Ask most any lawyer and they will tell you that the only reason they took a course in tax law during law school was either because it was required or because it was a subject on the bar exam. Other than that, the majority of lawyers want little-to-nothing to do with the tax code – municipal, state or federal. Yet, for lawyers practicing in the sports industry, tax considerations crop up often – in the negotiation of player contracts, in player free agency decisions, in stadium and arena development, player and club tax filings and other areas. One controversial area in sports that raises a host of tax implications is the so-called “jock tax.” The jock tax is the income tax levied against visitors to a city or state who earn income in that jurisdiction. Although many professionals travel to other jurisdictions to conduct business (e.g., salespeople, lawyers, entertainers, etc.), athletes are easy targets because their presence in the jurisdiction is publicly known, as is their salary. Thus assigning “duty days” to these athletes for jock tax purposes, is fairly simple to do. Recently, NHL players reached a settlement with the State of Tennessee over the state’s jock tax. The […]