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Beverly Hills

Knowledgeable Tax Lawyers Serving Clients in Beverly Hills

At the Ben-Cohen Law Firm, we have substantial experience helping clients with civil and criminal tax matters. We represent taxpayers against taxing authorities such as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Department of Justice, and California Franchise Tax Board (FTB). Our Beverly Hills tax attorneys have the knowledge and abilities of a larger firm, but we provide the more personal attention of a boutique firm to each client’s case. Our firm has a proven track record of success on both federal and state levels.

Tax Litigation

Tax disputes start with an audit, which is the mechanism by which the IRS or FTB reviews a tax return to determine whether the agency agrees with the income, expenses, and tax payments reported on a return. An audit may result in the agency proposing no changes, the agency proposing adjustments with which the taxpayer agrees entirely or partially, or the agency proposing adjustments with which the taxpayer does not agree at all. Sometimes there is a dispute, but not all tax disputes must result in litigation. Often, it is possible for taxpayers to negotiate with the agency to achieve a resolution to the dispute without litigation. However, in some cases, it is not possible to resolve the matter informally. It is crucial to retain an experienced Beverly Hills tax attorney who understands the complicated tax laws and rules, and who also has litigation skills.

Tax Appeals

If you are audited by the IRS and are unhappy with the outcome, you may want to file a protest with an IRS Appeals office, which is supposed to conduct an unbiased review and resolve the dispute without litigation. The Appeals officer sets the case for a conference to explore the possibility of settling the dispute. The officer will be looking at the likelihood that the IRS' position will be upheld by a court. In addition, the Appeals officer can weigh the hazards of litigation, both to the IRS and taxpayers, to propose a settlement offer. If the conference does not resolve the case to your satisfaction, you may move on to court. Moreover, once a tax dispute is adjudicated at the trial level, a party that disagrees with the outcome has a right to appeal that decision as well.

Criminal Tax Matters

Closely related to criminal charges is the eggshell audit, which is actually a civil IRS examination in which there is potential criminal exposure. In some cases, the agent finds no criminal issues, or the agent finds that there are some concerns but decides not to proceed with a criminal investigation. In other situations, a case might be referred to the Criminal Investigations Division of the IRS. In certain cases, if you are represented by an experienced tax attorney and litigator, it may be possible to contract with an accountant such that the attorney-client privilege also covers your accountants. Without what is called a Kovel arrangement, the accountant might be compelled to share sensitive, potentially damaging information.

The IRS often pursues criminal cases in which it believes that a taxpayer has underreported income, fraudulently overstated deductions, filed false income tax returns, failed to collect or pay employment taxes, conspired to obstruct the IRS, or made false statements to the IRS. The FTB pursues similar types of criminal charges at the state level.

If you are pursued by the Criminal Investigation Division, the IRS must provide approval for the case to be sent for prosecution. At each step, you have the opportunity to explain misunderstandings or establish why the government is incorrect about its position. It is important to have an experienced Beverly Hills criminal tax attorney at your side to maximize the chance that the matter is resolved without prosecution.

Consult an Experienced Tax Attorney in Beverly Hills and Beyond

Beverly Hills was originally a ranch where lima beans were cultivated, but it was incorporated in 1914 by investors and has become the home of many high-asset individuals and families since that time. It consists of about 35,000 residents with a median household income of about $90,000. If you are concerned about tax litigation, tax appeals, offshore assets, employment taxes, voluntary disclosures, or other tax matters, the Beverly Hills tax lawyers at the Ben-Cohen Law Firm may be able to advise or represent you. Contact us online or at (310) 272-7600 for an appointment with an IRS audit lawyer or assistance with another tax matter.


Client Reviews
I approached Mr. Ben-Cohen regarding a pending case with the State of California and my small business. During a time that was quite stressful, I found Mr. Ben-Cohen to be the perfect person to represent me and my company. He communicated with me in clear terms so that I understood everything that was taking place in a timely manner. He treated my situation with the type of candor you only find in a consummate professional and successfully negotiated a deal with the State of California that far exceeded my expectations. I found him to be kind, efficient, sensitive and nothing short of brilliant. I consider myself fortunate to have met him and highly recommend his services. I will not hesitate to use his firm in the future should a need arise. Google, We Care Spa
★★★★★
I am an international tax advisor and have worked with Pedram on more than a dozen difficult and challenging cases. Pedram's clients and fellow advisors highly respect him because he has an uncanny ability to quickly identify and work diligently to resolve his clients' issues. Pedram is pragmatic in his approach. He is transparent with his clients and dedicated to getting to a fair and reasonable outcome. I have attended an IRS Appeals conference with Pedram and would want no other attorney on my side. Pedram is extremely passionate in his work and representing his clients. He is also enjoyable to work with and develops very good relationships with his clients and fellow advisors. I highly recommend Pedram for any tax controversy work. Avvo, Curt
★★★★★
Top Drawer Tax Fraud Lawyer. Pedram got me out a CI jam I thought I would not resolve. He is also fair and reasonable with his billing. I interviewed 4 top Tax Fraud Lawyers in LA and went with Pedram...Glad I did! Google, Michael Jeppson
★★★★★
Pedram Ben-Cohen at Ben-Cohen Law Firm, PLC is one of the most incredible, creative, and caring attorneys I have ever dealt with. He gave us hope but also gave us the reality and worst case scenario. He fought for us tooth and nail. The attention and time Pedram put into the case was like no other. He charged us more than fair and was very reasonable in every aspect. He is not the kind of attorney that charges for every minute. I liked him very much not only as an attorney but as a person because he is very honest, is true to his integrity, and is dedicated to his clients. He loves what he does and has the passion to protect and defend his clients, which totally shows in his work and our outcome. We originally hired another attorney from a famous firm who basically did not give us much hope on our case . That is when we came to Pedram who won our case in a short amount of time and got us the outcome we were looking for. Because of Pedram and his creativeness, willingness, and dedication, he got us our favorable outcome. He is our go to attorney for sure, without a doubt. Avvo, Anonymous
★★★★★
A few years ago I had a major tax problem and I was looking for the right professional tax lawyer. I interviewed at least five experts and all of them were very professional. I am very picky. When I met Mr. Pedram Ben-Cohen, it took me no more than five minutes to decide that he was the one, and I was absolutely right with my intuition. He is very professional, knowledgeable, smart, and knows his job perfectly. In addition to all of his professional skills, as a person he is very friendly, pleasant, ready to help, and took care of me like I was his own family. I referred and recommended him to friends and family with tax problems and will continue to do so warmly to anyone. I know that he is able and will do his job the best way for his clients. He is my personal tax lawyer and expert and will remain so. Google, Shlomo Kattan
★★★★★
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