Gary Torrell to Speak on Tax Law and Bankruptcy at the Beverly Hills Bar Association

Attorney Gary F. Torrell of Valensi Rose PLC will speak on “How Tax Law Affects Bankruptcy” at the Beverly Hills Bar Association luncheon on July 25 at the Association’s office in Beverly Hills, California. Mr. Torrell is a partner at Valensi Rose and has over twenty-five years of legal and business experience working with high-net worth individuals and sophisticated companies.

                                                                         

The  luncheon program is designed to provide a brief overview of the three most common types of bankruptcy cases filed by individuals and businesses, Chapters 7, 11 and 13.  Mr. Torrell is joined by co-speaker David M. Agler of Crowe Horwath LLP.  They will cover certain tax and related issues that arise frequently in bankruptcy cases, and tax planning  associated with bankruptcy.

Mr. Torrell’s expertise includes managing complex, nationwide commercial real-estate restructurings and bankruptcies for institutional lenders and private equity firms.  He has handled a wide spectrum of properties including hotels, office buildings, apartments, condominiums, resorts, residential developments and other properties.  

Mr. Torrell is a  Bankruptcy Court mediator and  represents secured and unsecured creditors, including major banks and landlords, in various bankruptcy cases throughout the United States.  

The Beverly Hills Bar Association is located at 9420 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California.  The event provides two hours of Minimum Continuing Legal Education credit by the State Bar of California.

Contact Gary Torrell

Philip S. Magaram to Speak in Jewish Community Foundation Speaker Series

Senior Tax and & Wealth Planning partner, Philip S. Magaram, will be a featured speaker at the upcoming seminar series presented by the Jewish Community Foundation, Los Angeles.  The series will focus on Tax Planning and Charitable Giving and provide attendees with information on various topics, including benefit corporations, charitable trusts, charitable gifts, ethical challenges of estate planning and administration and recent developments in these practice areas.

Mr. Magaram’s presentation, entitled “Portability or Exemption Trust – Which is Better?,” will take place on June 13, 2012 in Beverly Hills and June 20, 2012 in Woodland Hills.  Both presentations are from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.  For more information on the series or to register, visit the Jewish Community Foundation website at www.jewishfoundationla.org/2012PASS.

Contact Philip Magaram

Michael R. Morris to Moderate at 2012 Entertainment Industry Conference

Michael Morris will moderate the 2012 California Entertainment Industry Conference’s “Music Industry Updates” portion of the daylong event. The Conference will highlight the path to fraud prevention, sports and sports media rights, trends in new media, music industry updates, copyright terminations, entertainment tax and current trends in film. The annual Entertainment Industry Conference is presented by the California CPA Education Foundation and will be held on June 13, 2012 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills.

 
“The purpose of the Music Industry Updates presentation is to keep CPAs and other financial and business professionals in the entertainment industry apprised of the present state of the music industry.  This includes current trends in recording and music publishing agreements, artist branding and related revenue streams, and developments in concert promotion and touring,” said Mr. Morris.  “There have been important business and legal developments that music industry representatives must be aware of to better serve their clients.”

For more information or to register, click here.

Contact Michael Morris

The Rule 26 Amendments: One Year Later

John Keith

Louis Kempinsky

by Louis E. Kempinsky 
and John C. Keith

Originally published by the American Bar Association, April 30, 2012

On December  1, 2010, several amendments to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26 took effect.  The primary thrust of the 2010 amendments was to address the “undesirable  effects” of the 1993 amendments to Rule 26, which had provided for “routine  discovery into attorney-expert communications and draft reports.” 2010 amends.,  advisory committee’s notes. The four main changes were

• generally  narrowing the subject-matter of a testifying expert’s disclosure, Fed. R. Civ.  P. 26(a)(2)(B);
• extending  work-product protection to draft expert reports, Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(b)(4)(B);
• providing  new work-product protection to attorney-expert communications, Fed. R. Civ. P.  26(b)(4)(C); and
• clarifying  which testifying experts are required to provide written reports, Fed. R. Civ.  P. 26(a)(2)(B) and (C).

The 2010  amendments have been in effect for just over a year, and they have not been  applied in all cases. The 2010 amendments apply to cases pending as of December  1, 2010, only “when just and practicable.” Order Amending Federal Rules of  Civil Procedure, Apr. 28, 2010. As is not surprising in light of the standard,  cases examining whether it would be “just and practicable” to apply the new  version of the rule are highly fact-driven and have come down on both sides. Case  law interpreting the amendments is still in an early stage of development.  Nonetheless, a number of potentially significant issues have already emerged.

Read full article....

Dramatic Rise is US Expatriations May Have its Roots in Foreign Asset Disclosure Laws

by Geoffrey Weg

Since 1998, under Internal Revenue Code Section 6039G, the U.S. Government publishes in the Federal Register the names of all US citizens who choose to expatriate (i.e., renounce their U.S. citizenship).  From 2004 through 2008, the number of expatriations per year averaged approximately 625 (from a high of 744 in 2009 to a low of 232 in 2008).  However, from 2009 to 2011, something interesting happened – the number almost tripled to approximately 1800 expatriations in 2011, with the number expected to be as high or higher in the first quarter of 2012. 
 

So what’s going on?  
 

The Federal Register does not reveal an individual citizen’s purpose for expatriation (nor is any citizen required to provide a reason to the government).  However, for tax professionals, one huge change in tax law stands out like a sore thumb – FATCA – the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.  According to the IRS, the purpose of FATCA is, “an important development in U.S. efforts to improve tax compliance involving foreign financial assets and offshore accounts”.  Under FATCA, U.S. taxpayers with specified foreign financial assets that exceed certain thresholds must report those assets to the IRS.  In addition, FATCA requires foreign financial institutions to report directly to the IRS information about financial accounts held by U.S. taxpayers, or held by foreign entities in which U.S. taxpayers hold a substantial ownership interest.  As a practical matter, both tax practitioners and US citizens living abroad now face a huge administrative burden in order to comply with FATCA.  And while direct evidence is lacking, anecdotal evidence from tax practitioner and taxpayer advocate groups indicates that it is this burden – FATCA – that is directly responsible for the dramatic increase in US expatriation.  
 

So why should we care?  
 

Indeed, 1800 expatriates constitutes something like 0.001% of all US taxpayers – a proverbial drop in the bucket.  On the other hand, in order to be listed in the Federal Register, a taxpayer must have a net worth above $2 million (and/or income above a specified and significant level).  In other words, these are individuals with significant income and assets, and they are deciding to leave our country, taking their skills, assets and tax-paying abilities with them.  Moreover, the number of people doing this is simply skyrocketing.  If it continues, at some point there will be a noticeable impact on the US economy.  Congress and the Department of Treasury should take this new trend seriously, and think long and hard about whether to continue to impose this burden on these taxpayers, and ultimately, on all Americans.

Contact Geoffrey Weg

Three Outstanding Attorneys Join Valensi Rose

We are pleased to announce the addition of litigators Louis E. Kempinsky and John C. Keith and the return of tax and estate planning specialist Kelly S. Keuscher to our firm.  

Louis E. Kempinsky

Lou Kempinsky is a seasoned trial attorney specializing in business and commercial disputes. Lou's practice encompasses trial and appellate work in Federal, State and Bankruptcy courts. He has been lead counsel in numerous jury and non-jury trials involving a wide variety of substantive issues, including real estate, contract, corporate, business torts, Commercial Code, lender liability, bankruptcy, franchise, corporate governance, professional accountability, partnership, environmental, trademark and other intellectual property.

He also has extensive experience representing the interests of both creditors and debtors, along with all of the other constituencies involved, in bankruptcy cases and out of court workouts and restructurings.

While Lou has been privileged to represent successfully at trial both entrepreneurs and Fortune 100 companies, he is just as proud of his accomplishments in enabling his clients to enforce and protect their rights, as well as to advance their short and long-term interests, without the necessity for protracted litigation. To achieve those goals, he pursues a course of proactive counseling along with ongoing efforts to address client issues well before they reach the courthouse steps.

When not working on behalf of clients, he will act as a mediator or arbitrator to assist others in dispute resolution. He also writes and lectures frequently on matters relating to business litigation, trial practice and corporate governance. He is active in the community and in local and national bar associations. Lou has been honored by the American Bar Association for his work in the Section of Litigation and recognized by U.S. News & World Report for providing top tier legal representation. He has for the past eight years had the distinction of being named a California "Super Lawyer" by Law and Politics Magazine and Los Angeles Magazine. In his spare time, Lou is an avid wine collector and enjoys travel, the theater, wine and his bike.

Contact Mr. Kempinsky

John C. Keith

In his broad-based business litigation practice, John Keith helps resolve his clients' legal challenges across a variety of issues, including:

• Bankruptcy
• Breach of contract and commercial disputes
• Breach of fiduciary duty and director and officer liability
• Fraud and business torts
• Insurance
• Intellectual property and trade secrets
• Partnership and LLC disputes
• Securities and shareholder derivative actions

In recognition of his practice achievements in litigation, John was twice named as one of Southern California's "Rising Stars" by Law & Politics and Los Angeles Magazine, for the years 2009 and 2010. He obtained his law degree in 2003 from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall).

Contact Mr. Keith

Kelly S. Keuscher

Kelly Steven Keuscher practices in the areas of estate planning, trusts, probate, taxation, non-profit organizations, and general business transactional law. Kelly holds both J.D. and M.B.A. degrees, and his background includes more than ten years working for various public agencies. He has also served as a consulting attorney for the Probate Division of the Los Angeles Superior Court.

Kelly has represented numerous individuals, businesses, and charitable organizations in matters ranging from estate and tax planning to transactions to litigation. Kelly utilizes his broad range of experience and expertise to develop efficient and innovative solutions for his clients.

Contact Mr. Keuscher

The addition of Lou, John and Kelly compliments and expands on our exisitng practice areas and allows us to continue to serve our clients in the best way possible. For more information or to contact an attorney, email us at info@vrmlaw.com.

Bruce Sires to Speak on Employing Minors in Entertainment Projects at California Lawyers for the Arts Workshop

Saturday, April 14, 2012, 10 - 11:30am

Canoga Park Youth Arts Center

7222 Remmet Ave.

Canoga Park, CA 91303

Since 2001, minors employed in sports and entertainment have gained a unique advantage over any other employed minors.  That is, that the money they earn is theirs, and their parents have fiduciary duties to them that do not exist for other minors.  In addition, the employers of minors have unique obligations to the minors, including deposits into Coogan accounts, and unique opportunities to avoid the minor's ability to disaffirm their contracts.  

This workshop will explore the rights of children in the business and protecting those rights for the child's benefit:  the contractual issues of which those doing business with minors need to be aware; what statutory protections are available for the adults in the transactions; what can be done if your contract is not statutorily protected will be explored; which court will hear these cases; and will a guardianship be required to protect the minors estate.  Finally, Mr. Sires will explore how to deal with the conflicts of interest inherent in representing and advising minors, their families, and those dealing with them, i.e. who do the lawyers represent?

To Register go to California Lawyers for the Arts

Contact Bruce Sires