Texas Tax Litigation Lawyer on the Forefront of Civil Tax Litigation
By the time a case reaches litigation, the Internal Revenue Service has typically subjected the taxpayer to months or years of tax audits and procedures. Tax fatigue is common, as is the impression that no favorable end is in sight. In truth, civil tax litigation is an opportunity for a taxpayer to finally obtain relief after a hard-fought battle. At this crucial stage, making the right decisions alongside your IRS dispute lawyer can drastically change the outcome.
Brown, PC has been on the forefront of tax litigation for a quarter-century and takes a strategic approach to battling the IRS. Attorney Lawrence Brown spent years on the opposite side of the courtroom as a Department of Justice Tax Division trial attorney. Having prosecuted dozens of tax cases, he is intimately familiar with tax law and the litigation processes from the DOJ’s perspective. He also has maintained ties to his colleagues that remain at the DOJ and with whom he has a reputation for being an ethical, experienced tax attorney who aggressively represents his clients’ rights.
Our tax litigation team has taken on challenges that seemed insurmountable and won favorable solutions through perseverance, experience and a passion for justice. We have successfully litigated high-profile, complex tax cases involving prominent sports and entertainment figures, business owners, and large publicly traded and privately held multinational corporations.
Choosing the Right Forum in a Texas Tax Litigation Case
What we do hinges on where we do it. Choosing the right forum for filing a tax lawsuit is an essential first step in reaching a favorable outcome. Knowing which court is best in a particular case comes only with vast experience. Having tried dozens of high-stakes tax cases, we know the pros and cons of each court and weigh these factors when deciding which forum has the greatest strategic and tactical advantages. We regularly litigate in the four trial-level courts with authority over federal civil tax claims, including:
Based in Washington DC, the U.S. Tax Court hears cases in 74 cities, including Dallas, TX. A specialized tax judge considers the claim in a bench trial. An experienced tax lawyer at our firm may choose this forum for cases in which the tax liability amount is in dispute, we want to reduce discovery or the issues in the case are too complex to present to a jury or generalist judge.
U.S. district courts sit in 94 judicial districts throughout the country. The authority of these courts arises out of Article III of the U.S. Constitution. Our lawyers consider bringing a claim in this forum if the case issues are not technical in nature, a jury trial is desirable, extensive discovery is beneficial and paying liability before litigation makes sense.
This Washington, DC-based federal court hears cases involving a monetary dispute between the federal government and other parties, usually regarding a tax matter. We may recommend filing in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims if we do not plan to demand a jury trial, a judge with tax expertise is not necessary, precedent case law is more beneficial to our client, full discovery is disadvantageous or unnecessary, or our client seeks to avoid publicity.
We may recommend filing a Chapter 11 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy petition to release property seized by the IRS, stay IRS collection proceedings, negotiate a reasonable installment period, reduce the overall and installment payment liabilities, shorten collection period and halt further accrual of interests and penalties.
The rules and procedures in each forum are second nature to our Texas tax litigation lawyers after years of intense daily emersion and practice. We can immediately recite the rules of procedures, the judges, the government attorneys, court costs and processes associated with each court. This level of familiarity gives our lawyers an edge because we can anticipate precisely how our actions will play out in a given case. Based upon our comprehensive analysis of the complex tax issues in each case, we choose the forum that provides the optimal technical and strategic advantage.
Strategic Decisions Reach Optimal Results
Civil tax litigation may be stressful, time consuming, expensive and intrusive. Our firm remains cognizant of costs to our client while recommending expenditures that increase success of the litigation process. We move cases forward to reach resolution efficiently and economically, and avoid litigation when possible. However, often litigation is the only means to achieve desired results. When deciding whether to litigate and in which forum, we take a strategic approach, which includes asking the right questions, such as:
- Do the facts support settling the claim under equitable terms?
- Has the IRS agreed to a reasonable settlement or will our client benefit from escalating the claim to litigation?
- Are the facts of the claim highly complex and sophisticated as to warrant a bench trial before a judge who is knowledgeable in tax law matters?
- Are there issues concerning IRS’s reasonableness and justice that might be suitable for a jury trial?
- Should our client litigate the issue before paying the tax liability, or should the client pay liability first?
- Does a detailed pre-trial schedule order and extensive discovery benefit a case or should we minimize these steps to save our client time and money?
- What is the estimated time to fully litigate a case in each potential forum?
Because of our experience and consideration for our clients, tax attorneys, CPAs and other tax professionals often refer complex disputes to Brown, PC. They know that we deliver confidential, personalized, experienced legal representation in cases involving sophisticated tax disputes.
Summons Enforcement Proceedings
The IRS has the authority to summon individuals, their records or any third party having custody of those records. While summonses are primarily issued in criminal investigations, they are sometimes used in audits and collection matters as well. If a summons is not complied with, the IRS can seek enforcement in United States District Court, where federal judges have the power to hold the summonsed party in contempt and impose a fine, imprisonment or both. An IRS summons should not be handled without the advice of an experienced tax litigation attorney who understands the laws, regulations and constitutional issues involved.
The Brown, PC team has represented clients during the summons process, including highly contested enforcement proceedings in federal court for over 25 years. Lawrence Brown’s decades of experience in private practice and as a trial attorney with the Department of Justice Tax Division have given him deep insight into the perspectives of the IRS and many of the federal judges across the United States during the summons process. The Brown, PC team is well positioned to make sure that our clients are well protected while summonses are handled properly and efficiently.
If you are the target of an IRS criminal investigation, audit or collection case, third party summonses issued to your banks, attorneys, accountants, clients or vendors can be devastating to your reputation. When necessary, our team will design and implement a communications strategy to protect brand equity and reputation during the summons process. The strategy will be customized to your situation and could include the crafting of messages to be delivered to key stakeholders who have been issued summonses, reaching agreement with IRS agents to provide certain records so that third parties do not have to be summonsed or a variety of other approaches.
Increasingly Aggressive Summons Use by IRS
A summons is an order to deliver to IRS agents, books, records or other information relevant to an investigation that can be enforced by a federal judge with the power to fine and imprison. It is a hardball tactic which tilts the negotiation heavily in the IRS’s favor. Traditionally, the IRS reserved its use of the administrative summons for criminal cases and to obtain necessary documents from uncooperative individuals in audits or collection cases.
Over the last few years, however, we have seen an uptick in the use of summonses in civil matters. Agents are being given refresher training on the use of summonses and are being pushed by managers to be more aggressive in using them. Summonses are being issued and referred for enforcement in federal court much earlier in the process, especially in high-dollar cases.
The stakes have never been higher for businesses and individuals served with an IRS administrative summons, and advice from a seasoned tax litigation lawyer has never been more important when responding to a summons.
Successfully Navigating the Summons Process
While an individual who fails to comply with an IRS summons may be subject to fine or imprisonment for contempt, an individual who improperly responds to a summons by turning over documents to which the IRS is not entitled faces other legal risk.
Taxpayers and third parties often have valid legal reasons for challenging a summons, and the person making the challenge has the burden to prove. The summonsed individual may have sufficient proof that the IRS failed to meet its substantive prerequisites to summons enforcement, or may have Fourth Amendment protections against an unreasonable search of the summonsed records. In addition, taxpayers and third-parties may have the right to withhold records that are subject to attorney-client privilege or work product doctrine.
Our team has an efficient and refined process for handling IRS summonses. Initial steps include reviewing the summons and all responsive documents, analyzing how the summons and documents fit into the broader IRS investigation and understanding our client’s concerns and objectives. Next we review potential strategies with our client and design and execute a strategy for handling the summons that will efficiently achieve our client’s objectives while minimizing risk and balancing any competing interests.
Consult with a Knowledgeable Texas Tax Litigation Lawyer to Resolve a High-Stakes Tax Dispute
Often the only way to resolve a tax dispute is through litigation. Texas tax litigation lawyer Lawrence Brown has the experience and knowledge to develop an efficient, strategic plan of action for reaching a favorable result. Brown, PC always views the big picture to protect your legal rights, while mitigating damages to your brand and reputation arising out of a tax claim.