Black & Decker Corp. v. United States

Analysis Group was retained by the DOJ Tax Division to provide economic, financial, accounting, and tax consulting services in connection with this contingent liability tax shelter case, in which the taxpayer transferred a “liability” equal to the estimated present value of its future employee health care costs into a special purpose entity (SPE). The taxpayers' two experts filed reports essentially supporting the allegation that the formation of the SPE had a legitimate business purpose apart from the generation of tax benefits. Supported by an Analysis Group team led by Managing Principal Jeffrey Malinak and including Managing Principal Christopher Borek, the government's five experts (a corporate governance/contract theory expert, a financial economist, a health actuary, a health care industry expert, and a tax expert) filed reports rebutting the taxpayers' experts and presented affirmative opinions that the formation of the SPE did not, in fact, have a legitimate business purpose apart from the generation of tax benefits.