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IRS Issues Warning About Hiring Non-Attorney Tax Resolution Groups

The Internal Revenue Service issued a warning to taxpayers with pending tax bills to not hire non-attorney tax resolution groups falsely claiming they can settle a person’s tax debt for pennies on the dollar.  As part of its annual scams warning list, the IRS labeled these unscrupulous tax companies as Offer in Compromise (OIC) “mills” that make “outlandish claims” in aggressive advertising.  “These ‘mills’ contort the IRS program into something it's not — misleading people with no chance of meeting the requirements while charging excessive fees, often thousands of dollars,” the IRS said in its warning.  An OIC is an offer asking the...

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Mark Milton, Shine Lin selected again as POWER Tax Attorneys by Missouri Lawyers Media

Milton Law Group tax attorneys Mark C. Milton and Shine Lin were selected for the second consecutive year to the Missouri Lawyers Media POWER List of Missouri Tax Attorneys. Mark and Shine are two of only 31 tax attorneys statewide chosen to receive this industry-leading designation in 2022.   The POWER List highlights the most powerful attorneys in tax law and estate planning who lead and influence the Missouri legal community.    Selections for the POWER List of Missouri Tax Attorneys are the result of an extensive process that included deep reporting and research by the Missouri Lawyers Media editorial team, interviews with respected attorneys and other influential leaders around the state,...

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2021 Tax Return Preparation Services

It's tax time! The tax filing season officially begins on Monday, January 24, 2022. We hope you will consider our firm for your 2021 tax return preparation needs. We have streamlined the tax return preparation process to provide more convenience to our clients and ensure a smooth and efficient experience. Our secure client portal is encrypted with bank-level security so we can securely share files and information. Using the survey tool, you will answer some questions regarding your 2021 income/deductions and be able to upload your relevant tax documents.  There is also an app that allows you to take photos of your tax...

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Proposed Spending Bill: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Effects on Estate Planning

The "Infrastructure Financing and Community Development" bill making its way through Congress seeks to reduce the lifetime Estate and Gift tax exclusionary amount from $11.7 million to $5 million and to attack the grantor trust type of arrangements. That’s the bad.  The good news is that some other provisions thought to be included in the Infrastructure Financing and Community Development bill were excluded, including:  Capital gains tax on death: earlier proposals suggested that to receive a step up in basis on appreciated assets, the donor would have had to pay the capital gains tax on the appreciation of the assets held by the donor at death.   Capital gains tax on transfers to trusts: taxing the built-in...

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Proposed Tax Law Changes: Grantor Trusts and Gifts to Irrevocable Trusts

Grantor trusts have been a key tool for estate planning attorneys to reduce the taxable estate of high net worth individuals, but a new bill could drastically change this existing wealth transfer strategy.  On Sept. 15, 2021, the House Ways and Means Committee introduced a new "Infrastructure Financing and Community Development" bill that proposes to include assets transferred to grantor trusts (trusts that are not treated as separate from the donor/grantor for income tax purposes because the donor/grantor pays the income tax owed by the trust, but are separate entities for estate tax purposes) in the estate of the grantor/donor.  This bill attacks estate freezing and estate reduction techniques that estate planning attorneys have utilized in the past, such as gifts...

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New Bill Could Have Drastic Changes to Estate and Gift Tax Exemptions

A new bill working its way through Congress could change current estate planning rules and dramatically shift estate planning standards as early as Jan. 1, 2022.   On Sept. 15, 2021, the House Ways and Means Committee introduced a new bill titled "Infrastructure Financing and Community Development" that would, among many other changes, reduce the increased Estate Tax and Gift Tax Exemption to half of the exemption allowed in the 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act ("TCJA").   The proposed bill would decrease the existing Estate and Gift Tax exemption amount from $10 million to approximately $5 million effective Jan. 1, 2022, rather than Jan. 1, 2026, which was the existing date the TCJA exemption was set to sunset.   The change in date to four years earlier than the previously planned reduction of the Estate and...

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Small Business and Sole Proprietor Tax Tips

Small business owners and sole proprietorships frequently – but often unintentionally – run into IRS tax problems because the focus on running the day-to-day operations of the business can cause a business owner to neglect the entity’s tax obligations. STLTaxLawyer Mark Milton has a few small business owner tax tips to help ensure a successful and IRS-compliant operation. ...

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College Athlete Profiting from Your Name, Image, and Likeness? Beware of the Tax Consequences

College athletes profiting from the new Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) opportunities should beware of the tax consequences. The biggest collegiate stars could earn millions of dollars annually using their NIL, and as such, should plan for and be mindful of the potential tax ramifications, especially with the IRS and DOJ closely monitoring the developing situation....

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