Blackwater Goes on the Offensive
Not content to let the IRS and Congress finish their investigation first (and perhaps fearing a negative outcome), Blackwater has gone on the offensive. The company, which has found itself go from Blackwater to hot water (I know, bad pun) has recently issued a press release claiming that its “model of using independent contractors Is consistent with law and good practice.
Maybe it seemed like PR but good law…? What tax attorney gave this a stamp of approval? Citing such evidence as “[t]hese men and women only work several months at a time” will certainly not bolster their claim of independent contractors. A first year law student knows that length of time of service isn’t indicative of employment - you can be an employee for one day.
Blackwater goes on to say, more or less, that if they did do something wrong - and they’re not saying that they did - but if they did, it wasn’t on purpose because they relied on an accountant. They won’t say who it is but they do say it is “a large, nationally-recognized accounting firm.” Ooh, I hope it’s KPMG. Just saying.
If you want to read the whole thing yourself, you can view it here. Be prepared: it’s more of a legal memorandum than a press release (I’m guessing they farm that out, too, from the looks of it). In fact, it’s broken into parts with Roman numerals and cites. What PR firm thought it was a good idea to do that? Or end the press release with this catchy conclusion: “For these reasons, and the ones set forth above, the Chairman’s allegations to the contrary are simply incorrect.”
Technorati Tags:
IRS, tax, Blackwater, tax evasion, independent contractor
