Employment Litigation and Claim Settlements: Maximizing Tax Benefits and Avoiding Penalties
Tax Considerations for Employers When Drafting Settlement Agreements
Note: CPE credit is not offered on this program
Recording of a 90-minute CLE webinar with Q&A
This CLE webinar will provide employment counsel and tax advisers guidance for structuring complex settlements and complying with complex tax reporting and withholding requirements applicable to employment claims. The panel will discuss best practices for employers looking to structure settlements, maximize tax benefits, and avoid penalties when allocating settlement proceeds. The panel will also discuss the reporting of payments and the tax implications of plaintiff requests in settlement agreements.
Outline
- Settlement payments that must be reported
- Settlement payments that are tax-deductible
- Settlement agreement structuring options
- Settlement agreement drafting strategies
Benefits
The panel will review these and other key issues:
- What types of options exist for structuring an employment settlement?
- What types of settlement payments in an employment dispute taxable as wage income to the recipient?
- What types of settlement payments and related attorneys’ fees are tax-deductible by the employer?
- What tax reporting obligations do employers have following a settlement?
- What are some best practices for anticipating and addressing tax issues when negotiating employment dispute settlement agreements?
- What are the tax issues in the context of class actions and collective actions?
Faculty

Julian A. Fortuna
Partner
Taylor English Duma
Mr. Fortuna focuses his practice on domestic and international tax planning and tax controversy matters. His industry... | Read More
Mr. Fortuna focuses his practice on domestic and international tax planning and tax controversy matters. His industry experience spans clean energy, entertainment, health care, higher education, hospitality, manufacturing, non-profit, real estate and retail. Mr. Fortuna represents business entities, owners and executives, fiduciaries and beneficiaries of trusts and estates, and non-profit entities regarding all types of federal and state income, estate, and gift taxes. In tax controversies, he represents taxpayers in civil and criminal tax audits, investigations and administrative appeals before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and various state, local and foreign taxing authorities and in tax litigation before federal and state courts and tax tribunals.
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