Tax Defendants Reaping The Benefit of Booker

January 21, 2021  |  New York Law Journal

In United States v. Booker, 543 U.S. 220 (2005), the Supreme Court held that mandatory application of the Sentencing Guidelines was unconstitutional and that judges must consider statutorily mandated factors in deciding an appropriate sentence for each offender. In this article, we analyze recent data from the United States Sentencing Commission demonstrating that judges have become increasingly likely to exercise their discretion to sentence defendants convicted of tax offenses below the applicable Guidelines, but are also more likely to impose some period of incarceration than in the past.  While sentencing advocacy has always been especially important in tax cases, the data reflects the significant impact defense counsel can have on the sentences imposed and the substantial benefits defendants have reaped under Booker. 

Tax Defendants Reaping The Benefit of Booker (pdf | 288.92 KB)