Tax Appeal Information & Advice From The Tax Lawyer

The Tax Appeals conference is presided over by the Appeals officer in charge of the case. Although the process is rather informal, the IRS and the Treasury Department provide some guidance as to how the conference is to be conducted in the Internal Revenue Manual and Treasury Regulations (1). To prepare for the tax appeals conference, the taxpayer’s representative should at least reviewed the IRS and Treasury materials, as well as all materials exchanged between the taxpayer and the IRS and applicable law related to the case.

In some cases, a taxpayer may believe that he or she is entitled to a refund from the IRS. A claim for refund is a tax appeal request to the Internal Revenue Service for reimbursement of all or a portion of taxes paid in prior years due to a mistake, correction, or a credit or loss that can decrease an earlier year’s tax liability. Refunds may be granted when the taxpayer can show overpayment to the IRS (1).

One of the greatest concerns of a taxpayer in the tax appeal process is that the appeals officer will discover new issues to investigate or choose to reopen a closed case. In 2012, the IRS released a new set of protocols for tax appeals Officers to follow. Under the appeals Judicial Approach and Culture Program (AJAC), the IRS stressed that the job of appeals is not to raise additional issues or legal arguments (1).

Sometimes at the conclusion of an audit, a taxpayer may be in disagreement with the audit findings. The court of appeals exists specifically for these occasions. However, in order to protest the determination of the IRS examiner at the conclusion of an IRS audit, the taxpayer must satisfy certain requirements.

In a civil appeals matter, Appeals Officers typically have brought authority to reach settlement agreements with taxpayers by considering the various hazards of litigation. The hazards of litigation standard used by Appeals states that Appeals Officers can consider the potential outcome at trial when deciding whether to settle a controversy with the taxpayer.

In deciding whether to file a tax appeal written protest, a taxpayer should consider all the pros and cons of the tax appeal process. In a previous article, we described the benefits of filing a tax appeal. Here, we will discuss some of the potential drawbacks of the tax appeal process.

In order to properly file a tax appeal disagreeing with income, estate, or gift tax, the taxpayer must file with the Appeals Office. The appeal must contain a written protest stating why the IRS’s findings are incorrect (1). There are certain exceptions to the protest requirement, namely (1) in an office examination case, or (2) in a field examination or any other case if the amount of the proposed additional tax, proposed overpayment, or refund is $2,500 or less (2).