The NASPP Blog

For today’s “Meet the Speaker” interview, we feature an interview with Liz Buchbinder of Ernst & Young, who will lead the session “M&A Issues & Other Hot Tax Topics Affecting Equity Compensation.” Here is what Liz had to say:

NASPP: What are a few key areas your panel will address?

Liz: Among other topics, we will address:

1. Tax deduction timing issues that arise in mergers and acquisitions
2. Tax treatment of earnouts 
3. The impact of Section 409A
4. Differences between actual and phantom equity arrangements.

NASPP: What common mistake do companies make with stock compensation in M&A and how can they avoid it?

Liz: Companies often don’t think about the compensation deduction issues until after the transaction documents are finalized, and they may be blind-sided by the result of what they’ve agreed to. It is essential to address these issues before the transaction documents are finalized, when there is still flexibility to achieve the desired result.

NASPP: What is the silver lining to your topic?

Liz: Advance planning can avoid most pitfalls and any unanticipated results.

NASPP: What is your secret (or not-so-secret) superpower?

Liz: Without a doubt it’s the team I work with at Ernst & Young. I have the pleasure of working with an amazing group of compensation and benefits practitioners, and the ability to collaborate and brainstorm with them on client issues makes me an immeasurably better practitioner than I would be on my own.

About the NASPP Conference
The 21st Annual NASPP Conference will be held from September 23-26 in Washington, DC. This year’s program features 60+ sessions on today’s most timely topics in stock compensation; check out the full agenda and register today! You don’t want to miss Liz’s session, “M&A Issues & Other Hot Tax Topics Affecting Equity Compensation.”