Topic
Conservation Easements
399 published works
Nonprofit Law Prof Blog
Schmidt v. Commissioner—Conservation Easement Overvalued But No Penalties Imposed
In Schmidt v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2014-159, the Tax Court determined that the value of a conservation easement for purposes of a federal charitable income tax deduction under IRC §…
Nonprofit Law Prof Blog
Zarlengo v. Commissioner—Conservation Easement Overvalued and Not Protected In Perpetuity Until Recorded
Zarlengo v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2014-161, involved a façade easement that Dr. Zarlengo and his ex-wife donated to the National Architectural Trust (NAT) effective in 2005. The Zarlengos had purchased…
Land Use Prof Blog
Everyone’s favorite topic: valuing conservation easements
The tax court cases on conservation easements are just pouring in these days. The most recent case again concerns overvaluation of conservation easements in Colorado. Schmidt owned a 40-acre property…
Nonprofit Law Prof Blog
Seventeen Seventy Sherman Street, LLC v. Commissioner—Conservation Easement Conveyed for Quid Pro Quo Not Deductible and Negligence Penalty Applied
In Seventeen Seventy Sherman Street, LLC v. Comm’r, T.C. Memo. 2014-124, the Tax Court sustained the IRS’s complete disallowance of the LLC's claimed $7.15 million deduction for the conveyance to…
Land Use Prof Blog
Whitehouse v. CIR. 5th Circuit Upholds Major Deduction in Conservation Easement Valuation
No one is more surprised than I with how much time I spend reading about tax law these days, but I wanted to alert folks to another case regarding the…
Nonprofit Law Prof Blog
Scheidelman v. Commissioner (Again)—Second Circuit Affirms Tax Court’s Holding that Façade Easement Had No Value
After four years of litigation and two appeals, in Scheidelman v. Comm’r, _ F.3d _ (2d Cir., 2014), the Second Circuit affirmed the Tax Court’s holding that a façade easement…
Nonprofit Law Prof Blog
Chandler v. Commissioner—Façade Easements Had No Value and Strict Liability Penalty Applied for 2006
In Chandler v. Commissioner, 142 T.C. No. 16 (2014), the Tax Court held that façade easements donated to the National Architectural Trust (NAT) with respect to two residences in Boston’s…
Land Use Prof Blog
Tax Deductible Exacted Conservation Easements: That’s an oxymoron isn’t it?
As long-time readers know, I have an obsession with interest in conservation easements. In particular, I have been intrigued with a category I call "exacted conservation easements," which I view…
Nonprofit Law Prof Blog
Social Club’s Sale of Conservation Easement Taxed Favorably
Today’s edition of Tax Analysts’ Tax Notes Today (subscription required) contains several entries relevant to exempt organization lawyers. One that especially interests me is Private Letter Ruling 201425016, which involves…
Land Use Prof Blog
No Per Se Deduction for Conservation Easements
Many of the exciting conservation easement cases (yes I did say "exciting conservation easement cases") come up in the context of facade easements. I think facade easements just sound sketchy…