• videocam Live Webinar with Live Q&A
  • calendar_month August 25, 2026 @ 1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
  • signal_cellular_alt Intermediate
  • card_travel Corporate Tax
  • schedule 110 minutes

Resolving Federal and State Employment Tax Matters: Worker Classification

About the Course

Introduction

This webinar will examine the complex and evolving standards governing worker classification for federal and state employment tax purposes. Our panel of notable tax attorneys will analyze how the IRS and states make worker classification determinations and the stark differences in those determinations.

Description

Worker classification continues to pose significant compliance challenges as states adopt more rigid statutory standards that diverge from federal law. These differences create the potential for inconsistent classifications across jurisdictions and increased audit risk.

As the IRS explains, "There is no 'magic' or set number of factors that 'makes' the worker an employee or an independent contractor and no one factor stands alone in making this determination." At the same time, misclassification can result in exposure to back payroll taxes, penalties, and interest, as well as wage-related liabilities and multi-year assessments across jurisdictions.

Further complicating these determinations, states have issued their own guidelines for classifying workers. California, for example, relies on the ABC test that begins by assuming all workers are employees unless a worker satisfies three specific conditions. Businesses and tax advisers need to understand the distinctions between employee and independent contractor status as outlined under both federal and state rules.

Listen as our panel of tax controversy attorneys discusses how worker classification issues are evaluated across jurisdictions, including current enforcement trends and practical considerations for developing defensible and consistent classification positions.

Presented By

Jonathan Kalinski
Principal
Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez, PC

Mr. Kalinski specializes in both civil and criminal tax controversies as well as sensitive tax matters including disclosures of previously undeclared interests in foreign financial accounts and assets and provides tax advice to taxpayers and their advisors throughout the world. He handles both federal and state tax matters involving individuals, corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies, and trusts and estates. Mr. Kalinski has considerable experience handling complex civil tax examinations, administrative appeals, and tax collection matters.  Prior to joining the firm, he served as a trial attorney with the IRS Office of Chief Counsel litigating Tax Court cases and advising revenue agents and revenue officers on a variety of complex tax matters. 

Michel R. Stein
Principal
Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez, PC

Mr. Stein specializes in tax controversies, as well as tax planning for individuals, businesses and corporations. For more than 25 years, he has represented individuals with sensitive issue civil tax examinations where substantial penalty issues may arise, and extensively advised individuals on foreign and domestic voluntary disclosures regarding foreign account and asset compliance matters. Mr. Stein is well respected for his expertise and judgment in handling matters arising from the U.S. government’s ongoing enforcement efforts regarding undeclared interests in foreign financial accounts and assets, including various methods of participating in a timely voluntary disclosure to minimize potential exposure to civil tax penalties and avoiding a criminal tax prosecution referral. Mr. Stein is a frequent lecturer at national and regional conferences on topics including tax compliance sensitive issues, IRS examinations, State and Federal worker classification issues, etc. 

Sebastian Voth
Principal
Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez, PC

Mr. Voth is a Principal of the law firm Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez P.C., where he specializes in tax investigations, litigation and appeals, and complex tax matters. Prior to entering private practice, Mr. Voth served for 15 years at the Internal Revenue Service including most recently as a Special Trial Attorney with the IRS Office of Chief Counsel’s Strategic Litigation Division leading trial teams in all phases of litigation before the Tax Court. During his tenure with the IRS, he served on the leadership team of the nationwide IRS Counsel mentoring program and mentored numerous IRS attorneys. Mr. Voth is the recipient of two Lucite Awards for significant Tax Court opinions and received a 2024 Special Act Award (Strategic Litigation), the 2023 Nationwide Innovator of the Year (LB&I), the 2022 Nationwide Special Trial Attorney of the Year (SB/SE), the 2017 U.S. Department of the Treasury Outstanding Litigator and the 2017 Nationwide Attorney of the Year (SB/SE).

Credit Information
  • BARBRI is a NASBA CPE sponsor and this 110-minute webinar is accredited for 2.0 CPE credits.

Date + Time

  • event

    Tuesday, August 25, 2026

  • schedule

    1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT

I. Federal worker classification framework

II. State-level classification regimes

III. High risk classification scenarios

IV. Employment tax exposure consequences

V. Audit triggers and enforcement trends

VI. Documentation and risk mitigation

VII. Controversy and resolution 

The panel will cover these and other critical issues:

  • Differences between federal and state worker classification standards
  • Application and risk areas under California's stricter ABC test regimes
  • Audit triggers and enforcement trends across jurisdictions
  • IRS–state coordination and expanded examination scope
  • Documentation and defensibility of contractor treatment
  • Strategies for responding to classification disputes

Learning Objectives

After completing this course, you will be able to:

  • Identify differences between federal and state worker classification standards
  • Recognize high-risk classification fact patterns and audit triggers
  • Determine potential employment tax exposure from misclassification
  • Ascertain practical strategies to support and defend classification positions
  • Field of Study: Taxes
  • Level of Knowledge: Intermediate
  • Advance Preparation: None
  • Teaching Method: Seminar/Lecture
  • Delivery Method: Group-Internet (via computer)
  • Attendance Monitoring Method: Attendance is monitored electronically via a participant's PIN and through a series of attendance verification prompts displayed throughout the program
  • Prerequisite:

    Three years+ business or public firm experience preparing complex tax forms and schedules, supervising other preparers or accountants. Specific knowledge and understanding of pass-through taxation, including taxation of partnerships, S corporations and their respective partners and shareholders.


BARBRI, Inc. is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of Accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE Credits. Complaints regarding registered sponsons may be submitted to NASBA through its website: www.nasbaregistry.org.

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