Tafts 470 attorneys practices across a wide range of industries, in - - PDF document

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Taft’s 470 attorneys practices across a wide range of industries, in virtually every area of law: Business & Finance / Business Restructuring / Environmental / Health & Life Sciences / Intellectual Property / Labor & Employment / Litigation / Private Client / Real Estate / Tax Law

Taft clients range from state and local public bodies, to highly specialized entrepreneurial firms, to Fortune 500 companies with multinational operations. Taft has grown strategically since its founding in 1885. In the last decade, the firm has grown to ten offices across six states.

• 1. Ann Arbor, Michigan
• 2. Chicago, Illinois
• 3. Cincinnati, Ohio
• 4. Cleveland, Ohio
• 5. Columbus, Ohio
• 6. Dayton, Ohio
• 7. Delaware, Ohio
• 8. Indianapolis, Indiana
• 9. Covington, Kentucky
• 10. Phoenix, Arizona

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Taft Tax Services Overview

Attorneys in Taft’s Tax group draw upon their experience in state and local tax issues, corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, and other related business areas to provide both creative and practical solutions for clients. We structure tailored, economic solutions for our clients’ tax needs, whether for routine tax audits and appeals, or for foreign tax planning and tax litigation. Our clients include public corporations, financial institutions, domestic joint ventures, new business ventures, non-profit organizations and individuals. We represent traditional manufacturing and service businesses, high-tech businesses, real estate developers, health care companies, sports teams, national banks and many others. We often provide critical advice regarding the fundamental structuring of major transactions in

• rder to help our clients develop the optimal structure to achieve the financial results they seek.

We provide tax services for:  State and Local Tax  Tax Controversy and Litigation  Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation  Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)  International Taxation  Mergers and Acquisitions, Venture Capital and Private Equity Tax  Nonprofit and Tax-Exempt Organizations  Partnerships, Limited Liability Companies and S Corporations  Real Estate Tax Taft’s MEC Ohio Tax Conference Keynote Speaker & Planning Committee Member Don Mottley focuses his practice on state and local tax matters, tax issues involving non-profit organizations, tax controversies (federal, state, and local), and on public agency law. As a public agency lawyer, Don both represents public agency clients and represents other clients before public agencies. Don draws upon 25 years of experience as a public official and as an attorney and financial manager to the benefit of his clients. He is admitted to practice before Ohio courts as well as the Supreme Court of the United States, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Internal Revenue Service. He is also a director of Focused Capitol Solutions LLC, a business affiliate of Taft, which provides governmental relations and public policy services. In this role, Don represents clients before Ohio state government agencies and the Ohio General

• Assembly. Contact Don: (614) 220-0255 / mottley@taftlaw.com

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Taft State and Local Tax Services

Taft provides a wide range of services with respect to state and local income tax, commercial activities (gross receipts) tax, franchise tax, sales and use tax, personal property tax and real property tax, among others. We provide advice concerning compliance, nexus issues, structuring transactions, representation in connection with audits and assessments, including litigation, abatement, and exemption applications, tax incentive programs and a myriad of other tax matters. Personal Income Tax We provide advice and audit representation regarding determination of state taxable income, state of residency, filing requirements in states of non-residency, availability of credits, applicability of municipal income and license taxes and related matters. Business Income Taxes and Gross Receipts We advise businesses on determination of taxable receipts and income, issues involving nexus with other states, allocation and apportionment of receipts and income, employee withholding and payroll tax issues. We have experience with specialized industries such as insurance and

• banking. Included within this group are taxes on pass-through entities and their owners.

Sales and Use Taxes We counsel our clients on the applicability of these taxes to both their sales and purchases, availability of exemptions and procedures to follow for claiming exemptions. We counsel on a regular basis concerning nexus issues and responsibility for charging and collecting tax in other states. Real Property and Personal Property Tax We offer experienced legal representation with respect to real property and personal property taxes, including matters involving the proper determination of value of machinery, equipment and real estate, the rates of tax applicable and claims for abatement or exemption from tax. Tax and Economic Incentives Our attorneys guide businesses through the available tax credits, tax abatements, special financing and other arrangements that governmental authorities make available to businesses. If a business plans to expand either at its current site or elsewhere, we will make certain that it learns about and applies for all available benefits in a timely manner. Tax Dispute Resolution We have a wealth of experience in handling tax disputes from the audit level through state supreme courts. Our goal is to resolve matters satisfactorily at the audit or administrative appeal

• levels. We are experienced in trying cases in state courts and before boards of tax appeal and in

handling appeals in higher courts when the situation calls for it. We have successfully handled numerous such cases involving all types of state and local taxes. For more information, visit here.

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Taft Public Finance and Economic Development Services

Taft’s public finance attorneys have extensive experience in the major areas of tax-exempt and taxable financing. Representative services include:  Bond counsel services.  Construction and operating referendum assistance.  Special public finance legal counsel as needed on matters or transactions.  Underwriter, placement agent, purchaser and bank counsel services.  Disclosure counsel services.  Issuer counsel services.  Trustee counsel services.  Post-issuance counseling services related to continuing disclosure, arbitrage compliance, SEC investigations and Internal Revenue Service audits. We have experience in virtually all types of tax-exempt and taxable public finance transactions, from traditional governmental general obligation and revenue bonds to third-party conduit bonds. Our attorneys also have significant experience in the public law area and with tax incentives available to promote economic development. We currently serve as special counsel relating to tax increment financing and economic development on projects throughout the Midwest. Taft attorneys also represent and have represented numerous private clients with accessing available local, state and federal tax incentives to promote development. The firm has been listed in The Bond Buyer’s Municipal Market Place (the “Redbook”) for over 30 years. Our legal opinions have been accepted and respected by issuers of bonds and underwriters of bonds in every case. Incentive Financing & Public-Private Partnerships It is becoming more and more common for local, state and federal governments to partner with private development to encourage economic growth, job creation and capital investment in their

• communities. Often, economic development incentives are offered to spur growth in the private

sector and supplement private sector financing. Incentives and private-public partnership financing can significantly reduce project costs, add to a company’s bottom line, and may bring additional equity to a project. Taft attorneys advise companies that need project finance and incentive support, as well as government officials looking to expand their tax base, encourage job creation and bring companies to their communities. For more information, visit here.

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Taft News Items

 Check out https://www.taftlaw.com/services/practices/tax for more tax services information and legal updates.  Subscribe to Taft’s Law Updates: https://www.taftlaw.com/general/subscribe U.S. Supreme Court: Remote Sellers Can Be Required to Collect Sales and Use Taxes in a State Where the Seller Has No Physical Presence Reversing longstanding precedent, on June 21, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court released its decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., holding that states may require a remote seller of goods to collect sales tax on products delivered to buyers in the state even if the seller does not have a physical presence in that state. Wayfair overturns the Court’s previous decisions in Quill Corp. v. North Dakota (1992) and National Bellas Hess, Inc. v. Department of Revenue of Ill. (1967), which had established the “physical presence” test. A commercial business generally could have avoided collecting states tax for out-of-state sales by limiting its physical presence to its home state or states of operations. States responded to such strategies by imposing use taxes on in-state customers that purchase goods from out-of-state sellers that do not collect sales tax. States found, however, that use taxes suffered from low compliance and collection rates because they are difficult to enforce. To read the release in its entirety, visit here. Qualified Opportunity Zones Program Presentation Video Released On Dec. 11, Taft tax and project finance partners presented an overview of Qualified Opportunity Zone programs, a significant provision in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, awarding preferential tax benefits to certain private investments of capital gain into development projects located in certain low-income communities designated as “qualified opportunity zones.” The program helped attendees gain perspectives on QOZ features such as:  Legal and Regulatory Aspects  Tax Benefits  Marketplace Investment Opportunities  Practical Considerations and Open Issues To view a video recording of the presentation, visit here.