Board certified in Tax Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Joshua Smeltzer defends clients in IRS audits and appeals, and also handles actions in Federal District Court, U.S. Tax Court or the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. Joshua also represents clients when tax issues arise as part of U.S. Bankruptcy Court proceedings. His representation includes corporations, partnerships, estates, family offices, receiverships and high-net-worth individuals. Joshua’s practice involves a variety of industries including real estate, healthcare, insurance, private equity investment, oil and gas, and digital asset companies.
Joshua’s background as a former U.S. Department of Justice lawyer provides him with first-hand knowledge of how the government prepares and litigates tax cases so that he can design an effective plan for clients. At the Department of Justice, he handled high-dollar tax disputes and priority issues. During his tenure at the Department of Justice he received the agency’s Outstanding Trial Attorney Award seven times.
Joshua’s practice involves deep litigation and trial experience as both a private and government lawyer where the amounts at issue ranged from $500,000 to $1,000,000,000. His practice involves a variety of complex domestic and international tax issues including tax reporting issues, transactional and structural tax issues, tax credit disputes, requests for refunds of taxes paid, and the taxation of digital assets. As a respected thought leader, Joshua is a regular author and presenter on numerous tax topics and has been asked to provide expert testimony for the State Bar of Texas and for private clients in court proceedings.