Law Office of Andrew L. Gradman

About my practice 

I advise clients on income tax planning.

I counsel individuals, businesses, and their lawyers/CPAs at key moments--entity formation, retention of key employees, sale of business property, and exit from business. I draft and review contracts, LLC operating agreements, buy/sell agreements, real estate transaction documents, etc. to ensure qualification for tax benefits. I often prepare research memos and detailed written opinions to provide reassurance to CPAs and investors. 

I also have extensive experience with transfer taxation (gift, estate, GST); property taxation; and other miscellaneous state and federal taxes.

Education

Publications

• Qualified Opportunity Zones:
  • How Forgiving Recapture Gain Turns QOZs into Tax Shelters. Tax Notes. Front page article 11/25/19.
  • IRS Releases Generous Guidance for QOZs During Coronavirus Pandemic. CEB (accepted for publication).
  • QOZ projects have ‘up to’ 24 more months due to COVID-19. LA Daily Journal 03/19/20. With Michael Wiener.
  • Poking Holes in the Final QOZ Regulations. CEB website 01/30/20.
  • Treasury Releases Long-Awaited QOZ Regulations. LA Daily Journal 04/19/19. With Neda Barkhordar.
  • Statewide presentation to CEB (recording, handout).
  • Statewide presentation to CalCPA (recording). 
• Cannabis:
  • Should You Change Your Accounting Method? An Emerging Cannabis Loophole. With Abraham Finberg and Rachel Wright. LA Daily Journal (accepted for publication, date TBA).
• Coronavirus
  
  • Incentive under the CARES Act to Invest in Capital Intensive Businesses During 2020
  • Real Estate Tax Tips During Coronavirus. CEB Real Property Law Reporter. Accepted for May 2020.
  • Coronavirus Legislation Contains Employment Tax Relief, and Mixed Messages. CEB Business Law Reporter. Accepted for July 2020.
    • Both CEB articles were adapted into a statewide presentation to CalCPA (recording).
• Partnership taxation
  • CEB Update Author, "Tax Considerations on Formation of and Contributions to Partnership";
  • CEB Update Author, "Taxation of Transfers and Termination of Partnership Interests";
• Intellectual Property
  •  CEB Update Author, “Taxation of Trade Secrets”.
•  California
  • California Passes Partial Tax Conformity Bill, Raising More Questions. CEB website 10/17/19.
  • Split Roll Ballot Measure Could Scale Back Proposition 13. CEB website (accepted for publication, date TBD).
• Family Offices:
  
  • Family Offices Allow (Some) Taxpayers to Deduct Investment Related Expenses. Bloomberg Tax: Estates, Gift, and Trusts Journal 03/12/20. With Alan S. Gassman, John N. Beck, and Christopher J. Denicolo.

Areas of experience

No income tax topic is too obscure.  My areas of experience include: 

• Subchapters C and S (corporations): e.g.
  • corporate mergers, tax-free reorganizations, and liquidations;
  • professional goodwill
• Subchapter K (partnerships): e.g.
  • drafting partnership allocations & distributions;
  • structure employee equity compensation 
• Subchapter J (trusts): e.g.
  • grantor vs. complex trusts.
• Subchapter N (international): e.g.,
  • tax planning for non-US persons
  • tax planning for US expatriots
  • assist CPAs with foreign accounts compliance
  • FIRPTA
  • DISCs
• Subchapters O (gain/loss), P (capital gain): e.g.,
  • reduce tax on sale of corporation using Qualified Small Business Stock
  • advise on use of cryptocurrencies in business transactions
  • recharacterize sales to maximize capital gain treatment and expedite basis recovery.
  • 1031 exchanges.
• Subchapter Z:  Recognized expert on Qualified Opportunity Zones.
• Subchapters A (tax credits), B (computation of TI), (D (deferred comp), E (accounting methods), F (exempt orgs), G (PHCs and AET), I (depletion of natural resources), e.g.:
  • 263A Unicap rules
  • Taxation of tax-exempt and deferred-compensation structures
  • Section 38 business credits, including R&D; LIHTC; NMTC; and IRC 46 Investment credits (rehab, energy)
  • Taxation of sophisticated financial products, e.g.: private placement life insurance contracts; derivatives; capital vs. profits interests. Experienced with taxation of annuities (private and commercial) and life insurance (including split dollar)
  • Taxation of farmers and ranchers
  • Taxation of cannabis
  • Executive compensation, including 409A
• CA Revenue & Tax Code: e.g.,
  • allocation & apportionment.
  • assist clients emigrating to Nevada to reduce income taxes.