Many clients are shocked to find out that the life insurance policies they own at death are includable in their estate when determining whether a Federal or Massachusetts estate tax return must be filed. In Massachusetts, an estate tax return is required to be filed when an individual passes away owning over $1,000,000 in assets. If that individual owns one or two life insurance policies on their life, and a piece of real estate, it does not take much else to meet the Massach

When a prospective client contacts Lake Shore Legal after receiving a letter from the Internal Revenue Service or Massachusetts Department of Revenue, the prospective client is normally nervous. For most people their only interaction with the IRS or MDOR is once a year when they complete their individual or business tax return. When one of those agencies sends them a letter, most people think worst case scenario, they begin to think of any and all potential issues they might

The IRS has implemented its “Fresh Start Program” for several years now. Yes, this is the same fresh start program that you may have heard about from television and radio advertisements. The goal of the IRS program is to make it easier for taxpayers to pay their tax liabilities and potentially avoid the filing of tax liens. The program has three main features that are beneficial to taxpayers: First, the program addresses tax lien filings. The program was implemented so that a

Have you filed a tax return(s) with an amount due, and are unable to pay? Has the IRS audited a tax return, within three years from the due date of the return or the date the return was filed, and now assessed you a large amount due? In general, the IRS is able to collect your unpaid taxes up to ten years from the date in which the tax was assessed. If the IRS has contacted you concerning your liabilities and the IRS feels that you have not worked with them concerning payment