A Boulder parent wants to lend her daughter $900,000 for a house instead of a jumbo mortgage. Charge the applicable federal rate on a real promissory note and there is no gift. We walk through the Galli order, why it did not approve an estate discount, the Maxwell forgiveness trap, Colorado's 4.40% tax on the interest, and the insider preference risk if the child files bankruptcy. Full analysis: https://co-legal.net/family-loan-afr-gift-tax-galli-note-valuation-colorado/

A California charity president signs a "loan" to his own LLC and nobody votes. A September 2026 Tax Court decision shows the insider owing more than $1.3 million in excise taxes on $590,000 he never returned, and California's self-dealing rules reach the same transfer and the other directors with it. How the 25% and 200% taxes work, how cash correction heads off the second tier, and what a board should do now. https://ca-legal.net/california-nonprofit-insider-loan-excess-benefit-5236-jagannath/

Missed the 90-day window to petition the U.S. Tax Court after an IRS notice went to an old address? Some circuits now forgive late petitions, but California taxpayers in the Ninth Circuit face the toughest rule in the country. This episode covers the Kings Road decision for partnerships, the collection due process route, and the separate Franchise Tax Board clocks. Full analysis: https://ca-legal.net/california-missed-90-day-tax-court-deadline-kings-road-ninth-circuit/

A buyer's draft reciting one dollar and other consideration, a broad noncompete, and a sign-now-close-later timeline can cost a California seller the real price, the covenant, and a secured position if the buyer later files bankruptcy. How California courts read vague purchase agreements, when the noncompete exception applies, and the protections and tax planning to insist on before signing. https://ca-legal.net/california-business-sale-purchase-agreement-1-dollar-noncompete-section-365/

A preparer falsifies returns, the client never knows, and years later the IRS sends a notice for every tainted year. After the Supreme Court declined to review the Murrin case, this episode explains when the limitations period stays open, what the Tenth Circuit has not decided, and what a New Mexico taxpayer should do within the 90-day window. https://nm-legal.net/tax-preparer-fraud-statute-of-limitations-murrin-new-mexico/

An S corporation sells one division to an out-of-state buyer. Can California tax the gain? A June 2026 Office of Tax Appeals opinion, Western Distributing, shows how the unitary business test decides it, why calling the gain nonbusiness income backfires, and what division-level books an owner needs years before a sale. Full analysis: https://ca-legal.net/california-unitary-business-s-corporation-division-sale-western-distributing/

A green card does not restore the marital deduction when the surviving spouse is not a U.S. citizen, and a living trust that leaves everything to the survivor can fail on that one point. This episode explains why California community property cuts the exposure in half, how a joint tenancy deed can hand it back, and where a dormant QDOT fits. Full analysis: https://ca-legal.net/noncitizen-spouse-qdot-california-community-property-estate-planning/

A Colorado contractor's personal exposure in a cash crunch runs through two doors: draws spent on the wrong job, and payroll tax withheld but never sent to the IRS. We cover Colorado's trust fund statute, the Bullock intent standard, why the trust fund recovery penalty survives bankruptcy anyway, and how a workout, Chapter 7, and Subchapter V compare. Full analysis: https://co-legal.net/contractor-trust-fund-debt-bankruptcy-colorado/

Exchanging California investment property for out-of-state property defers the tax but not California's claim: Form 3840 must be filed every year until the deferred gain is recognized, or the FTB can assess it with penalties. We walk the deadlines, the withholding trap, and a Riverside fourplex example. Full analysis with citations: https://ca-legal.net/california-1031-exchange-form-3840-clawback-out-of-state-replacement-property/

A tenant's bankruptcy freezes the eviction, the lockout, and the deposit, and it can wipe out New Mexico's landlord's lien. A Santa Fe Chapter 7 example shows how stub rent is prorated under the Furr's rule and how the rejection cap shrinks $456,000 of future rent to about $138,823. Full analysis: https://nm-legal.net/new-mexico-commercial-landlord-tenant-bankruptcy-rent-lien-cap/

A judgment is only worth what you can collect, and a well-timed Chapter 11 petition can erase a judgment lien that attached within the last 90 days. This episode walks through the California creditor's day-one toolkit — abstracts of judgment, Secretary of State lien filings, and debtor examinations — plus the Subchapter V discharge trap unique to the Ninth Circuit. Read the full written analysis with citations at https://ca-legal.net/california-judgment-creditor-defendant-files-chapter-11-subchapter-v/

New Mexico has two overtime laws that don't line up, and only the overtime federal law requires counts toward the new deduction. From 2026 wages on, whatever the employer reports in Box 12 is the ceiling, and the employee can't fix a wrong number himself. We cover which overtime qualifies, how a per diem and a bonus change the rate behind the premium, and why none of it reaches the state return. Full analysis: https://nm-legal.net/overtime-deduction-new-mexico-employers-code-tt-state-conformity/

A bankruptcy appeal filed thirty-one days after the ruling survived — because the fourteen-day clock never actually started. This episode walks through the separate judgment rule that decided Campbell v. Radiance, when it applies (and when it doesn't), and the short defensive playbook every New Mexico litigant should follow after losing an adversary proceeding. Read the full analysis: https://nm-legal.net/bankruptcy-appeal-deadline-separate-judgment-new-mexico/

The DOJ's new National Fraud Enforcement Division has published five priorities — government program fraud, healthcare fraud, criminal tax, trade fraud, and corporate misconduct — and they map directly onto New Mexico's economy. This briefing covers who sits closest to the target list and three moves to make before any contact from the government. Full analysis: https://nm-legal.net/doj-national-fraud-enforcement-division-new-mexico-businesses/

A federal court refused to dismiss investors' claims against the bank behind a $230 million Ponzi scheme — the bank's own compliance files allegedly showed what it knew. We map the recovery routes for New Mexico fraud victims, including the IRS safe harbor that often pays fastest. Full analysis: https://nm-legal.net/bank-liability-ponzi-scheme-recovery-new-mexico-investors/