Tax offenses, like other types of white-collar crime typically involve non-violent, financially motivated decisions. Tax violations may involve any number of crimes including failing to file a tax return, falsifying information on a tax return, failing to report total income, selling untaxed goods, criminal tax fraud, schemes to defraud including material fraudulent representations, and hiding [...]

Yes. Although New York State and Federal prosecutions have similar components, federal matters focus on your federal tax consequences and liabilities while New York has jurisdiction only over your New York state tax return. It is possible that one of your returns was proper whereas the other was not. If both have alleged improper information, [...]

In New York, you would likely be contacted by the Department of Taxation and Finance or Internal Revenue Service. It is uncommon for the state to immediately file criminal charges and seek seizure or garnishing of wages. In certain cases, New York law allows for the filing, or in relevant circumstances refiling, of past years’ [...]

Usually, tax crimes come in the form of intentionally acting in a way to avoid paying your taxes. This may include false information in your returns, under-reporting income, or not reporting any specific source of income. It also covers inflating legitimate deductions or falsifying one or more deductions completely. It is also a tax crime [...]

Being selected for a tax audit does not automatically mean the government intends to charge you criminally, or even that they have uncovered any wrongdoing. However, even minor, or innocent mistakes can cause problems when uncovered during an audit. Usually audits are done either through the mail, or in-person at your home or business. Mail [...]

Possibly. Even if you do not believe you did anything improper, any mistake the audit uncovers could potentially result in serious consequences. Therefore, you should consult with a criminal lawyer who handles tax cases who can talk with you and provide advice and guidance. It is also important to work with an experienced Certified Public [...]

Yes.  Although an investigation may start as a civil inquiry, if any criminal conduct is identified you may be charged with a crime.  If you are convicted of a crime, you face monetary penalties in addition to incarceration and a criminal record.

Perhaps. In many instances, criminal investigations can resolve by reaching a negotiated settlement to avoid criminal prosecution.  If a settlement is reached, you can be ordered to stop performing a certain action or pay penalties, interest, and other monetary damages.

Yes. The prosecutor and the Judge will consider the seriousness of the tax evasion, the amount of money owed, your ability to repay the taxes, penalties, and interest and any other history you have. For these reasons, it is important to work with a criminal defense lawyer who handles tax prosecutions and an accountant as [...]

In New York, any felony, including tax crimes, has a statute of limitations of five (5) years. Federally, the statute of limitations is six (6) years. Usually, the time begins to run after the last criminal act took place, which in many cases may be the filing of the return itself.