Lisa Nelson

PRO

Lisa Nelson

also known as Lisa Barnett, Lisa O. Nelson

5.0
Rating: 10.0

Licensed for 17 years

Tax Lawyer at Santa Ana, CA
Practice Areas: Tax, Tax Fraud & Tax Evasion, International Law, Criminal Defense

3 Hutton Centre Drive, Suite 500, Santa Ana, CA

About Lisa

Biography

Practice Areas

4

Practice Areas

Criminal Defense 25%

25%
International Law 25%

25%
Tax 25%

I practice primarily in the field of tax controversy. I help taxpayers with audit representation, installment agreements, offer in compromise negotiations, payroll tax problems, income tax problems, state tax problems.

18 years

25%
Tax Fraud and Tax Evasion 25%

18 years

25%

Fees and Rates

Cost

Hourly Rates

$ 425-425 per hour


Payment Methods

  • Cash
  • Check
  • Credit Card

Awards

Client's Choice
Client's Choice
2012

Licenses

Licensed in California for 17 years

State: California

Acquired: 2008

Active

No misconduct found

Location

Law Offices of Lisa Nelson

3 Hutton Centre Drive, Suite 500, Santa Ana, CA, 92707

taylorlaw.com

Taylor Nelson Amitrano LLP

1900 Main Street, Suite 650, Irvine, CA, 92614

taylorlaw.com

Online Presence

Other places you can find Lisa online.

Lisa Nelson's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

5.0 /5.0

11 Client Reviews

5 star (11)
4 star (0)
3 star (0)
2 star (0)
1 star (0)

Posted by Stephanie | April 25, 2021 | Hired Attorney

This review is from a person who hired this attorney.

Best Money Spent

Have you ever felt like you underpaid a lawyer??? Neither had I until I met Lisa!!! Lisa helped negotiate an almost 2,000,000 tax liability to $0. Life changing results, thank you Lisa!!!

Posted by Wayne | October 19, 2015 | Hired Attorney

This review is from a person who hired this attorney.

The best lawyer I've ever retained!!!

Lisa is simply the best. I found her on Avvo to help me navigate through a complex IRS situation. My first contact with her was amazing, she is so very nice and professional. The communication and support was exceptional, I could not have asked for anything better. She provided me with absolutely... sound advise that later turned out exactly how she anticipated saving me thousands of dollars. I'm so grateful for her representation. She is hard worker and great communicator providing me updates late in the day and weekends. She is extremely intelligent and very knowledgable. There is nobody else I would ever use then Lisa for future tax law advise.

Posted by Michael | February 10, 2015

Beating the IRS

I hired Lisa and her firm to address a complex tax situation with the IRS in which the IRS was claiming I owed them >$250K. Lisa and her team quickly cut through the red-tape that is ever present whenever one interacts with the IRS. Lisa was successful in petitioning the IRS to review their agent's a...ction and the IRS quickly (OK, quickly for a government agency!) came back and agreed with Lisa's well written appeals letter that the IRS agent was indeed incorrect in their ruling that I owed an additional >$250K in taxes. Of course there was lots of back and forth between Lisa and myself and subsequently between Lisa and the IRS on this matter but Lisa was able to very quickly identify the key items that the IRS needed to see from my past records in order to adequately support my case. Lisa's ability to do this saved me an immense amount of time in terms of assembling the supporting documents Lisa required to support all the claims she made in her appeals letter to the IRS. The bottom line is I was very satisfied with Lisa and her firm not only because of the outcome of my case but more importantly because of the outstanding job Lisa and her firm did in communicating with me throughout the entire process, the efficient way in which they used my time, the efficient and effective way in which they conducted their work which resulted in a cost effective legal bill, and Lisa's ability to take the emotion out of the situation and simply boil complex matters down to a series of facts that all parties could easily understand. I have had the opportunity throughout my business career as a senior executive to retain a wide variety of different professionals/professional firms (lawyers, CPAs, Investment Bankers, etc) and I would rank Lisa and her firm in my top 5 all-time (out of the >50 firms I've engaged during my personal and professional career).

Posted by anonymous | January 28, 2015

wonderful customer service

Lisa nelson was amazing!! She helped us and just gave us the assurance that everything will be ok.. She kept in contact with us and told us she will keep us updated on everything that is going on with the IRS and she did! We were never disappointed! we are so happy with her work and I will recommend ...her to everyone!!! Thanks again!!!

Posted by Dr. G | October 17, 2013

Results!

Lisa was professional and competent with our matters. Her responsiveness was exceeded my expectations and the results of the case were very satisfactory. If I would describe Lisa in three words, it would be accountable, results driven, and enthusiastic. Lisa clearly knew what she was responsible fore..., she had the skills, knowledge, and sufficient influence to carry out her responsibilities. She maintained her focus on priorities and accurately predicted the anticipated consequences of our case. Lisa's deeply rooted enthusiasm for detailed worked gave me a sense of confidence that we selected the right person to handle the job. Thanks, Lisa!

See All Client Reviews

Lisa Nelson's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Lisa
Ronson Joseph Shamoun headshot
Ronson Shamoun

Unknown lawyer | Apr 08

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"I endorse this lawyer. Lisa was my first full-time associate who helped with transitioning my law firm from a solo practice to a full service law firm. She worked with me for over four years and I experienced her honesty and integrity firsthand. She handled hundreds of cases while simultaneously managing the day-to-day operations of our firm, and was instrumental to the growth and success of my law firm. She is professional, knowledgeable, and a skilled negotiator. I highly recommend her services."

Samuel D Brotman headshot
Samuel Brotman

Tax lawyer | Nov 07

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"Lisa is one of the best tax attorneys that I have ever worked with. She has a passion and natural exuberance that is unmatched by anyone in our profession. Lisa is extremely diligent when it comes to tax matters and always goes the extra mile for her clients. I would strongly recommend Lisa for any tax matter. She is an absolute pleasure to work with."

Jonathan Thomas Amitrano headshot
Jonathan Amitrano

Tax lawyer | Oct 03

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"Lisa is one of the best tax attorney's I have ever worked with. I would highly recommend her to any potential client who has a tax problem. She is the best of the best."

Massimo Paternoster headshot
Massimo Paternoster

Tax lawyer | Nov 26

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse Attorney Barnett. I have read several of her answers posted on avvo and they are accurate and very informative. I would not hesitate to recommend her legal services."

Venar Raad Ayar headshot
Venar Ayar

Tax lawyer | Oct 26

Relationship: Co-worker

"I endorse this lawyer. Lisa and I used to be associates at the same firm together. She is a very knowledgeable, meticulous, and detail-oriented attorney. She always carried herself in a professional manner and gave each and every one of her clients the time and attention their matter deserved. I would not think twice about trusting her to handle my own tax matters (but for the fact that I, too, am a tax lawyer)."

Michael Charles Doland headshot
Michael Doland

Tax lawyer | Sep 13

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"Although Ms. Barnett is new to Avvo, I have just reviewed one of her answers and it was superlative. Not only accurate, it was customized to the individual needs of the Avvo asker and was written in clear, plain English. These are precisely the qualities that any potential client would want to have in an Attorney."

Irina Nicole Goldberg headshot
Irina Goldberg

Tax lawyer | Sep 06

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"Lisa cares deeply about her clients and is one of the most hardworking, dedicated and knowledgeable attorneys that I have ever had the pleasure of knowing and working with. I highly recommend her."

View All Endorsements

Experience

Rating:  10.0 (Superb)

Honors

2025

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

2024

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

2023

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

2022

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

2021

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

2020

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

2018

Rising Star, Super Lawyers

2017

Rising Star, Southern California Super Lawyers

2016

Southern California Rising Stars, SuperLawyers

2016

Rising Star, Super Lawyers

2015

2015 Top Attorneys List, Orange County Coast Magazine

Work Experience

2015 - Present

Partner, The Law Offices of A. Lavar Taylor LLP

2013 - Present

Associate Attorney, Law Offices of A. Lavar Taylor

1900 - Present

Partner, Taylor Nelson Amitrano LLP

2009 - 2013

Senior Associate Attorney, RJS Law

Associations

2014 - Present

California State Bar Income Tax & Other

Educational Chair

2013 - Present

American Bar Association, Taxation Section

Member

2012 - Present

Orange County Bar Association

Member

2009 - Present

Jarrett Meeker Foundation

Treasurer

2008 - Present

San Diego Bar Association

Member

2015 - 2015

Orange County Bar Association, Tax Law Section

Treasurer/Secretary

Sample of Legal Cases

Audit Reconsideration

Entire deduction allowed and tax bill reduced to zero

Offers in Compromise

In 2012, the total offers that have been accepted add to a combined total of $16,000 for total liabilities of $253,956.63

Tax Court Audit Case

Provided substantiation of expenses and legal right to take deductions. Reduced bill from $1.8M to $109K.

Form 8300 audit

No penalties for failure to file Form 8300

See More Legal Cases

Education

2008

University of San Diego School of Law

LLM in Taxation

2008

University of San Diego

JD - Juris Doctor

2005

Chapman University

BA - Bachelor of Arts

Speaking Engagements

2015

Payroll Taxes... Can you Recover from the Trust Fund Payroll Taxes

2015

Annual Income Tax Seminar Income Tax Annual Update

2014

Sacramento Delegation

Discretionary Disallowance of Compensation Paid Workers: The Need for Guidance under R&T Code Sections 17299.8 and 24447

2014

Orange County Bar Association Real Estate Section

The Impact of Divorce, Death & Taxes on Real Estate Holdings & Transactions

2014

DC Delegation

Proposal to Expand the Scope and Definition for "Person" to Allow for Third Parties in Alter Ego and Nominee Cases

2012

Continuing Education Presentation for Considine & Considine

Tax Topics: Payroll Tax, Criminal Tax, Collection

2012

CLE Panelist 2012

IRS Fresh Start Program

Publications

2013

California Network Newsletter Time’s a Ticking: IRS Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (VSCP)

Languages

English

Spanish

Activity

Avvo Rating

Our Rating is calculated using information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information we collect from state bar associations and other organizations that license legal professionals. Attorneys who claim their profiles and provide Avvo with more information tend to have a higher rating than those who do not.

What determines Avvo Rating?
  • Experience & background Years licensed, work experience, education
  • Legal community recognition Peer endorsements, associations, awards
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Avvo Rating Levels
10.0 - 9.0 Superb8.9 - 8.0 Excellent7.9 - 7.0 Very Good6.9 - 6.0 Good5.9 - 5.0 Average4.9 - 4.0 Concern3.9 - 3.0 Caution2.9 - 2.0 Strong Caution1.9 - 1.0 Extreme Caution