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WHY SEEK PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE FOR A TAX LIABILITY?

For many reasons, a tax liability is unlike any other type of debt. While non-tax creditors must usually obtain a judgment through lengthy and costly legal proceedings, and then execute upon that judgment in order to force payment, the government need only follow a simple notice procedure prior to attaching your assets. Once the government complies with the applicable notice procedure, it can, and almost always does, file a lien against all of a taxpayer's non-exempt assets. Worse yet, the government may get nasty and "force payment" by way of bank levies, accounts receivable levies, wage levies, and the seizure of assets. These "enforced collection" actions can cut off a business' or an individual's access to money and other resources, thereby making it impossible to pay for necessary expenses.

Without professional assistance, a taxpayer is at a huge disadvantage to the government. Government bureaucrats want ALL of "their" money back and they want it NOW. The Internal Revenue Code, Internal Revenue Manual, Taxpayer Bill of Rights, Treasury Regulations, various avenues of appeal, and numerous forms required by the government create a massive maze that is difficult, if not impossible, to successfully navigate without professional assistance.

WHY CHOOSE FORTRESS?

Your choices of "professionals" are limited. You can hire a C.P.A., an enrolled agent, an attorney, or a firm that specializes in tax resolution.

Although C.P.A.s generally have the broadest knowledge of tax intricacies and strategies for avoiding future taxes, few have significant experience in resolving back taxes. Even fewer specialize in resolving back taxes. In order to obtain optimal results, the tax professional that you choose should have polished skills in advocacy and negotiation. C.P.A.s typically have no formal training in these areas and generally are not considered to be skilled advocates.

An enrolled agent can be either an ex-IRS employee (certain restrictions apply) or an individual who has passed a broad scope tax test, little of which has anything to do with tax collection representation. Neither a college nor postgraduate degree is required to become an enrolled agent. Zero training in advocacy and negotiation is required to become an enrolled agent. Enrolled agents, like C.P.A.s, may have a good understanding of the tax rules. However, providing superior representation requires more than just a good understanding of the rules-it requires the ability to effectively assert and advocate the interests of the client within the framework of rules.

While your typical law firm attorney should possess adequate advocacy skills, it is very unlikely that he or she truly specializes in tax resolution. IF you can find an attorney in your state who "does" tax resolution, chances are that he or she only "does" a handful of these cases each year. At Fortress, we guarantee that your case will be handled by a tax practitioner who is a licensed attorney AND who handles nothing but tax resolution cases. Only that way can you be assured a true specialist with the requisite skills for effective representation and optimal results.

You could also take a chance with one of the other tax resolution firms. However, it is very unlikely that they will assign your case to an actual attorney. Moreover, many of these other firms will assign your case to someone who is not authorized to practice before the Internal Revenue Service. (to view the relevant law, go to http://www.prenhall.com/nellen/html/Circ230.htm and look up Treasury Department Circular No. 230 Section 10.3).

By going with one of these other tax resolution firms, you also risk being the victim of unethical business practices, which, unfortunately, abound in this industry. Your retainer could be "billed away" with unnecessary services. You could be promised a flat fee only to find out later that your retainer has been exhausted and that your service will be terminated immediately unless and until you pay additional hefty fees. These companies usually get away with it because they know that you probably don't have the time or money to take legal action against them. Before you hire anyone, we strongly recommend that you check them out first with the Better Business Bureau and at least one other consumer protection organization such as http://www.baddealings.com/.

Rather than chancing your future, choose Fortress to professionally represent you. We guarantee excellent representation and service, reasonable fees, and ethical treatment of all of our valued clients. We will ALWAYS treat you with dignity and respect. We pride ourselves in ALWAYS recommending what we believe to be BEST FOR YOU, NOT US.

Tax problems do not take care of themselves. With the horrendous penalties and interest that are heaped on top of tax liabilities seemingly by the minute, it is easy for the problem to snowball and get out of control. Before your situation deteriorates any further, CALL FORTRESS for a FREE CONFIDENTIAL CONSULTATION.