The Tasks Of A Tax Fraud Lawyer

We all have a responsibility to pay the federal government taxes each year but there are individuals and companies that do not believe this refers to them. Anyone found doing this is committing an offence under the tax laws of the United States. Evading tax is considered a very serious offence in every country as this affects the running of a government and perpetrators are dealt with severely. These types of offences are termed as white-collar crimes in legal circles, as ordinary citizens with no previous criminal record usually commit these crimes.

Tax fraud is a general term used to refer to offenses such as tax evasion, non-filing of tax returns, forgery, non-declaration of assets and income, misrepresentation of conditions for the purpose of tax exemption and other such actions related to the payment of taxes. Tax fraud lawyers are specialized attorneys that deal with issues of tax fraud and represent clients who are accused of tax fraud.

Tax fraud lawyers have only one function and are not used for advice on how to plan for future tax commitments. Often people or companies that just suspect the Internal Revenue Service is investigating their tax records will use the services of an attorney prior to any charges being levied. Often the purpose of hiring a tax fraud lawyer is to assist with negotiations between themselves and the IRS to come to an arrangement where the taxes due can be repaid without a term of imprisonment for tax fraud.

Many tax frauds are caused due to limited or erroneous knowledge of the tax laws and are not carried out with malice of forethought. Sometimes tax consultants misguide their clients with contradictory tax plans, which ultimately results in unplanned tax evasion.

Often attorneys will provide proof that their client was the unwilling victim of tax fraud and although still guilty it is usual for the punishment in these circumstances to be more lenient or the charges dropped completely. It is very important to select tax consultants carefully as only those with proper industry certifications and detailed exposure to such cases can help people solve what can be tricky situations with the IRS.

While a prison sentence should be the normal course of action; tax fraud lawyers will often be able to negotiate with the IRS to have this dropped in favor of the tax being repaid which is often impossible while a person is in custody.
The authorities ultimately want the tax liability to be paid so a good tax attorney will pursue the option of regular tax payments instead of prosecution and a custodial order.