Summons Issued by the Service to Taxpayer's Advisor Upheld Despite DOJ Referral

A measure enacted more than a quarter-century ago to protect taxpayers from an IRS summons when the Justice Department has been brought into the picture has recently engendered a case of first impression in the Seventh Circuit. A summons to the taxpayers' accountant was enforced, despite the possibility that the accountant had been referred to the DOJ. The protection does not extend to third-party witnesses, as the court found the Regulations to be reasonable under Chevron.

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