Alfieri v. Abonamah

For media inquiries, please contact:
Lisa Gates, vice president of communications
(614) 224-3255 or Lisa@BuckeyeInstitute.org

Background of the Case

Anthony Alfieri lives in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina—more than 750 miles south of Cleveland, Ohio. Before retiring in 2021, Mr. Alfieri worked for a financial services company based in Cleveland, and he worked remotely from his home in South Carolina, brokering deals that earned him commissions—once the deal closed. Given the nature of this work, it was not uncommon for deals to take several months or even years to close, and Mr. Alfieri typically received his commission income several months or years after he performed the work that generated the commission.

In fact, during 2023, Mr. Alfieri received several commission payments for deals he brokered in 2020-2021, and the city of Cleveland taxed his income under Ohio’s pandemic tax law, which deemed all work performed in 2020 to have been performed in the office location. When Mr. Alfieri requested a refund for his work in South Carolina, the city refused and, to add insult to injury, the city adjusted his filings for 2020, 2021, and 2022, essentially clawing back the refunds he received previously. 

The city knew its actions were unconstitutional. In 2015, Cleveland lost a similar case brought by Hunter Hillenmeyer, a former linebacker for the Chicago Bears. In Hillenmeyer v. Cleveland Board of Revenue, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that “[l]ocal taxation of a nonresidents’ compensation for services must be based on the location of the taxpayer when the services were performed.” 

Recently, Cleveland abandoned its appeal in Morsy v. Dumas and refunded the taxes illegally taken from The Buckeye Institute’s client Dr. Manal Morsy, paid the interest owed to Dr. Morsy according to Cleveland City Ordinance, and paid Dr. Morsy’s court costs. The Buckeye Institute expects it will be similarly successful on behalf of Mr. Alfieri.

Facts of the Case

Current Status
Alfieri v. Abonamah is pending with the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas.

Case Number
TBD

Originally Filed
TBD

Original Court
Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas

Plaintiffs
Anthony Alfieri of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

Lawyers
Jay R. Carson, senior litigator, The Buckeye Institute
David C. Tryon, director of litigation, The Buckeye Institute

Claims in the Case
The city of Cleveland lacked jurisdiction to tax Mr. Alfieri. Its adjustments to his earlier filings and withholding of funds from his pay are unconstitutional as applied to him and are illegal taxation, subject to refund under R.C. 2723.05.

Related Cases
Morsy v. Dumas

Timeline of the Case

TBD
The Buckeye Institute files Alfieri v. Abonamah with the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas.

• Complaint
• Press Release