Category Archives: Court Opinions

Texas Supreme Court Rules on Broadcast Apportionment, Implications for Remote Services

The Texas Supreme Court recently ruled on apportionment under the Texas franchise tax, also known as the Texas margin tax.  Apportionment is the method by which a taxpayer determines how much of its income (or, in Texas, taxable margin) is taxable to a particular state as opposed to other states.  In this case, the Texas […]


Lack of Specificity Fatal to Texas Tax Refund Claim

The recent Texas Third Court of Appeals decision in Hegar v. El Paso Electric Company highlights the importance of specificity when seeking Texas state tax refunds. There, the Third Court of Appeals found that the courts lacked jurisdiction over a taxpayer’s Texas sales tax refund suit when the taxpayer failed to specify the precise grounds […]


Texas Supreme Court Allows Taxpayer Suit without Prepayment

In its opinion issued May 8, 2020 in EBS Solutions, Inc. v. Hegar, the Texas Supreme Court allowed a taxpayer’s lawsuit challenging a Texas tax assessment to go forward even though the taxpayer had not prepaid the entire assessment before filing suit. (Note: Seay & Traphagan, PLLC represents EBS Solutions, Inc. in connection with this […]


Courts Rule on Texas Franchise Tax Apportionment

Two recent Texas court opinions address apportionment under the Texas franchise tax, also known as the Texas margin tax. Apportionment is the method by which a taxpayer determines how much of its income (or, in Texas, taxable margin) is taxable to a particular state as opposed to other states. The Texas Supreme Court decided one […]


Texas Supreme Court Rules in Margin Tax COGS Cases

The Texas Supreme Court recently released opinions in three Texas franchise tax/margin tax cases. All three opinions address the applicability of the Texas franchise tax’s cost of goods sold subtraction to costs incurred by taxpayers in specific industries. Below, we discuss the industry-specific rulings in each case, and then consider what the cases, taken as […]


U.S. Supreme Court Overturns Physical Presence Standard

The U.S. Supreme Court recently issued the most important state and local tax opinion in 25 years. That opinion, South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., overrules the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1992 decision in Quill Corp. v. North Dakota. In Quill, the U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed that states could only impose their taxes on those businesses with […]


Recent Texas Tax Appellate Court Opinions

The Texas Third Court of Appeals recently issued several Texas tax opinions, regarding both Texas franchise tax and Texas sales tax.  This blog post summarizes those Texas tax opinions. Texas Sales and Use Tax Cantu Enterprises, LLC v. Hegar, et al.  The Third Court of Appeals held that a taxpayer was not entitled to the […]


Appeals Court: No COGS for Heavy Equipment Delivery/Pick-up Fees

The Texas Third Court of Appeals recently held in Hegar v. Sunstate Equipment Co., LLC, that a company that leased heavy equipment to contractors could not include its delivery and pick-up fees for the equipment in its cost of goods sold deduction for Texas franchise tax COGS deduction purposes.  In doing so, the Third Court […]


Business Buyer Owes Tax Not Assessed Until After Purchase, Appeals Court Says

The Texas Third Court of Appeals held today in Agri-Plex Heating and Cooling, LLC v. Hegar that the purchaser of a business may be liable for Texas sales and use tax assessed against the business for the time before the purchase, even if the Texas Comptroller did not audit the business and assess the tax […]


Movie Theaters Still Qualify for COGS, Appeals Court Says

The Third Court of Appeals issued a new opinion today in American Multi-Cinema, Inc. v. Hegar, over a year and a half after the Texas Comptroller filed a motion for rehearing.  The new opinion leaves in places the Third Court of Appeals’ prior ruling that a movie theater company may include costs of exhibiting films […]


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