Something a little different today class. Did you know of a recent case involving a New York Lawyer who was found guilty of claiming expenses for a string of prostitutes and pornographic films? The audacious man of the law actually submitted the claims as part of his tax return!

William G Halby WAS a well regarded tax lawyer from Brooklyn before he was caught submitting his claims to the internal Revenue Service’s for a variety of ‘medical purposes’. Under US tax law, medical claims can be made, provided the claimant can prove there was a problem, identify the cure, and show that the condition in question had prevented the full functioning of the body.

Halby did just this. He claimed that his inability to orgasm or/and obtain erections was the problem. His treatment however, must have been state of the art because he actually claimed $111,364 from his tax liability for the cash he spent on ‘therapeutic sex’ in order to enhance his erectile functioning.

Halby didn’t stop there. He claimed well over $5,000 on ‘sex books’ claiming they were for his ‘general welfare’. Interestingly enough though, prostitutes can actually claim expenses for the use of lawyers. In 1964, a well documented case involved the owner of a call girl business who claimed expenses for their use of lawyers. The claim was allowed by the courts although they did however, quietly reject a further claim for $20,000 for money spent on ‘police protection’.