Justice Department Charges Former Seyfarth Shaw Tax Partner John Rogers in $370 Million Tax Scheme

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The Justice Department has charged former Seyfarth Shaw tax partner John Rogers for allegedly promoting tax shelters using Brazilian debt to create tax deductions for U.S. clients.

In a 74-page civil suit filed in U.S. district court in Chicago, prosecutors accused Rogers and two companies with taking part in a scheme that generated more than $370 million in fictitious tax deductions. This allowed clients to offset unrelated income earned in the U.S., per the National Law Journal.

Currently, Rogers is a partner at his own Chicago firm, Rogers & Associates. Rogers joined Seyfarth as a nonequity partner in 2003 after his previous firm, the now defunct Altheimer & Gray, went bankrupt.

  

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According to the NL, Rogers was an equity partner at Seyfarth from 2004 to 2008 until being forced to resign. At the time, Rogers told Seyfarth he was being investigated by the IRS and would stop promoting the Brazilian shelters to clients.

However, Rogers continued using the shelters. After Seyfarth discovered the deception, the firm forced him out, per the NLJ, citing from court records.

According to the suit, Rogers should have known his schemes were “abusive and illegal when he created them,” based on his education and experience.