The Assistant Attorney General for the Tax Division, subject to the general supervision of the Attorney General and under the direction of the Associate Attorney General, is responsible for conducting, handling, or supervising the following matters:

1. • Prosecution and defense in all courts, other than the Tax Court, of civil suits, and the handling of other matters, arising under the internal revenue laws, and litigation resulting from the taxing provisions of other Federal statutes (except civil forfeiture and civil penalty matters arising under laws relating to liquor, narcotics, gambling, and firearms assigned to the Criminal Division by 28 U.S.C. § 0.55(d)), and matters arising under the Affordable Care Act that raise novel and important interpretive questions beyond tax administration).
2. • Criminal proceedings arising under the internal revenue laws, except: proceedings pertaining to misconduct of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) personnel; taxes on liquor, narcotics, firearms, coin-operated gambling and amusement machines; corrupt or forcible interference with an officer or employee acting under the internal revenue laws (26 U.S.C. § 7212(a); wagering, forcible rescue of seized property (26 U.S.C. § 7212(b)); unauthorized disclosure of information (26 U.S.C. § 7213); and counterfeiting, mutilation, removal, or reuse of stamps (26 U.S.C. § 7208).
3. • Enforcement of tax liens, and mandamus, injunctions, and other special actions or general matters arising in connection with internal revenue matters.
4. • Defense of actions arising under 28 U.S.C. § 2410 whenever the United States is named as a party to an action as the result of the existence of a federal tax lien, including the defense of other actions arising under Section 2410, if any, involving the same property whenever a tax-lien action is pending under that section.
5. • Most matters involving the immunity of the federal government from state or local taxation, as well as state or local taxation involving contractors performing contracts for or on behalf of the United States.
6. • Enforcement and collection of certain non-tax claims pursuant to 31 U.S.C. § 3711(g)(4)(C), including penalties (“FBAR penalties”) imposed for failure to report a financial interest in a foreign bank account, as required by 31 U.S.C. § 5314 and its implementing regulations.
7. • Appellate proceedings in connection with civil and criminal cases described above, including petitions to review decisions of the Tax Court of the United States.

See 28 C.F.R. §§ 0.70, 0.71.

Attorneys from the IRS's Office of the Chief Counsel represent the Commissioner of Internal Revenue in Tax Court litigation. See 26 U.S.C. § 7452.

[updated June 2020]