Tax Litigation

Since FBK’s foundation, tax and legal consulting has been one of our main activities, along with tax litigation. FBK Legal employs more than 30 experts working in tax litigation practice.

FBK Legal lawyers have a thorough knowledge of all arbitration practice in tax litigation that can be used as a basis in any suit.

One of our principal advantages is that FBK Legal clients can benefit from ordering a service package from us. Our cooperation with large and medium-sized enterprises allows us to keep abreast with current accounting and taxation problems and find optimal solutions for our clients. FBK Legal tax lawyers can also engage consultants and auditors from the Fuel and Energy Enterprises Audit Department and the Accounting Advisory Department for all tax cases.

FBK Legal has court experience in tax litigation reaching back almost 20 years. FBK Legal lawyers win more than 100 court cases annually. Over 98% of lawsuits conducted by the practices were completed with a positive result for taxpayers.

FBK Legal’s offer also includes the following services:

• >  Preparing for tax inspections (tax audit), providing training for personnel on work with tax inspectors before inspection
• >  Supporting in tax inspections and preparing objections to the acts of the tax authorities
• >  Appealing against decisions by tax authorities based on the results of inspections; appealing against unlawful actions (inaction) of tax officials
• >  Repayment (deduction) of taxes from the budget
• >  Assisting officials in defense at criminal cases connected with tax litigation

We know from experience that the maximum reduction or even elimination of additional taxes and sanctions comes from integrated work in three fields (stages), including preparation for tax inspections (tax audit), support in tax inspections, analysis of their results, preparation of objections to acts on the part of the tax authorities and defense in tax cases.

The main tasks of tax audit are the following:

• >  audit for the correct tax accrual methodology
• >  audit for the correct execution of supporting documents and their sufficiency

The tax audit covers both system (principal) business transactions of a taxpayer and extraordinary transactions.

Special attention is paid to financial transactions, transactions with interdependent (affiliated) entities, transactions with new contractors, customers and suppliers (sellers, contractors).

In comparison with audits of accounting statements, tax audits provide for a more frequent sampling of transactions. As auditors are not bound by audit standards requirements and are not supposed to record information, during a tax audit they fulfill procedures inappropriate for audit and requests for other information.

We support our clients in tax inspections by assisting clients with our professional aid by assuming the client’s functions with representatives from the tax authorities.

Our support includes:

• >  controlling actions of representatives of the tax authorities, establishing their compliance with the requirements of the tax authorities, fulfilling statutory obligations and procedures, exercising taxpayers’ rights
• >  identifying tax inspection subjects and potential problems (on the basis of requested documents and explanations)
• >  preliminary analysis of documents subject to transfer to tax authorities for detecting problems and mistakes in execution and potential problems.

Support services in tax inspections include:

• >  assisting in fulfilling the client’s functions with representatives of the tax authorities; instructing the client’s employees on interacting with inspectors, presenting documents, giving explanations to tax inspectors etc.
• >  analyzing requirements (requests, prescriptions and other documents) forwarded by tax authorities to the taxpayer during tax inspections and preparing motivated responses
• >  participating upon request and on behalf of a client in negotiations with representatives of the tax authorities at the client’s office, tax inspectorate etc.
• >  conducting negotiations with inspectors when necessary to explain the client’s position on the accrual of taxes. Prompt selection of explanations of Russia’s Ministry of Finance, tax authorities, court practice on particular taxation issues to ground the client’s lawful position and inexpedient inclusion of respective tax claims in tax audit reports
• >  prompt oral and written consultations on all the issues of tax inspections, including appropriate actions to be carried out by a taxpayer in a particular situation during tax inspections, the lawfulness of inspectors’ actions and of the taxpayer’s position on accrual of a tax etc.
• >  other consulting and representational services (including negotiations with the client’s contractors) which may be necessary for a client during a tax audit of its financial and business activities.

We have obtained court decisions on interim measures in the majority of cases which we have fought on behalf of our clients. This allows us to protect our clients' proprietary interests even before a positive court decision at the juridical examination stage.

In the course of preparing and conducting legal cases, our lawyers cooperate with clients' financial, accounting and legal functions. In accordance with our clients’ instructions, we can prepare service documents for cases and participate in court sessions or conduct such actions jointly with the client’s experts. In every case, we take into account the need to combine the knowledge and experience of our specialists in tax law and arbitration proceedings with professional knowledge of our client's specific circumstances.

When working on the suit, we provide our client's experts with the ability to execute their daily functions with minimal distraction to the proceedings.

Work with tax authorities act (decision)

FBK Legal’s services with respect to each act can include the following:

• >  gathering supporting documents for the preparation of objections to a tax audit report with the help of the company’s employees
• >  preparing objections to a tax audit report
• >  representing a company when considering objections to the tax authorities
• >  preparing appeals to higher tax authorities

Protecting clients’ interests in arbitration proceedings with the participation of FBK Legal’s tax lawyers includes:

• >  preparing proving evidence
• >  preparing all the necessary service documents for cases
• >  litigation services for clients at the three stages of the arbitration process and, if necessary, before Russia’s Higher Arbitration Court
• >  litigation services for clients in the event of counteraction on the part of the tax authorities at the three stages of the arbitration process and, if necessary, before Russia’s Higher Arbitration Court
• >  litigation services, if necessary, in the event of a new trial of a taxpayer’s claim by counteractions on the part of the tax authorities

Should it prove necessary to protect the client’s proprietary interests at the judicial examination stage by taking court decisions on interim measures, FBK Legal’s lawyers perform the following:

• >  preparing claims for interim measures
• >  consulting and organizational assistance to the client in compiling a package of documents for submission to court as provided for by the Arbitration Procedural Code of the Russian Federation as the basis for satisfying claims for interim measures
• >  filing claims, controling and monitoring the progress of their examination
• >  appeal of court actions, if necessary, relative to a refusal to take interim measures, or repeated filing of claims
• >  litigation services for clients at appeal and cassation courts when the tax authorities appeal against court decisions on satisfaction claims for interim measures

For more information on our tax litigation services, please contact Nadezhda Orlova, Galina Akchurina or Alexei Yakovlev.

Tax Litigation Projects