On Again, Off Again: Companies Across the Nation Experience Whiplash As Court Reimposes CTA Injunction
Don-vip, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
INTERVIEW ON THE PRICE OF BUSINESS SHOW, MEDIA PARTNER OF THIS SITE.
Recently Kevin Price, Host of the nationally syndicated Price of Business Show, interviewed Tamara Kurtzman.
The Tamara Kurtzman Commentaries
The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) was originally passed over then-President Donald Trump’s veto as part of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act. The stated purpose of the CTA is to stop the use of small businesses from engaging in money laundering, terrorist financing, and other illegal activities. At its core, the CTA requires nearly all small private companies to collect and report the personal identifying information to FinCEN (US Department of the Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network) of anyone owning 25% or more of the business or anyone who has “substantial control” over the business. The deadline for most companies to comply with the CTA was originally January 1, 2025 but on December 3, 2024 the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas entered an order enjoining enforcement of the CTA nationwide, including all beneficial owner reporting requirements. The Government appealed and asked the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to stay the District Court’s injunction and allow enforcement. A three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit granted the Government’s request on December 23, 2024 and soon thereafter FinCEN announced that it had extended the filing deadline to January 13, 2025. On December 26, 2024, however, the Fifth Circuit vacated the panel’s own stay of the District Court’s injunction and reinstated the nationwide injunction barring enforcement of the CTA by the Government while the appeal takes place. As a result, as of December 27, 2024 FinCEN has issued guidance on its website that companies need not currently comply with the CTA’s reporting requirement while the injunction remains in place. Ms. Kurtzman discusses the implications of these developments.
Ms. Kurtzman received her undergraduate degree from the University of Chicago, with honors, and subsequently graduated cum laude from Case Western Reserve University School of Law where she received her juris doctor. While attending Case Western Reserve University School of Law, Ms. Kurtzman served as both an associate member and, subsequently, as Editor-In-Chief of The Internet Law Journal.
Before founding TMK, Ms. Kurtzman served as a partner in a California general-practice law firm specializing in corporate representation where she co-chaired, among other divisions, both the firm’s commercial contracts and litigation practices. Ms. Kurtzman has been featured in:
- The Wall Street Journal
- The Los Angeles Business Journal
- Bloomberg News
- Law360
- The Daily Journal
- Los Angeles Lawyer
- Inside Counsel
- Westlaw’s Sports & Entertainment Journal
- The Beverly Hills Courier
- Backstage
- The ABA Journal
- The Hollywood Times
- Business Law Today
- The Journal of Internet Law
- Corporate Counselor
- Price of Business
In 2012, Ms. Kurtzman was named one of 50 attorneys on the “Fast Track” to becoming the country’s top lawyers and leaders. In 2013, Ms. Kurtzman was inducted into the Beverly Hills Bar Association’s Order of Distinguished Attorneys. In 2017-2021, each year Ms. Kurtzman was selected to SuperLawyer’s Southern California Rising Stars list; each year, less than 3% of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team at Super Lawyers to receive this honor. Also in 2019, Ms. Kurtzman was named one of the Up-and-Coming 50 Women Southern California Rising Stars by SuperLawyers. In 2015, Ms. Kurtzman became one of the youngest adjunct law professors in the state and, over the years, Ms. Kurtzman has taught pretrial litigation practice and business organizations to numerous classes of law school students. In both 2023 and 2024, Ms. Kurtzman was selected to SuperLawyer’s Southern California Super Lawyer list which recognizes the top 5% of attorneys in each state.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, in her spare time Ms. Kurtzman practices Krav Maga and is an avid sabre fencer and bagpiper. Ms. Kurtzman also serves on the Board of American Family Housing, an organization providing long-term housing solutions for formerly homeless veterans and families.
Learn more at www.tmkattorneys.com.
Connect with Tamara Kurtzman on social media:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamara-kurtzman-2b540615
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