{"id":4568,"date":"2026-02-01T17:04:24","date_gmt":"2026-02-01T16:04:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.ut-lawyer.de\/faq\/"},"modified":"2026-03-15T10:16:55","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T09:16:55","slug":"faq","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/insights\/faq\/","title":{"rendered":"Frequently Asked Questions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Frequently asked questions concerning legal cooperation, the scope of an initial assessment and the nature of my advisory approach.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

What is the purpose of this page?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The fol\u00adlow\u00ading ques\u00adtions address recur\u00adring aspects of legal coop\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion, the ini\u00adtial assess\u00adment and the scope of my prac\u00adtice.
They are intend\u00aded to pro\u00advide ori\u00aden\u00adta\u00adtion and to help deter\u00admine whether legal sup\u00adport may be appropriate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What does an initial assessment include \u2013 and what does it not include?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The ini\u00adtial assess\u00adment serves as a first legal ori\u00aden\u00adta\u00adtion. Its pur\u00adpose is to deter\u00admine whether a mat\u00adter is legal\u00adly rel\u00ade\u00advant and whether fur\u00adther legal sup\u00adport may be appropriate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It does not replace a com\u00adpre\u00adhen\u00adsive legal review and does not usu\u00adal\u00adly include final legal con\u00adclu\u00adsions or con\u00adcrete rec\u00adom\u00admen\u00adda\u00adtions. Any in-depth analy\u00adsis is car\u00adried out on the basis of a sep\u00ada\u00adrate engagement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Does contacting you already create an attorney-client relationship?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

No. Con\u00adtact\u00ading me via this web\u00adsite or request\u00ading an ini\u00adtial assess\u00adment does not in itself cre\u00adate an attor\u00adney-client relationship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A man\u00addate is only estab\u00adlished through an explic\u00adit engage\u00adment and cor\u00adre\u00adspond\u00ading agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How does the engagement typically work?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The engage\u00adment is han\u00addled in a struc\u00adtured man\u00adner tai\u00adlored to the spe\u00adcif\u00adic mat\u00adter. Meet\u00adings may take place in per\u00adson or by using appro\u00adpri\u00adate com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adca\u00adtion tools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The deci\u00adsive fac\u00adtor is a care\u00adful and prop\u00ader han\u00addling of the man\u00addate in accor\u00addance with pro\u00adfes\u00adsion\u00adal rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Do you represent clients in objection proceedings against the tax authority?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes. I rep\u00adre\u00adsent clients in objec\u00adtion pro\u00adceed\u00adings against tax assessments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is based on a care\u00adful legal review of the assess\u00adment and the under\u00adly\u00ading facts and legal issues. The aim is an appro\u00adpri\u00adate cor\u00adrec\u00adtion or legal clar\u00adi\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adtion of the dis\u00adput\u00aded points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Do you handle proceedings before the Fiscal Courts?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes. I rep\u00adre\u00adsent clients before the Fis\u00adcal Courts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The deci\u00adsion to pur\u00adsue court pro\u00adceed\u00adings is made on the basis of a thor\u00adough legal analy\u00adsis and a real\u00adis\u00adtic assess\u00adment of prospects and risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Which documents are typically relevant when reviewing a tax assessment?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The required doc\u00adu\u00adments depend on the indi\u00advid\u00adual case. Typ\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly rel\u00ade\u00advant are the tax assess\u00adment, the explana\u00adto\u00adry notes, the tax return or assess\u00adment return, and the key cor\u00adre\u00adspon\u00addence with the tax authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the assess\u00adment is based on an audit, an esti\u00adma\u00adtion, or spe\u00adcif\u00adic find\u00adings, addi\u00adtion\u00adal doc\u00adu\u00adments may be required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Do you replace a tax adviser?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As an attor\u00adney, I am autho\u00adrised to pro\u00advide com\u00adpre\u00adhen\u00adsive assis\u00adtance in tax mat\u00adters. This includes tax advice, the prepa\u00adra\u00adtion of tax returns, and rep\u00adre\u00adsen\u00adta\u00adtion before tax author\u00adi\u00adties and the Fis\u00adcal Courts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tax advice may there\u00adfore be pro\u00advid\u00aded inde\u00adpen\u00addent\u00adly or in coop\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion with an exist\u00ading tax adviser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where ongo\u00ading tax sup\u00adport is already in place, my work reg\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly focus\u00ades on the legal assess\u00adment of com\u00adplex mat\u00adters and on con\u00adduct\u00ading objec\u00adtion pro\u00adceed\u00adings and Fis\u00adcal Court proceedings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The scope of the engage\u00adment depends on the struc\u00adture, risk pro\u00adfile, and pro\u00adce\u00addur\u00adal stage of the matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Do you advise on international or cross-border matters?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes. Cross-bor\u00adder mat\u00adters form an impor\u00adtant part of my practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I advise on mat\u00adters with an inter\u00adna\u00adtion\u00adal dimen\u00adsion, for exam\u00adple relo\u00adca\u00adtion to or from Ger\u00admany, cross-bor\u00adder share\u00adhold\u00ading struc\u00adtures, or dou\u00adble tax\u00ada\u00adtion issues, and, where appro\u00adpri\u00adate, work with tax advis\u00aders and for\u00adeign coun\u00adsel to prop\u00ader\u00adly account for nation\u00adal specifics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Do you advise on corporate structures with tax relevance?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes. I advise on reor\u00adgan\u00adi\u00adsa\u00adtions, par\u00adtic\u00adi\u00adpa\u00adtion struc\u00adtures, and wealth struc\u00adtures with tax relevance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This includes con\u00adsid\u00ader\u00ading tax law aspects as well as cor\u00adpo\u00adrate and lia\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adty-relat\u00aded implications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Do you also advise individuals?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes. I also advise indi\u00advid\u00adu\u00adals, in par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar on tax-relat\u00aded and legal\u00adly com\u00adplex mat\u00adters, for exam\u00adple in con\u00adnec\u00adtion with assets, par\u00adtic\u00adi\u00adpa\u00adtions, or cross-bor\u00adder situations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sim\u00adple every\u00adday ques\u00adtions or short one-off ques\u00adtions with\u00adout deep\u00ader legal rel\u00ade\u00advance are not the focus of my practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Do you take on short one-off questions or \u201cquick assessments\u201d?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

My advice is not designed for short one-off ques\u00adtions or gener\u00adic quick assessments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I work in a struc\u00adtured man\u00adner and review the rel\u00ade\u00advant facts care\u00adful\u00adly. This requires time and in-depth analy\u00adsis, but it is the basis for robust and sus\u00adtain\u00adable results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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When can a tax structure become legally problematic?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Tax struc\u00adtures are gen\u00ader\u00adal\u00adly per\u00admis\u00adsi\u00adble as long as they oper\u00adate with\u00adin the frame\u00adwork of the law. How\u00adev\u00ader, issues may arise if tax author\u00adi\u00adties assume that a struc\u00adture was cre\u00adat\u00aded sole\u00adly to obtain tax advan\u00adtages with\u00adout a gen\u00aduine eco\u00adnom\u00adic purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In such sit\u00adu\u00ada\u00adtions, author\u00adi\u00adties may exam\u00adine whether the arrange\u00adment con\u00adsti\u00adtutes an abuse of law or whether the intend\u00aded tax ben\u00ade\u00adfits should be dis\u00adre\u00adgard\u00aded. A struc\u00adtured legal analy\u00adsis can help clar\u00adi\u00adfy the legal and eco\u00adnom\u00adic ratio\u00adnale of the arrangement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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When is it useful to involve a lawyer in addition to a tax adviser?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Tax advis\u00aders play a cen\u00adtral role in analysing and cal\u00adcu\u00adlat\u00ading tax con\u00adse\u00adquences. How\u00adev\u00ader, when cor\u00adpo\u00adrate struc\u00adtures, share\u00adhold\u00ader arrange\u00adments or cross-bor\u00adder sit\u00adu\u00ada\u00adtions are involved, addi\u00adtion\u00adal legal advice may be advisable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Legal coun\u00adsel can focus on struc\u00adtur\u00ading the arrange\u00adment in a legal\u00adly sound way, review\u00ading con\u00adtrac\u00adtu\u00adal aspects and assess\u00ading poten\u00adtial lia\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adty risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Can tax structures be questioned during a tax audit?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes. Dur\u00ading tax audits, author\u00adi\u00adties may exam\u00adine not only indi\u00advid\u00adual tax posi\u00adtions but also the under\u00adly\u00ading legal and organ\u00adi\u00adsa\u00adtion\u00adal struc\u00adtures of a business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If a struc\u00adture appears unusu\u00adal or par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly tax-dri\u00adven, the author\u00adi\u00adties may look more close\u00adly at its legal basis. A care\u00adful legal assess\u00adment can help explain the struc\u00adture and clar\u00adi\u00adfy its under\u00adly\u00ading rationale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What happens after the initial assessment?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If the ini\u00adtial assess\u00adment indi\u00adcates that more in-depth sup\u00adport is appro\u00adpri\u00adate, we will dis\u00adcuss the next steps and the scope of a pos\u00adsi\u00adble engagement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sub\u00adstan\u00adtive work on the mat\u00adter begins only on that basis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Will you provide cost information before an engagement?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before accept\u00ading a man\u00addate, I inform clients about the applic\u00ada\u00adble billing basis, in par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar under the Ger\u00adman Lawyers\u2019 Remu\u00adner\u00ada\u00adtion Act (RVG<\/span>) or on the basis of a sep\u00ada\u00adrate fee agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where pos\u00adsi\u00adble, I pro\u00advide an ini\u00adtial ori\u00aden\u00adta\u00adtion regard\u00ading the expect\u00aded cost range. Such an esti\u00admate, how\u00adev\u00ader, requires suf\u00adfi\u00adcient knowl\u00adedge of the rel\u00ade\u00advant facts and is sub\u00adject to the pro\u00advi\u00adso that no addi\u00adtion\u00adal or pre\u00advi\u00adous\u00adly unknown aspects arise dur\u00ading the course of the engagement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bind\u00ading fixed-fee com\u00admit\u00adments are gen\u00ader\u00adal\u00adly not appro\u00adpri\u00adate in com\u00adplex or con\u00adtentious matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The deci\u00adsive fac\u00adtors are the scope, com\u00adplex\u00adi\u00adty and devel\u00adop\u00adment of the spe\u00adcif\u00adic mandate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fre\u00adquent\u00adly asked ques\u00adtions con\u00adcern\u00ading legal coop\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion, the scope of an ini\u00adtial assess\u00adment and the nature of my advi\u00adso\u00adry approach. What is the pur\u00adpose of this page? The fol\u00adlow\u00ading ques\u00adtions address recur\u00adring aspects of legal coop\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion, the ini\u00adtial assess\u00adment and the scope of my prac\u00adtice.They are intend\u00aded to pro\u00advide ori\u00aden\u00adta\u00adtion and to help deter\u00admine whether legal support [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":4551,"menu_order":10,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"FAQ on Legal Cooperation | Tax and Corporate Law","_seopress_titles_desc":"Frequently asked questions on legal cooperation, initial assessment, fees and legal support in tax law, corporate law and cross-border matters.","_seopress_robots_index":"","wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"iawp_total_views":1,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-4568","page","type-page","status-publish"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4568","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4568"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4568\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6795,"href":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4568\/revisions\/6795"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4551"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unkelbach-tomczak.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4568"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}