About Us

Michael P. Merrion began his professional career as an accountant with Alexander Grant & Company (now Grant Thornton, LLP).  Mike then served as assistant controller of a large independent oil and gas trading company while attending law school.  After receiving his law degree and a Masters of Laws of Taxation, Mike worked as a tax specialist in the “Big Eight” CPA firm of Coopers and Lybrand (now PriceWaterhouseCoopers).  After leaving Coopers and Lybrand, Mike served as the director of tax practice for a small CPA firm specializing in international taxation.   He left the CPA firm in 1987 to form his own law firm.

Mike has practiced in his capacity as a CPA or as an attorney for more than forty years.  During that time, the principal focus of his professional career has been in representing taxpayers in matters pending before taxing authorities, including the Internal Revenue Service, the Departments of Revenue of numerous states, and numerous local tax authorities.

Mike has also served as the chair of the Colorado Society of CPA's Continuing Professional Education Board and chaired the Society’s Course Development Committee. He has also served on the Board of Directors of the Colorado Society of CPA’s, and as Vice-President of that organization. 

In addition to publishing nearly a dozen books on various aspects of US tax law, Mike has also written and lectured on tax and business issues for more than 25 years and has chaired, participated in and instructed numerous conferences and continuing education classes for various professional organizations across the United States.  He served on the editorial staff of the Denver Tax Journal, has been interviewed by the media on tax issues, and has testified as an expert with regard to various tax and business issues.

Education

University of Denver Graduate Tax Program - Masters of Laws of Taxation (1981).

University of Denver School of Law - Juris Doctorate (1980)

Regis University - B.S. in Accounting and in Business Administration (Dual Degrees) - Magna Cum Laude (1976).   Minor in Physics.

Audrey D. Dean, E.A., retired from the Internal Revenue Service in 2007 after nearly thirty years of service, and now uses her special training and skills to represent taxpayers at all levels of tax controversy: both in federal as well as state and local forums.  Audrey has an in-depth knowledge of IRS practices and procedures, has been called upon to serve on several special task forces with in the Internal Revenue Service.  She was also responsible for drafting internal procedures and has supervised and provided training to IRS personnel.

Audrey’s tenure with the Internal Revenue Service has provided her with a broad background in procedural and substantive tax law.  During her tenure with the IRS, she held positions in various functions within the IRS, including examination, collection, accounts management, problem resolution and the Taxpayer Advocate Service.

When the Taxpayer Advocate Service (“TAS”) stood-up after passage of the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998, Audrey was appointed to TAS and ultimately retired as a Senior Case Advocate.  As Senior Case Advocate, she was assigned the cases which were deemed too difficult to be resolved by regular IRS personnel.  She excelled in this position and was appointed the IRS Congressional liaison for the State of Colorado.   In this position, she was responsible to resolve special taxpayer issues referred to her by US Congressional personnel.

Audrey continues to utilize her in-depth knowledge of IRS policies and procedures to successfully represent taxpayers who have examination or collection issues with the Internal Revenue Service or state and local taxing authorities.