"Over and over courts have said that there is nothing sinister in so arranging one's affairs as to keep taxes as low as possible. Nobody owes any public duty to pay more than the law demands; taxes are forced extractions, not voluntary contributions."

– Judge Learned Hand (1872-1961), Judge, U. S. Court of Appeals

Al Capone Although never indicted of a crime (racketeering, murder, bootlegging, etc.) by the police, the IRS were the ones to arrest Capone for tax evasion.  Ironically enough, when Capone joined Torrio, one of his most useful skills was bookkeeping which helped the organization increase its profits.

The Gartner Group estimates that a 5% reduction in operating expense has the same impact on the company's P&L statement as a 30% increase in sales.