Current Employment Position(s)

Founder, Attorney

Lawyer Overview

About the Brager Tax Law Group, A Professional Corporation

Dennis Brager is a California State Bar Certified Tax Specialist, who acquired in-depth knowledge of law as a Senior Trial Attorney for the Internal Revenue Service's Office of Chief Counsel. In addition to representing the IRS in court, he advised the Service on complex civil and criminal tax issues.

Having worked for the IRS for six years, he gained valuable insight into the inner workings of that organization. This not only helps in developing the right strategies, but facilitates working with the system quickly and efficiently. Ultimately this saves his clients time, money and stress.

Recognizing the importance of specialization in an era of constantly changing tax laws, Mr. Brager has limited his practice to representing clients having disputes with the IRS, the Franchise Tax Board, the State Board of Equalization and the Employment Development Department--both at trial and administrative levels.

He has spoken before the California Continuing Education of the Bar, the California Society of CPAs, the California Trial Lawyers Association, the American Bar Association, and the National Association of Enrolled Agents. He has been an instructor at Golden Gate University's Masters in Taxation Program and a guest speaker at the University of Southern California. Mr. Brager has testified as an expert witness on Federal tax matters before the California Franchise Tax Board. His articles have appeared in California Lawyer, the Daily Journal, Taxation for Lawyers, the Los Angeles Lawyer, Family Law News, California Tax lawyer, and the Journal of Taxation of Investments. The most recent ones include, "Tax Collection Techniques," Circular 230: An Overview," "The Impact of the New Bankruptcy Law on Tax Debtors: A first Impresion," "Tax Issues: Damages, Rescission and Debt Cancellations as Client Income," "Prevailing Party-Recovering Attorneys Fees From the IRS," "Bankruptcy: The Silver Bullet of Tax Defense," "The Taxpayer Bill of Rights--A Small Step Toward Reining in the IRS," "Challenging the IRS Requires a Cohesive Strategy," "The Innocent Spouse Defense," "IRS Guidelines for Installment-Payment Agreements," "Expert Advice: New Rules on 1099 Forms." "Tax Brakes: The Taxpayer Bill of Rights 2," "IRS Innocent-Spouse Rules Have Been Liberalized," and "Expert Advice: Avoiding Payroll Taxes."

Mr. Brager received his undergraduate degree from Pace University (B.B.A., magna cum laude, 1975, Accounting/Finance), and his law degree from New York University (J.D., 1978). He is a former chair of the Tax Compliance, Procedure and Litigation Committee of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and chair of the California State Bar, Tax Procedure and Litigation Committee. He is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, U.S. Claims Court, U.S. Tax Court, U.S. District Court and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

A Brief Non-exclusive Listing of Our Services Include:

Areas of Practice

• Tax Law
• Tax Litigation
• Tax Controversy
• Tax Collection
• Tax Appeals

West Practice Categories

Taxation Law

Bar Admissions

• California, 1978
• U.S. District Court Central District of California, 1979
• U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1980
• U.S. Tax Court, 1978
• U.S. District Court Northern District of California, 1980
• U.S. District Court Southern District of California
• U.S. Court of Federal Claims
• U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit

Professional Associations and Memberships

• California State Bar, 1998 - 1999 (Vice-Chairman, Tax Procedure & Litigation Committee)
• Los Angeles County Bar Association, 1993 - 1994 (Chairman, Small Firm and Sole Practitioner Section)
• Los Angeles County Bar Association, 1980 - 1984 (Vice-Chairman, Client Relations Committee)
• Los Angeles County Bar Association, Tax Section, Tax Compliane Procedure and Litigation Subcommittee (Officer, (1990. 1995-1998))
• Beverly Hills Bar Association (Member, Taxation Section)
• Los Angeles County Bar Association (Member, Taxation Section)
• San Fernando Valley Bar Association (Member, Taxation Section)
• Santa Monica Bar Association (Member, Taxation Section)

Classes and Seminars

• Instructor, Appeal of EDD Audits, 2006 Annual Meeting of the CA Tax Bar, 11/3/06
• Instructor, Tax Collection Techniques: Money Talks!, UCLA Extension: Annual Tax Controversy Institute, 10/23/06
• Instructor, Innocent Spouse: Urban Legend or Viable Option?, 79th Annual Meeting of the State Bar of California, Taxation Section, 10/8/06
• Instructor, New Circular 230 Regulations - Finally, Some Practical Advice, UCLA Extension: Annual Tax Controversy Institute, 10/31/05
• Instructor, Handling Estate Tax Audits and Appeals Without Getting Sued, 78th Annual Meeting of the State Bar of California, Taxation Section, 9/11/05
• Instructor, Recent Developments in Tax Procedure: What You Don't Know May Be Malpractice, Tax Night 2004, 11/9/04
• Instructor, Handling a Sales Tax Audit, 2004 Annual Meeting of the CA Tax Bar, 11/5/04
• Instructor, What Every Lawyer Needs to Know About Divorce and Taxation, CA State Bar, 10/9/04
• Instructor, Divorce Taxation, Annual Spring Tax Conference at California State University Northridge, 5/22/04
• Instructor, Tax Collection Update: 2003 Tax Update and Planning Conference, CA CPA Education Foundation, Universal City 11/19/03 & San Francisco 11/20/03
• Instructor, Ethics Inspection: A Look at Tax Practitioner Ethics, Particularly Comparing State Bar, CPA and Circular 230, 2003 Annual Meeting of the California Tax Bars, 11/8/03
• Instructor, Tax Issues: Damages, Rescission and Debt Cancellation as Client Income, Consumer Rights Litigation Conference, 10/26/03
• Instructor, What to Do When the Audit Goes South, Warner Center CPA Club, 5/29/03
• Instructor, Everything You've Always Wanted to Know About Offers and Compromise and Finally Get a Chance to Ask, CA State Bar Taxation Section, Tax Procedure & Litigation Committee, 5/16/03
• Instructor, Discharge or Death - Making Taxes Disappear in Bankruptcy, Beverly Hills Bar Association - Bankruptcy Law Section, 5/6/03
• Instructor, Enhanced IRS Collection in the New Millennium: Is IRS Prepared to Destroy the Village?, Beverly Hills Bar Association - Taxation Law Section, 3/13/03
• Instructor, Latest Developments in IRS Offers, Statute Waivers & Fast Track Mediation, Tax Night 2002, 11/12/02
• Instructor, Compliance: Recent Trends in SB/SE Exam Collection, UCLA Extension: Annual Tax Controversy Institute, 10/17/02
• Instructor, What to do When the Audit Goes South, CA Society of Enrolled Agents, Los Angeles Chapter, 10/8/02
• Instructor, What to do When the IRS Says No, CA Society of Enrolled Agents, San Fernando Valley Chapter, 6/10/02
• Instructor, Legislative & Judicial Changes in Bankruptcy Taxation, CA State Bar: 2001 Annual Meeting of the CA Tax Bars, 11/9/01
• Instructor, Tax Collection Roundtable, UCLA Extension: Annual Tax Controversy Institute, 10/25/01
• Instructor, Bankruptcy and Taxes - An Update!, CA Society of CPAs, Hollywood/Beverly Hills Discussion Group, 6/8/01
• Instructor, CA State Law Innocent Spouse Update, LACBA Family Law & Taxation Sections, 4/25/01
• Instructor, Collection Due Process - Fact or Fiction?, UCLA Extension: Annual Tax Controversy Institute, 10/26/99
• Instructor, Bankruptcy Basics, Los Angeles County Bar Association, 7/13/99
• Instructor, Recent Changes in the Innocent Spouse Doctrine, Beverly Hills Family Law Study Group, 2/9/99
• Instructor, Ethical Dilemmas Facing Lawyers Practicing at CPA Firms, Los Angeles County Bar Association, 2/5/99
• Instructor, Taxpayer Bill of Rights III, CPA/Business Managers Committee, 11/18/98
• Instructor, Tax Collection After the IRS Reform and Restructuring Act, Los Angeles County Bar Association, 11/17/98
• Instructor, The Taxpayer's Last Resort: The Basic Rules for Eliminating Federal and State Taxes in Bankruptcy, California State Bar, 11/14/98
• Instructor, Surviving an IRS Audit, San Fernando Valley Bar Association, 1/23/98
• Instructor, Independent Contractor Status Update, The CPA Club, 12/4/97
• Instructor, Use of the Freedom of Information Act in Tax Cases, UCLA Extension: Annual Tax Controversy Institute, 10/22/97

Education

• New York University School of Law, New York, New York, 1978
  J.D.
• Pace University, Pleasantville, New York, 1975
  B.B.A.
  Honors: magna cum laude
  Major: Accounting/Finance

Accepts Credit Cards

Published Works

• Tax Collection Techniques, Journal of Tax Practice and Procedure, October-November, 2006
• Circular 230: An Overview, Journal of Tax Practice and Procedure, December, 2005
• The Impact of the New Bankruptcy Law on Tax Debtors: A First Impression, Tax Network, June, 2005
• Tax Issues: Damages, Rescission and Debt Cancellations As Client Income, The Consumer Advocate, April, 2004
• IRS Innocent-Spouse Rules Have Been Liberalized, The Daily Journal, March 8, 1999
• Prevailing Party - Recovering Attorneys Fees from the IRS, The Daily Journal, October 20, 1998
• Expert Advice: New Rules on 1099 Forms, California Lawyer, June, 1998
• Bankruptcy: The Silver Bullet of Tax Defense, California Tax Lawyer, Winter, 1997
• Expert Advice: Avoiding Payroll Taxes, California Lawyer, May, 1997
• Tax Breaks: The Taxpayer Bill of Rights 2, Los Angeles Lawyer, November, 1996
• IRS Guidelines for Installment-Payment Agreements, Los Angeles Lawyer, March, 1996
• The Innocent Spouse Defense, Los Angeles Lawyer, December, 1995
• Challenging the IRS Requires a Cohesive Strategy, Taxation for Lawyers, July/August, 1991
• The Taxpayer Bill of Rights -- A Small Step Toward Reining in the IRS, Los Angeles Lawyer, May, 1989

Address

10960 Wilshire Boulevard
11th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90024

Phones

(310) 208-6200

Faxes

(310) 478-8030

Emails

Contact Us

Websites

http://www.bragertaxlaw.com
http://www.taxproblemattorneyblog.com