Independence Day: Appeals, Refund Claims, and the Taxpayer Advocate Under the TAS Act

For a tax controversy practice, this may be the most consequential hour of the series. The TAS Act would strengthen the independence of the IRS Independent Office of Appeals and, for the first time, require the IRS to respond to a refund claim within a defined period. The bill would also require a detailed written explanation of any disallowance and give taxpayers a statutory right to appeal it, suspending the two-year period to file suit while the appeal is pending.

Skadden’s Elizabeth P. Askey joins Frost Law’s Terry Lemons and Peter Haukebo to examine the bill’s codification of Appeals’ duty to weigh the hazards of litigation, its clarified right of appeal, and new authority for Appeals to hire its own counsel. The session then turns to an expanded Taxpayer Advocate Service, including the National Taxpayer Advocate’s access to IRS legal advice and continued operations during a lapse in appropriations.

Attendees leave knowing where the bill could provide insights and advantages for their practice and their clients.