Tax Evasion Lawyers in Parkersburg

Tax evasion is a crime in West Virginia. Tax evasion involves intentionally failing to pay one's taxes.

One of the most common prevalent tactics of tax evaders in Parkersburg, West Virginia is to attempt to make it appear to an outside observer that their tax liability is lower than it truly is, such as by concealing income, fraudulently transferring property, and others.

It's important not to confuse "tax avoidance" and "tax evasion." They are two different things, but some people mistakenly use them interchangeably. Tax avoidance involves utilizing legal methods, such as tax deductions and exemptions, in a strategic manner, for the purpose of reducing one's tax liability. Tax avoidance is perfectly legal. Tax evasion involves fraud, and a deliberate attempt to avoid meeting one's legal commitments to pay taxes.

Penalties for Tax Evasion in Parkersburg, West Virginia

Under the laws of West Virginia, as well as federal law, tax evasion is a very egregious criminal offense.

In Parkersburg, the penalties for tax evasion can range from a court order to pay back taxes, plus a small fine, and range all the way up to penalties in the tens (or hundreds) of thousands of dollars, and imprisonment.

However, the punishments for tax evasion, particularly first offenses involving relatively small amounts of money, is not typically so severe, particularly when it looks like the failure to pay taxes was the result of an honest mistake, rather than deliberate fraud.

But if the government is able to definitively establish that a defendant in Parkersburg, West Virginia intentionally engaged in fraud to get out of paying taxes, a tax court is very unlikely to show any leniency, and may well sentence the defendant to prison time.

A Parkersburg, West Virginia Tax Evasion Lawyer Can Help

Attorneys in Parkersburg, West Virginia who practice tax law can help you stay in conformity with your tax commitments. This is a good way to confirm that you won't be suspected of tax evasion in the first place.

Of course, if you've truly been accused of tax evasion, you should hire a Parkersburg, West Virginia tax lawyer immediately. If you are innocent, a tax attorney will make sure you have the best chance possible at being acquitted.