Austin & Larson Tax Resolution
Tax Lawyer In Brighton Township, MI
IRS and Michigan tax debt, handled by licensed tax attorneys and IRS Enrolled Agents from our Brighton office, minutes from anywhere in the township.
Tax Debt is Often
Intimidating
Frustrating
Confusing
Embarrassing
Stressful
… But it Doesn’t Have to Be
If you are looking for a tax lawyer in Brighton Township, MI, you probably got a letter. Austin & Larson Tax Resolution helps Brighton Township residents and business owners settle tax debt and fix bad notices from the IRS and the State of Michigan. Our team includes licensed tax attorneys, CPAs, and IRS Enrolled Agents, and we work from an office on West Grand River Avenue in Brighton, on the township’s southwest border. Bring us the letter you received. The first consultation is free, and you walk out of it knowing what you actually owe, what your options are, and what a fix costs.
Looking For A Fresh Start in Michigan?
We Are Here To Help!
Should the weight of tax debt be pressing down on you, we urge you to connect with us to avail of a no-cost
consultation. Our objective revolves around untangling tax debt complexities for clients entangled in an array of
tax-related dilemmas. It would bring us immense satisfaction to furnish you with solutions to your inquiries and aid
you in swiftly settling your tax debt matters.
First, figure out which tax problem you actually have
Two different problems send people in Brighton Township looking for a tax lawyer, and they get solved in completely different ways. Before you hire anyone, it helps to know which one you have.
Your Michigan assessment or Notice of Adjustment jumped
In spring 2026, Michigan’s Treasury sent roughly 27,000 taxpayers “Notice of Adjustment” letters that claimed a balance the person did not actually owe. The letters came out of the state’s new tax computer system, and the state later confirmed the notices themselves were wrong, not the returns behind them. So a letter saying you owe money is not proof that you do. If your return was correct, this is often a paperwork fix rather than a debt, and you may not need to pay anyone to resolve it. It still has to be answered, and on time, because ignoring a real notice and ignoring a mistaken one look identical until someone reads it.
You owe back taxes to the IRS or the State of Michigan
The other case is a real balance: unfiled returns, an audit that went against you, payroll taxes for a business, or years that quietly stacked up. That is a debt problem, and it runs on a different track. Here the goal is not to argue the number but to resolve it, through a payment plan, a hardship status, or a settlement, before interest, liens, or a levy make it worse. Most people walk in assuming they are in this second group. A good share of them, once we read the notice, are in the first.
The 2025-2026 Michigan tax changes most lawyer listings skip
Most of the “tax lawyer Brighton Township” pages that rank on Google were written before the last two years of Michigan tax changes, and it shows. Three shifts happened recently, and each one can change what you owe or how your case is handled.
The first is the system problem. Michigan moved its tax processing onto a new platform for the 2025 return season, and it did not go smoothly. Hundreds of thousands of filers waited months for refunds, and about 27,000 got those erroneous Notice of Adjustment letters. One practical detail the letters rarely mention: Michigan owes you interest on a refund it holds past 45 days from your filing (MCL 205.30). If you are still waiting, that is not a favor the state is doing you, it is the law.
The second is the rules split. On October 7, 2025, Michigan enacted Public Act 24, which stopped the state from following several pieces of the federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Michigan and the federal government no longer move in lockstep. Corporate filers are fully decoupled from federal bonus depreciation; individuals and flow-through entities follow the federal code as it stood on December 31, 2024, which phases bonus depreciation down to 40% for 2025, 20% for 2026, and 0% after that. Michigan does allow the new federal deductions for qualified tips and qualified overtime, but only for tax years 2025 through 2029, and if you are a nonresident, only on your Michigan-source share. When your state and federal returns stop agreeing, the odds of a mismatch, and a notice, go up.
The third is that relief became permanent. Senate Bill 423, signed July 31, 2026, made the delinquent-tax installment plans and foreclosure-avoidance agreements permanent statewide, so the tools to save a home from tax foreclosure are no longer on a sunset clock.
None of this shows up on a listing that was last touched in 2023. It matters because the right move on a 2025 or 2026 Michigan issue is not the same as it was two years ago.
What We Do | Tax Resolution
Offer In Compromise
Installment Agreements
Non-Collectable Status
Compliance
Revenue Officer Representation
Levies & Wage Garnishments
Bankruptcy
Audit Representation
Tax Return Preparation
Handling tax resolution may feel daunting, but with our expert guidance, you'll experience relief knowing seasoned professionals are by your side. At Austin & Larson Tax Resolution, our experienced Michigan tax lawyers are dedicated to delivering the reassurance and help you deserve. Well-regarded for their expertise and in-depth understanding of Michigan State tax regulations, our proficient tax relief lawyers provide a full spectrum of services, from thorough consultations to exceptional legal advocacy, all focused on securing the most favorable resolution to your tax matters.
A Michigan tax debt does not behave like an IRS debt
People assume state tax debt works like IRS debt. It does not, and in Brighton Township the differences are worth knowing before you pick who handles your case.
The clocks are different. The IRS generally has ten years to collect an assessed federal tax, its collection statute, after which the balance can expire. Michigan’s rules on how long the state can assess and collect are separate from that federal clock, and interest keeps accruing the whole time. Do not assume a Michigan balance will quietly age off on the same schedule as a federal one; that assumption is how a manageable state debt becomes a lien.
They also feed each other. After Public Act 24 split Michigan from the federal code, a change on your federal return can ripple into your Michigan return in ways it would not have a few years ago. Fixing one side without checking the other is how a second notice shows up six months later. It is a plain argument for having one team that handles both the IRS and Michigan Treasury, rather than two that each watch half the board.
Our Process | Simple, Fast & Stress Free
Step 1: Initial Contact
During your first call to our office, we will ask you a brief
background of your current tax situation and determine the
most convenient office location for your free initial
consultation.
Step 2: Free Consultation
We will meet with you to review and discuss your individual
facts and circumstances to create a customized tax relief plan
for your situation and the next steps to take to resolve your tax
situation.
Step 3: Begin Resolving Debt
Once we have decided to move forward, we will immediately begin working with the IRS on your behalf to resolve your
case as quickly as possible. We will also provide advice and the steps you need to take to ensure you do not acquire
any additional debt while we work to settle your case. From the moment you retain our firm, we will be your voice with
the IRS and the point of contact for all taxing entities.
Step 4: Monitor Case Status
Some tax debt cases can be resolved quickly, while others may
have quite a bit of back and forth contact with the IRS to reach
full resolution. We will regularly monitor your case and keep
you in the loop along the way so you are never left in the dark.
Step 5: Tax Freedom!
It is our goal not only to resolve your current tax debt but also
to make sure that you don't have any further tax problems.
After we have reached resolution with your case, you will be
fully equipped with best practices to avoid future tax issues of
any kind.
When you probably do not need to hire us
We would rather tell you to keep your money than take a case you can handle yourself. A few situations where you likely do not need a tax attorney in Brighton Township:
- You got a Michigan Notice of Adjustment, but your return was right. Respond through Michigan Treasury’s eServices or by phone with your documentation. This is often a correction, not a case.
- The balance is small and clear, and you can pay it. You can set up a plan yourself at irs.gov or michigan.gov in about twenty minutes.
- You just need this year’s return prepared and there is no dispute. A CPA or an Enrolled Agent can do that for less than an attorney will.
When it does make sense to bring in an attorney: anything that could go to Tax Court, a lien, levy, or wage garnishment already in motion, a dispute that turns on the new Michigan-federal mismatch, a business payroll-tax problem, or any situation with possible criminal exposure. Attorney-client privilege covers what you tell a lawyer in a way it does not cover a return preparer, and only an attorney can stand in for you in court. That line, when an Enrolled Agent or CPA is enough versus when you want a lawyer, is exactly what the free consultation is for. We will tell you which side you are on, even when the answer is “you do not need us.”
Frequently Asked Questions
When are Brighton Township property taxes due?
Summer taxes are payable July 1 through September 14, and winter taxes December 1 through the last day of February. If the due date is a weekend, you have until the next business day. Unpaid real property taxes go delinquent to the Livingston County Treasurer on March 1.
I got a Michigan “Notice of Adjustment” saying I owe. Is it real?
Maybe not. About 27,000 of these went out in error in spring 2026 from Michigan’s new tax system. Do not pay it on sight, and do not ignore it either. Bring it in, and we will tell you in one sitting whether it is a real balance or a bad letter.
Can I appeal my Brighton Township assessment right now?
Only in the right window. Value and classification appeals are heard at the March Board of Review, and that is the only time the township hears them for the current year. The July and December boards handle clerical errors and poverty exemptions, not market value. Commercial and industrial owners skip the board and file with the Michigan Tax Tribunal by May 31.
Do I need a tax lawyer, or will a CPA or Enrolled Agent do?
For return prep and simple balances, an Enrolled Agent or CPA is often enough. You want an attorney when there is a lien or levy in play, a Tax Court issue, a business payroll problem, the new state-federal mismatch, or anything with criminal exposure, partly because attorney-client privilege protects those conversations. The free consultation sorts this out.
Does a Michigan tax debt ever go away on its own?
Not the way people hope. Michigan’s assessment and collection clocks are separate from the IRS’s ten-year one, and interest runs the entire time. Assume it will not disappear, and deal with it while the options are still cheap.
What do you charge?
The first consultation is free. If you hire us, we quote a flat fee after we have read your notice and know the scope, so there are no surprises. There is no charge to find out where you stand.
Bring the notice. We’ll tell you where you stand.
You do not have to figure out whether that letter is a real debt or a system error on your own. Bring it to a firm that reads them every day.
Weekdays 8am-6pm
Brighton, Saginaw, Lansing, and Jacskon, MI
Free Phone or In-Person Consultation
Fill out the form below or give us a call today to speak with one of our tax experts!
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