The Louisiana Supreme Court declined to review the Court of Appeal’s holding that an out-of-state corporation’s passive ownership of an interest in a limited partnership is not a sufficient basis, by itself, to subject the foreign limited partner to Louisiana franchise tax. UTELCOM, Inc. v. Bridges, No. 2010-0654, 77 So.3d 39 (La. App. 1st Cir. Sept. 12, 2011), reh’g denied (Nov. 1, 2011), writ denied, No. 2011-C-2632 (La. Mar. 2, 2012). The court’s decision to not accept the case should prompt the Department of Revenue to reverse course on its current position.

In UTELCOM, the Department issued franchise tax assessments against two out-of-state corporations whose only connection with Louisiana was their ownership interests in a limited partnership engaged in the long-distance telecommunications business in Louisiana. The primary basis for the Department’s position was a regulation that provided that owning property in Louisiana through a partnership is sufficient to create franchise tax nexus. The trial court upheld the assessments based on the Department’s regulation.Continue Reading No Louisiana Nexus Over Out-of-State Corporate Partners

The controversial methodology relied upon by several states to assess corporate taxpayers for transfer pricing violations has been ruled invalid by a D.C. Administrative Law Judge. Several revenue authorities, including New Jersey, Alabama, Louisiana, Kentucky and the District of Columbia, have relied on this now invalidated transfer pricing audit methodology to assess corporate franchise and

Estimated state tax assessments are based on assumptions that typically favor state tax authorities. In this A Pinch of SALT, Sutherland SALT’s Eric Tresh and Madison Barnett examine the potential impact and recommended course of action for taxpayers facing estimated assessments.

Read “State Audit Guessing Games: When Can States Issue Estimated Assessments?” reprinted

Most multistate taxpayers are audited, assessed, or challenged on their tax positions and are faced with a decision whether to challenge or settle. In this edition of A Pinch of SALT, Sutherland SALT’s Michele Borens and David Pope discuss techniques and considerations for deciding whether to settle; determining the scope of a settlement; developing a settlement strategy; and finalizing