Why Use a Lawyer for Your Tax Problems

What Are the Differences Between Tax Lawyers and Accountants?

Tax lawyers and accountants cover some of the same territory, but they use different approaches. A tax lawyer starts out with the law and insures that the law is applied. As the law generally favors the taxpayer, this is an advantage to the client of a lawyer. Lawyers talk for a living; accountants make sense of the financial flows in a household or a company. And just as very few lawyers are comfortable with tax, only a few accountants are comfortable with a dispute.

An accountant may know some of the same law, but he usually does not have the training in presenting a case that a lawyer acquires. Lawyers have more experience in handling confrontation. If your matter is contested by the IRS, a lawyer may be better for you.

What About National Tax Services?

If you choose a lawyer, you choose someone who has a professional obligation of responsibility to you. Lawyers are subject to discipline, and possible loss of license, by their state Bar. The national tax service has no governing body; there's no one to make sure they are doing the job correctly. And though some of the national tax services employ lawyers, usually you will be dealing with para-professionals of one sort or another.

If you retain a lawyer, you can speak directly to the lawyer about your case, not just an "intake person" or your "case supervisor" or another para-professional.

We have successfully handled cases in which tax services had submitted papers with gross errors. Thanks to our expertise, when the corrected papers were submitted, the cases resolved.