Kevin Spencer
Subscribe to Kevin Spencer's PostsKevin Spencer focuses his practice on tax controversy issues. Kevin represents clients in complicated tax disputes in court and before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) at the IRS Appeals and Examination divisions. In addition to his tax controversy practice, Kevin has broad experience advising clients on various tax issues, including tax accounting, employment and reasonable compensation, civil and criminal tax penalties, IRS procedures, reportable transactions and tax shelters, renewable energy, state and local tax, and private client matters. After earning his Master of Tax degree, Kevin had the privilege to clerk for the Honorable Robert P. Ruwe on the US Tax Court. Read Kevin Spencer's full bio.
IRS Updates Rules Regarding Appeals Conferences
By Kevin Spencer, Jean A. Pawlow, Bradford E. LaBonte, McDermott Will & Emery, Robin L. Greenhouse and McDermott Will & Emery on Sep 22, 2016
Posted In IRS Appeals, IRS Guidance, Settlements, Uncategorized
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has revised the Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) regarding Appeals Conferences. Below is a summary of material changes to IRM 8.6.1, effective October 1, 2016: The IRM was revised to reflect that most conferences in Appeals will be conducted by telephone. The revision also provides guidance for when in-person conferences are appropriate...
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World Taxing Authorities Prepare to Attack
By McDermott Will & Emery and Kevin Spencer on Aug 17, 2016
Posted In IRS Audits, IRS Guidance, Transfer Pricing Resource, Uncategorized
Global tax policy has evolved dramatically, with multinational corporations coming under attack from all directions. To respond to budget deficits and economic austerity, worldwide taxing authorities are deploying a new weapon: information exchange. As multinational corporations struggle to remain compliant and competitive in a world where effective tax rate management can be a critical element...
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Inversions and Debt/Equity Regulations Top Treasury’s 2016–2017 Priority Guidance Plan
By Kevin Spencer on Aug 16, 2016
Posted In Appellate Courts, IRS Audits, IRS Guidance, Transfer Pricing Resource, Uncategorized
Yesterday, the US Department of the Treasury (Treasury) released the 2016–2017 Priority Guidance Plan (Plan) containing 281 projects that are priorities for Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) during the period July 2016 through June 2017. The Plan contains several categories of topics, starting with consolidated returns and ending with tax-exempt bonds. The Plan also...
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Facebook Battles IRS In Summons Enforcement Case
By Jean A. Pawlow and Kevin Spencer on Aug 12, 2016
Posted In Court Procedure Matters, IRS Audits, Privilege and Non-Disclosure, Transfer Pricing Resource, Trial Courts, Uncategorized
Facebook is in a protracted battle with the IRS related to its off-shoring of IP to an Irish affiliate. Read more here. The IRS issued an administrative summons for the documents, and Facebook has refused to comply with the summons. The IRS is asking the court to enforce the summons and force Facebook to turn...
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Protecting Confidential Taxpayer Information in Tax Court
By McDermott Will & Emery, Jeffrey M. Glassman and Kevin Spencer on Jul 21, 2016
Posted In Court Procedure Matters, IRS Appeals, IRS Audits, IRS Guidance, Privilege and Non-Disclosure, Transfer Pricing Resource, Trial Courts, Uncategorized
Taxpayers value confidentiality, particularly if there is a dispute with the IRS that involves highly-sensitive trade secrets or other confidential information. Not surprisingly, complex tax litigation often raises the question of what confidential information has to be “made public”—through discovery responses or the introduction of exhibits or testimony in a deposition or at trial—so that...
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Tax Court Order Indicates That E-Discovery and Predictive Coding Are Here to Stay
By Chelsea Hess, Kevin Spencer, McDermott Will & Emery and McDermott Will & Emery on Jul 18, 2016
Posted In Court Procedure Matters, IRS Audits, IRS Guidance, Privilege and Non-Disclosure, Trial Courts, Uncategorized
On July 13, 2016, Judge Buch of the US Tax Court denied an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) motion to compel the production of electronically stored information (ESI) by Dynamo Holdings Limited Partnership and Beekman Vista, Inc., which was not delivered as part of a discovery response based on the mutually agreed-upon use of “predictive coding.”...
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Expert “Hot Tubbing” in the Tax Court
By Kevin Spencer and McDermott Will & Emery on Jul 15, 2016
Posted In Court Procedure Matters, Trial Courts, Uncategorized
The use of expert witnesses in litigation can be tricky. Taxpayers want to avoid the perception that their expert is a “hired gun” who is merely their biased advocate. The US Tax Court has repeatedly stated that such expert testimony is not useful or credible. A technique that is common in Australia, and has been...
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IRS Finalizes Controversial Regulations Allowing Contractor Participation in Examinations
By Kevin Spencer and McDermott Will & Emery on Jul 14, 2016
Posted In IRS Audits, IRS Guidance, Transfer Pricing Resource, Uncategorized
On July 12, 2016, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) finalized regulations allowing third-party contractors (i.e., outside economists, engineers, consultants and attorneys) to participate in audits of taxpayers. The regulations are not limited to allowing outside parties to review taxpayers’ books and records, but extend to the full participation in summons interviews. The final regulations replace...
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Tax Court Clarifies the Rules and Grants IRS’s Motion to Compel Nonconsensual Depositions
By Alex Cheng-Yi Lee and Kevin Spencer on Jul 12, 2016
Posted In Court Procedure Matters, Trial Courts, Uncategorized
On July 8, 2016, Judge Buch of the US Tax Court (Tax Court) granted the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) motion to compel depositions of six individuals in Dynamo Holdings Ltd. P’ship v. Commissioner. That case involves the question of whether certain transfers between related entities are disguised gifts or loans. The IRS has been attempting...
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IRS Issues New Procedures to IRS Appeals for Requesting Assistance from Exam in Docketed Tax Court Case
By Kevin Spencer, Alex Cheng-Yi Lee, Roger J. Jones and McDermott Will & Emery on Jul 1, 2016
Posted In IRS Appeals, IRS Audits, Transfer Pricing Resource, Uncategorized
On June 24, 2016, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a memorandum (AP-08-0616-0003, available here) to the IRS Appeals Division (Appeals) providing new, uniform procedures for requesting assistance from the Examination Division (Exam) in docketed Tax Court cases. The guidance implements standard procedures that would treat petitioners similarly. Currently, when petitioners provide new information to...
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