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Tax Articles
Notes from our active practice — IRS audits, appeals, Tax Court litigation, and state and local tax matters. Summaries here link out to the full posts on our regional practice sites.
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Getting the IRS to Pay Your Attorney’s Fees
The IRS is required to pay a taxpayers attorney’s fees for defending unsupportable positions. This can even include attorney’s fees when the matter is settled administratively before court. But the IRS is not required to pay attorney’s fees if the IRS’s position is substantially justified. The Bontranger v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2019-45, helps clarify how…
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Tax Litigation When the Administrative Process Failed
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…
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Non-Taxable Subsidy or Taxable Benefit?
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…
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Designating Proceeds from Sale of Property Subject to IRS Lien
If a taxpayer wants to sell property subject to an IRS lien and the IRS agrees to allow the sale, can the taxpayer designate what tax period the proceeds paid to the IRS from the sale are to be applied? The IRS attorneys address this in CCA 201916009. Facts in CCA 201916009 In CCA 201916009,…
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IRS Not Limited in Collecting Restitution Assessments
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…
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What if the IRS Loses Your Mail?
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…
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Time Frame for IRS Whistleblower Claims
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…
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The Limits of the IRS’s Levy
If the IRS issued a levy notice to a third party to attempt to collect a tax debt, the third party is generally obligated to pay over to the IRS any money owed to the taxpayer. But how long does this obligation continue? Does it apply to future payments that the third party becomes indebted…
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Using the CDP Hearing to Challenge Tax Penalties
There are times when it is important to pick the right method of approaching a problem with the IRS. The VICA Technologies v. Commissioner, T.C. Summary Opinion 2019-7, case provides an example of contesting penalties in an IRS collection due process hearing. Facts & Procedural History The taxpayer was assessed a Sec. 6698(a) penalty for…
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IRS Pursuit of Additional Taxes After Bankruptcy
One of the benefits of bankruptcy is that it provides some certainty as to what is owed. If successful, the bankruptcy process can provide debtors with a fresh start. But things get complicated when taxes are involved. The recent Breland v. Commissioner, 152 T.C. 9 (2019), case provides an example whereby the IRS was allowed…
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