When it comes time for you to seek the services of a qualified, professional tax attorney, you need to be very sure that you know exactly what you are doing, as well as exactly what you are looking for. Although the average tax attorney is a reputable and honest individual, it is important to safeguard yourself against those “bad apples” who will take advantage of any and all opportunities to deceive and defraud you. One way by which you can safeguard yourself against potential misunderstandings is to make very sure whether your prospective tax attorney intends to charge strictly by the hour, or per service. You need to be very clear before you sign any agreement as to what the arrangement will be, which tax problems they will be solving, and what solutions they recommend with the IRS.
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Pay Per Service Arrangements
One type of fee arrangement which some tax attorneys make use of is the “pay per service” arrangement. In this type of arrangement, your tax attorney may require that you pay for each and every single service that they undertake on your behalf (whether or not you have agreed to, or even requested, that particular service). For example, a tax attorney who is using the “pay per service” arrangement may charge you a fee of $300 in order to file your income tax return for that year.
There are a few benefits that come from using this sort of arrangement. You will normally be able to get exactly what you pay for, on an item by item basis. Likewise, you will usually know exactly how much your tax attorney’s fee will come to in the end. And you will usually be able to protect yourself from high fees. However, you will need to be extremely vigilant in order to protect yourself from being the victim of unwanted, unnecessary services and resultant fees. In general, it can quickly become extremely costly, and may result in severe misunderstandings and potential conflict between yourself and your attorney.
Hiring A Tax Attorney On An Hourly Rate Basis
It is probably best in most cases to hire a tax attorney who will charge you for their services on a strictly hourly basis. Most tax attorneys will charge between $200 to $500. Hiring a lawyer who runs a solo practice will generally result in lower rates (usually between $100 and $200 per hour for their services). Before you meet with your prospective IRS attorney, make sure that this initial consultation is free of charge!
Hopefully we answered your question, “How much are Tax Attorney fees?”.