Features

In-depth analysis of recent cases.

Recent rulings of importance.

Although a number of jurisdictions across the country have abolished the Rule Against Perpetuities altogether, the Rule remains very much alive in New York. Just this year, the Rule has reared its head in two appellate cases involving lease renewal options.

Features

An easy-to-use index of all the cases contained in this issue.

In order to assure that a firm chooses the best broker for the job, management should begin by soliciting proposals from a minimum of three or four brokers through an appropriate Request for Proposal process. To be certain that the RFP process provides the firm with relevant information from each broker to reach the best decision, the RFP should request detailed responses to the 10 questions addressed in this article.

The People's Republic of China has issued two circulars providing detailed compliance requirements aimed at reaching foreign service providers with clients in China. These new provisions will likely cause U.S. and multinational law firms with clients in China to reconsider existing practices and client engagement procedures in order to avoid the possibility of double taxation.

The FBAR is not filed with the tax return, discloses no information about the income derived in a foreign account, and is not used for calculating any tax obligations. Yet the IRS has converted the FBAR from a minor information report to a primary tool for pursuing hidden bank accounts.

The recently passed COLI Best Practices ' 101(j), Deferred Compensation ' 409A and the Medicare Act of 2003 require advisers to review all qualified and nonqualified benefit programs. These legislative changes and the courts' review of COLI provide attorneys with a different approach to help solve their benefits planning problems. While pensions have been codified, limited, and scrutinized since 1974 with ERISA, non-pension post-retiree benefits (OPEB-GASB 45, FAS 106, and IAS 19) have been less regulated ' until now. Judicial action, legislation, and administrative agency action have caused a paradigm shift in benefits planning.