ACPEN Signature: Partnership & LLCs Tax Update

Joel N. Crouch, JD, is a partner with the law firm of with Meadows, Collier, Reed, Cousins, Crouch & Ungerman, L.L.P., based in Dallas, Texas. Mr. Crouch is Board Certified in Tax Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. His practice focuses on resolving or litigating controversies with the Internal Revenue Service. Mr. Crouch represents individuals and businesses in IRS audits, appeals and litigation in United States Tax Court, Federal District Court and Federal Court of Claims. In addition, he has represented clients in resolving tax matters with the State of Texas. In addition to his civil practice, Mr. Crouch also represents individuals and corporations involved in criminal investigations. He has experience in tax fraud, bankruptcy fraud, bank fraud and environmental matters. Mr. Crouch is a member of the Collin County, Dallas and the American Bar Associations, and the State Bar of Texas. He is also a member of the Tax, Criminal and Litigation Sections of each of these organizations. Mr. Crouch is an active speaker on substantive and procedural tax issues for the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants (TSCPA), TSCPA Chapters and other professional groups. Joel co-authored an article in the May/June 2006 issue of The Value Examiner (National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts publication) titled, "6 Keys to Avoiding Section 6701 Penalties." He was named a Texas Super Lawyer in 2003, 2004 and 2005 by Texas Monthly and Law & Politics Magazine. Mr. Crouch was born in Suffern, New York in 1962. He received his B.A. in Mathematics from Southern Methodist University in 1985 and his J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law in 1988.

James A. (Jim) Smith, CPA, CGMA, serves as Managing Director of Smith, Jackson, Boyer & Bovard, PLLC, a Dallas Certified Public Accounting firm. He practices extensively in tax compliance, planning and controversy representation for individuals and entrepreneurial businesses. He also is engaged in the preparation, compilation and review of financial statements; exit strategy planning for entrepreneurs; merger and acquisition planning and transactions; and forensic accounting and litigation services.

Mr. Smith served as Chair of the Texas Society of CPAs (TSCPA) for the 2007-2008 year, and as a member of its Professional Standards and Federal Tax Policy Committees since their inception. He served as a member of the AICPA Council 2007 through 2011 and from 2012 through 2015. He also served as an appointed member of two of the AICPA's key standard setting committees: the Accounting and Review Services Committee from 2008 through 2011 and the Tax Practice Responsibilities Committee, 2014 to 2017.

Mark George, CPA, ABV, is Managing Director of George Valuation Advisors, a Dallas-based business valuation and financial consulting firm. Previously, Mark was the Managing Director of Phalon George Capital Advisors, in Dallas, Texas, and Manager of the Valuation Services Group of KPMG, LLP, and a Senior Staff member of Valuation Services for Ernst & Young, LLP, also in Dallas.

For over 20 years, Mark George has been focused exclusively on the valuation of businesses, partnership interests, and intangible assets. He has completed hundreds of business appraisals in a wide variety of industries. His valuation opinions have provided the basis for gift and estate tax computations, employee stock ownership plans, acquisitions and divestitures, purchase price allocations including intangible asset valuations, derivative securities prices, restricted stock, and litigation support.

Mark is a CPA licensed in Texas and Accredited in Business Valuation by the AICPA. He is a frequent speaker on valuation issues.

Matthew S. Beard, JD, practices with the firm of Meadows, Collier, Reed, Cousins, Crouch & Ungerman, L.L.P., based in Dallas, Texas. His practice spans two broad areas of taxation: estate planning and probate and income tax and business planning. In his estate planning and probate practice, Mr. Beard designs and implements estate and business succession plans with an emphasis on federal tax issues. He often works closely with accountants, bankers and financial advisors in this process. Mr. Beard also represents fiduciaries in all facets of estate and trust administration. This typically includes court proceedings, tax matters, administration and transfer of assets, and matters before the IRS. Mr. Beard is the author of "An Introductory Guide to Tax and Estate Planning," which provides an introduction to estate planning under Texas law and planning for federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer taxes. On transactional matters, Mr. Beard advises clients with a focus on tax issues. He works with a broad range of entities, such as partnerships, limited liability companies, and publicly traded "C" corporations. Transactions include formations, acquisitions/mergers, and liquidations. Mr. Beard is the author of "Annotated Tax Provisions for Limited Liability Companies," which includes tax provisions for company agreements with explanations of how the provisions operate and provide pass-through taxation.

Prior to joining the firm in 2012, he was an associate with one of the largest Texas-based law firms.

C. Clinton Davis JR, is with the law firm of Krage & Janvey, LLP in downtown Dallas. He graduated cum laude from the SMU Dedman School of Law in 1980 and first in his graduating class from Northwestern State University of Louisiana in 1977 with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. He was first licensed in Florida as an attorney in 1980 and then in Texas in 1982. He has been a licensed CPA in Texas since 1980. He has been Board Certified in Tax Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization since 1988. He has been named as a Super Lawyer, a Top Attorney in Texas by Texas Monthly, one of the Best Lawyers in Dallas by D Magazine and a Top Rated Lawyer by the Dallas Morning News, all in the tax area.

Clint has in the past been an author and discussion leader for numerous CPE courses for the Texas Society of CPAs. Clint also speaks before various bar associations and accounting conferences. and is a frequent presenter and moderator on the Accountants' Continuing Professional Education Network.

Clint primarily represents high net worth individuals and closely held businesses with much of his time devoted to real estate tax planning, implementation of S corporation ESOPs, mergers and acquisitions and private foundations.