Chasing the Issue
CAROLINE CIRAOLO ALWAYS LIKED NUMBERS;
BUT IT’S HER PEOPLE SKILLS THAT MAKE HER
A TOP TAX CONTROVERSY ATTORNEY
BY BILL GLOSE
PHOTOGRAPHY BY DEAN RAY
“IT’S NOT MY FAULT! MY ACCOUNTANT FILLED IN THE FORM.”
Caroline Ciraolo can’t tell you how many meetings with new
clients have begun with those words. Her practice focuses
exclusively on white-collar defense and tax controversy, which
means she handles tax matters for businesses and individuals, but
not until they are in dispute.
“We have clients who are non-filers and haven’t filed tax returns
for a number of years,” says Ciraolo, a partner at Rosenberg Martin
Greenberg. “They think that if they don’t have the money to pay
the tax when it’s due that they should simply not file at all. But
that’s the worst thing they can do, because then they start accruing
penalties, from failure-to-file to failure-to-pay. And not filing is not
only a civil violation, but it’s a criminal violation as well.”
When she explains these facts to perplexed clients, she does so
with eloquence and enthusiasm.
“She does a great job of communicating an understanding
of the procedures and nuances to her audience,” says Jeffrey
Markowitz of Miles & Stockbridge. “Her knowledge of the subject
matter is tremendous, which she then applies to representing her
clients in trying to get a just result for them. She’s an incredibly
motivated person and she works very hard for her clients. [That’s
why] Caroline is one of the first people I choose to send referrals to
for tax controversy matters.”
Some of Ciraolo’s first meetings with clients don’t occur until the
Internal Revenue Service has initiated an audit; and for some of
those clients, the audit is their first inkling that something is amiss.
One client was shocked when the IRS came knocking. He’d diligently
paid his taxes every year … or so he thought. He’d made his checks
