As the global pandemic began to impact the U.S. economy, Congress passed sweeping legislation in an attempt to deal with the anticipated fallout. First, Congress passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). Shortly thereafter Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). Between the two acts there are provisions that […]
Category: General
Let’s look at the hypothetical case of a state trooper who has been working 10 years. His accrued pension benefit is $2,500 a month. If he works another 10 years, his accrued pension benefit will be $4,500 a month. He is 52 years old and seems likely to work until regular retirement at age 62. […]
There might be a case in which the alimony payor lives in a state which does tax alimony at the state level, but the recipient lives in a state which does not. In order to indicate that the payor would receive the state tax deduction and the recipient will pay no state income tax on […]
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Lump Sum Alimony and Child Support
In some states, including California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania, current alimony is a factor in calculating child support. What if the party is paying the negotiated monthly alimony in a lump sum instead of monthly? How should child support reflect that fact? One approach would be to calculate […]
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Non-taxable Disability Income
A client receives income from a private disability policy that is not subject to income tax. Where do we enter this amount and show it is not taxable? Go to Client Info > Income & Expenses > Wage-Like Income. Scroll down to the line for disability income Check the box next to the entry for […]
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Imputed Income
If judge says, “Impute $25,000 of income,” how should I treat that income for tax purposes — as pre-tax or after-tax? Ultimately, it comes down to the imputation of income – was it intended to be gross or net? While it is true the party with imputed income will not be paying taxes on that […]
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Working with Client Files
We have a new system for working with client online files. It allows you to view and edit the same file the client is currently working in. Start by going to the screen where you opening create files, and click the link labeled “Register Client.” Once the client has created their file, what you do […]
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Pension table updated
We have updated the generational adjustment table of the RP-2014 table to use the Mortality Improvement Scale 2018. Our observation is that pension values calculated using the RP-2014 table are now slightly lower than before. Presumably, this reflects the widely-documented decline in life expectancy in recent years.
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Negotiate tab improvements
The Negotiate tab now has a different organization and fewer entries, thus making the most important ones easier to find. Take a look at the new menu, shown below. It is now organized by task — What If, Spousal Maintenance, Property Division, Arrears — rather than by source of income. It should now be faster […]
We have made the following updates for the Coronavirus response legislation known as the CARES Act. Rebate. We automatically calculate and apply the rebate that is coming to most Americans (typically $1,200 + $500 per child). You can see the calculated amount in the Wage-Like Income section. Child support. In today’s release, the CARES Act […]