Blog Posts in Florida Appellate Court

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  • Double Pay FL Motor Fuel Tax?  SEI Fuel Services Wins Big!
    Double Pay FL Motor Fuel Tax? SEI Fuel Services Wins Big!

    In a recent legal battle, SEI Fuel Services Inc found itself entangled in the intricate web of Florida motor fuel tax regulations. The Department of Revenue's denial of SEI Fuel Services, Inc.'s ...

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  • WHEN EVERYONE IS INJURED BUT NOBODY CAN SUE, PART 2
    WHEN EVERYONE IS INJURED BUT NOBODY CAN SUE, PART 2

    FL TAX: WHEN EVERYONE IS INJURED BUT NOBODY CAN SUE, PART TWO. (A MULTISTATE ANALYSIS OF STANDING) Meet Florida taxpayer, Ms. Flora. She inherited a house in Missouri from her late mother, FloraBell. ...

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  • FL TAX: WHEN EVERYONE IS INJURED BUT NOBODY CAN SUE
    FL TAX: WHEN EVERYONE IS INJURED BUT NOBODY CAN SUE

    WHEN EVERYONE IS INJURED BUT NOBODY CAN SUE ANALYSIS OF SPECIAL INJURY TAXPAYER STANDING IN FLORIDA COURTS The Florida Supreme Court accepted jurisdiction to review a case from the Fourth District ...

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  • FL Property Tax in Light of Genesis Ministries
    FL Property Tax in Light of Genesis Ministries

    When attorney Shari Johnson woke up the morning of February 16, 2016, she was scheduled to argue a case of first impressions before Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeals in Broward County. Her ...

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  • FL LITIGATION UPDATE - BLUNT WRAPS NOT TAXABLE IN FLORIDA
    FL LITIGATION UPDATE - BLUNT WRAPS NOT TAXABLE IN FLORIDA

    It would be an understatement to say our firm has been involved with Florida’s wholesale tobacco tax for several years. Since Micjo in 2012, the Florida wholesale tobacco tax area has been fraught ...

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  • CHALLENGING AGENCY STATEMENTS DEFINED AS A RULE
    CHALLENGING AGENCY STATEMENTS DEFINED AS A RULE

    CHALLENGING AGENCY STATEMENTS DEFINED AS A RULE Florida law has a specific definition for the term "rule". In the context of administrative law and state tax rulings, the term is defined as follows: ...

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  • FL Tax - Verizon Business Purchasing Wins in 1st DCA
    FL Tax - Verizon Business Purchasing Wins in 1st DCA

    Way back in 2011, I co-authorized a piece entitled "When is an assessment an assessment" in the Florida CPA Magazine. In that article, we highlighted a potential flaw with Florida sales tax audits. We ...

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  • FL Sales Tax: Rhinehart Equipment on to the Appellate Courts
    FL Sales Tax: Rhinehart Equipment on to the Appellate Courts

    Rhinehart Equipment on to the Appellate Courts Just when the Florida Department of Revenue ("Department") thinks they have finally chalked up a sales tax legal victory, Rhinehart Equipment comes back ...

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  • PLETHORA OF SALES TAX LITIGATION IN FLORIDA
    PLETHORA OF SALES TAX LITIGATION IN FLORIDA

    Plethora of Sales Tax Litigation in Florida While many people seem to think that sales tax is merely a percentage of the sales price paid at the checkout counter which can easily be managed by ...

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  • BURDEN OF PROOF & PERSUASION IN FL TAX CASES
    BURDEN OF PROOF & PERSUASION IN FL TAX CASES

    Understanding the Burden of Proof and the Burden of Persuasion in Tax and Administrative Cases The best place to start to consider evidentiary issues concerning the burden of proof and the burden of ...

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  • FL 1ST DCA: VERIZON APPEALS PROPOSED ASSESSMENT NOT FINAL
    FL 1ST DCA: VERIZON APPEALS PROPOSED ASSESSMENT NOT FINAL

    FL 1 ST DCA: VERIZON APPEALS PROPOSED ASSESSMENT NOT FINAL On May 12, 2015, there was yet another riveting display of legal arguments in the sales tax arena over a very simple, yet relevant issue: ...

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  • FL Tax Audits - Taxpayer Bill of Rights Protects No Rights
    FL Tax Audits - Taxpayer Bill of Rights Protects No Rights

    FL Tax Audits – Taxpayer Bill of Rights Protects No Rights I have seen a lot of information and discussions about the IRS mistreating taxpayers. Being in Florida, this made me think of protections ...

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  • Florida Homestead Tax Exemption Case - Mary Jane
    Florida Homestead Tax Exemption Case - Mary Jane

    The death of a spouse is one of life's most stressful events. One should not be faced with difficult legal decisions in a time of grieving, especially decisions regarding something as important as the ...

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  • 2014 FICPA DOR LIAISON MEETING SUMMARY
    2014 FICPA DOR LIAISON MEETING SUMMARY

    2014 FICPA DOR LIAISON MEETING For more than 30 years, the FICPA and the Florida Department of Revenue have meet once a year to discuss that state of affairs between our state's taxing authority and ...

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  • FL DOR SMELLING THE WRONG KIND OF FLOWERS
    FL DOR SMELLING THE WRONG KIND OF FLOWERS

    Would a rose by any other name not smell as sweet? For the Department of Revenue, this rose smells like a loss. The Fourth DCA took a stand for Taxpayer's rights in its recent decision American ...

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  • DIRECTV and ECHOSTAR APPEAL CST TRIAL LOSS NOV 2013
    DIRECTV and ECHOSTAR APPEAL CST TRIAL LOSS NOV 2013

    DIRECTV and ECHOSTAR APPEAL CST TRIAL LOSS NOV 2013 In a case that has spanned almost a decade, the DIRECTV Inc and Echostar vs Florida Department of Revenue case has finally come to an end – at least ...

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  • FL DOR DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY TO COMPROMISE TAX
    FL DOR DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY TO COMPROMISE TAX

    When trying to get taxes, interest, or penalties compromised with the Florida Department of Revenue, it is good to know just how much authority the person you are speaking with has. The document below ...

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  • FL TAX LITIGATION ALERT - Leon County Loses Again
    FL TAX LITIGATION ALERT - Leon County Loses Again

    EXPEDIA AND ORBITZ WIN AGAIN AGAINST FLORIDA COUNTIES Over the past year, there has been significant action on the controversy front involving the Online Travel Companies (OTC's) challenging the ...

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  • FL TAX ALERT: ONLINE TRAVEL COMPANY CASE CERTIFIED TO FL SUPREME COURT
    FL TAX ALERT: ONLINE TRAVEL COMPANY CASE CERTIFIED TO FL SUPREME COURT

    For the past two years, various counties in Florida have been battling the on-line travel companies for local tourist development taxes on the portion of the fee paid by hotel guests but never paid to ...

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  • FL TAX ALERT - 200% PENALTY STINGS BUSINESS OWNER
    FL TAX ALERT - 200% PENALTY STINGS BUSINESS OWNER

    As the case below will illustrate, making an agreement with the Florida Department of Revenue is about as dangerous as trying to hold an angry scorpion in the palm of your hand, which reminds me of a ...

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  • FL TAX LITIGATION ALERT - HUGE VICTORY for Online Travel Companies
    FL TAX LITIGATION ALERT - HUGE VICTORY for Online Travel Companies

    FL tax controversy ALERT – HUGE VICTORY for Online Travel Companies Over the past year or so, there has been significant controversy in Florida involving the Online Travel Companies (OTC's) ...

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  • FLORIDA HISTORICAL SALES TAX RATES
    FLORIDA HISTORICAL SALES TAX RATES

    Practitioners & Taxpayers, To be well prepared to examine whether proper sales tax amounts have been paid, it is often necessary to not only review the current sales tax rates, but also the sales tax ...

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  • FL 1st DCA - Ruehl Case Decided - Tenant Improvements NOT Subject to Sales Tax
    FL 1st DCA - Ruehl Case Decided - Tenant Improvements NOT Subject to Sales Tax

    The Ruehl case concerns whether the improvements made by a Tenant to a leased premises may be considered rent to the Landlord for purposes of Florida Sales and Use Tax. This is a very hot, contested ...

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