New reporting requirements for attorney's fees.

• Author: Olson, Mitchel L.
• Position: Tax reporting - Brief Article

The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 (TRA '97) imposed significant new reporting requirements for payments made to attorneys. Persons engaged in a trade or business and making payments to attorneys must file an information return with the IRS if such payments are made in connection with legal services not already required to be reported.

Under previous law, a person engaged in a trade or business was required to report fees paid to attorneys. However, if the payment was a gross amount, and the attorney's fee was unknown, no reporting was required. Effective Jan. 1, 1998, if a person makes payments to an attorney jointly with a client, he is required to report on Form 1099 (for the attorney or law firm) the total payment amount.

In addition, the present exemption from reporting for payments made to...