Daniel Wilbur Layton

An ex-Federal tax prosecutor and ex-IRS trial attorney, Daniel W. Layton's practice as a tax attorney is dedicated to handling all aspects of tax controversy, including audits, collection, international tax, and criminal tax defense. 

Mr. Layton brings extensive experience and insight from his time in the government sector, which greatly benefits his clients. As a former Federal tax prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice, in the Tax Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles, and a former IRS trial attorney in San Jose, he has litigated a wide variety of civil and criminal tax cases in Federal district court and in U.S. Tax Court arising from notices of deficiency, collections determinations, and innocent spouse determinations.

As a former Federal prosecutor, Mr. Layton understands how the IRS conducts its investigations against individuals alleged to have committed tax evasion and tax fraud. Mr. Layton's district court experience includes litigation of claims for refund, collections cases, IRS summons proceedings, injunctions, and criminal tax cases. Mr. Layton has successfully litigated several high profile district court cases, including a tax shelter case with over $350 million at issue and one of the first cases involving disclosure of foreign holders of domestic bank accounts. He has significant experience in the area of identity theft and tax fraud, holding the position of Stolen Identity Refund Fraud coordinator for the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Mr. Layton also has exceptional familiarity with the IRS's practices and procedures due to his tenure as an attorney for the IRS, in the IRS Office of Chief Counsel's field office in Silicon Valley. There, Mr. Layton provided training to revenue officers and revenue agents in San Jose field offices and in the Fresno Service Center, advised a specialized group of revenue agents assigned to tax shelters, and reviewed the IRS's proposed assertions of penalties, including Foreign Bank Account (FBAR) penalties for undisclosed offshore accounts and civil fraud penalties.

Mr. Layton is a graduate of the University of Chicago Law School, where he was a Victor McQuistion Scholar. He earned his Master of Tax Laws from Golden Gate University in San Francisco and his undergraduate degree from San Diego State University.

Daniel W. Layton is a Southern California native.  When he isn't wearing a suit, he can usually be found training for triathlons and mud-runs, rooting for the LA Galaxy, or coaching one of his kids' soccer teams.