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James N. Mastracchio

Jim Mastracchio is a Practice Team Leader for Baker Hostetler’s National Tax Controversy Practice and the local Tax Group Coordinator for the firm’s Washington, D.C., office. Mr. Mastracchio focuses his practice in tax controversy and litigation matters. He handles a broad range of civil tax disputes before the various examination divisions of the IRS, the IRS Office of Appeals and in federal courts. Mr. Mastracchio also represents clients facing criminal tax fraud investigations and criminal tax prosecutions.

Mr. Mastracchio is the author of Best Practices for Managing Tax Investigations, Inside The Minds: Common Issues in White Collar Law, Thomson West Publishing (2007). He is a frequent speaker on civil and criminal tax matters and has been extensively quoted in legal publications and in the national media. Mr Mastracchio holds a number of awards, including being cited as a leading national tax controversy attorney in U.S. Legal 500 Litigation Guide.

Selected Current Client Representations

Voluntary Disclosures and Related Civil and Criminal Investigations
Mr. Mastracchio represents taxpayers under civil IRS examination or facing criminal investigations resulting from undeclared foreign accounts. He also represents clients considering state and federal voluntary disclosures. He counsels clients who have accounts with HSBC, LGT Group, UBS Private Banking, Credit Suisse, Julius Bär, Bordier & Cie, Wegelin, the various Swiss Cantonal Banks and other financial institutions located in Switzerland and other off-shore jurisdictions. Mr. Mastracchio provides advice regarding various informational reporting requirements, including: Treasury FBAR (T.D. 90-22.1 Foreign Bank Account Reporting); IRS Form 3520 (Annual Return to Report Transactions with Foreign Trusts and Receipt of Foreign Gifts); IRS Form 3520-A (Annual Return of Foreign Trust With a U.S. Owner); IRS Form 5471 (Informational Return of U.S. Persons With Respect to Certain Foreign Corporation); IRS Form W-8BEN (Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Withholding Form).

Structured Transaction Investigations and IRS Promoter Audits
Mr. Mastracchio currently represents individuals and entities facing 6700 penalty investigations and criminal investigations relating to tax shelter promotion and structured product sales.

IRS Examinations and Protests before the IRS Office of Appeals
Mr. Mastracchio currently represents taxpayers under examination by the IRS and he handles matters before the IRS Office of Appeals. Mr. Mastracchio has represented clients through the alternative dispute resolution proceedings, including IRS Post-Appeals Mediation and Appeals Fast-Track Settlement Program.

Tax Court Representation
Mr. Mastracchio currently represents clients in U.S. Tax Court regarding disputed property valuations.

Selected Publications

Mr. Mastracchio has written and commented extensively on topics related to Voluntary Disclosures and criminal tax enforcement. His more recent articles and comments in the media include:

• “U.S., Switzerland Say Deadline for Processing UBS Accounts Met, Handover Not Yet Done,” BNA Daily Tax Report (August 27, 2010)
• “Deadline for UBS to Hand Over Names Seen Marking Changed Landscape for Disclosures,” BNA Daily Tax Report (August 24, 2010)
• “UBS to Release Additional 4,500 U.S. Accounts,” CNBA (August 4, 2010)
• “Voluntary Offshore Account Disclosures Nearly Twice Initial Estimate, Shulman Says,” CCH Federal, 2009 TAXDAY (November 18, 2009)
• “IRS Considering Additional Deadline in Voluntary Disclosure Program, Official Says,” Tax Analysts (October 27, 2009)
• “Deadlines Approach for Taxpayers on Extension, Offshore Disclosure Initiative,” CCH Standard Federal Tax Reports, Vol. 96, No. 43 (October 8, 2009)
• “IRS Extends Deadline for Offshore-Bank Users to Confess,” USA Today (September 21, 2009)
• “Swiss To Share UBS Account Information; IRS May Gain Access to 4,450 Accounts,” CCH Standard Federal Tax Reports, Vol. 96, No. 34 (August 27, 2009)
• “UBS to Disclose Details of 4,450 Account in U.S. Tax Evasion Case,” The Independent (August 20, 2009)
• “U.S., Switzerland Resolve UBS Dispute; Number of Account Holders to Be Revealed Unclear,” CCH-News Federal, 2009 TAXDAY (August 20, 2009)
• “IRS, UBS Reach Tax Probe Settlement; Terms Not Yet Disclosed,” CCH Standard Federal Tax Reports, Vol. 96, No. 36, Report 35 (August 20, 2009)
• “IRS and UBS Settle John Doe Summons With Substantially All Accounts Being Released,” Press Release (August 19, 2009)
• “IRS Extends FBAR Deadline; Reiterates Foreign Hedge Fund Reporting Requirement,” Federal Tax Weekly, Issue No. 27 (July 9, 2009)
• “IRS Extends Deadline for Filing FBAR,” WebCPA (June 26, 2009)
• “IRS Issues Second Round of Frequently Asked Questions for Voluntary Disclosure of Off Shore Accounts,” Press Release (June 25, 2009)
• “Connecticut and Maryland Offer State Tax Amnesty Programs,” The National Law Journal (May 28, 2009)
• “States Offer Attractive Voluntary Disclosure Options For Off-Shore Account Holders,” Press Release (May 27, 2009)
• “IRS Releases FAQs on Offshore Compliance Initiative; Monitors Amended Returns for “Quiet” Disclosures,” CCH Standard Federal Tax Reports, Vol. 96, No. 22, Report 21 (May 14, 2009)
• “IRS Issues Frequently Asked Questions for Voluntary Disclosure of Offshore Accounts,” Press Release (May 7, 2009)
• “U.S. Offers Tax Deal for Holders of Off Shore Accounts,” AFP (March 29, 2009)
• “New Lenient IRS Penalty Structure Encourages Voluntary Disclosure of Offshore Bank Accounts,” Reuters (March 26, 2009)
• “IRS Seduces Off Shore Account Holders,” Press Release (March 26, 2009)
• “Come Clean, Tax Lawyer Advises U.S. Expats,” The Swisster (March 2, 2009) PDF Version
• “The IRS’s New Whistleblower Program—Another Enforcement Alert for International Business,” Mondaq Business Briefing (July 25, 2008)
• Best Practices for Managing Tax Investigations, Inside The Minds: Common Issues in White Collar Law, Thomson West Publishing (2007)

Prior Professional Experience

Prior to his law career, Mr. Mastracchio was a Certified Public Accountant with a national firm focusing on tax compliance issues. As a result of his in-depth experience in the accounting field, he is often involved in complex civil litigation involving accounting practice and procedural tax issues.

Professional Activities

• Chair, Monetary Penalties and Forfeitures Subcommittee, American Bar Association’s Civil and Criminal Tax Penalties Section
• Committee Member, New York State Bar Association’s Tax Compliance, Practice and Procedure Committee
• Frequent panelist for professional organizations on various topics, including state and federal voluntary disclosures, electronic discovery, attorney-client and work-product privileges, Bank Secrecy Act and related regulatory reporting, FASB FIN 48 disclosure and Internal Revenue Service practice and procedure