First, the terms. According to the IRS, “tax avoidance” is what someone or something does to “lessen tax liability and maximize after-tax income.” That is not illegal. But “tax evasion,” “the failure to pay or a deliberate underpayment of taxes”—that is where the proverbial line is crossed. According to the ICIJ, the documents it and its colleagues obtained includes “the creation of shell companies, foundations and trusts; the use of such entities to purchase real estate, yachts, jets and life insurance; their use to make investments and to move money between bank accounts; estate planning and other inheritance issues; and the avoidance of taxes through complex financial schemes. Some documents are tied to financial crimes, including money laundering.” So much of that is in the avoidance category. “Some” is criminal.

This rises to the incredulity of gambling in Casablanca.

--Stephen Macaulay