The Amsterdam appeal court has ordered international law firm Greenberg Traurig to pay Dutch DJ Tiësto damages of nearly €14.5 million for incorrect tax advice that left him with a large US tax bill.
Tiësto, whose real name is Tijs Verwest, became a US tax resident in 2012 after spending more days in the country than the annual limit allows. According to the court, a tax specialist at Greenberg Traurig had wrongly advised him on the consequences, and his US tax returns were filed incorrectly for several years.
When Tiësto discovered the error in 2018, he disclosed it to the US tax authorities voluntarily and paid the extra tax and a penalty.
A lower court had agreed the advice was wrong but found that Tiësto had suffered no loss. On Tuesday, the appeal court overturned that ruling, finding that with correct advice he would have spent fewer days in the US and never become a tax resident there in the first place.
The damages cover the extra tax and the penalty, which together came to around $17 million. Greenberg Traurig can appeal to the Netherlands’ Supreme Court.
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