Friday, May 30, 2014
Fri, 30 May 2014
Liberty University School of Law
A Liberty University School of Law professor recently filed an amicus brief in the first United States Tax Court case that addresses the tax consequences of human egg donations.
Professor Timothy M. Todd recently filed the “friend of the court” brief in the case of Perez v. Commissioner.
At issue is the taxability of money received from egg donations.
As Professor Todd explained, donors are typically paid money for their time and effort, rather than for the eggs themselves, as selling the eggs would be illegal in most states.
“This is an issue that affects thousands of taxpayers each year, and the advice that is out there is inconsistent,” Professor Todd said, adding that these types of briefs are not common in the U.S. Tax Court.
“In this case, the court recognized how important this decision can potentially be, so it wanted to receive as much input as possible from the tax community.”
Professor Todd, who is both a lawyer and certified public accountant, teaches taxation and transactional law courses at Liberty University School of Law.
He formerly clerked for the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in Washington, D.C., and serves as editor of the Tax Litigation Survey, allowing him to offer keen insight into tax litigation matters.
“As I tell our students, ‘Tax is everywhere,’ and the Perez case demonstrates that point. What started out as a family law matter, has now stepped into the national tax spotlight,” he said.
“We have a robust tax and transactional law curriculum at Liberty Law. Every law student here is required to take a federal taxation course, and in that course, we discuss the tax law involved in the Perez case. I look forward to discussing this case with them,” he said.
A decision in the case is expected later this year.