Tax Law

How a CPA Can Help You With Your IRS Lawsuit

If you have been charged with criminal tax fraud or an audit by the Internal Revenue Service, it is critical that you retain the services of a competent IRS tax lawyer. A seasoned tax attorney will be well familiar with the ins and outs of the IRS process and will be able to give you the advice you need to win in court. The IRS is notorious for coming down hard on tax defaulters. Finding a competent tax lawyer is critical in dealing with this agency as they are not the same as any other law enforcement agency.

 

A good Boulder, Colorado IRS Lawyer will know how to talk to the right people within the IRS administrative service (auditors) and be able to get the results you want in a trial if that is necessary. Attorneys will also know how to deal with the various IRS collections departments, state tax departments, state revenue departments and the IRS Appeals Division. The IRS is notorious for being bent on collecting money from delinquent taxpayers just so they can make up for their poor performance. It is always better to have a knowledgeable lawyer on your side fighting for you than to sit back and take the collectors cold turkey.

 

In some cases the IRS will settle for a portion of the due taxes but that is often unacceptable to taxpayers who are trying to keep more of their hard earned money. In other cases the IRS will actually file for a tax debt settlement which means a large portion of the back taxes will be paid by the taxpayers in lump sum money. In some cases large sums of money will be paid in one settlement lump sum while in other cases the entire amount may only be paid over a series of years. If you are considering a tax debt settlement with the IRS you should get bids from at least three tax lawyers. The more experience a lawyer has with working with the IRS the better they will do your case.

 

The purpose of a competent tax lawyer is to protect your rights under the law. Taxpayers need to retain a tax lawyer if they owe back taxes or think they might be required to repay. The IRS can issue notices of intent to levy property, wage garnishments, bank levies, and more. A competent tax lawyer will be able to stop the IRS from taking any action in order to protect your rights.

 

The IRS has a very bad habit of using questionable methods to try and collect the back taxes. Such practices as placing a lien against an asset, or making weekly or monthly phone calls to the taxpayers could send the taxpayer into a financial turmoil. One way the IRS obtains information about a taxpayer is through sending a “cease and desist” order to a third party. The taxpayer is usually given 30 days to appear before an administrative judge and explain why he or she does not have the funds to repay the back taxes. If the taxpayer fails to attend the hearing the judge will issue a default judgment against the taxpayer and attach a lien or levy the assets of the taxpayer.

 

If this happens, the IRS will then attempt to levy assets owned by the defendant which are in direct reliance on the delinquent tax debt. When an IRS tax lawyer represents a taxpayer before an administrative judge, the taxpayer may ask to be represented by another person to act as a “counselor”. Counsel can request the presence of a third person to argue the case for the taxpayer at a scheduled trial date.