DPS Legal Counsel
Helping health professionals and entrepreneurs navigate the business of healthcare and the business of business
DPS Legal Counsel protects the business, regulatory, contract, transactional, intellectual property, compliance, and tax interests of health practices and small businesses from initial formation through founder retirement and practice/business succession
What Clients Are Saying
Recent Blog Posts
Want to deduct your alimony payments? Make sure any changes are in writing!
On June 27, 2011, the U.S. Tax Court filed its decision in the case of Grosjean v. Commissioner, an interesting and educational case involving the issue of deductibility of alimony. The ex-husband taxpayer who alleged that he should have been able to deduct a certain...
Want proof that the form of a transaction matters? Read this case!!
The United States Tax Court issued its opinion in Schneider v. Commissioner today. Although this case deals with the first-time homebuyer credit, which is no longer part of the tax code, the Schneider is still important as an object lesson for taxpayers who are in the...
Foster Pet Care Expenses Deductible as Charitable Donations
This past Saturday, the Wall Street Journal ran a front-page article about a woman had taken approximately 70 cats into her home through a local charitable organization whose mission was to save stray cats. The woman paid thousands of dollars in unreimbursed expenses...
Frivolity and Taxes Do Not Mix
There are and have been many famous pairings in our society--Abbott and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, Sonny and Cher, bacon and eggs, death and taxes. There are also certain couples that just don't go quite seem at ease together--oil and water, positive and negative...
Should In-House Tax Advisors Sign Returns?
In a U.S. Tax Court case released today, the Tax Court provided a helpful case study in why it might not be advisable for a company's in-house tax advisor to sign the company's income tax returns. The facts in Seven W. Enterprises, Inc. v. Commissioner of Internal...
2011: The Summer of No Love from the IRS
In an article published this past Sunday in the Chicago Tribune, Kathy Kristof sounded a warning for Americans preparing to go into their annual mellow, summertime mode--sharks may not be the only predator lurking nearby to disturb their vacation plans; the IRS has...
Note to Tennessee Real Estate Agents: Get It in Writing!
This past week, the Tennessee Court of Appeals released an important case in the realm of contract law, in general, and in the world of real estate agents in particular. The case in question is Crye-Leike, Inc. v. Carver, which was released by the court on May 26,...
D-I-V-O-R-C-E? Don’t forget the 8-3-3-2!
Earlier this week, the United States Tax Court filed a short memorandum opinion in the case of Espinoza v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue that illustrates the importance of tax issues in divorce cases. The taxpayer in this case were divorced the year after the birth...
Naked Swaps–Who Said Bond Law Was Stodgy?
Today's Wall Street Journal had an article entitled "Swaps at Center of a Debt Standoff," which discussed a dispute that has arisen between a school district in Pennsylvania and the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC). The dispute revolves around an interest rate swap...
Tennessee Contracts and Public Policy
The Tennessee Supreme Court recently addressed the interplay between the freedom of private parties in Tennessee to enter into contracts with each other and the role of public policy in determining the enforceability of such contracts. In the case of Baugh v. Novak,...