State Taxes in the Digital Economy: From Digital Services to Blockchain Technologies
Determining When and Where Your Services and Products Trigger Liability
Note: CLE credit is not offered on this program
Recording of a 110-minute CPE webinar with Q&A
This course will provide guidance to corporate tax professionals, counsel, and advisers for navigating the various and evolving standards of state taxability of digital products and services, including emerging issues regarding taxes on blockchain technologies, to determine what component of a company's offering is taxable and in which jurisdiction(s).
Outline
- General approach to analysis of IT service contracts in the face of divergent state tax laws, including six questions:
- What is the product or service?
- Is it a bundled product or service?
- To what state(s) is the product sourced?
- Does the state tax the product sourced?
- Do exemptions or direct pay permits apply?
- Does the provider have nexus with the state where the service is sourced?
- Approaches regarding digital products and services: taxability and sourcing
- The WA law
- The SSUTA approach
- Texas law
- Blockchain:
- Are the products subject to sales tax?
- Sourcing of products
Benefits
The panel will review these and other key issues:
- What approaches are states taking to define the nature of IT products or services for purposes of determining taxability for sales and use tax?
- How do various states address whether installing servers or software would make otherwise nontaxable IT services subject to state sales and use tax?
- How do the various states treat digital products and services?
- What are applicable principles regarding blockchain products?
Faculty
David Swetnam-Burland
Partner
Brann & Isaacson
Mr. Swetnam-Burland regularly represents Brann & Isaacson’s business clients, including over a dozen of the... | Read More
Mr. Swetnam-Burland regularly represents Brann & Isaacson’s business clients, including over a dozen of the 100 largest Internet retailers, in business, false claims, intellectual property, privacy, class action, and tax litigation. He has appeared in federal and state trial and appellate courts from Maine to California, and before federal and state agencies throughout the country. Dave also advises clients on compliance issues in the areas of data privacy and security and state and local tax. Mr. Swetnam-Burland has experience in all aspects of litigation, from dispositive motions through trial, and regularly handles licensing discussions and settlements as well. He has argued and won favorable judgments for the firm’s clients on motions to dismiss, summary judgment, at trial, and on appeal, and has handled successful oral arguments in the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Swetnam-Burland has served as lead counsel on a petition for a writ of certiorari filed in the U.S. Supreme Court, and co–authored many amicus briefs for leading national Internet retailers and other clients in the Supreme Court and the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit; he has co-authored law review and other articles on key issues in false claims, privacy, patent litigation, and state and local tax issues.
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Jamie E. T. Szal
Partner
Brann & Isaacson
Ms. Szal focuses her practice on assisting businesses in all aspects of state and local tax controversy, from... | Read More
Ms. Szal focuses her practice on assisting businesses in all aspects of state and local tax controversy, from regulatory and administrative proceedings through civil litigation. She came to Brann & Isaacson following several years at the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. As Counsel in both the Litigation Bureau and Office of Appeals, she focused on complex tax issues facing corporations and pass-through entities. She earned her LL.M. in Taxation and Certificate in State and Local Taxation, both with distinction, from Georgetown University Law Center.
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