Tax Justice Warriors

A look back at 2019 for broad tax issues and a recap of the Tax Justice Warriors podcast.  I did more interviews in 2019 than 2018 so I review that group.  I also look at the top tax news items for the year and what my focus was during the year.  My next episode will look at what I will focus on for 2020.

A follow-up to the LITC Grantee Conference held December 2019 in Washington, D.C.  I give background to panels I was on or attended, plus some tips for attending the conference.  The show goes a bit longer so I guess I had something to say on the conference.

Here are some tips that didn’t get on the episode:  I go to a nearby pharmacy and buy breakfast for the rest of the week so I don’t have to try and grab breakfast at a restaurant every morning.  I had leftover boxes from dinners that I ate at the brown bag lunches.  Also, the Grand Hyatt hotel is above the Metro Center stop for the Metro if you want to ride in from the Reagan Airport.

Each year, the American Bar Association Section of Taxation hosts a Low Income Taxpayer Representation Workshop in Washington, D.C.  Last week, the workshop’s focus was the Collection Due Process Summit Initiative.  We held two panels that looked at CDP history, the Summit Initiative, and how to work with the Taxpayer Advocate Service for systemic change.  Following that, there were breakout sessions focused on the stages of Notices, Appeals, and the Judicial levels.  I helped to plan and organize this year’s workshop, taking part in a panel, a breakout discussion on CDP notices and reporting back to the group.  I provide input from the CDP Notices breakout session and discuss the workshop.  It was a successful gathering of practitioners for fruitful education and discussion of CDP issues.

This week, I have been in Washington, D.C. to discuss LITC issues at our annual conference.  For that reason, I am presenting an interview with Samantha Galvin.  Samantha is an Associate Professor of the Practice of Taxation at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law.  She is also the Assistant Director of the Low Income Taxpayer Clinic at the university.  She blogs for Procedurally Taxing on designated orders from the U.S. Tax Court and was a clerk for the Tax Court.  We speak about designated orders, teaching tax courses and more.

Each December there is a conference to provide training for Low Income Tax Clinic clinicians in Washington, D.C.  I provide information on this year's conference - speakers, the types of sessions and topics.  I will be involved in different presentations on Collection Due Process and Social Media (discussing this podcast, Tax Justice Warriors).  If you will be at the conference, please come and chat with me.  It is a great time to learn and meet others in this field.

Hope you had a happy Thanksgiving!

This year, the Collection Due Process Summit Initiative will be the focus of the ABA Low Income Taxpayer Representative Symposium in Washington, D.C.  It will be held December 3 from 8:30 to noon at Morgan, Lewis and Bockius at low cost with CLE credit.  Go here to register:  https://www.americanbar.org/groups/taxation/events_cle/19litr_resources/

The CDP Summit meeting will include a panels about Opportunities for CDP Improvement and Approaching Change With the IRS.  There will be breakout sessions focused on CDP Notices, Appeals, and Tax Court.  In the meeting, you can give the CDP Summit Initiative feedback on improvements for the CDP process.  If you will be in the Washington, D.C. area that morning, we hope you can attend!

The Tax Court is based out of Washington, D.C. and sends its judges to 74 cities during the year.  The Kansas Legal Services Low Income Taxpayer Clinic covers Kansas City, Missouri, and Wichita, Kansas.  For the week of October 21 to 25, 2019, Judge Juan Vasquez came to those cities to hear cases.  I give a recap of the cases, trials I observed and trial tips he gave at a CLE presentation during the week.

At the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, I interviewed Erin Stearns, who is both an Associate Professor of the Practice of Taxation and Director of their Low Income Taxpayer Clinic.  We are both involved in planning the Collection Due Process Summit Initiative Workshop for December 3.  We co-authored an article for the ABA Tax Times on the CDP Summit Initiative and have presented on panels together.  Listen to find out more about her beginnings in tax and the growth of the CDP Summit Initiative.

Studies show that attorneys have high rates of loneliness, anxiety, depression, drug abuse and alcoholism.  We need to focus consistently for our physical, mental and emotional health.  By dealing with areas of stress and anxiety positively, that prevents them from building into substance abuse issues.   It also helps to decrease problems from building into malpractice or suicide.

I was part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association’s Wellness Committee.  The Wellness Committee hosted an all-day Lawyer Well-Being Summit on October 10.  I share some items about the speakers and topics discussed during the event.  I promise there will be tax talk once again next week!

This is an interview with James Creech at the American Bar Association 2019 Fall Tax Section Meeting in San Francisco.  James is a solo practitioner focusing on tax controversy cases, but he also hosts a podcast for the American Bar Association Tax Section called People in Tax.  Find out more about James in today's episode!

I will also be featured on an upcoming People in Tax Podcast.  Each interview allows you to learn more about active tax practitioners in the American Bar Association.  Please check out the podcasts here:  https://directory.libsyn.com/shows/view/id/peopleintaxpodcasts