Mark Filler, CPA, of Filler & Associates was the plaintiff’s damages expert for the following Portland, Maine court case. Tucker Cianchette won a nearly $6 million dollar settlement in a lawsuit first filed in June 2016 against his father, Eric Cianchette, a prominent businessman. A jury in Portland has awarded the money in contract, fraud  Continue Reading »

Back in 1969 the alternative minimum tax (AMT) was enacted to ensure that high-income individuals don’t take advantage of multiple tax breaks and avoid paying federal tax. However, in recent years, the AMT has been imposed on many middle-income taxpayers. Unfortunately, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) retains the individual AMT. But AMT exemptions and  Continue Reading »

Berman v. Unimin Corp., 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 172769 (Dec. 14, 2016) How deeply must a damages expert research a personal injury case to produce an admissible report? This was the overriding question in a Daubert case involving an injured railroad worker. The defendant argued the expert improperly relied on the attorney’s instruction to work  Continue Reading »

The IRS released updated 2018 income tax withholding tables on January 11, which reflect changes made by the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The IRS states that this is the first in a series of steps that the IRS will take to help improve the accuracy of withholding following major changes made by the new  Continue Reading »

The individual Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) is unfortunately retained by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). However, here’s the silver lining: The AMT rules now reduce the odds that you’ll owe the AMT for 2018 through 2025. Plus, even if you’re still in the AMT zone, you’ll probably owe less AMT than you did  Continue Reading »

Usually when a business is professionally valued, owners and managers immediately check out the bottom line to see what the company is worth. They may pay little attention to the reasons behind the final number, especially if the report was prepared for internal planning or financial reporting purposes. But it’s a good idea to take  Continue Reading »

The 1993 Daubert case says that an attorney is permitted to challenge an expert witness’s credentials, and if successful, the expert will not be allowed to testify. One case before the U.S. Court of Federal Claims shows how an expert can successfully defend their qualifications and methodologies when they’re subjected to a Daubert challenge. SSE Case:  Continue Reading »

In re Marriage of Kirkendoll 2016 Wash. App. LEXIS 2357 (Oct. 4, 2016) In a Washington state divorce case, the appeals court delved into “the notion of the impermissible ‘double dip’” and explained why the concept was not applicable to the facts of the case. The dispute centered on the couple’s only income-generating asset, a  Continue Reading »

Recently, Congress revamped the so-called “kiddie tax” under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). Congress had enacted the tax rules to prevent parents and grandparents in high tax brackets from shifting income (especially from investments) to children in lower tax brackets. What changed? The kiddie tax rate structure was the only thing revised by the TCJA.  Continue Reading »

On January 22, a short-term government funding bill was signed into law by President Trump. It ended the brief government shutdown by funding the federal government through February 8. It also suspends the following Affordable Care Act (ACA) taxes, which were designed to help fund health care coverage provided under the ACA. 1. Cadillac Tax For  Continue Reading »