Appeals Board Rejects Lawyer’s $100K in Deductions for Prostitutes and Porn
A tax appeals board has rejected a Brooklyn lawyer’s state tax deductions of more than $100,000 for prostitutes, sexual massages and pornography.
The Tax Appeals Board in New York State ruled that lawyer William Halby’s claimed deductions were for personal services rather than medical treatments, the New York Law Journal reports. The panel also noted that patronizing a prostitute is illegal in the state, and taxpayers can’t take a deduction for “any illegal operation or treatment.”
The panel disallowed nearly $278,000 in deductions, including about $40,000 for “therapeutic sex,” $71,000 for massage therapy to relieve osteoarthritis and “enhance erectile function,” and $2,000 for pornography, the story says.
Halby was 79 years old when he argued the case before the tax panel. Before retiring, he was a tax lawyer at McMillan, Constabile, Maker & Perone.
Halby also lost a federal tax case last year.
