EXPERTISE

Steve handles tax audits, investigations, appeals, litigation and collection problems with both the Internal Revenue Service and all California tax agencies. The amounts in dispute range from less than $50,000 to more than $100,000,000. In virtually every case, Steve has obtained positive, cost-effective resolutions to the controversies.

BACKGROUND

Steve literally grew up preparing tax returns for his father's law office. After an accounting education and stints with a public accounting firm and corporate accounting departments, Steve graduated from law school and decided to learn from the inside. For five years, Steve was a senior trial attorney with District Counsel, Internal Revenue Service in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Since 1987, Steve has focused his law practice on resolution of tax disputes for taxpayers. Steve has dozens of reported United States Tax Court decisions and has resolved thousands of Tax Court cases.

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

Steve is currently the Co-Director of the Tax Court Pro Se Program sponsored by the Los Angeles County and Beverly Hills Bar Associations. He is currently on the Executive Commitee and is also the past Chair of the Tax Procedure and Litigation Committee of the Tax Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. He is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive).

PUBLICATIONS

Steve has authored several of the BNA Tax Management Portfolios on tax collection and TEFRA partnership procedures. Steve is co-author of "Federal Tax Collection Procedure-Liens, Levies, Suits and Third Party Liability" and "Federal Tax Collection and Procedure-Defensive Measures," currently in their third edition. Steve is also the author of "Audit Procedures for Pass-Through Entities," currently in its third edition. Steve has written law review articles on tax topics and has authored legislative and regulatory commentaries for submission to Congressional committees and the Department of the Treasury.

SPEAKING

Steve taught Federal Tax Procedure in the Golden Gate University Masters in Taxation Program for many years, and currently teaches two tax procedure classes for the CalCPA Education Foundation. He frequently conducts seminars involving tax controversy matters for California bar associations, CPA groups and other organizations. Steve has been a panelist at the biennial Tax Court Judicial Conference, the UCLA Tax Controversy Institute, and the USC Tax Institute.

ACADEMIC BACKGROUND

Steve received his JD (with distinction) in 1982 and his BA degree in accounting (with highest distinction) in 1978 from the University of Iowa.