Devereaux, Kuhner & Chin LLP

The newest member of the Devereaux, Kuhner & Chin team, Ina Lamaka, joined the firm right in time for tax season. She graduated from San Francisco State with a Bachelor of Science in accounting and finance this past fall. “Accounting is in my genes” she says with a smile. Her mother is an accountant in Belarus.

Ina is the epitome of someone who lives life to its fullest. In her free time she loves to ballroom dance, play tennis and go for hikes. She is also an avid traveler. Her next big adventure is a trip to Thailand! She is a self declared “animal person.” She and her husband own two iguanas, salt water fish and a dog named Laike. Her life motto is “I believe that a joke and a positive attitude can prolong your life.”

In October 2011 DKC had the privilege of co-hosting  Integrated Advisory Group International’s Fall Assembly.  IAG is a global association of accounting professionals and attorneys who provide expertise in facilitating foreign counsel and cross-border transactions.  The group holds meetings three times a year in different counties, which allows members to develop strong bonds and trust.  Delegates from Europe, South America, Australia, Canada and the US came to San Francisco to network and explore the city.  After an all day business meeting on Friday, highlights of the weekend included dinner at the St. Francis Yacht Club, a walk across the Golden Gate Bridge followed by an afternoon in Sausalito, and dinner at Villa Taverna.  It was a great opportunity for the partners to reconnect with colleagues and for the staff to create relationships with accounting professionals throughout the world.  Being a member of IAG has been invaluable in allowing us to assist clients with international tax matters.

Devereaux, Kuhner & Chin LLP is looking for a tax manager or supervisor with four to seven years accounting experience to join our firm.

We are a firm that is committed to client service and we encourage an environment of collaboration, advancement, continuing education and mentorship amongst our associates. Managers and supervisors have access to partners who make themselves available as mentors. Our clients are high net worth individuals and companies that range from closely held businesses to publicly traded companies with diverse backgrounds and income sources.

We are looking for someone who can work in a fast paced, deadline driven work environment. Ideal applicants will have a strong knowledge of accounting principles, CPA license, and be committed to offering clients the highest level of service.

Duties and Responsibilities:

-Review and preparation of corporate, partnership, individual and trust tax returns

-Oversee and review the preparation of corporate income tax provisions (ASC 740 formerly FAS 109)

-Serve as primary client contact on engagements and identify ways to provide exceptional service to clients

-Manage and train staff on tax projects

-Mentor staff in career development

-Participate in business development and client proposals

-Work effectively with team members

Requirements:

-Four to seven years of tax and accounting experience

-Bachelor of Science in Accounting from an accredited college/university

-CPA license

-ASC 740 (formerly FAS 109) experience a must

-Experience in corporate and individual returns

-Experience with tax and accounting software including ProSystems Fx Tax and Engagement, Microsoft Excel, Outlook and Word.

This position is full time with mandatory overtime hours during our two busy seasons. Devereaux, Kuhner & Chin, LLP offers an excellent benefits package including medical, dental, vision, 401K, commuter assistance, and tuition reimbursement. Visit our website at www.dkc-llp.com.

Interested candidates must submit a cover letter detailing their qualifications and interest in this position, with resume, to Kaitlin Colbourn at Kcolbourn@dkc-llp.com.

Perhaps it not a stretch to see where Cynthia Bonavia learned her love of numbers.

“My Mom and Dad each have eight brothers and sisters,” she says with a laugh. “So, we have huge family parties at Christmas and Easter with all the cousins, my sister and her three kids and my younger brother.”

That’s a lot of family members to count during the holidays.

On a professional level, Cynthia has been working with numbers since 2002 when she started her accounting career after graduating from the University of San Francisco in 2002 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting and Finance.

She became interested in the tax side of accounting during her college days. “Tax just made more sense to me in college. When I first started out, I stuck with it, because it felt like I was doing more. Auditing is just verifying things, whereas in tax you bring more to the table with planning and consulting.”

Cynthia was one of the original members of DK&C, which was a thrill for her. “It was exciting to start something new with a group of great people that I got along with really well,” she says. “We were able to start our own firm with our own new ideas and a fresh start.”

Cynthia during a trip to Greece.

Outside of the office, Cynthia enjoys to travel. So far, she’s been around Europe — Italy, Ireland, Scotland and Malta, where she still has family — and Australia. “I like to plan the places where we are going to stay, but I don’t plan the sight-seeing so much,” she says, “it’s more like whatever we feel like doing that day or what we hear about from people we talk to.”

She took that spontaneous philosophy with her on a trip to Hawaii shortly after the October tax season ended. “I went with a friend and we spent Halloween on Oahu,” she says. “It was a great time to get away and see what the holiday was like over there. The whole trip was great fun.”

Devereaux, Kuhner & Chin celebrated the end of the April tax season by taking over Angel Island in the San Francisco Bay for a firm outdoor party.

“Mark Devereaux did the grilling while some of us played volleyball and the rest of us played tag football,” says DK&C Supervisor Sarah Ta. “After lunch, some of us went for a hike up to Mt. Livermore.”

The bi-annual events serve as a way to relax after the firm’s busiest seasons and build unity. “It’s nice to be out with our co-workers and get to know each other outside of the office, especially our newer staff members,” Sarah says. “Plus, we always have fun when we’re together.”

To see photos from our outing, please visit the album on Facebook by clicking here.

The 12-member Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction created by the Budget Control Act of 2011 has discussed possibly reducing or completely eliminating the current $5,000,000 exemption levels for the different transfer taxes (Estate, GST and Gift).

There have been some comments suggesting that the Gift Tax Exclusion may be reduced from $5M to $1M as of January 1, 2012, rather than letting it expire on December 31, 2012, as originally planned.

The actual content of the Super Committee meetings are not actually known, but some professionals even suggest that the reduction might be effective as early as November 23, 2011.

We have no way at all of knowing what law changes will actually pass, but, given this possibility, anyone planning to make gifts using the increased exemption amount may want to consider making gifts prior to the end of this year instead of in 2012.

If you have any other questions, please contact us at (415) 692-3900.

To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the IRS, we inform you that any tax advice contained in this communication (including attachments) was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any transaction or matter addressed herein.

Melody Suehiro joins Devereaux, Kuhner & Chin after earning a Masters in Accounting degree from San Jose State University.

Melody comes into accounting as her second career. “I was a marriage and family therapist for a few years,” she explains. “I enjoyed it and working with people, but I’m a results oriented person and I wanted a career where I could work with clients and see my efforts being fruitful.”

With a laugh, Melody explains that she doesn’t have off time. “I’m a mother of a 20-month-old little girl, so when I leave the office I’m off to my second job. She’s pretty fearless and it’s a lot of fun going to parks, roaming around, climbing and going down the slide.”

The IRS opened a second offshore voluntary disclosure initiative (OVDI) on February 8 that is scheduled to run through August 31, 2011. The IRS offers a reduced penalty framework to taxpayers who fully disclose previously unreported offshore accounts.

IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman announced that the 2011 initiative includes a 25 percent penalty on the amount in the foreign bank accounts for the year with the highest aggregate account balance covering the 2003 to 2010 period.

However, lower penalties of 12.5 percent or 5 percent may apply to taxpayers in certain situations.

The 12.5 percent penalty will apply to small (less than $75,000) offshore accounts.

The 5-percent penalty may apply for:

The taxpayer who:

• •  did not open or cause the account to be open
• •  had minimal contact with the account
• •  has not withdrawn more than $1,000 from any year (other than closing transfers to a US account)
• •  has paid any applicable US taxes on amounts deposited to the account

Individuals who are foreign residents and who were unaware they are U.S. citizens

Taxpayers who participated in the 2009 OVDI but would have qualified for this lower 5 percent penalty

To participate in this initiative, taxpayers must file all original and amended returns for 2003 through 2010 and pay all taxes, interest and accuracy-related penalties by August 31, 2011.

More information is available in the IRS News Release IR-2011-14, which can be seen by clicking here.

If you have any other questions, please contact Karisa Chin at kchin@dkc-llp.com.

To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the IRS, we inform you that any tax advice contained in this communication (including attachments) was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any transaction or matter addressed herein.

The voice you hear when calling in to Devereaux, Kuhner & Chin belongs to Cristina Guzman, who joined the firm earlier this year.

Cristina comes to DK&C after previously working as an administrative assistant at a geotechnical engineering firm, banks and credit unions.

The closeness of the firm and warmness of the partners attracted her to the job. “I could tell it was a close unit and that everybody got along,” she says. “It felt warm, like a family atmosphere. When I was interviewed by the partners they seemed genuine and it was easy to see that they treated the staff well.”

Cristina is a lifelong resident of San Francisco. She is married and has two boys (five and seven). When they’re not at work or school, the Guzman family can be found outside, playing baseball or going to the park. “Family is number one to me.”

Kayan Tse came to Devereaux, Kuhner & Chin just in time for the most exciting months of the year – tax season.

Kayan comes to DK&C after working in the non-profit sector at the Asian Women’s Shelter in San Francisco. While her client interactions were limited, the experience made a big impact on her. “It was amazing to see the changes in the women’s lives. The experiences made me want to contribute more.”

Before taking the job at the Asian Women’s Shelter, Kayan worked at Deloitte LLP where she was introduced to the accounting industry. With a Japanese and Asian Studies degree from Cal, and a minor in economics, Kayan was attracted to accounting for one simple reason: “I know it’s nerdy, but I like numbers,” she says with a laugh.

Outside of the office, Kayan enjoys traveling to foreign lands with a group of friends. In fact, they’re already planning a trip to Peru after the October busy season. “I go with a group of friends and we explore,” she says. “It’s all spontaneous. I love meeting new people randomly and learning about their culture.”