“Whistleblowers and their advocates have long complained that they are unappreciated – or downright resented – at the Internal Revenue Service, but the agency on Friday gave them a pleasant surprise. Months after narrowing the circumstances under which whistleblowers could collect rewards for exposing tax evasion, the IRS reversed its position. “This is really I…
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Taxes
Our significant background in the tax laws – including our partner Mr. Dean Zerbe who served as senior counsel and tax counsel for the Senate Finance Committee where he was responsible for the creation of the IRS whistleblower law at the direction of Senator Grassley – has made representing tax whistleblowers a specialty of our…
IRS Signals Willingness to Revise Whistleblower Program
” The Internal Revenue Service may be signaling a willingness to consider changes to its whistleblower program, following complaints that the program is stifling the initiative of informants around a kingpin who may have information about tax evasion. The National Whistleblowers Center released a letter Sept. 6 to IRS recommending changes to a key part…
Pfizer whistleblower’s ordeal reaps big rewards
“(Reuters) – Taking on corporate giants can feel like tilting at windmills, but John Kopchinski’s six-year legal battle against Pfizer Inc just made him a rich man. The Gulf War veteran and former Pfizer sales representative will earn more than $51.5 million as a result of his whistleblower lawsuit against the world’s biggest drugmaker and…
IRS Stingy With Whistleblower Payouts, Slow to Follow Up on Tips
“The IRS took more than four years to reward a whistleblower through a new program to encourage tipsters and has drawn criticism from the Government Accountability Office for failing to move faster. A recent GAO study found that the program, which has attracted tips from more than 1,300 whistleblowers, doesn’t collect data that could speed…