This section of the Data Book provides an overview of the IRS Chief Counsel’s workload and activities. The IRS Chief Counsel is appointed by the President of the United States, with the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate, and serves as the chief legal advisor to the IRS Commissioner on all matters pertaining to the interpretation, administration, and enforcement of the Internal Revenue Code, as well as all other legal matters. Under the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998, the Chief Counsel reports to both the IRS Commissioner and the Treasury General Counsel.
Attorneys in the Chief Counsel’s Office serve as lawyers for the IRS. They provide the IRS and taxpayers with guidance on interpreting Federal tax laws correctly, represent the IRS in litigation, and provide all other legal support required to carry out the IRS mission.
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Highlights of the Data
- In Fiscal Year (FY) 2019, Chief Counsel received 60,108 cases and closed 58,307 cases, including some received in prior years (Table 28 (XLSX)).
- Approximately 65.8 percent of closed cases were from the Small Business/Self-Employed Division (Table 28 (XLSX)).
- In Fiscal Year 2019, Chief Counsel received 24,658 Tax Court cases involving a taxpayer contesting an IRS determination that he or she owed additional tax. During the fiscal year, Chief Counsel closed 23,373 cases involving more than $4.0 billion in disputed taxes and penalties (Table 29 (XLSX)).
Chief Counsel: Tables 28 & 29
Table 28: Chief Counsel Workload: All Cases, by Office and Type of Case, Fiscal Year 2019 (XLSX)
Table 29: Chief Counsel Workload: Tax Litigation Cases, by Type of Case, Fiscal Year 2019 (XLSX)
Data for all years
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