NOVEMBER NEWSLETTER
Ian C. White, Esq., Editor
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CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF PROFESSOR DENNIS CALFEE
UF Law invites alumni, colleagues, and friends to honor Professor Dennis Calfee’s remarkable 50-year career at UF Law with a weekend of celebration. Join us in Gainesville for two special events:
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Dinner Reception at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium – Friday, Nov. 14 → RSVP
- Brunch at UF Law – Saturday, Nov. 15 → RSVP
| | | Help us celebrate Professor Calfee’s legacy and 2025 retirement after 50 years of dedicated service to the University of Florida Levin College of Law and its Graduate Tax Program. | | | |
TAX SECTION FALL MEETING RECAP
We had a fantastic time during the Tax Section’s 2025 Fall Meeting at the JW Marriott Clearwater Beach Resort. Chair JJ Wehle planned a fabulous weekend of learning, collaboration, and connection among tax professionals from across the state.
Thursday kicked off with the Directors’ Committee Meeting, followed by a reception and dinner at Latitude 28.
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Friday’s highlight was our CLE, “The Big Beautiful Tax Reset: Estate and Tax Strategies for the New Landscape,” exploring the impact of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and new planning opportunities. Attendance was excellent—both in-person and online—with participants earning Ethics, Technology, Tax Law, and Wills, Trusts & Estates credits. The program is available to buy as an online seminar and downloadable podcast. Huge thanks to Program Co-Chairs Adam J. Smith (BizTx Law) and Zachary T. King (Tripp Scott) and our stellar speakers.
We also enjoyed the Friday New Tax Lawyers’ Happy Hour at HoggDaddy's Beach Bar & Grill and the Chair’s Welcome Reception on the hotel lawn, overlooking Clearwater Beach.
Saturday featured the member breakfast, Division and Committee meetings, the Executive Council Meeting and lunch buffet, and a wonderful off-site family dinner at Island Way Grill.
We’re grateful to all of the Section's annual sponsors for their continued support, especially those who joined us in person: Management Planning Inc. (Roy Meyers), FigTree Insurance (Stephanie Mo, Kurtis Tucker, and Mark Schmidt), Glenmede (Mark Parthemer), and Mercer Capital (Tim Bronza).
Finally, a heartfelt thank-you to Willie Mae Shepherd, a longtime Florida Bar professional, who graciously stepped in this weekend to help ensure a seamless event.
Until next time—thank you to all who made the 2025 Fall Meeting such a success! See all of the event photos on Facebook or LinkedIn.
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FREE CLE: MATHEMATICS OF ESTATE AND TAX PLANNING
Nov. 19, 12-1 p.m., by Alan Gassman, Clearwater. Free CLE for Tax Section members. Non-members add $95 at checkout for Section membership.
Most estate tax planners base their planning strategies and structures upon experience, education, and general impressions of how the estate tax system works.
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This can be very dangerous and leave money on the table for Uncle Sam. When you run the numbers on various estate tax planning techniques, you may be surprised at what the outcome will be. Course number 9225 is approved for 1 CLE, 1 Tax Law, and 1 Wills, Trusts & Estates.
Learning objectives:
- Describe how the estate and gift tax system works and what techniques work well under what circumstances.
- Recognize interactive spreadsheets that will be helpful during the presentation.
- Recall how the installment sale to a defective grantor trust can save considerable estate taxes and how to illustrate this for clients.
- Summarize qualified personal residence trusts, grantor retained annuity trusts, and many implications of gifting.
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REGISTER NOW: 2026 INTERNATIONAL TAX CONFERENCE AND ITC BOOT CAMP
Don’t miss the 2026 International Tax Conference (January 22–23) and ITC Boot Camp (January 21). Registration is open for these popular annual seminars:
These programs are designed specifically to assist international tax professionals in the challenges they face in this dynamic field.
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TAX SECTION ANNOUNCEMENTS
Seeking Bulletin Authors. The Section Administration Division is seeking content for the Tax Section Bulletin. Articles should be 500 to 1,000 words each and address timely, relevant topics of interest to tax professionals. If you have an article to be considered for publication, please email Bulletin Editor Daniel Hudson and Section Admin Co-Directors Justin Wallace and Brittany Cobb.
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2025 ITC and Boot Camp: Buy Now. The 43rd Annual International Tax Conference and 10th Annual ITC Boot Camp are available to purchase 24/7 as online seminars (on-demand) and downloadable audio:
Save these dates: Boot Camp is scheduled for January 21, 2026, and ITC is January 22–23. Register and get details here.
2026 Moot Court. The Tax Section’s next National Tax Moot Court Competition is scheduled for Thursday, March 12–Saturday, March 14, at Stetson University College of Law. We will need volunteers to judge the oral arguments live at Stetson Law in Gulfport for the four preliminary rounds on March 12–13 (CLE will be awarded for oral argument judges). If you are interested, please email Professor Brooke Bowman at bowman@law.stetson.edu.
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UPCOMING EVENTS
November 19, 12–1 p.m.—FREE CLE:
Mathematics of Estate and Tax Planning by Alan Gassman, Clearwater. REGISTER
January 21, 2026—ITC Boot Camp and January 22–23, 2026—International Tax Conference in Miami. Details and registration are online.
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February 5–7, 2026—Tax Section 2026 Directors’ Meeting. Registration and details will be available soon for the Directors’ Meeting at the historic Emeline hotel in Charleston, S.C.
March 12–14, 2026—National Tax Moot Court Competition.
May 14–16, 2026—Tax Section 2026 Annual Meeting and Tax Attorney of the Year Dinner. Registration and details will be available soon for the Annual Meeting and Tax Attorney of the year Dinner at the Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne. We will be honoring Joel Maser, a Shareholder with GreenbergTraurig in Fort Lauderdale.
| | SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT: CORAL GABLES TRUST | | |
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Founded in 2004 as a locally owned and operated independent trust company, CGT services clients with assets starting at $500,000 to more than $50 million—inclusive of affluent individuals and families, small to medium sized companies, foundations, and pension and endowment funds. Devoted toward putting clients’ interest first, CGT strives to provide conflict-free services, personalized advice, open-architecture (no proprietary products), and asset-based fees.
For more information, visit cgtrust.com or contact Managing Director John Harris at (305) 443-2544 or jharris@cgtrust.com.
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ONLINE SEMINARS AND DOWNLOADABLE AUDIO, 24/7 THROUGH FLORIDA BAR INREACH
Looking for great Tax Law CLE? Check out the InReach catalog of courses. We’ve even created an easy-to-remember link—bit.ly/Tax_CLE—that takes you straight to Tax programs.
Here are some links to a few of our recent presentations:
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FREE ZOOM CLE ON YOUTUBE
The Tax Section's monthly free CLE series is a benefit of your section membership. The programs are recorded on Zoom so you can watch them at any time.
Here are the latest additions to the section's YouTube Channel:
- (9480) Series LLCs Come to Florida: The Rise of the Protected Series
- (9236) Federal Tax Procedure Review Part 2
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- (9235) Federal Tax Procedure Review Part 1
- (9224) Current Developments in Tax Law (Tax Law Changes Related to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act)
- (8988) Evaluating Income Tax Benefits Upon Early Termination of Lifetime Charitable Remainder Trusts
- (9040) SALT Bridge: Insights from the Broward County Property Appraiser’s Office
- (9105) U.S. Tax Implications of Foreign Investment in Florida Real Estate
- (8904) Taxation of Subchapter C Corporations
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BE A PRESENTER
Free CLE is a benefit of membership in the Tax Section, and we need your help to continue providing excellent monthly programming. If you volunteer, you'll present on Zoom.
Interested? Contact Thomas Treece at ttreece@bilzin.com or Andrea Arauz at andreaarauzesq@gmail.com.
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TAX SECTION HALL OF CHAMPIONS PODCAST SERIES
The Tax Section's Hall of Champions podcast series is free and is posted on Libsyn.
The purpose of the interview series is to "record and preserve the wisdom of those lawyers who have meant so much to the development of tax law and policy in Florida." Each of the episodes features a tax attorney who has served in a leadership role in the section or who has won the Gerald T. Hart Outstanding Tax Attorney of the Year.
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TAX PRO BONO OPPORTUNITIES
Florida's Low-Income Taxpayer Clinics (LITCs) assist low-income taxpayers with IRS controversies, including, collections, liability disputes and Tax Court petitions. Studies show that representation significantly increases positive outcomes for low-income taxpayers. If you are interested in representing a low-income taxpayer, please contact the LITC nearest you.
| | | Volunteers needed for the U.S. Tax Court Pro Bono Calendar Call Program. The program is designed to have local tax practitioners volunteer their time to pro se taxpayers during calendar call sessions without entering their names as the attorneys of record. If you are interested in participating in the Calendar Call Program, please contact a Tax Section member listed below. | | There are also opportunities to volunteer during "Settlement Days," held a few weeks prior to calendar call. During a "Settlement Day," pro bono practitioners work with a petitioner to try and resolve a case with representatives from the IRS Office of Appeals and IRS Chief Counsel. Neither opportunity requires you to file an appearance in Tax Court if you do not wish to represent the petitioner before the Court. | | You received this email because you are a member of the Tax Section of The Florida Bar or you have an affiliation with our section. You may click below at any time to unsubscribe. | | |
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