Previous Events & CLE Programs
May 6, 2008
Committee Meeting
State & Local Tax Roundtable Discussion
Thomas W. Hammond, Jr., Chairman of the Massachusetts Appellate Tax Board and Chief Counsel Mark DeFrancisco will discuss the Board's activities over the past year including an overview of the Board's docket, discovery and motion practice, and the Board's experience with recent amendments to its rules. Please email David Nagle (dnagle@sandw.com) and Lu Awdeh (lutof.awdeh@us.pwc.com) with any particular questions or topics that you may wish the featured guests to consider.
March 4, 2008
Committee Meeting
Roundtable Discussion with the DOR
Join featured guests Navjeet K. Bal, Commissioner of Revenue, Kevin Brown, General Counsel of the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, and David Davenport, Deputy Commissioner, Senior Policy Counsel for the Massachusetts Department of Revenue for a roundtable discussion. Commissioner Bal will provide introductory remarks on audit and regulatory developments at the Department of Revenue as well as her perspective on state tax policy matters in light of Governor Deval Patrick's proposed tax legislation. Please email David Nagle and Lu Awdeh with any particular questions or topics that you may wish the speakers to consider.
February 5, 2008
Committee Meeting
Massachusetts Discover Tax Program
Join Morris N. Robinson, M. Robinson & Company, P.C. for a discussion about a new Massachusetts Department of Revenue computer program, Discover Tax. The new program targets businesses and has already resulted in over $400 million in additional tax assessments by using "data mining" to "flag" businesses whose income tax returns are inconsistent with the related payroll tax returns or sales/use tax returns.
December 4, 2007
Committee Meeting
Massachusetts Sales & Use Tax Audits: Recent Trends & Issues
Gregory Messina, of Messina Multistate Tax, LLC, will discuss recent trends and issues related to Massachusetts sales and use tax audits. Mr. Messina will give us a "front line" perspective on the Department of Revenue's audits of Research and Development and Manufacturing Operations and discuss the newly issued Research and Development Regulation. He will also discuss an area that has become increasingly problematic for taxpayers undergoing sales and use tax audits - the Department of Revenue's use of statistical sampling Procedures.
Please email David Nagle and Lu Awdeh with any particular questions or topics that you may wish the speaker to consider.
November 6, 2007
Committee Meeting
Recent Case Law Developments Roundtable
Daniel Shapiro, Tax Counsel with the Massachusetts Department of Reveunue, Litigation Bureau, will will discuss recent developments at the Massachusetts Appellate Tax Board relating to the central valuation and taxation of personal property of telecommunications carriers.
Mr. Shapiro's work at the DOR has included litigating cases involving utility companies with an emphasis on personal property issues relating to the telecommunications industry. Mr. Shapiro represented the Commissioner of Revenue before the Appellate Tax Board and Supreme Judicial Court in RCN‑BecoCom, LLC v. Comm'r of Revenue, 443 Mass. 198 (2005); and at the evidentiary hearings in Bell Atlantic Mobile of Massachusetts, LTD (Verizon Wireless) v. Comm’r of Revenue and 220 Cities and Towns, (February 27, 2007, ATB 2007-121) and MCI cases.
October 2, 2007
Committee Meeting
State & Local Tax Roundtable Discussion
Join us for a roundtable discussion of current developments in state and local tax.
September 19, 2007
Committee Meeting
Recent Case Law Developments Roundtable
Kevin Brown, General Counsel of the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, and David Davenport, Deputy General Counsel and Senior Policy Advisor for the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, will provide their perspective concerning recent case law developments, especially regarding Geoffrey and TJX. They will also share their views regarding the relationship between TJX, Geoffrey and the addback rules, particularly their likely effect on resolution of cases pending before the Board as well as matters under audit.
Please email Committee Co-chairs David Nagle (dnagle@sandw.com) and Lu Awdeh (lutof.awdeh@us.pwc.com) with any particular questions or topics that you may wish the speakers to consider.
May 9, 2007
Committee Meeting
State & Local Tax Roundtable Discussion
Join us for a roundtable discussion of current developments in state and local tax, including the Appellate Tax Board’s latest findings of fact and report.
April 11, 2007
Committee Meeting
Current State Tax Landscape
David S. Davenport, Deputy General Counsel and Senior Policy Advisor for the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, will discuss in general terms the current state tax landscape. Specific topics include:
- national trends
- the Massachusetts experience
- Governor Patrick’s major tax legislative proposals
Please join us for Mr. Davenport’s comments and a lively discussion.
March 14, 2007
Committee Meeting
Sponsors
State & Local Tax Committee
Tax Controversies Committee
Donald-Bruce Abrams and Matthew D. Schnall, partners at Bingham McCutchen LLP, will discuss proposed amendments to the Appellate Tax Board’s Rules of Practice and Procedure. They will offer comments and then lead a general discussion of the proposed amendments
Both Mr. Abrams and Mr. Schnall are members of their firm’s Tax Practice Group and have practiced extensively before the Appellate Tax Board.
February 14, 2007
Committee Meeting
Real Estate Exemption for Charitable Organizations
Join us as David J. Martel of Doherty, Wallace, Pillsbury & Murphy, P.C. reviews recent appellate decisions with regard to real estate exemptions from local taxation.
Non-profit organizations frequently own valuable real estate which municipalities may seek to bring onto local tax rolls. This is particularly true for elderly housing facilities. The tests for exemptions from local taxation can get complicated, as evidenced by several recent decisions from Massachusetts appellate courts and the Appellate Tax Board.
Specifically, Mr. Martel will discuss the jurisdictional requirements for relief from real estate taxes and the standards which courts have applied in deciding the merits of an exemption application.
January 10, 2007
Committee Meeting
Roundtable Discussion
Peter D. Enrich, Professor of Law at Northeastern University School of Law, will discuss his involvement in DaimlerChrysler Corp. v. Cuno and other cases that concern the constitutionality of state tax incentives used to compete for business. Time permitting, we will hold an open conversation concerning current developments in state and local tax, including the Appellate Tax Board’s latest findings of fact and report.
December 13, 2006
Committee Meeting
Roundtable Discussion
Eileen P. McAnneny, Vice President of Government Affairs with the Associated Industries of Massachusetts (A.I.M.), will provide an update concerning A.I.M.’s legislative agenda with respect to tax issues. Participants will have an opportunity to provide comments on positions that A.I.M. may take concerning issues such as:
- “vendor credit” adjustments for sales or use tax paid on tax exempt items against amounts of additional tax liability that may be assessed
- differentials between interest rate and compounding conventions for overpayments and underpayments
- the requirement that taxpayers show that an asserted non-tax business purpose is “commensurate” with any the tax benefits claimed
October 25, 2006
Committee Meeting
Massachusetts Appellate Tax Board Practice
The ATB is one of the busiest courts in the Commonwealth, handling a large number of important Department of Revenue and property tax cases, and yet is unfamiliar territory to many tax lawyers and litigators. The panel of experienced practitioners will take you step-by-step through common appeals procedures and offer practical pointers. Board personnel will also provide their insights.
Click here for full program description
September 13, 2006
Committee Meeting
Roundtable Discussion with the General Counsel of the MDOR
Kevin Brown, General Counsel of the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, will provide an update concerning tax cases before the Appellate Tax Board and tax issues that are expected to be the subject of formal administrative guidance during the next year.
Mr. Brown will then open the meeting to a roundtable discussion of issues, such as the status o f d isputes concerning the add back of costs and expenses paid to related parties, and the Department’s application of the Section 3A “business purpose” requirement.
Please email David Nagle and Tom Price with any particular questions or topics that you may wish Mr. Brown to address.
April 19, 2006
Committee Meeting
Join us for a roundtable discussion on current developments in state and local tax.
March 15, 2006
Committee Meeting
Roundtable Discussion
Join us for a roundtable discussion of the Department of Revenue’s new guidance on penalties for taxpayers and preparers, and of recent and pending cases.
January 18, 2006
Committee Meeting
Penalty Provisions
Join us for an open forum discussion on the penalty provisions in the recent tax legislation (Chapter 163 of the Acts of 2005, approved December 8, 2005 ). The penalties apply to any return or claim for refund filed after enactment. The Department of Revenue has not yet issued guidance and a number of matters are unclear, for example the extent to which federal tax concepts will apply and what constitutes “adequate” disclosure. Please join us for a roundtable discussion of how our members are dealing with the penalty provisions.
October 19, 2005
Committee Meeting
Joseph Donovan, Deputy General Counsel of the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, will address various developments at the Department of Revenue including the status of the most recent legislative package.
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