Tax Attorney

What a tax attorney actually does

Most of the job is procedure. Every agency runs on deadlines, forms, and internal rules, and the outcome of a case is set more by how those are handled than by how loudly anyone argues. In our practice the work looks like this:

• Audits. We file a power of attorney (Form 2848 for the IRS, CDTFA-392 for sales tax, the EDD’s DE 48 for payroll tax) so the agency talks to us instead of you. We answer the document requests, control the scope, and negotiate the report. Most audits are won or narrowed at this stage, before anyone mentions an appeal.
• Collections. When the tax is already assessed, the question is how it gets paid, or whether it does. Installment agreements, Offers in Compromise, currently not collectible status, penalty abatement, lien and levy releases, and Collection Due Process hearings are all legal procedures with their own rules and their own deadlines.
• Appeals and litigation. The IRS Independent Office of Appeals, the California Office of Tax Appeals, the CUIAB for payroll tax, and, when it has to go that far, the U.S. Tax Court or the district court. Only an attorney can take a case into court.
• Criminal exposure. Some audits are not really audits. When the facts include unreported cash, two sets of books, or an offshore account, the civil examination can turn into a referral to IRS Criminal Investigation. Handling that before it happens is a specialty inside the specialty.
• Planning. Entity structure, exits and sales, residency changes, and formal opinion letters. This is the part of the practice that keeps clients out of the first four.

Tax attorney, CPA, or enrolled agent?

The difference that matters is privilege. What you tell a lawyer is protected. What you tell your CPA can be subpoenaed, and in a criminal investigation the government routinely does exactly that: it summonses the accountant, the workpapers, and the notes from your conversations. CPAs and enrolled agents can represent you in an audit and at IRS Appeals, and for a straightforward examination with clean records that is often the right call. They cannot take a case to court, and they cannot give you privilege.

Here is how we sort it in practice. A CPA is the right professional for preparing returns, bookkeeping, and an audit where the only question is whether the receipts add up. A tax attorney is the right professional when there is a dispute over what the law requires, when the agency is proposing penalties, when collection has started, when more than one agency is involved, or when there is any chance the matter turns criminal. If your CPA tells you to call a lawyer, that is not a referral fee talking. That is someone who has seen where this goes.

When a case needs both, we use a Kovel arrangement: the accountant is retained by the law firm rather than by you, so the accounting work sits inside the attorney-client privilege. It is a standard structure, and it is the reason we can put a CPA on a criminal tax case without handing the government a witness.

When you actually need a tax attorney

Not every notice does. A CP2000 proposing a $1,800 change because a 1099 was left off a return is something most people can answer themselves. These are the situations where we tell callers, honestly, that they need a lawyer:

• An IRS revenue agent has been assigned to a field examination of your business.
• The audit involves cash, unreported income, or records you cannot fully produce. That is an eggshell audit, and the wrong answer to a routine question can create a criminal referral.
• You have received a Notice of Determination from the CDTFA or a Notice of Assessment from the EDD. Both carry 30-day deadlines to petition, and both become final and collectible if the deadline passes.
• The IRS or the FTB has filed a lien, issued a levy, or sent a Final Notice of Intent to Levy (LT11 or Letter 1058). A Collection Due Process request has to be filed within 30 days.
• An agency is proposing a fraud penalty, a responsible person assessment, or personal liability for a business tax.
• Special agents from IRS Criminal Investigation have contacted you, your accountant, your bank, or your employees.
• You have unreported foreign accounts or income and want to come forward before the government finds it. The voluntary disclosure window closes the day the IRS contacts you.

Sales tax and payroll tax audits belong on this list too, because the auditor’s sampling method and the classification of your workers decide the number, and both are legal questions. Our CDTFA audit attorney and EDD audit attorney pages walk through each.

What a tax attorney costs

Most of our engagements are a flat fee, quoted before we start. One-time flat fees start at $3,500 for defined work such as an opinion letter or a straightforward audit. Our most common structure is a monthly flat fee, also starting at $3,500 a month: we price the whole engagement up front and spread it into equal installments, and billing pauses when we are waiting on the agency. Hourly engagements run $350 to $675 an hour and we use them for litigation and matters that genuinely cannot be scoped. The full breakdown is on our pricing page. The first call is 15 minutes, with our intake team, and free.

The question underneath the fee question is whether the fee is worth it, and the honest answer depends on the number. A $12,000 correspondence audit rarely justifies a lawyer. A $90,000 sales tax assessment built on a bad sample usually does, because the sample is where the money is.

How Brotman Law works

We are a tax law firm in San Diego, and tax law is the whole practice. Since the firm opened in December 2013 we have represented 400+ clients in audits, eliminated more than $100 million in tax penalties and interest, and resolved 2,200+ matters with the IRS, the FTB, the CDTFA, and the EDD. Every matter is worked by a team of two or three: I set the strategy, a senior attorney runs the file, and a case manager keeps you informed through a secure client portal. You will hear back within one business day, and you will not be handed to someone who has not read your file.

Federal work is national. The Internal Revenue Code, the IRS Manual, and the Tax Court are the same in every state, so we represent clients before the IRS from anywhere. California work is local by nature. FTB, CDTFA, and EDD matters run on California procedure and California forums, which is most of what we do all day. If you are in San Diego, our San Diego tax attorney page covers the local picture. If you are elsewhere in the state, start with California tax attorney.

Where to go from here

• IRS audit defense: correspondence, office, and field examinations, and the eggshell variety.
• IRS collections: liens, levies, installment agreements, Offers in Compromise, and CDP hearings.
• Criminal tax defense: IRS Criminal Investigation, grand jury subpoenas, and voluntary disclosure.
• CDTFA sales tax audits and EDD payroll tax audits: the two California agencies most likely to audit a business.
• Is Brotman Law right for me?: who we take, who we send elsewhere, and why.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a tax attorney or a CPA?

A CPA for preparation, bookkeeping, and simple audits. A tax attorney when there is a legal dispute, a penalty, a collection action, or any criminal exposure. The deciding factor is privilege: a CPA can be compelled to testify about what you told them. A lawyer generally cannot.

Can a tax attorney negotiate with the IRS?

Yes. With Form 2848 on file, the attorney handles every call, letter, and meeting with the IRS, negotiates the audit report, files the appeal, and negotiates collection alternatives such as an installment agreement or an Offer in Compromise. The IRS is a bureaucracy. It responds to process, documentation, and deadlines, and that is the work.

How much does a tax attorney cost?

At Brotman Law, flat fees start at $3,500, monthly flat-fee engagements start at $3,500 a month, and hourly work runs $350 to $675 an hour. You get the number before you sign. A free 15-minute call usually tells you which structure fits.

Can I hire a tax attorney in another state for an IRS problem?

Yes. IRS practice is federal and uniform, so a tax attorney can represent you before the IRS from any state. State matters are different. An FTB, CDTFA, or EDD case is best handled by a California-licensed attorney who works those agencies regularly.

What is the difference between a tax attorney and a tax resolution company?

A tax resolution company is a sales operation that often assigns your file to an enrolled agent after you pay. A tax attorney is licensed, personally accountable to the State Bar, bound by privilege, and able to take your case to court. If a company promises to settle for pennies on the dollar before it has seen your financials, it is describing an Offer in Compromise it has no idea whether you qualify for.