- Upcoming Tax CLE.
- Tax Section News and Announcements.
- 2020-2021 Gerald T. Hart Outstanding Tax Attorney of the Year - Michael A. Lampert.
- Hall of Champions - David Bowers.
- 2020-2021 Marvin C. Gutter Award - Maria Johnson.
- Mark R. Brown Nominated to Lead Tax Section.
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The section's annual Fall Meeting schedule is set and we encourage you to attend. All meetings are free of charge on Zoom and the organizers are planning to include networking opportunities and games. Meeting registration will be available soon.
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Co-hosted with the Business Law Section of The Florida Bar:
Hosted by the Tax Section of The Florida Bar:
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Register online now for "Practical Estate Planning in Uncertain Times," Sept. 25, 9 AM - 4:20 PM. This CLE traditionally is held live in conjunction with the Tax Section Fall Meeting. This year, it will be a live InReach webcast and registrants will have 90-day, on-demand access. Approved for 8 General CLE credits, 8 each Elder Law; Tax; Wills, Trusts & Estates certification credit.
Changes that have happened in recent months have significantly impacted the focus of estate planning. Now more than ever, it is important to revisit your clients' existing estate plans and develop practical solutions that provide flexibility for the future. Internationally recognized presenters will share real-world tactics that can address your clients’ concerns during this time of fear and unrest—from planning with retirement accounts under the CARES and SECURE acts to creative uses with grantor and non-grantor trusts and the effects of the current political and interest-rate environments. Various presentations will focus on how to plan with the higher gift and estate tax exemptions before they sunset as early as the end of this year! This CLE will benefit all tax professionals who are seeking creative, practical strategies in the “new normal” world of estate planning.
9:00 AM - 10:40 AM
Shining Light Through the Darkness: Planning in the Shadow of Uncertainty, Social Distancing, and Fear
Paul Lee, Global Fiduciary Strategist, Northern Trust, New York, NY
10:40 AM - 11:30 AM
Planning with Retirement Plans Under the CARES and SECURE Acts
11:30 AM - 12:00 PM
Break
12:00 PM - 12:50 PM
Don’t Panic! Things to Look Out for at the Intersection of Business Entities and Estate Planning
12:50 PM - 1:40 PM
Creative Uses for Grantor and Non-Grantor Trusts
1:40 PM - 1:50 PM
Break
1:50 PM - 2:40 PM
What Every Attorney and CPA Needs to Know to Prepare and Review Estate and Gift Tax Returns
2:40 PM - 3:30 PM
20 Tax Traps Related to Trustee Selection
Mark Parthemer, Managing Director & Senior Fiduciary Counsel, Bessemer Trust, Palm Beach
3:30 PM - 4:20 PM
Planning in Light of the Current Political Environment
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Tax CLE Details & Registration |
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Each of the following Zoom webinars will be co-hosted with the Business Law Section of The Florida Bar. Registration is required in order to receive the join link. Tax Section members free. Non-section members $75 (includes membership to the Tax Section). 1.0 CLE credit.
The Zoom join link will be provided to registrants prior to the webinar. The registration cutoff is 11:30 a.m. on the date of the presentation. Click on the images below to register.
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Wednesday, Oct. 7, 12 - 1 PM on Zoom, presented by Nathan L. Wadlinger. Approved for 1 General and 1 Technology CLE credit. Tax Section members free; non-section members $75 (includes Tax Section membership).
There is currently a big emphasis in the profession on big data, data analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI). When most people talk about AI in the tax area, they are usually talking about tax preparation software auto filling in returns using AI technology. Recently software has been created where AI is now being used to help tax professionals make better decisions when it comes to tax research. For the first time now we are able to predict outcomes of various tax scenarios using special software. That’s the general idea of the tax research software called Tax Foresight by Blue J Legal. It really does combine tax and science in order to improve tax research. This presentation provides an overview of Tax Foresight including a basic demonstration of the product and how AI improves the tax research process. This presentation uses an interactive approach walking through the steps of the software with various situations. There will even be some interesting surprises!
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Wednesday, Nov. 4, 12 - 1 PM on Zoom, presented by Charlotte Erdmann. Approved for 1 General CLE credit. Tax Section members free; non-section members $75 (includes Tax Section membership). The Zoom join link will be provided to registrants prior to the presentation. The registration cutoff is 11:30 a.m. on the date of the presentation.
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Wednesday, Dec. 9, 12 - 1 PM on Zoom, presented by Charlotte Erdmann. Approved for 1 General CLE credit. Tax Section members free; non-section members $75 (includes Tax Section membership). The Zoom join link will be provided to registrants prior to the presentation. The registration cutoff is 11:30 a.m. on the date of the presentation. |
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TAX SECTION NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS |
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Michael A. Lampert Named 2020-2021 Gerald T. Hart Outstanding Tax Attorney of the Year |
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The Florida Bar Tax Section will honor Michael A. Lampert with the 2020-2021 Gerald T. Hart Outstanding Tax Attorney of the Year Award. Tax Section Chair D. Michael O’ Leary stated that Michael has a long history of professional accomplishments and contributions to the Tax Section.
Recipients are selected for their contributions to the advancement of the practice of tax law and their commitment to the highest standards of competence and integrity.
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Michael received his undergraduate degree from the University of Miami, his Juris Doctorate from Duke University, and his Master of Laws in Taxation from New York University. He also participated in a joint program with Temple University School of Law and Tel Aviv Faculty of Law in Israel.
A father of two sons who currently lives in West Palm Beach with his wife Stacey, Michael began practicing law in 1984. Michael has his own firm, and advises clients on tax, estate planning, probate and elder law, with an emphasis on tax controversy matters.
Michael was the Tax Section Chair in 2012-2013, is board certified by The Florida Bar in Tax Law, and is AV Rated by Martindale-Hubbell. He is a Fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel, has been listed in Super Lawyers since 2006, and is Vice Chair of The Florida Bar Tax Law Certification Committee.
Michael frequently lectures before both professional and community organizations, including such organizations as The Florida Bar, the Palm Beach County Tax Institute (past President), various Chapters of the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Palm Beach-Martin County Estate Planning Council, the Palm Beach County Bar Association, Hunter College, the University of Florida School of Law Graduate Program in Taxation, the University of Miami School of Law Graduate Program in Taxation and the Tax Section of the American Bar Association. He also served for many years as an Instructor in the Continuing Education Division of Florida Atlantic University and on the editorial board of the CCH Publication Sales and Use Tax Alert.
He is past Chairman of the Palm Beaches - Treasure Coast Region of the American Red Cross and the immediate past President of both the Jewish Family & Children’s Service and the Jewish Residential & Family Service of Palm Beach County.
Please join us when Michael will be honored during the Tax Section’s Fall Meeting in 2021 at the Breakers in Palm Beach.
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Mark Brown Nominated to Lead Tax Section |
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The Tax Section Nominating Committee has nominated Mark R. Brown of West Palm Beach to serve as the 2021-2022 chair-elect.
Mark is senior counsel with Comiter, Singer, Baseman & Braun and concentrates in the areas of wills and trusts, domicile planning, probate administration, and estate tax and income planning.
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Mark has practiced in Palm Beach County for over 20 years. He earned his B.S. degree, summa cum laude, in accounting from the State University of New York at Albany and his J.D. from Duke University School of Law. Brown is board certified in both wills, trusts & estates and tax law and is also a certified public accountant.
Mark has served as treasurer of the Tax Section and is a past president of the East Coast Estate Planning Council and the Palm Beach Tax Institute. Brown is also a member of the Business & Professional cabinet of the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County. He received formal recognition for “exceptional pro bono service” in 2017 from the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County.
The Tax Section Bylaws provide that petitions setting forth the names of other nominees for the office of chair-elect may be made by any 10 members of the section. Those petitions must be filed with Tax Section Secretary Micah Fogarty no later than September 15. to allow inclusion on a written ballot. Nominations for the office of chair-elect will not be permitted unless the nominations have been timely made and in the manner described in the Tax Section Bylaws, Article III, Section 2(b). If there is only one nomination for the office of chair-elect, that nominee will become chair-elect.
The term of office of the chair-elect runs concurrently with that of the chair and begins on July 1 after the section’s Annual Meeting at which the chair-elect is elected and ends on the succeeding June 30, when the chair-elect automatically assumes the office of chair.
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Federal Tax Division Seeks Subcommittee Members |
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Interested in getting more involved in the Tax Section? The Federal Tax Division is seeking volunteers for committee service. Please contact Co-Directors Donna Longhouse or Justin Wallace.
The Federal Tax Division is responsible for monitoring and informing section members regarding substantive federal domestic tax developments and developments in federal domestic tax administration and procedure.
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The division also is responsible for coordinating with the Legislation and Regulations Committee in evaluating, recommending and commenting on proposed legislative and regulatory changes to federal domestic tax laws for consideration by the section; and for providing written commentary on and analysis of federal domestic tax issues in publications of the section and of The Florida Bar. Please consider volunteering for service on a subcommittee: |
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C-Corporations Subcommittee
Vacant
Employee Benefits Subcommittee
David Bowers, Chair
Sharon Dixon
Limited Liability Companies Subcommittee
Vacant
Partnerships Subcommittee
Cristin Keane, Chair
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S-Corporations Subcommittee
Michael Wilson, Chair
Larry Stein
Taxation of Individuals Subcommittee
Kevin Packman, Co-chair
Nathan Wadlinger, Co-chair
Specialty Areas Subcommittee
Dana Apfelbaum, Chair
Michael Minton
Mark Scott
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2019-2020 Section Chair Awards |
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Despite not being able to express her appreciation in person during the 2020 Tax Section Organizational Meeting, Immediate Past Section Chair Janette McCurley honored each of the following section members with awards for their outstanding service and dedication to the section. Janette also was honored by the section for her "outstanding leadership and dedicated service to The Florida Bar Tax Section as Chair 2019-2020." |
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Ian C. White in appreciation for your years of service as Organizational Meeting hospitality suite host. |
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Mike E. Jorgensen in appreciation for your years of service as Organizational Meeting hospitality suite host. |
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Brian M. Malec in appreciation for your excellent service as Section Treasurer. |
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Justin J. Wallace in appreciation for your years of service as Co-Chair of the National Tax Moot Court Competition. |
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Brian P. Howsare in appreciation for your years of service as Co-Chair of the National Tax Moot Court Competition. |
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Shawn P. Wolf in appreciation for your service and dedication as program chair of the 2020 Annual Meeting CLE. |
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Joseph B. Schimmel in appreciation for your special service and assistance to the Section Chair. |
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Tax Section July Happy Hour |
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Thank you to everyone who joined us on July 30 for the section's "Two Truths and a Lie" happy hour. Tax Section "Social Tsars" Janette McCurley and Cristin Keane came up with the theme and the signature cocktail—the Waldorf's "New Fashioned" (recipe below)—in honor of the last time we were together in person at the Tax Section Directors' Meeting at the Waldorf Astoria in Orlando.
The Tax Section is planning a regular happy hour series for all section members. We hope you will join us next time to socialize with your friends and collegues in the section, meet new friends and learn more about how to get involved.
Waldorf "New Fashioned"
2 oz. anejo tequila
1/2 oz. agave syrup
2 dashes angostura bitters
2 dashes fee brothers whiskey barrel-aged bitters
orange peel for garnish
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Maria Johnson Awarded 2020 – 2021 Marvin C. Gutter
Outstanding Public Service Award
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By H. French Brown, IV, Mark E. Holcomb, and Rex D. Ware
Each year, the Tax Section recognizes a government employee for outstanding public service. The 2020 – 2021 Marvin C. Gutter Outstanding Public Service Award recipient is Maria Johnson, Director of the General Tax Administration Program of the Florida Department of Revenue.
Maria is a career Department employee, working her way up from the field audit staff to become an integral and invaluable member of the Department’s leadership team.
As Director of GTA, Maria is responsible for administering the Department’s programs that taxpayers and tax practitioners most routinely encounter: registrations, returns processing, tax collections, audits, refunds, tax enforcement, revenue distribution, and taxpayer education. GTA is responsible for these functions across over 30 different taxes and fees, including all major taxes levied by the State and administered by the Department.
Maria is a dedicated public servant in the truest sense, and has shown exemplary leadership both within the Department and in the larger tax community. Maria embodies the Department’s dedication to taxpayer service, always available and willing to address the sometimes-difficult issues that inevitably arise through the Department’s administration of a broad array of taxes and fees, bringing a balanced perspective and openness to innovative and reasonable solutions (within the bounds of the law, of course) to that process. Maria has, time and again, been willing to assist Tax Section members with the routine and not-so-routine, to help their clients successfully navigate GTA’s core functions.
Maria has also been, for many years, a regular supporter of and speaker at tax programs sponsored by the Tax Section, including the State Tax Conference and the National Multistate Tax Symposium. Her insights, always delivered cheerfully and with good humor, are universally well-received.
Maria is a native of South Florida and, best of all, she is a delightful person. Regrettably, we think she might be a ‘Cane.
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Hall of Champions Interview: David E. Bowers |
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The purpose of The Florida Bar Tax Section's "Hall of Champions" 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.
In this episode, Steven Hogan interviews David Bowers, who served as Chair of the Tax Section in 1999-2000, and who received the Hart Award for the 2016-2017 year. |
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David is a Shareholder with Jones Foster in West Palm Beach. Learn more about him and his practice here. |
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Click here to listen on your iPhone through Apple Podcasts.
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NEW: Free Tax CLE 24/7 Available on the Section's YouTube Channel |
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The Tax Section's monthly free CLE series is a benefit of your section membership. Now that the CLEs are recorded on Zoom, we can make them available to you online so you can watch or listen to them any time. The latest additions are:
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Bookmark bit.ly/Tax_CLE to go directly to on-demand and podcast Tax Law CLE.
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Florida Bar Online CLE Catalog |
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Need more CLE? Here are some recent CLEs that were offered by the Tax Section and now are available for purchase as on-demand or podcast seminars.
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Renew Your Section Membership |
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How does Tax Section membership benefit YOU? |
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More than 2,100 Florida lawyers are members of The Florida Bar Tax Section and enjoy all of the benefits of membership.
- If you take advantage of the section's members-only monthly, free CLEs—soon to be offered live on Zoom—you'll save $900.
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If you register for additional section-sponsored CLE programs and use your section-member discount, your total return on investment is greater than $1,000.
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The Tax Section offers leadership opportunities through committee service, family-friendly retreats and destination CLEs, opportunities to speak and write articles, and much more.
Florida Bar members, Authorized House Counsels and Florida Registered Paralegals may pay their 2020-21 Florida Bar fees online now by signing into the Member Portal and clicking the “Pay My Fees” button. We value you and your continued membership in the Tax Section.
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Login Information for the
Tax Section Member Resources Page
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Below are your member login credentials for the exclusive Member Resources page on the Tax Section website. Please save this email for your records so that you may access the page any time you like. We will continue to load the Member Resources page with valuable section resources and content, including the 2019-2020 Section Membership Directory, Executive Council meeting agendas and minutes, the Section's 2019-2020 budget and more.
Login Credentials
Username: TaxSectionMember
Password: FlB@rT@x!m3mb3r
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You received this email because you are a member or an affiliate member of the Tax Section of The Florida Bar. You may click below to unsubscribe at any time. Questions or comments? Email Program Administrator Leslie Reithmiller or visit www.floridataxlawyers.org. If you have news or announcements that are of interest to section members, please email newsletter content to Ileana Garcia.
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