Tax & Employee Benefits

Taxation
        The Firm's general taxation practice includes advising individuals and entities as to the U.S., California, and local tax consequences of various transactions, including the formation, reorganization, and disposition of businesses, sales or exchanges of assets and issuance of debt and equity securities. The practice also encompasses representation of resident and nonresident individuals, public and privately held multinational corporations engaged in business and investment activities both within and outside of the United States, with particular emphasis on the Pacific Rim nations.

ERISA
        The Firm's ERISA practice provides retirement and benefit planning and deferred compensation arrangements for highly compensated individuals, as well as advice regarding the implementation and admission of employee pension and welfare benefit plans for various businesses, educational and healthcare institutions and municipalities. The Firm also advises both closely-held and publicly-traded corporations in all areas pertaining to the establishment, implementation and operation of Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) in connection with both leveraged and non-leveraged transactions. The attorneys in this group also work closely with the Firm's Labor & Employment Law Department in pension and welfare planning matters and the resolution of employment related disputes arising in such matters.

Experience
        The practice within each of the above categories also involves tax controversies. Attorneys in each group represent clients in various stages of interaction with government authorities, including property tax appeals, sales and business license tax matters, private letter ruling requests, and representation in connection with IRS examinations and assessment procedures. Our attorneys have appeared before the U.S. Tax Court and other Federal Courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.