Katina M. Peterson
PEOPLE

Katina M. Peterson

Partner
peterson.katina@dorsey.com

Overview

KATINA ADVISES CLIENTS IN ALL ASPECTS OF FEDERAL AND STATE TAX CONTROVERSIES AND PROVIDES FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL TAX ADVICE AND PLANNING TO BUSINESS ENTITIES, NONPROFITS, MUNICIPALITIES, POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS, ESTATES, TRUSTS AND INDIVIDUALS.

Katina is a Partner in and Co-Chair of the Tax, Trusts and Estates department and Tax Controversy and Litigation practice group. She has broad substantive and procedural tax experience and represents all types of clients in all aspects of federal and state tax controversies, including audits, administrative appeals, litigation, and collection actions. Katina also provides federal, state, and local tax advice and planning to all types of taxpayers.

Education & Admissions

Minnesota State University, Moorhead (B.A., Political Science/Criminal Justice/Sociology, 1996), summa cum laude

William Mitchell College of Law (J.D., 2000), magna cum laude, Tax Moot Court and National
Tax Moot Court Participant
William Mitchell Academic Scholarship Recipient
CALI Excellence Award Recipient for Business Entity Tax, Estate and Gift Tax, Evidence and Constitutional Law

Admissions

  • Minnesota
  • U.S. Tax Court

Experience

Representative Work

  • Federal Tax Advice and Dispute Resolution. Katina represents clients in all types of disputes with the IRS, including income, employment, gift and estate tax disputes. She has substantial experience reaching favorable results for her clients at the audit level, with IRS appeals officers, and in United States Tax Court. She also has significant experience representing businesses in the IRS SS-8 worker classification process and represents all types of clients with various aspects of the IRS collection process, including collection due process hearings, preparing offers in compromise, penalty abatement requests, installment agreements and other collection alternatives and remedies. Katina has recently secured favorable results for clients with examining agents, appeals officers and IRS counsel on matters involving:
    • Income and employment tax withholding 
    • Valuation of business interests
    • Employee loans
    • Worker classification
    • Section 1031 exchanges
    • Alimony
    • Business and individual loss deductions
    • Worthless debt and loss deductions
    • Innocent spouse relief
    • Passive activity loss issues
    • Excise tax issues
    • Gift and estate tax valuation issues
  • State and Local Tax Advice and Dispute Resolution. Katina has extensive experience advising clients on state and local tax matters and representing clients in tax disputes with the Minnesota Department of Revenue and in Minnesota Tax Court. Katina also has experience representing clients within the California Franchise Tax Board, New York State Department of Taxation and Finance and Washington State Department of Revenue. In the areas below, Katina has recently provided advice or negotiated and achieved favorable and practical resolutions on behalf of her clients.
    • Individual state residency (Minnesota and New York)
    • Allocation of nonresident compensation including equity awards, retirement income and flow through income
    • Corporate income, franchise, or business/occupation tax (Minnesota and Washington)
    • Sales and use tax - multiple issues
    • Personal liability assessments for sales and withholding taxes
    • Occupation tax
    • Tobacco products tax
    • MinnesotaCare tax
    • Property tax exemptions
  • Recent Representations:
    • Lead state and local tax counsel to the public authority owner of the $1.1 billion U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis 
    • Secured multi-million refund claims of MinnesotaCare taxes on behalf of healthcare system client
    • Secured multiple favorable resolutions from state taxing authorities on executive compensation and state residency, including issues relating to compensation paid to directors of Minnesota-based corporate boards

News & Resources

Articles

CARES Act Provides Significant Payroll Tax Relief and Relief for Business Taxpayers and Individuals
UPDATE: COVID-19-Related Tax Credits and Tax Filing and Payment Relief
Minnesota Supreme Court Holds Trust Residency Statute Unconstitutional As Applied to Taxpayer Trusts—Time to Evaluate Income Tax Refund Claims
U.S. Supreme Court Hands Down Two Significant Tax Decisions
Employers Beware: Tax Law Change Eliminates Tax Deductions Relating to Certain Settlements
New Tax Act
Despite Clash Over Tax Cuts, Governor Dayton Signs Bill Enacting Important Income Tax Changes for Minnesota Residents and Nonresidents
Minnesota Tax Court Holds Trust Residency Statute Unconstitutional
Impasse Over Light Rail Derails Minnesota Tax Residency Provisions, 81 State Tax Notes 1025 (with Katina M. Peterson)
Minnesota Department of Revenue Publishes Revenue Notice Addressing Location of a Taxpayer’s Attorneys, Accountants, and Bank Accounts for Minnesota Income Tax Residency Test
Minnesota Issues Revenue Notice Regarding Apportionment of Compensation Paid to Nonresident Corporate Board Members
Minnesota Income Tax Residency Law— Recent Developments and Planning Considerations
Supreme Court Holds Severance Payments are Taxable Wages under FICA
Peterson, Katina. (2012) Contributing author, The Ongoing Business Deskbook. Chapter 5. Independent Contractors, Print.

News & Press Mentions

200 Dorsey Lawyers Selected for Inclusion in 2024 Best Lawyers in America, Lawyers of the Year, and Ones to Watch
Dorsey Represents Underwriters in Tactile Medical IPO
Dorsey Partner Katina Peterson Comments on Supreme Court Striking Down Maryland's Double Tax

Select Presentations

  • Guest Lecturer, University of Minnesota Law School, Topics include tax procedure and employee loans, 2012-Present.
  • Presenter, Minnesota State Bar Association Tax Section, Minnesota Source Income of Nonresident Individuals, October 22, 2014.
  • Presenter, Labor and Employment Seminar & CLE, Worker Classification: The Stakes Continue to Rise, 2013.

Industries & Practices

  • Creative Industries
  • Government Solutions & Investigations
  • Healthcare & Life Sciences
  • Indian & Alaska Native
  • Nonprofit & Tax Exempt Organizations
  • Tax
  • Tax Controversy & Litigation
  • Trusts & Estates Litigation

Professional & Civic

Professional Achievements

  • Minnesota State Bar Association
  • Minnesota Justice Foundation

Accolades

  • Listed in Best Lawyers in America©, 2020-2024

     Contributed 50+ Pro Bono Hours in 2021 Contributed 100+ Pro Bono Hours in 2020

  • Contributed more than 50 Challenge pro bono hours, 2021
  • Contributed more than 100 Challenge pro bono hours, 2020

     North Star Lawyer logo

  • MSBA North Star Lawyer, 2012-2020
Katina M. Peterson