Moore v. United States Oral Argument

The Supreme Court heard oral argument in a case concerning the taxation of earnings made by Americans from a foreign company. Charles Moore in 2005 invested in KisanKraft, a business based in India. The company is a controlled foreign corporation, meaning 50% or more of it is owned by Americans. Mr. Moore and his wife invested $40,000 and in turn received 11% of the company’s shares. Over the years, there was considerable company growth, but the Moores did not have to pay taxes on the earnings from it. This changed with the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act’s “mandatory repatriation tax,” a one-time tax on earnings from controlled foreign corporations. The Moores argued the new tax violates the 16th Amendment because it taxes unrealized earnings. Congress and the federal government were monitoring this case closely because a ruling could affect future tax policy, and more than $330 billion in tax revenue was expected to be generated from the provision. close