On September 1, 2009, the Government of the United Kingdom implemented the New Offshore Disclosure Opportunity (“NDO”). The NDO allows those individuals with unpaid UK taxes relating to previously undisclosed income and/or capital gains linked to offshore accounts and/or assets to settle related tax liabilities at a favorable 10% penalty rate.  Ordinarily, penalties are charged…

The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, in a September 10, 2009 ruling, held that an employer can be held liable for discriminatory hiring decisions made by its independent contractors. The case involved an independent contractor acting on behalf of the employer, telling the plaintiff that “they were looking for someone younger”.…

If you are a company with operations in both the United States and Israel, you should be aware of several very important U.S. and Israeli Tax issues when you engage in cross border operations. I have set forth below several of the main issues. This list is not exhaustive and only reflects briefly the main…

So, you have this great idea, you are sure that it is going to be at least the next Google/Monster/Microsoft/Facebook. Now what? Well, having a great idea is just the first step (and some say the easiest one) in a long long journey towards establishing your own living and kicking business. Since this platform of…

On September 1, 2009, Ebay announced that it would sell 65% of Skype, an internet calling service to a group of investors which includes Silver Lake, a private-equity fund, and a venture-capital firm started recently by Marc Andreessen, founder of Netscape. The price was $1.9 billion in cash, higher than previously expected. Skype was purchased…

Lots of young entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley these days hope to begin their business, let people know their companies, and furthermore, draw the attention of venture capitalists, who will devote money to their new enterprise. Something that an entrepreneur must keep in mind is something that he must give up to VCs when getting money…

The IRS has now implemented a special approved penalty framework for resolving the civil side of offshore voluntary disclosures and this approved penalty framework is effective till September 23, 2009 at which time the IRS intends to re-evaluate the approved penalty framework. Under the approved penalty framework, the taxpayer has to file correct or amended…

Clean Tech is generally considered to include multiple advanced technologies in four economic sectors: energy, waste, materials, and transportation. These technologies break down in categories such as energy generation and storage, water and wastewater, air and environment, etc. There is no clear-cut definition for a “Clean-Tech” Company, but as shown by its name, a clean-tech…

S-Corporations are corporations that elect to be treated as pass-through entities by the IRS. In order to qualify for S-Corporation status a corporation needs to satisfy several conditions, including the following: 1) all shareholders must be residents of the United States; 2) the corporation may only have one class of shareholders and may not have more than…

Whenever a corporation or limited liability company does business (i.e. enters contracts or agreements) in a state other than the state in which they are domiciled, they are required to do a foreign filing in that state. For example, if a business is incorporated in Delaware, but has an office and/or employees based in California,…