The IRS Office of Appeals has been making changes to how it conducts appeals conferences. In this past few years, these changes have made it difficult to obtain an in-person conference. The IRS recently issued interim guidance AP-08-1118-0013 to authorize appeals to allow for more in-person conferences. About the IRS Office of Appeals The IRS… Continue reading IRS Appeals Guidance on In-Person Conferences
Category: Tax Procedure
The Dilemma: File A Timely or An Accurate Tax Return?
If you have an ongoing dispute with the IRS for one or more years and the outcome of that dispute will impact the current year, can you take a wait-and-see approach for filing the current year’s tax return? Or should you wait to file an amended tax return after the audit? The Namakain v.… Continue reading The Dilemma: File A Timely or An Accurate Tax Return?
The IRS Isn’t Charged With Knowledge of Other Federal Agencies
The IRS only has to mail a notice of deficiency to a taxpayer’s last known address in order to assess or record a tax liability for the taxpayer. This “last known address” rule is often the subject of disputes. The Sadek v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2018-174, case provides an example where information available to the… Continue reading The IRS Isn’t Charged With Knowledge of Other Federal Agencies
Whistleblower Cannot Remain Anonymous
We have previously written about the court’s position that serial whistleblowers, those who submit more than one whistleblower claim with the IRS, cannot remain anonymous when litigating the right to their whistleblower claims. In Whistleblower 7208-17 v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2018-118, the court confirms that this extends to those who use public information to submit… Continue reading Whistleblower Cannot Remain Anonymous
When Forged Signatures Suffice: The Tacit Consent Exception
A tax return has to be signed to be valid. But what if the return is signed by someone else? Is a tax return with a forged signature a valid tax return? The court addressed this in Coggin v. United States, No. 1:16-CV-106 (M.D.N.C. 2018). Facts & Procedural History The taxpayer relied on her attorney to… Continue reading When Forged Signatures Suffice: The Tacit Consent Exception
Perception Can Be As Important as Substance in Tax Disputes
Taxpayers voluntarily submit information to the IRS. The IRS not only evaluates the substance of this information, but also the taxpayer’s candor in preparing and providing the information. The perception of candor is just as important as the substance in many cases. The Guess v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2018-97, provides an example of how things can… Continue reading Perception Can Be As Important as Substance in Tax Disputes
Loaning Money to Business Triggers Trust Fund Penalty
You work hard to build a business, you find success over the years, and then you find out that your long term accountant did not remit payroll taxes and you owe a significant balance. What do you do? The recent McClendon v. United States, No. 17-20174 (5th Cir. 2018) case provides some answers. The Facts & Procedural… Continue reading Loaning Money to Business Triggers Trust Fund Penalty
Shareholder Cannot Make S Corp. Separately Stated Item Election
S corporation’s account for separately stated items that flow through to the shareholder’s tax returns. They are computed on page 3 of the Form 1120S and then listed separately on the Schedule K-1. The idea for breaking these items out separately is that they can impact the shareholder’s individual returns differently. That makes sense, but… Continue reading Shareholder Cannot Make S Corp. Separately Stated Item Election
Court Says No Legal Right to IRS Appeals Review
Does the Taxpayer Bill of Rights create a legal right to have a tax dispute considered by the IRS Office of Appeals? The court recently addressed this question in Facebook, Inc. v. Internal Revenue Service, No. 17-cv-06490-LB (N.D. Calif. 2018), concl…
Court Says No Legal Right to IRS Appeals Review
Note: This article was not updated to account for the Taxpayer First Act. The Taxpayer First Act basically reversed this court case. Does the Taxpayer Bill of Rights create a legal right to have a tax dispute considered by the IRS Office of Appeals? The court recently addressed this question in Facebook, Inc. v. Internal Revenue… Continue reading Court Says No Legal Right to IRS Appeals Review