Shelter for Shelters?The IRS may not like 'em-but the courts don't seem to mind.

While business owners may be encouraged by two recent courtdecisions that overturned Washington's drive to crack down onabusive tax shelters, experts say they shouldn't be tooencouraged. That's because these defeats may prompt Congress totake legislative steps against shelters, says Thomas P.Ochsenschlager of accounting firm Grant Thornton LLP.

In one case, a federal appeals court rejected the U.S. TaxCourt's opinion that UPS used a sham insurance policy to avoidpaying millions of dollars in corporate income taxes. (Transactionswhose only purpose is to avoid the payment of taxes are considered"shams.") In the other case, a court of appealsoverturned a federal district court ruling that IES Industries Inc.took part in sham stock trading to keep from paying nearly $100million in taxes.