Companies often grant licenses to others allowing them to use intellectual property — such as a patent or proprietary computer code — in exchange for royalties. Licensors can hire an external audit firm to ensure the licensee pays the correct royalty rate and amount. Here’s how the audit process works. The agreement The parties’ attorneys […]

If you dream of spending your golden years in a tropical paradise, a culture-rich European city or another foreign locale, it’s important to understand the potential tax and estate planning implications. If you don’t, you could be hit with some unpleasant surprises. Avoiding the pitfalls If you’re a citizen of the United States, U.S. taxes […]

Children with special needs require special attention by all professionals involved. Parents, therapists, attorneys and certified public accountants (CPAs) should work closely together to ensure all available benefits are captured, and that the children receive sufficient support. Given the dramatic rise in the recognition and treatment of children with special needs over the last 15 […]

Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, employees can no longer claim the home office deduction. If, however, you run a business from your home or are otherwise self-employed and use part of your home for business purposes, the home office deduction may still be available to you. Home-related expenses Homeowners know that they can […]

One of the biggest concerns for family business owners is succession planning — transferring ownership and control of the company to the next generation. Often, the best time tax-wise to start transferring ownership is long before the owner is ready to give up control of the business. A family limited partnership (FLP) can help owners […]

One of the most difficult administrative tasks for retailers, manufacturers and contractors is keeping tabs on inventory. If the numbers don’t seem to add up during your physical inventory count, it may be time to bring in a fraud expert to uncover the source of the discrepancy. Stolen or misplaced Before assuming theft, a fraud […]

In a world of increasing exposure to online security threats, it’s nice to be able to rely on voicemail for risk-free communication. The problem is, you can’t. Your voicemail system can easily be hacked if you don’t take some precautions. Passwords as passports In the most common scheme, hackers figure out the passwords for voicemail […]

Strategic planning is key to ensuring every company’s long-term viability, and goal setting is an indispensable step toward fulfilling those plans. Unfortunately, businesses often don’t accomplish their overall strategic plans because they’re unable to fully reach the various goals necessary to get there. If this scenario sounds all too familiar, trace your goals back to […]

As a business grows, one of many challenges it faces is identifying a competitive yet manageable compensation structure. After all, offer too little and you likely won’t have much success in hiring. Offer too much and you may compromise cash flow and profitability. But the challenge doesn’t end there. Once you have a feasible compensation […]