practice areas

Taylor English’s Construction Practice Group focuses on avoiding and solving problems in the most practical and efficient manner. Our Construction Practice Group originated from some of the Nation’s most well-known construction law firms to create a formidable team that is taken seriously within the industry and by adversaries alike.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

We have a seasoned group of corporate, finance and tax lawyers, most of whom have been partners in large national or regional law firms, and several have served as general counsel of significant public or private companies.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

The members of our practice group are seasoned professionals who are committed to providing our clients with effective representation on a cost efficient basis. Paul Durdaller is the practice group leader of the Bankruptcy and Creditors’ Rights practice group at Taylor English Duma LLP.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

Taylor English’s Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Practice Group handles the complete range of employee benefits and executive compensation matters.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

We understand that the employer-employee dynamic is central to the success of a business. Taylor English’s Employment, Labor & Immigration Group represents management in all aspects of the employment relationship, from training to counseling, from internal complaints to full-blown litigation.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

Taylor English’s Environmental and Renewable Energy Practice Group’s lawyers have over seventy years of collective experience in the field of environmental and renewable energy law.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

We have created the Financial Institutions team at Taylor English Duma LLP – bringing together attorneys from different specialties across the Firm – in order to seamlessly deliver to financial institutions the types of services that are most needed in this difficult economy.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

The Hospitality & Franchise practice group of Taylor English provides experienced legal representation in all facets of the hotel and restaurant industry.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

The members of Taylor English’s Intellectual Property group advise businesses, inventors and entrepreneurs regarding the development, protection and exploitation of intellectual property assets.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

The Lending, Workout & Foreclosure practice group at Taylor English represents national, regional, local and community banks and lending institutions in all manner of actions related to troubled loans. Our team brings legal and business experience gained from years working on workout and restructuring transactions at top national firms and as in-house counsels at some of the country’s largest corporations.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

The Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice group at Taylor English is comprised of experienced attorneys who provide creative, efficient and cost-effective advocacy for our clients.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

The Real Estate, Lending and Finance group at Taylor English has extensive experience in all types of transactions involving commercial, industrial, residential and multi-family real estate.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

Taylor English provides tax planning, credit and controversy legal services to our clients. Using our value focused approach, our tax attorneys work directly with clients and our other attorneys to ensure appropriate attention is given to the opportunities and consequences of all manners of federal, state and local taxes.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

Taylor English represents clients with the development and use of technology and e-commerce in their business. Many issues and opportunities arise for businesses involving technology, whether with the development and distribution of technology solutions, the licensing and use of technology products, or the procurement or outsourcing of IT services.

Practice Area Attorneys
and Professionals

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about the firm

Taylor English is a full-service law firm composed of the region's most experienced, results-driven lawyers. Our model is purpose built around our clients and designed to seek new opportunities for them.

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Vivian Hoard limits her practice to civil and criminal tax controversy and tax litigation. Her clients include small businesses and their owners, publicly traded companies, professional athletes, and entertainers. Ms. Hoard consults with accounting firms during audits to help them and their client’s understand their procedural options for resolving the dispute. Ms. Hoard has successfully settled civil tax controversies involving many varied tax issues including tax shelter/sham transactions, Section 29 energy credits, deductibility of illegal payments under section 162, the civil fraud penalty, hobby loss issues, worker classification, trust fund liability, innocent spouse claims, passive loss issues, and much more. Ms. Hoard has also successfully represented taxpayers targeted for criminal prosecution by convincing justice department attorneys the case should be treated as a civil matter rather than a criminal matter. Ms. Hoard also regularly appears on behalf of her clients in the United States Tax Court, District Court, and IRS Appeals. While most Tax Court cases are resolved by settlement with the IRS office of Appeals, other cases must be tried before the United
States Tax Court.

Selected Representations

  • “Peaden v. Commissioner, 113 TC 116 (1999). The Tax Court held that a “terminal rental adjustment” be ignored in determining whether a “qualified motor vehicle operating agreement” is a lease which allowed the taxpayer to deduct the lease payments rather than capitalizing and depreciating those payments.
  • Swanson v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo 2009-31. The Tax Court held that the taxpayer relied on his accountant when he invested in a tax shelter and therefore penalties were inappropriate.
  • Estate of Edward Brockenbrough v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo 1998-454. The Tax Court held that the Petitioner, a Delta pilot, had a profit motive for engaging in his horse farming activities and therefore could deduct the losses associated with that activity.

Publications & Articles

  • "Corporate Tax Shelters: Is Every Generation Doomed to Repeat History?" Journal of Tax Practice & Procedure, Vol. 2, No. 3 June-July 2000
  • "Employment Tax Audits: both IRS Criminal and Civil Divisions Raise the Stakes" Journal of Taxation, Vol. 96, No. 6, June 2002
  • "Offshore Scheme Participants Can Get Onboard IRS Program" 70 Practical Tax Strategies 159 (March 2003).

We deliver superior service through...

1. Purpose-Built Efficiency

Everything we do is focused on greater efficiency, flexibility and entrepreneurship. The result is that our clients view us as part of their business building investment, not a corporate expense.

2. Purpose-Built Partnerships

We are partners, not vendors. The result is that we are accountable, respectful and care as much about our clients' business as we do our own.

3. Purpose-Built Results

We are problem solvers. We are constantly looking for new and innovative ways to provide value and results and seek flexibility in how we structure engagements.