EB 4 – Tax Issues Fiduciaries Should Know

Steven L. Walker is a tax attorney in San Jose, California, and a former IRS attorney at the Office of Chief Counsel. He advises clients on tax controversies and litigation with the Internal Revenue Service, Franchise Tax Board, and state and local taxing agencies. Steven represents clients in civil and criminal tax matters, including individual international tax, voluntary disclosures, offshore matters, audits, appeals, litigation, and collection. He also assists clients with state tax matters, representing them before the California Franchise Tax Board, the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, the Employment Development Department, and the Office of Tax Appeals. Steven also handles trusts and estate matters for clients in Silicon Valley, including estate planning, trust and probate administration, and probate and trust litigation.

Mr. Walker is currently obtaining an LL.M in Taxation from the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington D.C (one of the most competitive tax programs in the country). He is personable and knowledgeable and known for providing skilled advocacy and expertise.

Prior to establishing his own firm in 2010, he was a Partner at the international law firm of McDermott, Will & Emery in Palo Alto, CA, an Associate General Counsel for a publicly-traded technology company in Silicon Valley, and an associate at the international law firm of White & Case LLP. Mr. Walker has over 30 years of experience and is well-liked by clients, respected by government officials, and has achieved successful results.

Mr. Walker’s speaking engagements include (but are not limited to) the Santa Clara County Estate Planning Council, the Estate Planning Council of Southern Alameda County, the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, the California Society of Enrolled Agents (San Fernando Valley Chapter), Strafford, the Beverly Hills Bar Association, the Mission Society of Enrolled Agents, the California Lawyers’ Association, and the East Bay Association of Enrolled Agents.

Philip Wolf represents clients in civil and criminal tax controversies, including examinations, administrative appeals, tax collection, criminal investigations, and trials in federal and state court. He also advises clients on international, corporate, partnership, and individual tax issues as well as tax issues related to cryptocurrency. Mr. Wolf is also a regular columnist at the leading international tax magazine, Tax Analysts, where he has published or been featured in over 70 articles on various tax topics.

Mr. Wolf graduated from the New York University School of Law, where he received his Executive LL.M in tax law in the top 10 percent of his class. Before that, Mr. Wolf received his J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law with a Formal Concentration in Taxation. He was awarded the Hastings Three-Year Provost Scholarship and graduated in the top 25 percent of his tax class. Mr. Wolf also studied alternative dispute resolution and negotiation and was a member of the Hastings Alternative Dispute Resolution Team. Mr. Wolf received his B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley, with High Honors (Phi Beta Kappa).

Before joining the firm, Mr. Wolf was a Mergers and Acquisition Tax Intern at KPMG, one of the Big Four accounting organizations, in their Silicon Valley Office. He also was a Tax Intern for BDO, an accounting, tax, and business advisory firm in their San Jose Office, where Mr. Wolf worked as part of their Transfer Pricing Team.

Mr. Wolf’s pro bono practice includes being the former Assistant Director for the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program in San Francisco. As a trained and IRS-certified volunteer, Mr. Wolf assisted elderly and low-income taxpayers in preparing their tax returns. He is fluent in multiple languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Russian, and Catalan, as well as conversational in several other languages.