What do you do when a client owes the IRS over a million dollars in payroll taxes, then opens a second company to dodge it?

Ben Golden sits down with his COO, Ray Jordan, to break down one of the firm's toughest resolution cases. A construction company lost money on big contracts, stopped paying payroll taxes, and came to them owing the IRS over a million dollars.

Ben and Ray explain what trust fund taxes really are, why an IRS 4180 interview can put an owner's personal assets on the line, and how a risky move to open a second company nearly turned a civil case into a criminal one.

It is a story of panic, strategy, and a second chance that ended with no jail time and a payment plan the client could live with. If you run a business, this is why you never face the IRS alone. Listen now.

[00:01:48] The case opens: a construction company buried in payroll tax debt

[00:02:29] The bill had already climbed past a million dollars

[00:03:12] The four things that hit when you stop paying payroll taxes

[00:03:28] Trust fund taxes, the 4180 interview, and who the IRS can hold responsible

[00:05:18] The client arrives panicking, with the interview window closing

[00:06:08] Why the firm sometimes refuses to sit in on the interview at all

[00:06:18] The blurry line between civil and criminal, and those "special little bracelets"

[00:08:50] The client's risky move: opening a second company

[00:09:14] What an alter ego is, and why the IRS sees right through it

[00:13:05] How they kept the client out of jail

[00:14:51] Peace of mind, protection, posterity: what tax resolution really buys

[00:18:25] Flexible, adaptable, teachable: the note Ben closes on

IRS Form 4180, Report of Interview with Individual Relative to Trust Fund Recovery Penalty

Ray Jordan is the Chief Operating Officer of Golden Tax Relief and IRS Trouble Solvers, where he oversees day-to-day operations and holds the team to a client-first standard. An Auburn University graduate with a background in the hospice and logistics fields, Ray found his calling helping taxpayers work through serious IRS problems. He is based at the firm's headquarters in Thomasville, Alabama.

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The Financially FAT Podcast is an original production hosted by Ben Golden. Brought to you by Golden Tax Relief. Production and editing by Podcast Your Brand.