Tag: Houston Tax Attorney

Amended returns generally have to be filed to recoup overpayments of tax. What counts as a refund claim is open to interpretation, as the courts have allowed a myriad of written documents to qualify. But what about the IRS report itself? If it includes a taxpayer favorable adjustment, is the report itself an informal refund…

What happens if the IRS violates the law? Specifically, what if the IRS assesses a penalty and attempts to collect it without first issuing the proper notice to the taxpayer? The court addresses this in Romano-Murphy v. Commissioner, 152 T.C. 62, in the context of a trust fund recovery penalty. Facts & Procedural History The…

The attorney-client privilege protects communications with a tax attorney from disclosure to third parties, such as the IRS. If the IRS discovers that a tax attorney advised a client on a transaction that wasn’t structured properly, should the IRS be able to use its power to issue an administrative summons to require the attorney produce…

There are cases where the administrative process does not reach the right conclusion. There are also cases where the administrative process isn’t available or fully completed. This can happen with tax disputes handled by the IRS. When it does, does this mean that the taxpayer cannot litigate the tax dispute? The record rule comes into…

Some payments are not subject to Federal income tax. State subsidies are an example. But what is the difference between a non-taxable subsidy and a taxable benefit? The court addresses this in Ginsberg v. United States, No. 2018-1788 (Fed. Cir. 2019), in the context of the New York state brownfield tax credit. Facts & Procedural…

The IRS is authorized to assess criminal restitution for certain tax crimes. This process allows the IRS to collect the criminal restitution as if it was a tax. The law authorizing these collections is relatively new and evolving. The recent Carpenter v. United States, 152 T.C. 12, case highlights why it is important for those…

The IRS manages to lose a lot of mail. To be fair, some of the mail is likely lost before it even gets to the IRS. When this happens, can the taxpayer lose out on their rights? The court revisits this issue in Baldwin v. United States, 17-55115 (9th Cir. 2019). Facts & Procedural History…

The IRS is slow in making awards to whistle blowers. It can take years just to get the final rejection letter from the IRS. This can be very frustrating for informants. In the Whistleblower 769-16W v. Commissioner, 152 T.C. 10 (2019), case, the IRS asked the court to send the case back to the IRS…

Innocent spouse relief can provide a remedy for spouses who file joint tax returns. This relief is particularly useful if the innocent spouse can obtain a tax refund for amounts previously paid. But not all innocent spouse requests can result in refunds. One has to be careful what they ask for. The Henry v. Commissioner,…

Taxpayers generally have to submit refund claims to recoup taxes paid to the IRS. The law generally says that these claims have to be in writing, but not necessarily on the IRS’s official forms. Taxpayers submit a number of documents to the IRS. Written protests submitted to the IRS are an example. Can such a…