Also known as: tax free · taxfree · tax exempt · nontaxable
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An adjective indicating that income, property, or a transaction is exempt from taxation under applicable law.
Theresa Tucker prevailed in a copyright suit and filed a postjudgment motion seeking recovery of her attorney's fees and related nontaxable expenses. The court treated the request as a collateral matter under the applicable rule because the underlying statute did not require proof of those amounts as trial damages. The resulting award was tax-free to Theresa.
Tundra Resources received an all-cash takeover bid from Titan Industries. The bidder offered to explore tax-free alternatives to the cash deal that would allow Tundra shareholders to exchange shares without immediate recognition of gain. The board evaluated the tax-free structure as a way to increase overall value to shareholders.
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Travis Tate used a state voucher to pay tuition at a religious school. The program allowed parents to direct public funds toward participating schools, including religious ones, without the funds losing their tax-free character when received by the institution. The Supreme Court upheld the arrangement as neutral aid that did not violate the Establishment Clause.
Tyler Taylor challenged a property tax exemption granted to a church. The exemption allowed the religious organization to hold its real estate tax-free, and the Court sustained the exemption as a permissible accommodation that did not amount to an establishment of religion.
Tara Tran recovered punitive damages in a fraud action. The Court held that the award constituted an undeniable accession to wealth over which she had complete dominion, rendering the recovery taxable rather than tax-free despite its punitive origin.
Tracy Torres received a prize for an essay contest. Because the award was made in recognition of past achievement without any requirement of future services, the amount was treated as tax-free under the law in effect at the time.
A claim for attorney's fees and related nontaxable expenses must be made by motion unless the substantive law requires those fees to be proved at trial as an element of damages. This default procedure applies in most federal statutory fee-shifting schemes.
No. A contractual fee-shifting clause does not automatically require proof at trial as damages. The fees remain recoverable by postjudgment motion unless the substantive law itself treats them as an element of compensatory damages.
The motion must be filed no later than fourteen days after entry of judgment unless a statute or court order provides otherwise.
…that State's tax revenues by more than $40 million annually, see Rabey, Exemptions a Matter of Faith: No Proof Required of Tax-Free Churches, Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph, Oct. 26, 1992, p. B1; Colorado Debates Church, Nonprofit Tax-Exempt Status, Philadelphia Enquirer, Oct. 4, 1996, p. 8; Maryland's exemption…