Joel Swearingen

My focus

My practice includes representing clients on tax matters present in connection with public finance transactions. I also advise clients on the information reporting and withholding responsibilities (imposed by federal tax laws) associated with payments to non-employees, including payments reported on forms 1099 and 1042-S.

Public Finance

I represent issuers in traditional governmental financings, conduit borrowers (mostly 501(c)(3) organizations), and underwriters—all in connection with the issuance of tax-advantaged bonds. I am involved at all stages of the financing to ensure that a project is eligible to be financed with tax-advantaged bonds, that the terms pursuant to which such bonds are issued do not jeopardize the tax-advantaged status of the bonds, and that the bonds continue to qualify as tax-advantaged following the issue date of the bonds.

I encourage compliance with federal tax law limitations by ensuring that my clients understand and are informed about the limits imposed on their tax-advantaged bonds.

International Withholding and Tax Reporting

I have substantial experience representing clients in connection with international withholding and tax reporting obligations imposed on non-employee payments. My experience includes advising clients on their Chapters 3 and 4 (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) withholding obligations with respect to international payments to non-employees as well as their backup withholding obligations on domestic non-employee payments. These issues are a critical consideration for mergers, acquisitions, bankruptcies, debt and equity transactions as well as the majority of everyday business activities.

Representative experience

• Assisted with a bond-financed acquisition of an online educational institution where the acquired assets were almost exclusively intangible assets.
• Coordinated the tax compliance of over thirty state departments while assisting a state issuer issue over $8 billion in tax-advantaged bonds.
• Assisted issuer participants in the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS’s) Voluntary Closing Agreement Program to remediate potential violations of tax law restrictions imposed on tax-advantaged bonds and represented issuers in connection with obtaining private letter rulings.
• Represent local banks in connection with the purchase of qualified 501(c)(3) bonds.
• Successfully remediated $6 million of tax exposure for clients with undocumented foreign payees subject to 30 percent foreign withholding under Section 881.
• Represented corporate taxpayers in successfully abating over $1 million of penalties assessed by the Internal Revenue Service, pursuant to Sections 6721 and 6722 of the Internal Revenue Code.
• Managed multiple foreign and domestic information reporting projects for multinational clients.

Publications/Presentations

• “Legislative Momentum to Restore Advance Refundings,” Nixon Peabody Public Finance Alert, July 30, 2020
• “IRS Provides Relief for Municipal Bond Issuers in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic,” Nixon Peabody Public Finance Alert, May 7, 2020
• “Federal Tax Issues Relating to Long-Term Financing of Working Capital Expenditures,” Nixon Peabody Public Finance Alert, April 7, 2020
• “New Proposed IRS Regulations from Transactions from the Use of LIBOR to Other Interbank Offering Rates,” Nixon Peabody Public Finance Alert, October 30, 2019
• “Complex Path Ahead in Post-Deadline FATCA Universe,” Bloomberg/BNA
• “Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act: U.S. Payors Need to Act Now to Avoid Taxation Later,” Nixon Peabody Tax Alert, May 31, 2012 (Coauthor)

Insights

Presentations

• Speaker, DC Bar Webinar, “Lawyer to Lawyer”, Virtual, May 26, 2021

Podcasts & Videos

• "Legislative momentum to restore advance refundings," July 30, 2020
• "What are Cinderella Bonds," July 30, 2020