For Immediate Release

Fairfax, VA –The American Association of Attorney-Certified Public Accountants (AAA-CPA) is a strong component in a coalition urging Congress to ban the patenting of tax strategies.  The coalition fully supports passage of H.R. 2584, currently before the House Judiciary Committee, which seeks to amend Title 35 of the United States Code to limit the patentability of tax planning methods.

The Federal Circuit ruled in 1998 that novel business methods could be patented.  As a result, tax strategies are now explicitly patentable as business methods by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The coalition, comprised of 17 consumer, financial planning and tax groups, including the AICPA, says “ongoing, serious concerns associated with these types of patents pose a significant threat to taxpayers and their advisers.”  Problems posed by tax strategy patents include:

·         Barriers to compliance that result in higher taxes for some taxpayers

·         Limiting a taxpayer’s ability to  apply Congress’ interpretations of the tax laws

·         Creating costly, burdensome compliance

·         No guarantee that the strategy is legal under the tax law

If these patents were to flourish, tax practitioners could likely receive warning letters from the patent owners requesting payment of a royalty for using that particular strategy.

Last year, the House passed a ban on tax strategy patents as part of a larger patent reform effort.   The coalition is urging the House to continue its efforts in this Congress by passing H.R. 2584, sponsored by Rep. Rick Boucher.

A letter to House leaders, signed by executives from all 17 coalition members, states, “Like President Barack Obama, who co-sponsored legislation on this topic when he was a Senator, we want to see Congress resolve this problem once and for all.”

The group also expressed concern that a case currently pending before the Supreme Court addressing the patentability of business methods could mitigate efforts to pass H.R. 2584.  The letter says the case “should not, in any way, delay legislative action on this problem…A legislative solution remains absolutely necessary.”

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The American Association of Attorney-Certified Public Accountants, based in Fairfax, VA, was founded in 1964 to protect the rights of individuals qualified as both attorneys and certified public accountants and to advance the professions of law and accountancy.  The Association has over 1,300 members and 14 state associations and local chapters nationwide.  Its website is www.attorney-cpa.com.