Current Tax Compliance - Why It is So Important Last week, I wrote a blog called: 3 Things You Need to Know About Back Taxes. The big takeaway I wanted readers to leave with is: the IRS wants you to get into tax compliance! I think it is...
Income Taxes
Insights and Advice from Your Trusted Tax Resolution CompanyWhat Do All Those IRS Collection Notices Mean?
My firm represents taxpayers with tax problems across Maine. A frequent question I receive is: what do all these IRS collection notices mean?! These notices serve two purposes: one, they inform the taxpayer of how much is due and two, the...
Getting Divorced? What You Need to Know About Your Unpaid Tax Liabilities.
Getting Divorced? What You Need to Know About Your Unpaid Tax Liabilities. Getting divorced is unpleasant, even in the best of situations, and nothing can make it more unpleasant than when issues from the marriage continue to haunt the...
Foreign Account Reporting in a Nutshell
FBAR and FATCA are two laws impacting taxpayers with foreign assets. This post discusses the basics of both laws.
What to Know if the IRS Levies Your Assets.
If you owe money to the IRS, you face possible seizure of your assets such as wage garnishment or a bank levy. In some rare cases, the IRS can even foreclose on your home. This post is intended to give you some basic knowledge of what an...
Tax Tips for Year-End Charitable Giving
Give and you shall receive, as the saying goes. If you are considering a year-end gift of money or property to a worthy charity, here are some tips on maximizing your charitable tax deduction: Keep good records! Regardless of the amount...
Getting Divorced? Here are Some Tax Traps to Avoid.
Divorce is tough. No doubt about it. So avoiding more bad news is probably a good idea. While I can't make divorce any easier here are some tips on avoiding tax troubles in your divorce: 1. Filing a joint return in your final year of...
When is a Tax Return not a Tax Return?
In Re Giacchi, on appeal to the District Court E.D. of Pennsylvania Good question. The answer can mean a great deal to a debtor trying to discharge a stale tax debt. Mr. Giacchi, hailing from Pennsylvania, sought out bankruptcy protection...
I Fought the Law and the Law Won: Error by Tax Preparer Does Not Absolve Taxpayer
In Devy v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2015-110, a recent tax court opinion, Mr. Devy found out the hard way that his trust in his tax preparer, aptly named Tax Whiz, was misplaced. Tax Whiz prepared his return and claimed for him an...
Can’t Pay Your Taxes? File Your Tax Return Anyway!
As a tax attorney I often hear the lament, "I can't file my taxes because I don't have the money!" Not having the money to pay your taxes is not great but IRS stormtroopers are not going to flood into your home to carry you off to some...
One Simple Mistake Taxpayers Make When Contacted by the IRS
IRS notices are important. Inside the IRS lays out what it wants from you. Failure to open the letter means you may be giving up valuable rights. Don’t make this simple mistake – open the letter and read it!
High Flying Attorney Gets His Wings Clipped by the IRS
T.C. Memo. 2015-1 Tulane Meredith Peterson v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue (Issued January 5, 2015) The Story Arcadia, California resident Tulane Peterson loved to fly. While licensed as an attorney since 1997, his first true and...