Hodgson Russ Attorneys Win Like-Kind Exchange Tax Challenge in New York

Hodgson Russ attorneys Elizabeth Pascal and Open Weaver Banks successfully defended a like-kind exchange tax case in New York. They represented two real estate investors who used a strategy known as a “drop and swap.” In a first-of-its-kind decision in the state, the New York Division of Tax Appeals ruled on June 12, 2025, that the investors could defer state taxes on the transaction. The ruling in case numbers 850122 and 850123 rejected the New York tax department’s interpretation of federal law.