The following is an excerpt from the article “Internal Revenue Code“, by Sam Braunstein and Carol F. Burger. It was published in the ABA Journal, November 2000.
When it comes to the Internal Revenue Code, things don’t always turn out the way you-and your client-may have expected. But there are ways to avoid the shock.
We all like surprises, don’t we? Well, maybe on birthdays or when we buy that lottery ticket- but when it comes to taxes, surprises are no fun. The reason is simple: In tax law, surprises mean unforeseen results, which in turn usually mean that more taxes were paid than necessary or that the opportunity to save on taxes was missed. Either way, it’s not a good outcome.