Tax Court Litigation
Raleigh, North Carolina Tax Litigation Attorneys
The tax lawyers at the Murray Moyer, PLLC have experience with successfully resolving disputes before the U.S. Tax Court. A tax attorney’s goal in every tax controversy matter should be to resolve the tax dispute quickly, efficiently, at the earliest stage possible, and, if possible, without litigation. Occasionally, obtaining a successful result requires litigating before the Tax Court.
What is the Tax Court?
The U.S. Tax Court is established by Congress under Article I of the Constitution and by I.R.C. § 7441. By statute the Tax Court has 19 judges, appointed by the President, each for a 15-year term. See I.R.C. § 7443. The Tax Court provides taxpayers a forum to dispute the tax deficiency proposed by the IRS without having to pay the underlying tax liability. The Tax Court is based in Washington D.C., but its judges travel to hear cases in various cities around the country.
When the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issues a notice of deficiency, also known as the “statutory notice of deficiency” or “90-day letter,” it is indicating an intention to assess a tax deficiency. See Internal Revenue Code (I.R.C.) § 6212. In other words, having not resolved the case after your IRS audit and subsequent IRS Appeal, the IRS formally notifies you that it is assessing more tax than what was reported on your federal tax return. If you cannot pay the tax deficiency, then you have 90 days from issuance of the notice of deficiency to petition the Tax Court.