Barry A. Furman

Throughout his 35 year career in private practice, Barry has counseled a wide range of business clients, including growth and mid-sized local, regional and international companies, as well as individuals, regarding healthcare, tax, corporate, employment, real estate, trusts and estates, and estate administration.

Barry began his career as a judicial law clerk to a United States District Court Judge. He then served as senior trial attorney in the National Office of the Chief Counsel’s Office of the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”). When there, he represented the IRS Commissioner in many court cases. His representation included highly visible matters such as enforcement of the nondiscrimination policy for tax-exempt schools and tax fraud cases. This experience has been a great benefit in representing clients before the Appeals Office of the IRS and in the United States Tax Court, District Courts and Court of Federal Claims.

Barry was likely the first attorney to challenge successfully the IRS’ attempted reclassification of nurses engaged as independent contractors (“ICs”). Following that victory, Barry obtained a jury verdict rejecting the IRS’ attempted reclassification of product inspectors in the aerodynamics and defense industries who were treated as ICs. For 25 years, Barry has continued to represent successfully this same client before numerous state agencies that have challenged the IC status of the inspectors.

Barry’s clients are from diverse industries with a good number coming from the health care sector. Barry has represented supplemental staffing companies, home health care agencies, medical practices, dental practices and technology companies, among others, in many areas and has structured the transactions to obtain the most favorable tax consequences for his clients. His legal services include choice of entity, business structuring, financing, licensing, regulatory issues, contract negotiations and drafting, worker (IC) classification, mergers and acquisitions and asset protection.

Over the course of his career, the government and business community have acknowledged Barry for his substantial contributions. While at the IRS, the Chief Counsel selected Barry for several merit awards. In private practice, among other recognitions, Barry has been recognized by the Philadelphia Business Journal as a “Leader in Law” and earned a preeminent rating for legal competency and ethics by his peers.

Barry is an active public speaker. He has spoken before the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, Hospital Association of Pennsylvania, Healthcare Financial Management Association, Philadelphia and Suburban Hospital Human Resources Association, Greater Philadelphia Senior Executive Group, and other groups. Barry is a faculty speaker with a national provider of continuing legal education and continuing professional education. He has
appeared on internet webcasts, live and recorded, before a national audience that includes attorneys, accountants, executives and consultants.

Barry has been published in numerous legal and industry specific periodicals.

Representative Matters

• Negotiates and prepares diverse commercial agreements for various transactions, including mergers and acquisitions and loan documents and forbearance agreements.
• Represents a non-profit organization devoted to educating growth companies about the advantages of advisory boards and assisting growth companies to form advisory boards.
• Reduced tax liabilities by millions of dollars with offers in compromise
• Substantially reduced loan and guarantee obligations with the Small Business Administration.
• Represented tax-exempt entities, including a tax-exempt hospital, in compliance, unrelated business income tax, and operational, organizational and other matters.
• Secured a total abatement of excise taxes imposed on a tax-exempt hospital.
• Reduced by $38,000,000 a $40,000,000 excise tax imposition relating to a defined benefit plan.
• Eliminated fraud and other tax penalties.
• Substantially reduced tax liabilities in unreported income tax cases before the IRS Appeals Office and in the courts.