CHICAGO (UPI) -- It may take several years but the Internal Revenue Service will probably challenge the Tribune Co.'s sale of the Chicago Cubs, a tax expert says.

Robert Willens, who runs a consulting firm and publishes a tax newsletter, says the sale of the National League baseball team to the Ricketts family was set up as a leveraged partnership with Tribune keeping a 5 percent stake, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Wednesday.

"The IRS is not favorably disposed to leveraged partnerships and this is about the highest profile leveraged partnership we've had," Willens said.

He says the sale will probably result in an IRS probe and audit because it was structured to save about $300 million in capital gains taxes.

However, an audit might not occur until 2011, Willens says.



Copyright 2009 by United Press International

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