Represent myself in court

[alexanderkos]

Recently I was audited by a government agency. My CPA made many mistakes and gave bad advice thus I was penalized. I am now in court but the attorney fees are too great to keep on. Is it possible to represent myself in court. At this moment we are in the middle of depositions.

 

[dee_dub]

It is possible. You could fire your lawyer and file a declaration that you're representing yourself.

Since you didn't know whether it's possible, I would guess your understanding of legal procedure is limited. I would caution you NOT to do it.

 

[fredrikklaw]

Pro Se in Tax Court?

Ditto!

Yes; of course you can represent yourself; in fact, everyone can self represent in any type of case and in any court of law.

But you may want to hold on to your attorney for guidance until after depositions are taken and interrogatories are completed and returned before going pro per, and I would be remiss if I did not suggest that you reconsider going solo in tax court. Because quite frankly, and no pun intended here, I would feel a lot more inclined to represent myself in a murder case than in a tax audit case and you need only do a side-by-side volume comparison of the Penal Code and the Tax Code to see why.

And as has been mentioned here already, apart from the Tax Code, there is also the small matter of familiarity with Civil Procedure to know when to hold and when to fold.



fredrikklaw