Brown
The connection between charitable giving and tax write-offs shows the complexity of human motivations. On the one hand, many people are altruistic and enjoy helping others and the wider community by giving gifts to charities that perform various forms of service. On the other hand, though, the ability to take […]
Following a deal between the United States and several Swiss banks to pay fines rather than face a criminal investigation, Zurich bank Rahn & Bodmer has disclosed that they are currently under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice. Long known for being a tax haven for wealthy individuals, Swiss […]
For many years, Americans were able to hold money in offshore accounts without worrying about being prosecuted by U.S. authorities. All of that has changed in the past few years. Since the United States began its intense crackdown on undisclosed offshore accounts in 2009, it has used its long-arm to […]
In recent years, layoffs have become a frequent and seemingly permanent part of the national economic landscape. Even with the Great Recession officially over for more than four years, there are still plenty of people losing their jobs. Many of these people get severance pay. And so the tax treatment […]
The partial shutdown of the federal government is now in its second day. The shutdown is “partial” in that some services remain operative while others do not. In Texas and across the nation, people are therefore asking themselves what is open and what is not. National parks are easily the […]
We live in a high-performance culture. Year after year, in school and in the workplace, we are taught to build on our strengths, minimize weaknesses and strive for success. This mindset usually means moving quickly to correct the human errors that inevitably occur. When it comes to filing taxes, however, […]
“I hate to beat a dead horse, especially one from the Civil War era,” said Justice Department Tax Division lawyer Gilbert Rothenberg while attempting to defend the Obama administration’s effort to regulate the tax return preparation business for the first time in U.S. history. The administration’s case was based largely […]
A Saskatoon accountant was fined nearly $50,000 and sentenced to a nine month conditional jail term after being found guilty of tax evasion. Robert Tiffin, 70, was fined $49,561 for understating his net income from his accounting practice by $204,779 for the 2004 to 2007 tax years. Tiffin will also […]
European Union finance ministers called for a united global fight against tax fraud, while attempting to downplay concerns over disagreements within the bloc on crucial banking sector reforms. Officials say that tax fraud and firm’s aggressive efforts to avoid taxation have cost the 28-nation bloc’s governments an estimated 1 trillion […]