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By Melanie Cohen
Here at The Exchange, we have a tradition of going on language journeys, and I recently began one of my own. After years immersing myself in Korean TV shows, music, and culture, I started taking introductory language classes.
As someone who’s monolingual (I can put together simple sentences in Spanish, but that’s about it), I’m humbled every time I speak, open my notes, or try to remember vocabulary. Learning a new language is hard—especially when you’re an adult, and especially when the alphabet and grammar are so different from what you know.
So why put effort into a language that could take years to fully reap the rewards of learning, to which I have no cultural ties, and that serves no “greater” purpose than wanting to watch my favorite TV shows without subtitles? Because I feel a glimmer of victory when I recognize a word or phrase in a song or in writing. And I’m tickled every time I can “translate” from Konglish—about 5% of the language comes from loanwords, many of them English.
I’m heading to Korea for two weeks with friends this spring, and I can’t wait to live out my K-drama dreams—running along the Han River, scouring the beautiful beaches in Jeju Island, hiking in scenic forests, and, at the top of my agenda, a tour of the Demilitarized Zone.
While the little 한국어 I’ve learned may help me during my vacation, I wouldn’t call it a culmination of my efforts; it’s just a pit stop on what I hope is a lifelong endeavor. Learning for its own sake can be incredibly rewarding—and as my mom recently reminded me, it creates neural pathways in the brain.
At Bloomberg Tax, we hope you’re always learning something new from our commentary and insightful analysis on state, federal, and international tax issues. And as my Korean teacher likes to say, no matter where you are in your learning voyage, “You got this!”
The Exchange—It’s where great ideas intersect.
—Melanie Cohen
The Korean alphabet, called Hangul (한글), became the language’s official writing system in the 15th century. How many letters does it have?
Answer at the bottom.
Addressing the challenges created by digital transformation is critical to ensuring that tax systems are fair, foster resilient and sustainable economies, and generate revenue that governments need for public services and development, says Grace Perez-Navarro of the OECD.
Excess benefit plans and restricted stock can yield tremendous tax savings for both employers and employees. If handled correctly, implementing the appropriate employee benefits can boost both executive morale and value for shareholders, says PYA’s Mark Brumbelow.
A new crop of talented accountants are demanding independence, flexibility, and the ability to work on their own terms. By championing software-as-a-service products, the profession can give digital natives the freedom to be creative by taking entry-level work off their plates, says Anees Pretorius of Bean.
By being selective and intentional in our choices, we can focus on true innovation and growth. This helps cut out unnecessary distractions and make space for what’s important and meaningful, says FTI Consulting Inc.’s Jared Dunkin.
There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to business operations, but you can be successful without having to constantly chase expansion by pursuing long-term sustainability instead of growth, says Little Fish Accounting’s Keila Hill-Trawick.
ChatGPT is among the latest AI technology, but is it qualified to give tax advice? Though it’s usually on the right track, it misses nuances of the tax code 100% of the time, says Lee Reams II of TaxBuzz.
Using big-data and cloud computing to weed out food benefits fraud would drastically improve the effectiveness of government auditors by doing the types of analytics that free up humans to think creatively and follow leads, says G2Lytics LLC’s Steven Purcell.
The law governing the Earned Income Tax Credit has a list of requirements for tax preparers. Those who file returns seeking refunds but who don’t meet all the requirements could face financial penalties or worse, says Green & Sklarz’s Eric Green.
Colombia’s new tax reform law is one of its most ambitious tax proposals and includes significant changes that affect national and foreign companies, says Baker McKenzie’s Juan Diego Fernandez.
Christos Theophilou of Taxand takes a look at specific examples of intra-group services that aren’t chargeable, as provided in the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines.
Bert Steens, Sébastien Gonnet, Philippe Paumier, and Andréa Massamba Leho of Transfer Pricing Economists for Development summarize their comments in response to the OECD’s public consultation on Amount B, particularly with regard to emerging and developing markets.
In what may be a silver lining for most trial lawyers, the IRS’ Generic Legal Advice Memorandum has provided a playbook of what to avoid and why when deferring tax on contingent fees, says Structured Consulting’s Jeremy Babener in our latest installment of “A Closer Look.”
Turning a traditional IRA into an empire-building Roth requires access to stock options that aren’t available to the general public. The solution is trivial in theory but is political poison, says Andrew Leahey: stricter income caps, limits on appreciation, and a tailor-made tax on Roth IRA withdrawals beyond a certain threshold.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s 2023 budget includes a proposal to “reduce tax avoidance by wealthy Californians.” But will Californians choose simply to sit and watch as the financial elite push their tax obligations onto everyone else? Voters must press legislators to enact laws that enable all Californians to roam within a safer financial habitat, writes Don Griswold.
Baker Botts has promoted two tax attorneys—Ben Geslison and Derek Young—to special counsel in Houston and New York.
Corey Steady has been promoted to partner in the tax practice group of Sheppard Mullin in the Orange County, Calif., office.
Jeffrey Davis has joined White & Case as a partner in the tax practice in Washington, D.C.
Jamie Crawford joins Dorsey & Whitney as a partner with the specialist tax practice in London.
Michael Milazzo has joined Latham & Watkins LLP as a partner in the transactional tax practice in New York.
Joanna Feltz has joined Bose McKinney & Evans as a partner in the estate and wealth transfer planning group.
Megan Hall has joined Eversheds Sutherland as a partner in the tax practice group in Washington, D.C.
If you are changing jobs or being promoted, let us know. You can email your submission to TaxMoves@bloombergindustry.com for consideration.
This week’s Spotlight is on Jacob Schumer, an Orlando attorney who advises Florida’s local governments on taxes, special assessments, and user fees, among other issues. Schumer may be best known for his articles in Bloomberg Tax about Disney’s special tax district, which is now controlled by appointees of Gov. Ron DeSantis.
It’s been another busy week in tax news from state capitals to Washington. Here are some stories you might have missed from our Bloomberg Tax news team. *Note: Your Bloomberg Tax login will be required to access Tax News.
What’s on our Bloomberg Tax Insights wish list right now? For March, we want to know how you’re getting through the busy tax season. It can be anything from ways to relieve stress to advice on managing corporate clients. What changes in the tax code are affecting partnerships and S corps, making their March 15 filing deadline a challenge? And what can tax professionals do today to set themselves up for an easier busy season in 2024?
Our Insights articles—about 1,000 words—are written by tax professionals offering expert analysis on current tax practice and policy issues, tax trends and topics, and tax and accounting firm practice and management. If you have an interesting, never-published article for publication, we’d love to hear about it. You can contact our Insights team at TaxInsights@bloombergindustry.com.
We talk about tax a lot. But there’s much more that you might hear us talking about if you popped into one of our Teams meetings. Here’s a quick look at what some of us are watching, reading, and listening to this week:
Watching:
Reading:
Listening:
Hangul has 24 letters—14 consonants and 10 vowels—though it originally had 28.
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