Tax Attorney Los Angeles

There are a variety of issues and reason to hire a tax attorney Los Angeles that specializes in business taxes.  Your personal reason may not have even made this list.  The most important reason of all is truly to ensure that you keep your business healthy, profitable and operational during a difficult recession and economy in Los Angeles, in California, in the US and worldwide.

For any business big or small, tax preparation is one part of the business where you can’t afford to make any mistakes. Mistakes can often cost you additional taxes, interest rates, and penalties, and that’s just for starters. If the IRS slaps you with a tax audit, that’s when the mistakes become very expensive. An IRS tax audit require countless hours of gathering and preparing records. Now if you want to avoid an IRS audit, prevention is really better than cure, which is one reason why you should hire an IRS tax attorney. If attorney’s fees intimidate you, think of all these benefits of having professional help:

1. Save on time.

Learning about your tax obligations and what you must do in order to meet them is time consuming, if only because of the myriad of tax obligations that you need to fulfill. A tax attorney, being already educated in taxation, can readily tell you what you need to know and what you need to do.

2. Speed up start up

In setting up a business, you will have to deal with the IRS and state tax agencies from day one. Learning about how the tax agencies are involved in business start up is not something you should be learning on the job (obviously want revenues coming in ASAP). A tax attorney can help you set-up your business from day one.

3. Tax Year Decision

A tax attorney can help you determine what the most appropriate tax year is for your business, as well as ensure you’re complying with the requirements.

4. The Math on Income

There are different forms of business income. The IRS taxes on gross income, which can include goods, property, services, bartering, and sales income. A tax attorney can clarify what your obligations are. If you fail to report an item as gross income, the IRS will impose taxes, interest, and penalties.

5. The Math on State Taxes

Many businesses get income from doing business outside of the state where they are registered. Being aware of the tax obligations of conducting business outside of your state is equally important to knowing your obligations in the state you are in. A tax attorney can guide you through this complex area of taxation.

6. The Math On Employee Taxes

Even when you have no “employees,” if you are as a sole proprietor, you are usually considered both an employer and an employee, and the tax implications of this fact can be complicated. A tax attorney can clarify what your responsibilities are.

Author: Chris Keenard

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Keenard

A tax attorney Los Angeles can assist you with your IRS tax debt and tax relief solutions.  You should not take on the IRS alone, you should have legal counsel and legal represenation with a tax attorney to ensure that you resolve the tax matter and are able to move on without that stress and worry.

Tax payers having problems with the IRS often wonder when they need the assistance of an IRS tax attorney versus trying to handle these problems on their own. The question as to whether or not a tax lawyer is needed can be very important because many options available to taxpayers, whether or not they have filed their back tax returns, have definitive time frames.

The short answer to when do you need IRS tax attorney help is simple. You should seek the assistance of an IRS tax attorney as soon as you start thinking you might. If there is any question in your mind as to whether or not you need a lawyer to help you with IRS issues, then chances are you already passed the threshold of when one may be of great assistance to you.

The IRS has many different collection options at their disposal and will be aggressive in their collection of perceived or real back taxes, penalties, and interest. Did you know, however, that you have legal rights that the IRS may have violated? Did you know that you can sue the IRS for improper actions? An experienced and qualified tax lawyer will know this and should be able to protect your rights.

Every day the IRS makes mistakes and those mistakes can cause significant harm to taxpayers who may or may not have violated tax laws. Even if you believe you made mistakes in the filing of your taxes that does not mean you do not have recourse. You need to make sure your rights are protected by having a qualified tax attorney review your particular circumstances and provide you with information about what, if any, recourse you have.

Author: Karen Kirby

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Karen_Kirby

Tax attorneys Los Angeles can assist you with your estate taxes and estate tax planning.  Even with a current recession, you may have assets that you want to protect for your heirs, and you know that this recession will not last forever and the value of your assets will again increase over time, which could result in huge tax burdens for your heirs if you do not plan your estate properly.  Even with an economic downturn it is important to look to the future and plan now for the decades ahead.

Question: What do most people do during a recession?

Answer: They cut back on everything, of course.

They may cut back on dining out, vacations, gifts, and other things considered nonessential. One example of a “nonessential” matter might be their estate plans. An estate plan seems like something that can wait; something which can be taken care of some future time. But an estate plan should never be considered a “nonessential.”

The reason for this is simple: There are some things which can be controlled, while other matters cannot. Personally, I love dining out. Eating out, however, is obviously not essential. Although I love the freedom of dining in a restaurant, it’s obviously less expensive to cook. While I may be able to restrain my urge to dine out during hard economic times, there are other matters where I exercise little, if any, control — like the unpleasant issues of disability, illness and death. The fact that these events are often unexpected shows why estate planning should not be left for later, but should be dealt with today.

However, estate planning is different from other products and services. If you don’t buy a new refrigerator, you either do without, or continue using the old one. If you don’t buy a vacation, you generally stay at home. But this is not the case with an estate plan. Whether you realize it or not, everyone has an estate plan right now. The state has devised a plan for those who have never written a Will or a trust. Through the laws of intestacy, each state dictates the post death transfer of property for those who die without a Will. For example, in California, when a husband dies “intestate” (i.e., without a Will) his property will be divided in certain proportions between his surviving wife and children. But most of my clients would prefer to have their surviving spouse — often the widow — receive their entire estate, reasoning that her future earning power is much less than that of the children, and that she has a greater immediate need for the money. Yet this concern would not dictate the result in California. Should the husband die without a Will, his property will be split between his wife and children. This would be the case even if (for example) the children are incredibly wealthy, and the surviving wife lives in a public housing project in abject poverty.

Planning your estate takes control from the state, and returns control to you as the estate planning consumer. Having a Will returns control: No longer does your state legislature have the final say concerning your estate plan. Also, while a Will is a good estate planning tool, in many cases a trust is much better. Generally, owners of real property incur much less cost in transferring property through a trust than through a Will. Often with Wills it becomes necessary to open up a probate proceeding. This is usually not the case with a trust.

The reason for this added expense is simple: A probate proceeding is really nothing more than a specialized lawsuit, and in a lawsuit lawyers and the court want to be paid. While other states may differ, in California both attorney and executor fees are based upon the value of the estate as directed by a payment schedule in the Probate Code. Those fees are paid directly from the property in the estate. For example, under California Probate Code section 10800, a modest estate of $300,000 going through a California probate will cost $9,000 in attorneys fees. If the administrator or executor charges full statutory fees the cost will double to the amount $18,000. A slightly larger estate of $500,000 would cost $13,000 in counsel fees, with a grand total of $26,000 should the executor/administrator also charge his or her fees. Other costs such as filing fees and appraiser fees (called a court “referee” in California) would be extra charges added to the counsel and executor fees.

Moreover, this is only a minimum statutory charge. If the attorney engages in extraordinary services, he or she may petition the court for additional fees.

These costs should be compared to that of a typical trust, which might cost a few hours of time in meetings with the attorney and a few thousand dollars to prepare. Therefore, an uncertain economy is not a justification to avoid planning your estate. Rather, it is a reason to take control and to ensure that your decisions are carried out at the smallest possible cost for your family and loved ones.

Author: Larry Stratton

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Larry_Stratton

You can find a tax attorney Los Angeles who can assist you in your estate planning, or they can refer you to an attorney who specializes in estate planning.  Estate planning is key to ensure that the investments, trusts, property and other assets of your estate are passed on to your loved ones, or a charity of your choosing, smoothly and flawlessly.  It is possible to minimize the tax liabilities your heirs will have upon inheriting your assets, discuss this with tax attorneys in Los Angeles.

At the end of the day, irrespective of the amount of money you have or your net worth, you definitely need a will otherwise you let the state decide who are your beneficiaries in the unfortunate event of your death. Therefore, you need to do some family planning. As a general rule, estate planning is comprised of several components.

For example, you need a will. As a general rule you should have this drafted by an attorney. The reason being is because there are several components such as the will ceremony. Do it yourself online will can cause extreme heartache especially when the formalities have not been followed. Each state has their own policies and procedures with respect to making a will. You will also need a power of attorney. This will help in the event that you become incapacitated. You will also need a medical power of attorney in because you are not coherent enough to make decisions on your own behalf.

Before you make your will, you will need to make an exhaustive list of all your assets. This would include both personal and real property. Real property is land and personal property is any other kind of property that is not affixed to the ground.

Also, it might be wise to discuss your will with your beneficiaries and your family so as to prevent any disputes in the unfortunate event of your death. In addition to taking inventories and speaking with your family regarding your will, you will need to make important decisions with respect to the tax consequences of your estate.

Author: James Samuel Bell