Debra is the National Private Wealth Tax Controversy leader for Deloitte Tax and advises on IRS controversy matters throughout the country. After law school, she spent 15 years at IRS Chief Counsel where she litigated a wide variety of individual, estate, tax-exempt, corporate, and partnership tax matters. She has more than 20 published Tax Court opinions. As a Special Trial Attorney for the IRS, Debra litigated and resolved many high profile matters. She was lead counsel in numerous trials, including the Seagate case, involving whether stock options must be shared in cost-sharing arrangements, the Georgiou case, involving constructive dividend and consolidated return issues, and the Fu case, which resolved a major evidence-gathering dispute. Since coming to Deloitte 21 years ago, Debra has handled significant IRS-related work for estates, individuals, tax-exempt entities, and corporations. She leads a national practice that specializes in high-wealth individual, transfer tax and tax-exempt IRS disputes. She has been involved with many of the largest such disputes in the country, and clients rely on her wealth of practical and technical knowledge. She is particularly experienced with valuation, hobby loss, claims, employment tax, penalties, and the unique issues faced by tax-exempt entities. In addition, she is an expert in obtaining voluntary disclosure agreements, technical advice and pre-filing agreements, defending IRS examinations, and conducting regular and Fast Track IRS Appeals, as well as Post-Appeals Mediation. She regularly performs IRS readiness projects for individuals, tax-exempt entities, and estates. Because of her litigation background, she is regularly called upon to assist with trials in the Tax and District Courts.