Course Details
Author: Danny Santucci, J.D.
Danny earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of California at Irvine in 1969. He received his Juris Doctorate from Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California at Berkeley in 1972, at which time he began practice as a tax attorney in Southern California.
His legal career was initiated with the business and litigation firm of Edwards, Edwards and Ashton. Later he joined the Century City entertainment firm of Bushkin, Gaims, Gaines & Jonas working for many well-known celebrities. In 1980, Danny established the law firm of Santucci, Potter and Leanders, in Irvine, California. With increasing lecture and writing commitments, Danny went into sole practice in 1995. His practice emphasizes business taxation, real estate law and estate planning.
Danny has been an officer and active member in various organizations including the Glendale Bar Association, Century City Bar Association, Orange County and Los Angeles County Bar Associations, California State Bar Association, Toastmasters and Lions Club. He also avidly supports the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He has been admitted to practice before all California and federal courts including the United States Tax Court and the United States Supreme Court.
Serving as a lecturer for the Continuing Education of the Bar of California, Golden Gate University, and numerous state C.P.A. societies, Danny teaches a variety of tax, business and real estate courses. Danny has been in demand all across the country as a speaker for all levels of professional and civic organizations and numerous major seminar circuits. Danny spoke to over 2,000 people per month and traveled more than 150,000 miles annually.
In 2015, he withdrew from the lecture circuit to devote himself to tax research and writing. The author of numerous texts, he is listed in "Who’s Who in Creative Real Estate" and is admitted to the American Exchangor’s Hall of Fame.
Publication/Revision Date: 3/7/2026
Course Exam Questions (online): 125 (multiple-choice)
Program Delivery Method: Self-Study (NASBA QAS Self-Study)
Available Formats of Course Text: Downloadable PDF, Printed/Mailed
Course Level, Prerequisites, and Advance Preparation Requirements
| License | Course Level | Prerequisites | Advance Preparation Requirements |
|---|
| CPA | Overview | None | None |
| EA/OTRP | Overview | None | None |
* This program is appropriate for professionals at all organizational levels.
Sponsor ID Numbers
National Registry of CPE Sponsors I.D.: 107615
IRS Qualified Sponsor I.D.: FWKKO — Course I.D.: FWKK0-T-00766-26-S
State CPA Board Sponsor ID Numbers (where applicable)
Florida Division of Certified Public Accounting: 0004761
Hawaii Board of Public Accountancy: 14003
New York State Board for Public Accountancy: 002146
Ohio Accountancy Board: CPE .51 PSR
Pennsylvania State Board of Accountancy: PX178025
Texas State Board of Public Accountancy: 009349
Learning Objectives
Chapter 1: Business Forms & Characteristics
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Specify the advantages and disadvantages of sole proprietorships, including self-employed taxes and payment requirements, and identify the characterization of sole proprietorship assets upon disposition.
- Recognize the role of the partnership agreement on partnership taxation, particularly the application of the at-risk rules (§465).
- Identify the reporting requirements of unincorporated associations, determine what constitutes a "corporation," and specify the characteristics of a personal service corporation.
After studying the materials in Chapter 1, answer exam questions 1 to 12.
Chapter 2: Corporate Formation & Capitalization
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Identify the transfer of money, property, or both by prospective shareholders and the basic requirements associated with §351.
- Recognize the differences between start-up and organizational expenses, and identify the elements of corporate tax recognition, including capital gains and losses, stating dividends received treatment.
- Specify the requirements for corporate charitable contributions, and determine how to avoid §541 status, particularly as to personal service contracts.
- Identify §531 status and determine accounting periods and methods available to corporations.
- Specify methods for identifying inventory items and identify multiple corporate tax advantages.
After studying the materials in Chapter 2, answer exam questions 13 to 29.
Chapter 3: Corporate Principals & Employees
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Determine payroll taxes and the uses of W-2, and specify the application of major employee labor laws.
- Recognize common-law rules used to determine employee status for FICA and federal income tax withholding, specify the dangers of unreasonable compensation, stating how to avoid them, and determine valuable income-splitting devices.
- Identify buy-sell agreements, distinguishing an entity purchase from a cross-purchase agreement and recognize business recapitalizations and the impact of estate freeze rules.
After studying the materials in Chapter 3, answer exam questions 30 to 39.
Chapter 4: Basic Fringe Benefits
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Identify "income" under §61 and specify the tax differences between nonstatutory and statutory fringe benefits.
- Determine what constitutes working condition and de minimis fringes, cite the §79 group term life insurance rules, recognize §125 "cafeteria plans" stating how they function, and specify the mechanics of §105 self-insured medical reimbursement plans.
- Identify employer-provided automobile valuation methods, and specify ERISA compliance requirements.
After studying the materials in Chapter 4, answer the exam questions 40 to 48.
Chapter 5: Business Entertainment
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Define the disallowed "entertainment" recognizing the importance of the remaining statutory exceptions, specify the application of the percentage reduction rule, and determine an "entertainment facility" stating related deductible costs.
- Identify substantiation, recordkeeping, reimbursement, and reporting requirements, recognizing variations in methods and specify the special reporting rules for self-employed persons and employers.
After studying the materials in Chapter 5, answer the exam questions 49 to 58.
Chapter 6: Insurance
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Recognize the importance and variety of business insurance, particularly the §79 requirements for group insurance, retired lives reserve, and split-dollar life.
- Identify the impact of the disallowance of the interest deduction on purchasers and the insurance industry, recognizing the §264 interest limitation on policy loans, specify the benefit of corporate key person life insurance, cite the requirements of COBRA, and determine what constitutes a Voluntary Employee Benefit Association under §501(c)(9).
After studying the materials in Chapter 6, answer the exam questions 59 to 67.
Chapter 7: Retirement Plans
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Identify the types of qualified deferred compensation plans, recognizing their funding limits and recall the ERISA and PBGC restrictions and insurance.
- Specify the requirements of the basic forms of qualified pension plans, including vesting, contributions, and benefits.
- Determine the differences between qualified retirement plans and their impact on retirement contributions and benefits, identify the plan termination rules, and recognize self-employed plans from qualified plans for other business types.
- Identify the requirements of IRAs, SEPs, and SIMPLEs, and define tax-free Roth IRA distributions, specifying strategies to maximize plan benefits.
After studying the materials in Chapter 7, answer the exam questions 68 to 90.
Chapter 8: Nonqualified Deferred Compensation
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Recognize the postponement of income with a nonqualified plan, identifying nonqualified plan advantages and recognize the impact of constructive receipt and economic benefit concepts.
- Identify ways to protect unfunded deferred compensation and specify the tax consequences of establishing a nonqualified plan.
After studying the materials in Chapter 8, answer the exam questions 91 to 99.
Chapter 9: S Corporations
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Determine what constitutes an S corporation, and specify the advantages and the disadvantages associated with it.
- Identify variables that impact whether a business can choose S corporation status and cite ways an S corporation may be terminated, specifying related procedures to be followed.
- Recognize the taxation and fringe benefits of S corporations as compared to other entity formats, identify the benefits available to S corporations and the related party rules, and specify when the Form 1120S must be filed.
After studying the materials in Chapter 9, answer the exam questions 100 to 119.
Chapter 10: Business Dispositions & Reorganizations
Learning Objectives
As a result of studying the course material, you should be able to meet the objectives listed below:
- Recognize various business dispositions and tax-advantaged reorganization possibilities, including the types of transactions that qualify as nontaxable reorganizations and identify the factors that determine the corporate tax attributes of an acquired corporation that carry over to the acquiring or successor corporation.
After studying the materials in Chapter 10, answer the exam questions 120 to 125.
