Howard Godfrey

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A deduction is allowed for losses arising from fire, storm, or other casualty, or from theft, that are not incurred in a trade or business or in a transaction entered into for profit (a personal casualty or theft loss). Each such loss is allowed only to the extent it exceeds $100, and net total losses for a year may be deducted only to the extent they exceed 10% of adjusted gross income.

Feature TAX A practice by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office of granting patents on tax strategies has raised red flags with many observers. Members of an AICPA volunteer task force tell why. BY JACK CATHEY, HOWARD GODFREY AND JUSTIN RANSOME EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office since 1998 has granted patents to business methods. In recent years, these patents have come to include strategies to minimize tax, a development many observers find troubling.

Feature BUSINESS & INDUSTRY /TAX The business entity continues to grow in popularity but requires attention to its P's and Q's. BY HOWARD GODFREY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY S corporations have become the dominant business entity type, in part because requirements for electing the status have been relaxed and clarified. An S corporation may now have more shareholders because certain family members may be counted as a single shareholder.