Fortress Reacts to the Tillis-Hern Tort Reform
We take issue with your editorial 'Ending a Tax Break for Lawsuits' (June 5). You assert that 'foreign investors in U.S. litigation don't have to pay tax on lawsuit proceeds because the tax code exempts foreigners from paying U.S. capital-gains tax, and their legal payouts are treated as capital gains.' But this isn't true for Fortress, an American company, whose investment decisions are made by our U.S. leadership. We have never allowed any non-U.S. investor to treat recoveries from legal assets as exempt from tax by characterizing income as capital gains. Investments in U.S. legal assets by our funds are subject to the usual corporate or ordinary income-tax rates and rules.
American corporations use legal financing, like that offered by some Fortress-managed funds, because using the court system isn't free. This financing isn't about 'harming U.S. businesses' or targeting corporations. It helps American businesses spend less of their money on pursuing justified claims and more on job creation and economic growth.
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