Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Tax Attorney

Five questions, asked before any money moves, expose nearly every bad actor in the tax resolution industry - because legitimate practitioners answer them instantly and sales floors cannot. Take this list into every consultation, including the free one here.

Questions One Through Three: The Structure

One: Who exactly will work my case, and what is their license? You want a name and a bar or credential number you can verify tonight - not 'our team of tax professionals.' Two: Will you file a Form 2848 power of attorney, and when? The right answer is immediately; the 2848 is what makes the IRS deal with your representative, and firms that file only the 8821 information form are charging representation prices for mail-forwarding. Three: How are fees structured, and what happens if the strategy changes mid-case? Defined scopes, written engagement terms, and a straight answer about hourly versus flat - evasion here predicts evasion everywhere.

Questions Four and Five: The Substance

Four: What is your actual assessment of my situation? A practitioner gives you paths and tradeoffs - agreement versus offer versus hardship versus statute strategy - with the honest caveat that transcripts decide it. A closer gives you one program, always the same one, regardless of your facts. Five: What should I do today, before hiring anyone? Real professionals hand out free value reflexively: request your transcripts, calendar that deadline, do not sign that consent. Script-readers cannot, because the script's only action item is the contract.

The Bonus Question That Ends the Interview

Ask: 'Is there a version of my situation where I should not hire you?' An honest practitioner says yes and describes it - the streamlined agreement you can set up yourself, the CP2000 where the IRS is right, the penalty abatement that is one phone call. I tell people not to hire me regularly; it is the cheapest credibility a practice can buy, and the firms that cannot afford it are telling you why. Bring all six questions to the free consultation here. I will answer them on the spot, and then we will talk about your case.