Defending Your Business During Sales Tax Litigation 

Sales Tax Guided Help

Ideal For:

• Businesses with annual sales of $1M - $3M
• Litigation in up to 3 jurisdictions 

Why Guided Litigation Service? 

If you prefer doing some of the lifting but need just a little professional assistance on your sales tax litigation journey, our guided approach can be a worthwhile alternative.  Designed for growing business that want to manage the process themselves, but benefit from having that sales tax pro to provide support and answer questions along the way.  

What You Get:

• Access to expert-designed tools: All DIY library of forms, videos, and guides.
• Expert Assistance: Discuss your unique situation with our team of sales tax lawyers, CPAs or sales tax professionals.  We help you develop your arguments and suggest what arguments could be made as part of your litigation case.  
• Document Review : Submit your records and litigation form and get review and feedback from our team of sales tax experts, who are experienced sales tax lawyers, CPAs, and former state auditors.   
• Conference Coaching: We can assist with preparing you for the hearing, outlining how they go, and making you more comfortable to be an effective advocate for your business. 
• Correspondence with the State: Following our review your team handles all communications with the state revenue agency, including any negotiations, form filing and correspondence.  
• Final Decision Issued: Our team works with you to discuss next steps in case the litigation did not produce adequate results

Fully Managed Helper 

Ideal For: 

• Businesses with annual sales of $3 MM - $5 MM.  
• Litigation in over 5 jurisdictions.  

Why Fully Managed Litigation Help Services? 

Our fully managed solution was created for businesses that prefer to leave the entire process in the hands of our sales tax lawyers and CPAs.  With this comprehensive service, we collaborate with your team  to strategize a comprehensive litigation plan, execute it seamlessly, and manage all communications with the state, while you do what you do best – your business.   

What You Get 

• Access to expert-designed tools: Still benefit from comprehensive library of forms, videos, and guides.
• Expert Consultation: Consult with our team of sales tax lawyers, CPAs and other sales tax professionals about your sales tax litigation
• Communication & Negotiation: We handle all communication with state revenue agencies, including negotiations and correspondence.
• Advantages of our Fully Managed Litigation Service Include: 
  • Limit Distractions: Professional assistance manages the litigation process including  interactions with the agency, letting you focus on running your business.
  • Professional Advocacy: Expert framing of issues reduces sales tax assessments, penalties and interest.
  • Sales Tax Litigation Expertise: Our team’s experience with audits, appeals, and litigation ensures informed, strategic handling of your case.
  • Tax Collected, Not Remitted: Proper handling of collected but unpaid taxes avoids serious legal and even criminal complications.
  • Significant Savings: Our expertise saves time and money by providing accurate documentation, strategic communication, and zealous advocacy.

Enterprise Litigation Solution

Ideal For: 

• Businesses with annual sales over $5 MM
• Litigation in over 5 jurisdictions
• Complex industry issues 

Why Enterprise Litigation Services?

With decades of experience managing complex sales tax litigation across a wide range of industries and business sizes, we understand that larger businesses, companies in highly regulated sectors, or those operating nationwide often require more customized support. Our Enterprise Solution is specifically designed to address these unique needs. Unlike competitors who rely on a one-size-fits-all approach, we provide a tailored, comprehensive plan that considers the specific complexities of your business.. 

What You Get:

• Tailored strategy: Develop a comprehensive plan to address complex litigation issues surrounding your unique business 
• Dedicated expert team: Work with our sales tax professionals, including lawyers and CPAs, to tackle intricate or high-volume obligations.
• Ongoing communication: We manage all negotiations, correspondence, and meetings with the state sales tax agency. 
• Final Decision: Following the issuance of the decision, we work with your team to prepare a strategy to effectively manage and respond to the notice in a timely fashion.  

How Our Sales Tax Litigation Programs Work

Regardless of which tier you choose, our process is simple and tailored to your business’s needs. Unlike competitors who offer a one-size-fits-all approach, we provide flexible involvement to ensure your sales tax issues are addressed efficiently.

1. Discovery & Planning
   • Determine the level of assistance you need: DIY, Guided, Managed, or Enterprise.
2. Resource Access
   • All tiers include access to our comprehensive library of DIY tools, including forms, instructional videos, and detailed guides.
3. Document Submission, Review, and Strategy 
   • Depending on your tier, you utilize our forms, guides and calculators (DIY), submit your documentation to our team to develop a litigation form with arguments that you can file and present (Guided) or that we can handle for you (Managed/Enterprise).
4. Document Submission and Correspondence
   • For Guided: We offer professional reviews and advice.
   • For Managed or Enterprise: We take care of negotiations, correspondence, and submitting the documents with the states.  We should know the likely outcome of the submission before the states does.  
5. Final Decision Issued 
   • Once the state makes its decision on your litigation, a final decision is typically issued.  
   • As part of our DIY and Guided Services, you can utilize our tools to respond appropriately.  Under our Managed and Guided solutions, we work with you to start working to reduce the liability by filing a sales tax litigation case.  
   • Our team can handle it all for you or provide support when you need it.

Nationwide Sales Tax Litigation Services

Need Representation for Tax Controversy Matters?

The first sign of sales tax trouble is usually when the taxpayer receives a letter from the state agency with notice of intent to conduct a sales tax audit on the individual or their business. At this point, it is wise to contact a state sales tax consultant to ensure you understand the process, know your rights, and develop a plan to ensure the auditor is held to their standards and procedures. Our sales tax litigation professionals are here to help you through every step of your sales tax issue, from the audit notice to litigating your case in state tax or administrative court.

Sales Tax Helper LLC has decades of cumulative experience in assisting taxpayers who need to litigate their tax matters to get just results. Our firm focuses on the tough situations when hard-hitting actions are needed to take a negative situation and get the very best out of it. Additionally, we work with CPAs and sales tax consultants whose clients need aggressive legal help when dealing with the Department of Revenue (DOR) or other tax authorities. In fact, we have found that is not uncommon for the start of the controversy process to be the most effective settlement tactic the taxpayer has.

Why Not Use My CPA or In-House Tax Department?

Businesses will often utilize their CPAs or, occasionally, in-house tax departments to handle state tax audits. Even if the audit is handled expertly by the CPA or tax department, the state revenue agency may still take aggressive positions against the taxpayer. After the assessment is issued, the taxpayer can protest or challenge the assessment of the agency, and if this is not done, the amount you owe becomes final. At this point, you can still usually ask for a reconsideration of the assessment in the form of settlement negotiation.

When settlement negotiations are not working during or after the audit, then the taxpayer has a small window of time to use the only other means of getting a just result — controversy. If a taxpayer does not file a complaint or petition within a short deadline (generally 30 to 60 days of the notice of determination), then the ability to litigate or even protest their tax debt becomes much more difficult.

Our State Sales Tax Consultant Can Help You Settle Your Case. Dial (866) 458-7966

When a taxpayer sues the state taxing agency, it can change how the Department of Revenue views a tax situation, sometimes dramatically. The litigation department of the agency may decide that the issue an auditor was so worked up about is not a viable issue to litigate. Alternatively, the litigation department might view the potential consequences of losing the case and being bound by the decision for all other taxpayers.

Under the right circumstances, this can make settlement negotiations much easier and more successful once litigation has begun. When our sales and use tax litigation consultants bring a case to litigation, the Department of Revenue's ability to reach compromise changes, which may be used to your business or your client’s advantage. Additionally, a large percentage of litigated cases are settled without a final court decision.

Optimize Your Business with Tailored Sales Tax Solutions. Explore Our Membership Tiers Now!