UBS Whistleblower gets paid $104 million award from IRS.

by | Sep 11, 2012 | Award Determinations, IRS Whistleblower Office, Offshore Assets | 3 comments

Congratulations to Brad Birkenfeld for receiving a $104 million award from the IRS for turning in UBS for their offshore banking practices. Kudos to Steve Kohn and Dean Zerbe, his counsel since 2009 on this matter. It appears that Birkenfeld’s award determination was based on the $400 million of “collected proceeds” (tax penalties and interest) that were proscribed to be paid to the IRS pursuant to UBS’s Deferred Prosecution Agreement, dated February 18, 2009, (see paragraph 3).

The IRS’s award determination shows that tax whistleblowers can and do make significant contributions to the enforcement of the internal revenue laws, and will be rewarded for their help. The process works. While the road may be long and sometimes winding, tax whistleblowers can have an impact on tax cheats.

Lynam Knott