5.17.1. General Information

(1) The Legal Reference Guide for Revenue Officers is intended to make available to revenue officers and other personnel engaged in collection efforts the fundamentals of legal knowledge needed in their daily activities. The results of recent legislation and recent court decisions have been incorporated into the revised text.

(1) There is established in the Department of the Treasury the Office of General Counsel and the office of an Assistant General Counsel, who serves as Chief Counsel of the Internal Revenue Service. 31 USC 301(f); IRC 7803(b)(1). The Chief Counsel is appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate, but the Commissioner recommends to the President a candidate for appointment as Chief Counsel when a vacancy occurs and, if necessary, recommends the removal of the Chief Counsel. IRC 7803(a)(2)(B) and (b)(1).

(2) The Chief Counsel is the chief law officer for the Internal Revenue Service. The Chief Counsel reports directly to the Commissioner except as follows.

1. The Chief Counsel reports solely to the General Counsel with respect to legal advice or interpretation of the tax law relating solely to tax policy.

2. The Chief Counsel reports to both the Commissioner and the General Counsel with respect to legal advice or interpretation of the tax law not relating solely to tax policy, and with respect to tax litigation. If there is any disagreement between the Commissioner and the General Counsel on any such matter, it is submitted to the Secretary or Deputy Secretary for resolution. IRC 7803(b)(3).

(3) All personnel in the Office of Chief Counsel report to the Chief Counsel. IRC 7803(b)(4). The role of the Office of Chief Counsel is to ensure the correct and uniform application of the tax laws. It is, therefore, the responsibility of each component of the Office, individually and collectively, to ensure that all published guidance, documents filed in litigation, and legal advice issued to the Service or to taxpayers accurately reflect the position of the Office. IRM 31.1.1.1(1), Chief Counsel Directives Manual (CCDM), General Principles for Handling Legal Work.

(1) This IRM, in its subsections, identifies and defines the roles and responsibilities of the parties active in legal and judicial actions both by and against the United States.

(1) This IRM introduces the parties active in legal and judicial actions both by and against the United States and is not a procedural IRM. Program management and review is associated with the programs referenced in the individual Legal Reference Guide Handbooks of this IRM chapter.

(1) This IRM introduces the parties active in legal and judicial actions both by and against the United States and is not a procedural IRM. Program Controls are associated with the programs referenced in the individual Legal Reference Guide Handbooks of this IRM chapter.

(1) The table lists the common acronyms and their definitions.

(1) For detailed information on specific types of actions see the subsequent IRM chapters in this handbook.

(2) For procedures related to the types of actions discussed in this legal reference guide handbook see:

• IRM Part 5, Collecting Process, and

• IRM Part 25, Special Topics.

(3) The IRS adopted an additional https://www.irs.gov/taxpayer-bill-of-rights in June 2014. There are three previous TBOR, which have been incorporated into IRM instructions over the years. Employees are responsible for being familiar with and acting in accord with all taxpayer rights provisions and instructions including the 2014 TBOR. See IRC 7803(a)(3), Commissioner of Internal Revenue, Execution of Duties in Accord With Taxpayer Rights. For additional information about Taxpayer Bill of Rights see:

• TBOR 1: IRM 13.1.1.2(2), Evolution of the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate,

• TBOR 2: IRM 13.1.1.2(3), Evolution of the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate, and

• TBOR 3: IRM 13.1.1.2.1, IRS Adoption of Taxpayer Bill of Rights and IRC 7803(a)(3), also known as TBOR 3 https://www.irs.gov/taxpayer-bill-of-rights.

(1) About one-third of the office of Chief Counsel attorneys work in the vicinity of Washington, D.C., for the most part in connection with the work of the National Office.

(2) About two-thirds of the attorneys are assigned to Area Counsel offices or to Operating Division Counsel.

(1) The Chief Counsel has an immediate staff consisting of a

• Principal Deputy Chief Counsel and Deputy Chief Counsel Technical,

• Deputy Chief Counsel Operations,

• Executive Counsel,

• Counselor to the Commissioner, and

• Equal Employment Opportunity Program Manager.

(1) The National Office functions involve planning and directing policies and programs with respect to legislation, regulations, interpretative rulings and opinions, litigation, and advisory services, pertaining to the laws administered by the Internal Revenue Service. The work is handled according to the Office of the Chief Counsel Organizational Chart as follows:Operations: Associate Chief Counsel for -

(2) The Office of the Associate Chief Counsel (Procedure & Administration) consists of eight branches which are responsible for areas such as collection, bankruptcy, and disclosure.

(1) Operating Division Counsel, and their respective field offices, have been created for the operating divisions of: Large Business and International, Tax Exempt & Government Entities, Criminal Tax, Small Business & Self Employed (SB/SE), Taxpayer Advocate Service, and Wage & Investment (WI).

(2) In the field, Operating Division Counsel for SB/SE does not work for but, may provide legal advice to W&I and TAS. Sometimes coordinating this advice with P&A subject matter experts, if the issue requires coordination. This is because Counsel W&I and CNTA are small offices that do not have the resources to provide all of the legal advice requested by their clients.

(3) SB/SE Division Counsel works closely with the Office of the Associate Chief Counsel (Procedure and Administration) to render legal advice for collection matters.

(1) The primary function of the SB/SE Operating Division Counsel, and Area and Associate Area Counsel, is to represent the Internal Revenue Service in cases before the United States Tax Court. They also provide the large variety of legal services which the Office of the Chief Counsel renders in connection with collection of federal taxes (except those involving Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms matters), summonses, damage suits for failure to release levy or unauthorized collection actions, and defense to or suits to obtain injunctions including promoter injunctions. A prime concern is with the legal problems involved in the collection of delinquent accounts, i.e., those with which revenue officers are directly concerned.

(2) Certain matters involving initial action by the field offices are subject to review in the National Office to insure consistency of treatment and uniformity of approach. However, most SB/SE functions have been delegated to Area and Associate Area Counsel for final disposition in order to provide prompt and readily available legal service to the field offices of the Internal Revenue Service handling SB/SE and WI issues and to accomplish the broad responsibilities implicit in the handling of the wide range of legal problems in the collection area. Each such counsel, through his or her staff, handles legal work with respect to:

(3) Field attorneys assigned to SB/SE Area or Associate Area Counsel units will provide legal advice on various matters to Service personnel in the SB/SE and WI Operating Divisions, the offices of the respective commissioner, campus director, and field offices. In connection with this type of activity, which is vital to the success of any organization operating on a decentralized basis, visitation programs have been established so that legal personnel make regular periodic visits to the field offices located throughout the counsel office’s service area.

(4) The Area or Associate Area Counsel legal staff also maintains day-to-day contacts with the United States Attorneys’ offices, and the appropriate Trial Section of the Tax Division, Department of Justice, charged with the ultimate responsibility for the trial of certain proceedings in federal and state courts. Upon request, the Area or Associate Area Counsel and his or her staff furnish appropriate legal services to the United States Attorney and the Department of Justice, which may include

• preparation of suit or defense letters,

• authorizing the institution of legal proceedings or the defense of a civil action against the United States, and

• setting forth the pertinent legal issues and the Internal Revenue Service’s position thereon.

(5) Not the least of the services rendered by the Area or Associate Area Counsel and his or her staff is their participation, sometimes in conjunction with the Chief Counsel’s National Office staff, in the various training and continuing education programs for revenue officers and other personnel concerned with collection matters, which includes preparation and maintenance of a Local Law Section for the Legal Reference Guide.