A Tax lawyer is the person who represents you when the IRS demands payment of back taxes or when the IRS demands some other type of tax debt relief. A tax lawyer has to complete intensive legal training before he is qualified to represent individual clients in IRS audits and legal proceedings. Most often, lawyers also receive an undergraduate degree in a similar field (like business or accounting) before they can even begin to practice law. A tax lawyer must therefore be extremely knowledgeable about taxation as well as the laws and regulations that govern the collection of federal tax debts.
Tax lawyers can handle some very serious tax fraud and criminal cases such as tax evasion, tax fraud or fraudulent filing of tax returns. In such cases, the tax attorney may use sophisticated tax fraud techniques and methods to fight back against the government. For instance, the tax lawyer might use improper methods to try and get back taxes that the client simply cannot afford. Some common tax frauds include: structuring tax returns, filing tax returns with wrong dates, using fake bank statements, not reporting profits, or filing tax returns which are incorrect.
The local tax attorneys charge their clients based on a contingency fee basis. This means that they only get paid if their client’s case is successful. The contingency fee means that the tax lawyer does not charge any money before the attorney obtains his/her client’s success. Some local tax attorney firms even offer free consultation to potential tax clients. In this way, the tax lawyer not only helps the client prepare his/her tax documents, but the local tax attorney also helps the client to prepare for the actual audit by using his/her legal skills.
Another thing that tax attorneys usually have is experience dealing with tax fraud and criminal cases. Certified public accountants or CPAs, as tax lawyers are sometimes called, have the necessary accounting and legal skills to help their clients avoid being charged with fraud or criminal charges. Certified public accountants (CPA) can assess the tax liabilities and recommend ways to resolve them. Certified public accountants have gone to college and obtained a four-year degree in accounting, and they are required to take a specific exam to become certified public accountants.
Tax debt can be tricky. Many times, tax lawyers will be able to help taxpayers resolve tax matters with the IRS. Tax debt can occur because of mistakes on the part of the taxpayer or a mistake by the IRS. In some cases, a tax lawyer will be able to get a taxpayer’s tax debts forgiven. In other cases, the tax lawyer may be able to have the IRS to reduce the tax liability.
Some tax attorneys offer their services on a contingency fee basis. This means that they will only get paid if they win the case. The more successful a tax lawyer is, the more he/she will be able to charge. Therefore, it is very important that you consider all of your options before you hire a tax attorney near you.