Lawyer in Illinois

  For most taxpayers, the amount that they owe in taxes is pre-paid to the IRS through employee withholdings, amounts deducted by employers from each paycheck throughout the year. These withholdings are required to be paid to the US Treasury by the employer periodically throughout the year. But, for those persons who are self-employed, independent contractors and the like, paying federal income taxes to the US Treasury can often get put to the side. Because the self-employed individual receives compensation directly from its customers, rather than the periodic paycheck that most people receive, the IRS requires self-employed persons to make estimated tax payments on April 15th, June 15th, September 15th and January 15th of the following year. Quarterly estimated tax payments must be made by a self-employed individual if he or she expects to owe at least $1,000 in tax for the current tax year. A self-employed taxpayer is required to make the quarterly estimated tax payments in amoun...

  The United States Tax Court, located in Washington, D.C., is comprised of traveling Judges who preside over civil tax trials in cities throughout the United States. In order to have your case heard in Tax Court, a taxpayer must file a Tax Court Petition within 90 days of receipt of his or her Statutory Notice of Deficiency. This Notice, often called "the ticket to Tax Court", tells you that the IRS has proposed adjustments to your tax return and determined that you owe additional tax (and interest...and maybe even penalties). If you disagree with the Statutory Notice of Deficiency, you can begin  tax litigation  proceedings by filing a Tax Court Petition which outlines the reasons why you believe the IRS erred in assessing additional tax against you. You do not have to pay the amount that the IRS proposes to assess in order to file the Tax Court Petition and to go to Tax Court. The ability to have a judge determine who is right and who is wrong before you are legally ob...

  Once the shock has worn off from being   audited   by the IRS or finding that the IRS wants to collect those back taxes you have not paid, you will want to know what your   options   are to resolve the tax debts. There are a number of tax solutions that a taxpayer may avail himself or herself of to finally get a good night's sleep. One such tax solution, the Installment Agreement, is key to paying down and eventually eliminating the tax debt. And, while it may not cause all memories of your dealings with the IRS to fade into oblivion, it sure will help. The  Installment Agreement  is an agreement entered into between the IRS and the taxpayer to pay down the IRS-assessed liability, i.e., your tax debt, over time. If you qualify for an Installment Agreement, the IRS will establish a payment plan where the taxpayer agrees to make monthly payments and in return the IRS will not issue bank levies or wage garnishments. The Installment Agreement payments ar...

  The North Carolina Department of Revenue has launched a fight against approximately 350 online retailers. The North Carolina Department of Revenue is seeking the identity of the purchasers with North Carolina addresses as well as a description of the purchases. The most visible case is a   North Carolina sales tax audit   of Amazon.com. In the Amazon.com case alone there are about 50 million purchases covered. North Carolina charges a "use tax" on out-of-state purchases of goods for use or consumption in North Carolina. If you or your business has purchased goods from Amazon.com since 2003, the North Carolina Department of Revenue may get your identity and a description of what you purchased. If you have not paid the North Carolina use tax on these purchases, you may be the subject of a North Carolina Department of Revenue use tax audit in the future. Lucky for you, Amazon.com is not giving up without a fight and neither is the American Civil Liberties Union. Amazon fil...

  The North Carolina Department of Revenue has launched a fight against approximately 350 online retailers. The North Carolina Department of Revenue is seeking the identity of the purchasers with North Carolina addresses as well as a description of the purchases. The most visible case is a  North Carolina sales tax audit  of Amazon.com. In the Amazon.com case alone there are about 50 million purchases covered. North Carolina charges a "use tax" on out-of-state purchases of goods for use or consumption in North Carolina. If you or your business has purchased goods from Amazon.com since 2003, the North Carolina Department of Revenue may get your identity and a description of what you purchased. If you have not paid the North Carolina use tax on these purchases, you may be the subject of a North Carolina Department of Revenue use tax audit in the future. Lucky for you, Amazon.com is not giving up without a fight and neither is the American Civil Liberties Union. Amazon filed...

  The North Carolina Department of Revenue has launched a fight against approximately 350 online retailers. The North Carolina Department of Revenue is seeking the identity of the purchasers with North Carolina addresses as well as a description of the purchases. Marital property division lawyer . The most visible case is a North Carolina sales tax audit of Amazon.com. In the Amazon.com case alone there are about 50 million purchases covered. North Carolina charges a "use tax" on out-of-state purchases of goods for use or consumption in North Carolina. If you or your business has purchased goods from Amazon.com since 2003, the North Carolina Department of Revenue may get your identity and a description of what you purchased. If you have not paid the North Carolina use tax on these purchases, you may be the subject of a North Carolina Department of Revenue use tax audit in the future. Lucky for you, Amazon.com is not giving up without a fight and neither is the American Civi...

  South Carolina DME sales tax audits are ramping up throughout SC. The Department of Revenue is opening sales tax audits for Durable Medical Equipment retailers requesting lots of records and information. The audit period is generally three years. Cybercrime lawyer . If you have received a South Carolina SC DME sales tax audit notice you do have options. South Carolina has several sales tax exemptions that apply to certain durable medical equipment or DME items. For example, South Carolina Code of Laws provides: SECTION 12-36-2120. Exemptions from sales tax. Exempted from the taxes imposed by this chapter are the gross proceeds of sales, or sales price of: (28)(a) medicine and prosthetic devices sold by prescription, prescription medicines used to prevent respiratory syncytial virus, prescription medicines and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, cancer, lymphoma, leukemia, or related diseases, including prescription medicines used to ...

  If you are reading this, chances are you are looking for a tax professional to assist you in your dealings with the Internal Revenue Service or a state taxing authority. The best advice when hiring a tax professional is to do your homework. Do not be fooled by slick advertisements and sales pitches. Child visitation . Doing a little research before you hire someone can save you lots of time and frustration down the line, not to mention saving your hard earned money from going down the drain. Unfortunately, there are outfits that prey on unwitting consumers looking to resolve their tax debts. These companies often promise the world and never deliver, all the while charging you for services you may not receive in a timely manner. Many of our clients have come to us seeking help which they thought they had previously obtained, only to discover that nothing had been done on their case for months on end.

  The average American's wallet has probably felt quite a bit lighter in the past few years. And so has the IRS'. Like much of the American public, the years-long recession has the IRS lodged firmly between an economic rock-and-a-hard-spot. But, unlike most Americans, the IRS' vast network of resources, both monetary and from a personnel standpoint, pretty much guarantees that it won't go hungry. Due to the economic downturn, the amount of tax that the IRS has collected has decreased 3.3 percent, while government spending continues to increase. Although about 84 percent of all taxes are paid on time by taxpayers, the other 16 percent who either under-report income or overstate deductions results in about a $300 billion per year loss to the IRS. In order to combat these substantial losses, the IRS has ramped up its tax collections efforts through the addition of thousands of new IRS employees and smarter, more powerful computers designed to sniff-out taxpayers who aren...

 I am a big fan of college football and spend most of my fall Saturdays watching football games. Sometimes I wonder what the coaches are thinking when they call certain plays. Last fall during a particularly exciting play where the UGA quarterback was sacked by the opposing team's defensive end, I wondered what the left tackle was thinking. Of course, he may have been thinking about the next play, or perhaps the post-game festivities, but I guarantee you that he was not thinking about the tax ramifications of the Nike insignia on the quarterback's jersey. Though it may have been the last thing on the left tackle's mind, President Adams and the IRS have given it some thought. Lawyer office in Illinois . Corporate sponsorships are just one example of unrelated business income that is the prey of a new onslaught of IRS audits targeting colleges and universities. UGA in particular has been targeted, and the IRS is auditing the income it receives from subsidiaries such as parki...

  I am a big fan of college football and spend most of my fall Saturdays watching football games. Sometimes I wonder what the coaches are thinking when they call certain plays. Last fall during a particularly exciting play where the UGA quarterback was sacked by the opposing team's defensive end, I wondered what the left tackle was thinking. Lawyer office in Illinois . Of course, he may have been thinking about the next play, or perhaps the post-game festivities, but I guarantee you that he was not thinking about the tax ramifications of the Nike insignia on the quarterback's jersey. Though it may have been the last thing on the left tackle's mind, President Adams and the IRS have given it some thought. Corporate sponsorships are just one example of unrelated business income that is the prey of a new onslaught of IRS audits targeting colleges and universities. UGA in particular has been targeted, and the IRS is auditing the income it receives from subsidiaries such as park...

  When I was a child, my mother surprised me one glorious morning with a Rottweiler puppy. She justifiably handed me a piece of steak and explained that I was to give the steak to the Rottweiler because it would never bite the hand that feeds it. Lawyer firm in Illinois . And, fingers in tact years later, she was correct. It seems the IRS never learned that lesson--their newest (and perhaps oldest) targets are restaurant owners. (Not surprising, as we all knew only audits satiate that IRS hunger). The IRS requires employers to file an annual tip allocation return, Form 8027. While approximately 50,000 returns were filed last year, an independent firm the IRS hired estimates that figure should be tripled. The IRS plans to align its files with the independent firm's information and send letters of inquiry to non-filers. If you own a restaurant and have not filed Form 8027 or know that there are problems with the form you filed, you need to contact a tax professional before the IRS ...

  The IRS has selected approximately 260,000 returns claiming the first-time homebuyer credit for correspondence audits so far in 2010. The audits are apparently the result of filers failing to include sufficient documentation with their tax returns. These correspondence audits constitute approximately 21% of all correspondence examinations. Best lawyer firm in Illinois . Accordingly, the IRS is truly turning up the heat this summer on those claiming the first-time homebuyer credit. The IRS requires homebuyers claiming the credit to attach the following: A copy of the settlement statement showing all parties' names and signatures, the property address, the contract sales price, and the date of purchase In the case of a mobile home, a copy of the executed retail sales contract In the case of a newly constructed home where you do not have an executed settlement statement, a copy of the certificate of occupancy Additional documentation may be necessary, as indicated below: Homebuye...

 If you have ever been audited by the Internal Revenue Service, then you know audits are no walk-in-the-park. They can take a long time to conclude and that's not good for your nerves. However, eventually they do come to an end and the IRS will provide you with a copy of the Revenue Agent's Report and proposed changes. Luckily for taxpayers this letter is not the end of the road. You have 30 days to file a written protest as to why you disagree with the proposed changes. Lawyer firm in Illinois . The IRS Office of Appeals will review your protest and the audit file and contact you or your tax controversy attorney to schedule a conference. The function of the IRS Office of Appeals is to settle tax disputes, which typically arise in the form of proposed adjustments after an audit, in a more relaxed and informal way. The Appeals conference is conducted by correspondence, by telephone or in person. At the conference, you or your tax controversy attorney will meet with an Appeals O...

 Imagine a family member passes away and leaves the family farm or business to you. Internal Revenue Code Section 2032A allows for a Special Use Value to be applied to family farming operations as well as closely held businesses. However there are several requirements that must be met to claim the reduced value on the Form 706, United States Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return. If these requirements are not met then you may receive a Notice of Deficiency from the IRS showing a vast increase in your taxable estate, coupled with a significant increase in tax and the imposition of hefty penalties. Lawyer firm in Illinois . Unfortunately, this scenario can and does happen, as the IRS may find that the taxpayer insufficiently established the method of valuation. In general, the value of the gross estate of a decedent includes the value at the time of his or her death of all real and personal property. However, the executor or personal representative can often significa...

  After various studies pertaining to accuracy in the reporting of income and expenses by cash intensive businesses, the IRS has created a new guide for its agents to refer to when conducting audits of such firms. With the tax "gap" reportedly at hundreds of billion of dollars, the IRS has begun training its Revenue Agents to be more savvy in interviewing business owners and recognizing indicators of unreported income. Lawyer firm in Illinois .  According to the guide, businesses that make a routine practice of misappropriating cash often have a pattern of reporting losses and/or low profit margins that are insufficient to sustain the business or its owners. The IRS lists the following indicators of unreported income: A lifestyle that cannot be supported by the income reported A business that reports losses each year yet continues to operate Account balances increasing annually despite reporting of low net profits or losses Business debt decreases, remains low, or doesn'...

  A relatively common occurrence with many businesses, is a failure to pay over withheld income and employment taxes. Often cash-strapped businesses hope that conditions will improve and decide to use the withheld taxes as working capital to fund operations. The Internal Revenue Service and other taxing authorities HATE being an "unwilling participant in a floundering business". In response to all too often finding itself as a unwitting lender, the Internal Revenue Service received authority from Congress in 1954 to assess personal liability against "responsible persons that willfully fail to pay over" withheld income and employment taxes. The Trust Fund Recovery Penalty results in personal liability for 100% of the withheld income and employment taxes ("Trust Fund" taxes) for every "responsible person" assessed. While deemed a penalty, the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty is a collection device used by the Internal Revenue Service to recoup those t...