The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi on Friday rejected a KPMG-marketed “family office customized” (FOCus) tax shelter used to evade taxes on $18 million in capital gains through foreign currency straddles and a three-tiered partnership structure. Nevada Partners Fund LLC v. United States, Nos. 3:06cv379 to 3:06cv390 (S.D. Miss. Apr. 30, 2010):

FOCus, like BOSS, Son of Boss, OPIS, CARDS, BLIPS and other such plans developed by major accounting firms like KPMG, and structured to create artificial losses for tax purposes, lacked validity.

For a detailed analysis of the case, see Linda Beale (Wayne State), KPMG Tax Shelter Loses Again in Court.