December 3, 2019

The government has reached a settlement agreement with Franchise Group Intermediate L 1 LLC, the national franchisor and owner of Liberty Tax Service, one of the largest tax preparation service providers in the U.S.  The government alleged that Liberty failed to maintain adequate controls over tax returns prepared by its franchisees, and failed to take steps to prevent the filing of potentially false or fraudulent returns.  The proposed judgment bars Liberty from employing certain individuals, including its founder and former CEO John Hewitt, and requires Liberty to implement specific compliance and reporting procedures, including the implementation of an internal whistleblower program.  DOJ

Tagged in: Tax Fraud,