IRS Strikes Out

This past week a California civil jury comprised of three women and three men struck an overdue blow for freedom in the United States District Court of Northern California, San Jose Division. For those citizens and residents of the United States who believe that they cannot get fair treatment from our government and our legal system, this proves, at least in one specific case, that justice can prevail.

With good lawyers, a fair judge, and a willingness to stick to his guns, Thomas E. Seidel of Monterey, California overturned a tweleve year old IRS determination that he owed some $601,000.00+ in civil penalties, plus interest, all totaling more than $1,000,000.00. Mr. Seidel (along with his family) has been battling federal tax liens, levies on his property and that of his wife, including their wages, and seizures totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars from his wife's wholly owned corporation since before the turn of this century.

The IRS violated Mr. Seidel's statutory rights to notice and an opportunity to be heard and contest the IRS' determination of liability back in 1996. Ten years later, unable to previously collect, the IRS sued Mr. Seidel to reduce their determination (assessment) to judgment. Mr. Seidel, represented by Robert Alan Jones, a nationally known tax defense attorney, and Ms. Randy Pollock of Oakland, Ca. his local co-counsel, contested the IRS action. The defense attorneys alertly demanded all relevant government records and notes. These materials when delivered clearly showed that Mr. Seidel's rights had been violated. The court agreed, U.S. District Judge Jeremy Fogel ruling as a matter of law that notice was insufficient. However, the IRS through representation by the United States Attorney's Office Tax Division from San Francisco presented a case to indicate that the violation was waived by the defendant Mr. Seidel's consent to assessment.

Not so! ruled the jury. The defendant was not given his rights, and the government may not benefit by violating these rights. This is truly a landmark victory for the taxpayers, but hardly unexpected in cases tried by Robert Alan Jones against the IRS.

Mr. Jones has won three landmark cases in the past nine months against the IRS. The current case is USA v Thomas E. Seidel, Case no. 5:07-cv-04128 U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Previously on May 16, 2008, in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati, Ohio Mr. Jones was successful in having a complicated criminal tax conspiracy case against four defendants dismissed for violation of their speedy trial rights, Case no. 1:05-cr-45. Finally, on May 1, 2008 Mr. Jones and co-counsel, Mr. Declan O'Donnell, of Castle Rock, Colorado prevailed in U.S. Tax Court persuading Tax Court Judge Renato Beghe to re-open taxpayer fraud claims against the IRS that they had been misled into settling their Tax Court cases when IRS lawyers withheld vital information from them upon which their settlements were based. Hartman, Lewis, and Liu v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, Case no. 1371-85 (T.C. Memo. 2008-124)

Mr. Jones, a former federal prosecutor and member of the retired U.S. Marine Corps Reserve can be reached through info@acriminaltaxattorney.com for those who want to challenge the "judicial system" within the rules of the judicial system.