Tax Law

David V. Randall, 86, a partner in the Ballard Spahr law firm who was chairman of the watchdog Committee of Seventy in the 1970s, died Saturday, Oct. 15, of multiple myeloma at Springfield Residences, a retirement community in Wyndmoor. Mr. Randall, born in Danville, Pa., graduated from Wyoming Seminary and earned a bachelor's degree in English at Lehigh University. A 1954 Inquirer article reported that he had been associated with his father "in the operation of coal-mining properties in Lykens, Mahanoy City, and Mount Carmel.

SALMON FISHING in Mongolia? Why not? If the fish were biting, David V. Randall was happy no matter where he was. "It took three planes and a helicopter to get there," said his son, David E. Randall, a frequent fishing companion. There were also fishing jaunts to Labrador, to Mexico, to Montana - wherever there was a swift river and hungry fish. A favorite spot was the Miramichi River, in New Brunswick, where he went at least once a year for salmon. David Randall, a Philadelphia lawyer specializing in tax law, a onetime executive secretary to Gov. George Leader and an author of books ranging from mystery novels to a history of the National Football League, died Saturday after a long illness.

Bernard Wolfman, 87, the University of Pennsylvania Law School dean from 1970 to 1975, died of heart failure Saturday, Aug. 20, while visiting a relative in West Orange, N.J. He resided in Cambridge, Mass. Michael A. Fitts, current Penn Law dean, wrote in an appreciation on the Penn Law website: "For more than 60 years, Bernie was a highly distinguished tax academic and expert - as well as a very loyal Penn alumnus. He will be greatly missed. " Mr. Wolfman went on to be Fessenden Professor of Law at Harvard Law School from 1976 to 2007.

After four days of testimony, it took a federal jury about an hour Monday to convict a dentist who the government said had not filed an accurate tax return since 1992. Richard P. Kaufman, 61, who had a practice in Newtown Square, was immediately incarcerated pending sentencing in November before U.S. District Judge Juan Sanchez. Kaufman faces 33 to 41 months for failing to file tax returns, attempting to obstruct the IRS, and filing false claims. Earlier, he told the jurors that he did not intentionally break the law, and that they had to decide whether "I'm a reasonable man who made some decisions that the government thinks are criminal, despite my thinking that I did the right thing.

Michael F. Beausang Jr., 75, of Devon, who practiced law in King of Prussia for 40 years, died Monday, June 20, of complications of a ruptured appendix at the nursing center at Dunwoody in Newtown Square. Since 1971, Mr. Beausang had a been a member of the law firm of Butera, Beausang, Cohen & Brennan. He specialized in corporate, insurance, banking, and tax law, and served on the boards of several insurance companies and banks. He published numerous articles in professional publications including Tax Management Portfolios and for the Bureau of National Affairs, a publisher of news on law and other subjects.

Clarifying matters of U.S. tax law A letter in connection with the article "America's two-class tax system" (April 20) said that the low rate of corporate tax revenues results from the fact that "corporate rates remain high compared to offshore locations where businesses have moved," and that "corporations have taken their profits and tax payments elsewhere. " This might cause some confusion. Both U.S. corporations and individuals are taxed at the same rates for income, whether earned inside or outside the United States.

Over the years, New Jersey's leaders have been criticized for taxing anything they can, but the state's businesses are about to get a break. Gov. Christie signed into law on Thursday two changes in the tax code that had been championed for years by the business community and that this year finally won support from legislators of both parties. The first bill, Senate Bill 2753, would base a corporation's income-tax liability solely on sales, rather than the traditional three-factor formula that also takes into account a company's payroll and property in the state.

The Senate is expected to vote Thursday on legislation that would restore some openness to an increasingly secretive campaign finance system. The Disclose Act would require corporations, labor unions, and a proliferation of misleading "nonprofit" groups to report their campaign expenses and donors. This measure is needed more than ever because of the Supreme Court's decision that allows corporations and unions to spend unlimited amounts to influence federal elections. A bill has already passed the House, but it stalled in the Senate over the summer.

Richard J. Flaster, 67, of Cherry Hill, founding partner of the Flaster Greenberg law firm in Cherry Hill and Philadelphia, died suddenly Monday, Aug. 9, at home. After working on Wall Street for a few years, Mr. Flaster decided to start his own practice, in South Jersey, instead of working intensely for someone else, his wife, Esther, said. In 1972, Mr. Flaster and Emmanuel Liebman teamed up in a tax-law practice in Cherry Hill. The firm went through various name changes as new partners joined, but for at least 15 years, it has been Flaster Greenberg.

Members of a Senate health panel on Monday questioned Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield officials about premium increases and the 200 people it laid off in 2009, the same year executives saw large pay increases. CEO William J. Marino has been criticized in recent weeks for the $8.7 million he was paid in 2009, 59 percent more than the previous year. The company has said the increase and others among the executive team were the result of one-time payments prompted by a change in the tax law. At a Senate health committee hearing, Sen. Fred Madden (D., Camden)