14th Annual NYU Tax Controversy Forum Agenda

• Kathleen Costello, Assistant Director, NYU School of Professional Studies, New York, NY
• Bryan C. Skarlatos, Esq., Partner, Kostelanetz & Fink, New York, NY
• Frank Agostino, Esq., Founder and President, Agostino & Associates, PC, Hackensack, NJ

• Charles P. Rettig, Esq., Commissioner, Internal Revenue Service, Washington, DC

Tax Compliance and Enforcement Update Part I

Voluntary compliance and enforcement of the tax law are at the heart of our tax system. Over the past several years, the IRS and DOJ have been challenged to find come up with new and more efficient ways to ensure that all taxpayers pay the correct amount of tax. Theseis panels provides an update on new developments and priorities across various divisions of the IRS and the DOJ.

Finance, technology, and law are constantly evolving, and the tax law is no exception. Taxpayers and their advisors are always on the lookout for new opportunities to reduce taxes. This panel will explain how the IRS keeps up with the changing profile of tax avoidance and tax evasion. The panel will also introduce the IRS’ new Emerging Issues Group and describe how it will go about discovering and confronting the latest transactions designed to avoid or evade tax.

• Moderator: Michelle F. Schwerin, Esq., CPA, Shareholder, Capes, Sokol, Goodman & Sarachan, PC, St. Louis, MO
• Thomas A. Cullinan, Esq., Acting Chief of Staff to the Commissioner, Internal Revenue Service, Washington, DC
• Danielle M. Grimm, Special Counsel, IRS Office of Chief Counsel, Passthroughs and Special Industries, Washington, DC
• Benjamin M. Swartz, Senior Advisor to the Commissioner, IRS Small Business/Self-Employed Division, Examination, Washington, DC

The IRS continues to refine its focus on large taxpayers, which tend to have complicated issues and examinations. This panel will discuss a number of initiatives that directly impact the LB&I taxpayer, including an update on the Compliance Assurance Process (“CAP”), which allows eligible taxpayers to undergo a real-time pre-filing audit, the status of Rev. Proc. 94-69, which allows large corporate taxpayers to disclose certain tax issues after the opening of an examination, LB&I’s application of the recent Chief Counsel memorandum addressing the documentation requirements for research credit claims, and LB&I’s presence at Appeals conferences. The discussion will also address the IRS’ current partnership initiatives and recent developments in transfer pricing.

• Moderator: Sharon Katz-Pearlman, Esq., National Principal-in-Charge, Tax Dispute Resolution Network, KPMG, New York, NY; Global Head, Tax Dispute Resolution and Controversy, KPMG International
  Jennifer Best, Director, IRS Large Business & International Division, Treaty and Transfer Pricing Operations, Washington, DC
• Nikole Flax, Commissioner, IRS Large Business & International Division, Washington, DC

• Moderator: Barbara T. Kaplan, Esq., Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig, New York, NY
• Thomas J. Sawyer, Senior Litigation Counsel and Counsel for International Tax Matters, Tax Division, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC

Our tax system is based on extremely complex rules and regulations which govern how taxes must be reported and paid. The Administrative Procedure Act generally requires the Treasury Department to follow specific procedures designed to give the public notice and an opportunity to comment before certain kinds of rules and regulations are enacted. Recent court decisions have invalidated IRS notices for failure to follow these procedures and have allowed taxpayers to seek injunctions against the IRS in limited situations. This panel will discuss these decisions and their impact on current audits and litigation as well as the IRS’ authority to enforce existing rules and regulations.

• Moderator: John Colvin, Esq., Partner, Colvin + Hallet Law, Seattle, WA
• David W. Foster, Esq., Partner, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Washington, DC
• Jenny L. Johnson, Esq., Partner, McDermott Will & Emery, Chicago, IL
• Kevin L. Kenworthy, Esq., Member, Miller & Chevalier, Washington, DC

Audits of partnerships and other pass-through entities were previously governed by special procedures under the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act (TEFRA). For tax years 2018 and forward, however, partnership and pass-through audits will be governed by the new Centralized Partnership Audit Regime. The new regime will dramatically change the way audits are handled and practitioners must understand the new rules to effectively represent their clients and avoid costly mistakes. This panel will discuss the new regime governing partnership and pass-through audits and the complexities of transitioning between TEFRA and the new rules. The panel will also suggest ways to prepare for and effectively manage a partnership audit under the new rules. 

• Moderator: Megan L. Brackney, Esq., Partner, Kostelanetz & Fink, New York, NY
• Rochelle Hodes, Esq., Principal, Crowe LLP, Washington, DC
• Amanda H. Nussbaum, Esq., Partner, Proskauer Rose, New York, NY
• Joy Gerdy Zogby, Esq., Senior Technician Reviewer, IRS Office of Chief Counsel, Procedure and Administration, Washington, DC

The IRS automatically assesses penalties for foreign asset information returns that it considers delinquent or incomplete. The mistakes that give rise to these failures are often very minor compared to the amount of the penalties assessed. Under current IRS procedures, the only pre-payment remedy is to rely on the IRS to exercise its discretion to abate the penalties based on reasonable cause. This panel will provide tips for navigating the penalty abatement process to help taxpayers avoid incurring significant penalties for relatively minor foot faults. 

• Moderator: Brian C. McManus, Esq., Partner, Latham & Watkins, Boston, MA
• Richard J. Sapinski, Esq., Member, Sills Cummis & Gross PC, Newark, NJ
• Thomas J. Sawyer, Esq., Senior Litigation Counsel and Counsel for International Tax Matters, Tax Division, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC
• Philip J. Wilson, CPA, Office Managing Partner, Marcum, Costa Mesa, CA

Tax Compliance and Enforcement Update Part II

Voluntary compliance and enforcement of the tax law are at the heart of our tax system. Over the past several years, the IRS has been challenged to devise new and more efficient ways to ensure that all taxpayers pay the correct amount of tax. These panels provide an update on new developments at the IRS and the United States Tax Court.

• Moderator: Don Fort, CPA, Director of Investigations, Kostelanetz & Fink, Washington, DC
• James Robnett, Deputy Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation, Washington, DC

• Moderator: Eric L. Green, Esq., Partner, Green & Sklarz, New Haven, CT
• Darren John Guillot, Commissioner, IRS Small Business/Self-Employed Division, Collection, Washington, DC
• Scott Irick, Director, IRS Small Business/Self-Employed Division, Examination, Washington, DC

• Moderator: Todd Welty, Esq., President and CEO, Todd Welty PC, Atlanta, GA
• Andy Keyso, Chief, IRS Independent Office of Appeals, Washington, DC

• Moderator: Brian W. Kittle, Esq., Partner, Mayer Brown, New York, NY
• Catherine Gugar, Associate Area Counsel, IRS Large Business & International Division, Washington, DC

• Moderator: Michael J. Desmond, Esq., Partner, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Los Angeles, CA and Washington, DC
• The Hon. Kathleen Kerrigan, Chief Judge Elect, United States Tax Court, Washington, DC

• Moderator: Josh O. Ungerman, Esq., CPA, Partner, Meadows, Collier, Reed, Cousins, Crouch & Ungerman, Dallas, TX
• Erin Collins, National Taxpayer Advocate, Washington, DC

On January 1, 2021, Congress passed the new Anti-Money Laundering Act, ushering in the most sweeping changes to the Bank Secrecy Act and other anti-money laundering laws since 2001. The new Act beefs up the government’s ability to prosecute those engaged in dirty money transactions, imposes new reporting requirements for nontraditional assets (including cryptocurrency) held abroad, and requires disclosure of the beneficial owners of shell corporations. This panel will explain these new rules and how they could affect your clients. 

• Moderator: Ian M. Comisky, Esq., Partner, Fox Rothschild, Philadelphia, PA
• Andrew Adams, Esq., Director, KleptoCapture Task Force; Co-Chief, Money Laundering & Transnational Criminal Enterprises, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York, New York, NY
• Sarah E. Paul, Esq., Partner, Eversheds Sutherland, New York, NY
• Jeremy H. Temkin, Esq., Principal, Morvillo Abramowitz Grand Iason & Anello PC, New York, NY

For more than 70 years, the IRS has maintained a voluntary disclosure policy designed to encourage taxpayers to come in from the cold and self-report noncompliance. In 2018, the voluntary disclosure program was updated to provide new procedures. In its most recent annual report, the Taxpayer Advocate Service noted that the new procedures are substantially more onerous and uncertain than the old procedures, and may actually discourage taxpayers from stepping forward to self-disclose. This panel will discuss the latest voluntary disclosure developments, including the application of the updated program to cryptocurrency, and provide suggestions on how practitioners should advise their clients to make the best use of the new voluntary disclosure procedures. 

• Moderator: Phillip Colasanto, Esq., Associate, Agostino & Associates, PC, Hackensack, NJ
• Caroline D. Ciraolo, Esq., Partner, Kostelanetz & Fink, Washington, DC
• Mark Matthews, Esq., Member, Caplin & Drysdale, Washington, DC
• Michel R. Stein, Esq., Principal, Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez, PC, Beverly Hills, CA

IRS Criminal Investigation and the DOJ Tax Division have an impressive conviction rate. As a result, many taxpayers who are the target of a criminal investigation or who have been indicted are well served to consider resolving their prosecution with a guilty plea. This panel will examine some of the considerations that go into deciding whether a taxpayer should plead guilty and the techniques for negotiating the plea. In addition, a taxpayer who recently pleaded guilty will discuss his reasons for doing so.

• Moderator: Jeffrey A. Neiman, Esq., Partner, Marcus Neiman Rashbaum & Pineiro, Fort Lauderdale, FL
• Scott S. Ahroni, Esq., Shareholder, Polsinelli PC, New York, NY
• Alan M. Katz, CPA, CFF, Senior Forensic Auditor, Monitoring and Investigations Practice, Guidepost Solutions, New York, NY
• Olga Zverovich, Assistant United States Attorney and Tax Coordinator, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York, New York, NY