July 10, 2025 • 44 mins
DJ Black Unicorn interviews Patrick Miller, Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, on tax season scams and resources for low-income individuals. Miller discusses common scams: inflated refunds, dishonest preparers, and social media misinformation. Key advice: IRS primarily uses mail, not texts/calls (unless previously contacted). If scammed: contact Legal Aid and visit IRS.gov.Topics covered: identity theft, protecting deceased identities, IRS deadlines, ignoring IRS notices, improper dependents, large refunds, tax credits, unclaimed COVID payments, fraudulent PPP loans, and IRS collections.Legal Aid Society services and advice clinics are available. Resources: IRS.gov & IDtheft.gov.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
This is WOVU Studios. Welcome to our voices today, and
yes I know I can't see. That's why I spend
the wheels of still. Look, hey, y'all, our voices today
right here on WOBU ninety five point NINEFM with your
beloved Unicorn of the Land DJ Black Unicorn aka Union,
(00:24):
and I have something very special for you all in
store for today because it's tax season. Yes, we know
it's tax season. They coming for the money. They're coming
for the money. They're coming for the money, and you're
probably coming for yours too, You like I want it back,
I want it back. So look, we have a very
special program for you all with Legal A Society here
(00:48):
with me joining me today is mister Patrick Miller from
the Legal A Society here to answer any tax questions
you may have. And when I say any tax questions
you may have, meaning you can give us a call
call in with your questions live right now, right now,
if you have any, and mister Miller be happy to
assist if he is able to which I'm sure he
(01:10):
is because he has a vast history of doing so.
When I'm getting to it right after, I give you
the number to call two what's six two seven, one
zero nine five nine. That's two one six two seven
one zero nine five nine. If you have any type
questions at all, please feel free to give us a call. Look,
we are here to help. Legal a Society of Greater
(01:31):
Cleveland is here to help. And if for some reason
you just don't know about legal a society you need
is here to educate you and let you know what
is obtainable and here to help you out. Legal as
mission is to secure justice, equity, and access to opportunity
for and with people who have low incomes through passionate
legal representation and advocacy for systematic change. And these services
(01:57):
are at zero calls, So if you are within the bracket,
you don't have to pay anything, and if you are
over it a little bit, they'll still give you a
little bit of vice on your way out.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
They handle cases that impact basic needs such as health,
shelter and safety, economic and education, access to justice. Look
look look their attorney's practice in the areas of consumer rights,
domestic violence, education, employment, family law, health, housing, foreclosure, immigration,
public benefits, utilities and taxes.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
And that's what we are here for today.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Well, at least mister Patrick Miller is here today, who
is the staff attorney and the Economic Justice Law Practice
Group at the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
He came to.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
Legal Aid in twoenty and twenty four last year and
practices consumer, bankruptcy and tax law. Patrick spent over ten
years in private practice, so he knows how they think.
Speaker 2 (02:54):
Prior to joining at.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
Cleveland State University's College of Law as an undergrow yes,
college law as an undergrad and he tendically leants a
university and obtained a bachelor degree with a double major
in history and social studies.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
Hello. Hello, Hello, mister Miller.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
How are you. I I've never heard.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
I need you to get closer.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
People goad. I'm sorry about that. I've never heard taxes
sound so exciting. You and you did it. You made
taxes sound exciting.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
Thank you, Thank you.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
You know, taxes are are not our favorite thing. But
we all have questions about taxes, whether you have personal taxes,
business taxes. There's so many different things going on, so
many things are changing as well, so let's talk a
little bit about it.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
But first let me let me talk to you a
little bit. Is that okay? Do you like being a lawyer?
Speaker 3 (03:44):
Yeah, I love it, especially legally. It is a great
place to practice law, really helping out people.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
They make it easy for you, they.
Speaker 4 (03:50):
Make it super easy for you.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
I love it. I love it.
Speaker 1 (03:53):
So do you enjoy the rim of which you practice
or have you felt like you wanted to change?
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Like your a little bit. There's so many different.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
Yeah, it's a good point. I think that it's something
I fell into. I think when I went to law school.
I don't think anybody comes out expecting to do consumer work.
You know, you look at a corporate jobs, You're looking
at different things, and it's something I fell into.
Speaker 4 (04:16):
But it's something I love.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
I love people, I love helping out people, and economic
justice is where it's at. So I don't see myself
ever moving from it.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
I love it. I love it.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
So what has your experience been since you've been at
Legal eight since last year leaving the corporate realm?
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Like I say, you know what I think? So how
has it been for you now being on the non
profit sector of it? Now?
Speaker 3 (04:40):
Absolutely, it's it's been really eye opening. It's it's really
it's relaxed. I try to tell my friends it's it's
a relaxed way to practice law, not that we're not,
you know, fierce advocates for our clients, but we don't
have to worry about the dollars and cents. I think
a lot of lawyers out there in private practice, and
it's not to diminish them, but there in private practice
(05:01):
they have people, they have their family that they're trying
to keep fed and then their business operating, so they
have to make certain concessions on a day to day basis.
We don't do that illegal aid. We can go as
fierce and be as fierce advocates need to be for
our clients. And honestly, it's been refreshing.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
I love that. Again.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
If you have any tax questions, you can give us
a call two one six two seven one zero nine
five nine because mister Patrick Miller is here to answer
any tax questions you may have. But let's get start it.
Now that tax season is here. What scam should we
be looking out for it? Because, as I like to say,
the scammers be scamming, okay, and they are out here,
(05:37):
fiercely out here trying to get your information. And they
get one little info, they get your number, they try
to call you and get the rest of it. So
let's talk about the scammers and how we can stay
away from this tax season, especially this big lump sum.
People are looking to invest their money. They're looking to,
you know, make your flip as people like to say, invest. Wait,
(06:00):
are the scams the hot scams out here these days?
Speaker 3 (06:03):
You nailed it before when you said they're coming for
your money? I mean everybody out there. If you're entitled
to a penny, somebody's trying to take a nickel from you.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
And that's just reality.
Speaker 3 (06:11):
And the unfortunate thing that we see from a lot
of our clients is exactly what you said. It's not
just the investment component of it. A lot of people
need this to just maintain their livelihood on a day
to day basis. They rely on their income tax refund
to make sure that they can maintain their household budget
throughout the year or maybe catch up on some bills
that fell behind. So there's unfortunately a lot of actors,
bad actors out there coming for the money. Some of
(06:33):
the common scams credits and refunds misinformation that's out there.
So the common way that this would work is somebody
will say, well, I can promise you a larger return
this year, and if you hear that, you know it's
probably too good to be true. And the reason why is,
you know, taxes are pretty consistent, the refunds are consistent
year to year. So if you are if someone saying
I can double what you got last year, you know,
(06:55):
look at it as scams right away. And the way
it would work is they're trying to have you claim
credits that are viable and available for certain businesses, typically
like a fuel credit or a family health credit for example.
But the reality is that most individuals can't qualify for
that credit. So you use their you know, purported tax advice,
(07:17):
You file the tax return, you think you're getting it
twice or three times what you normally receive, and then
all of a sudden you instead get a letter from
the IRS that says you don't get a refund. In fact,
you're gonna owe us money on a penalty because they
view it as a fraudulent return. So that that's one
very common one that we see. The other one that
we see very common are dishonest tax prepares another option,
(07:43):
right right, tax prepares In general, I think that a
lot of people rightfully see, well, I'm entitled to a refund,
why do I have to go to you know, H
and R Block or any of the businesses out there
to get my taxes filed. The reality is you don't
necessarily have to. You can prepare it on your own.
You could also use other tax prepairers. We have to
be very cautious. A lot of people, a lot of
(08:04):
scammers out there, will use that tax preparer idea and say, well,
we have, you know, a way for you to get
this refund, but at the end, we're just going to
have you file it with the IRS. And that's a
big red flag because if they're not going to put
their name on it, first off, they're violating IRS law,
but also that's a big indication that they're not confident
(08:26):
in what they're telling you to file with the IRS.
So again, you signed the return, you send it, and
then the IRS comes back again with, you know, again
a letter saying that this is a fraudulent return or
these credits are being denied. Also, nowadays, social media is
really expanding a lot of those scams in terms of misinformation.
(08:47):
And I think the reality is, you know, ten fifteen
years ago, the only place people could file taxes would
be in a brick and mortar establishment, but now everything
could be done digitally, So you know social media out
there is swoop in and you have a lot of
people on TikTok explaining how you can cheat the government,
or how you can get a lot more than what
(09:07):
you're entitled to, or again going back to those credits
and expanding your refunds, and and you're looking at that
and again, unfortunately in our society, you see a TikTok
with a person who has a large following, and you think, well,
it must be legitimate, or else nobody would be following them. Instead,
think about it, the person's promised and extra money to everybody,
So everybody wants to know that trick. But it's usually
(09:28):
is just that it's a trick, and they're just trying
to try to get information from you so that they
can either steal a portion of your refund, charge you
a ridiculous fee up front for a return that they
know is not valid, or in some circumstances just kind
of hold on to your data for a year or
so so they can use it in the future.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
M because I mean, at that point you're not really
looking out for it. They think you're not correct. Most people,
you know, they you know life continues, right.
Speaker 1 (09:57):
Yes, most of the time we do forget, and that's
just the reality of it, and some people are really
really going it.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
I'm not one of those people. Unfortunately. How do you
recognize that you have been a victim of a tax scam?
I'm like, how will I know?
Speaker 3 (10:13):
So?
Speaker 2 (10:14):
UNI.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
A lot of times it's our clients that are calling in,
and the first kind of shout over the bow is
the fact that they're getting a letter from the I
R S and they get confused or they get concerned.
The other easier way is if you don't receive your refund,
you know, in the normal quick way that you normally do,
that means the IRS might be looking at it for
(10:35):
some reason. So you know they're going to receive a
letter from the I R S. They're not certain what
it means because they said, well, I just gave the
information about tax prepairer and they filed this. I don't
know why I'm getting this letter. And then the next
statement is and I keep on calling the tax prepairer
and for some reason they're not picking up the phone,
or they're not responding to my texts anymore, or you know,
(10:56):
I can't find their Facebook or their their TikTok or whatever.
I can't find her handle anymore out there.
Speaker 4 (11:01):
So those are the.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
Common ways, you know, right off the bat, if your
tax repair disappears when you're trying to talk to them,
if you receive a letter from the IRS, you know,
or even from other government agencies. So for example, we
had somebody recently who she had not filed taxes for
twenty five years, gets a letter from the IRS and
ignores it because she thought that that was a scam.
Speaker 4 (11:24):
It wasn't.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
But then she gets a letter from Social Security who
received her income information purported income information from the IRS
that was used to gain a fraudulent refund from the IRS,
and it impacted her Social Security and her Medicaid because
they're all tied together, so you know, trying to undo
that for somebody who hadn't even messed with the IRS
(11:45):
for twenty five years. So those types of things. If
you're receiving a letter from a government agency stating that
there's something wrong, some discrepancy, either with the benefits that
they can give you in the future because of your
income or directly from the IRS, you very well might
have been victim of this.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
Sk Thank you thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
You're listening to our voices today right here on WOVU.
If you have any tax questions, please give us a
call right now, right now, while we have mister Miller
here live from Legal a Society of Cleveland two one six,
two seven one zero nine five nine again two seven,
one zero nine five nine. And so you you mentioned
(12:21):
those fraudulent tax prepares. What do I do if I
do have a situation where the tax prepared just runs
off and I have no idea what's going on.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
I thought he was filing.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
I haven't heard anything, and I will go off to
you know, go ahead and finish the process. But they
tell me it's already done, or I'm getting a call
from the IR rest, which will never happen. They always
send letters.
Speaker 2 (12:48):
Can we talk about that.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Yeah, it's a really good point, Uni, I'm glad you
brought it up.
Speaker 4 (12:52):
The IRS exactly.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
They will not contact you by text. They won't contact
you by TikTok by the telephone directly unless you've already
engaged them in conversation. Carry your pigeons. They only use
the mail. So do not be, you know, tricked by
anything else other than a letter from the I R.
S in regards to you know, what do you do next.
(13:17):
It's not a bad idea to give legal a a call.
Speaker 4 (13:19):
You were right before.
Speaker 3 (13:20):
Un even if you don't necessarily qualify for our services,
we can't give people general advice. My general advice for
those people who I cannot help directly with the IRS,
as I say, go right to the source. It's IRS
dot gov. It's it's their website. It's it's complicated, it's
it's a chunky website. It's because there's so much information
out there though, But you can start with that. The
(13:42):
other thing is the letter that the IRS sends is
highly detailed. Read it thoroughly and it'll tell you what
to do if you have questions about what they're sending you.
And that first letter from the I R S, I
have found a lot of clients are either scared of
it because it says IRS on it, or they disregard it.
That's that first one is so very important to start
(14:04):
acting on because that gets you ahead of the system
and starts helping the IRS understand, Hey, this is somebody
who might have been you know, who is innocent in
this matter, who needs some R who needs our help.
So they're able to better deal with that rather than
somebody who just ignores it. Then the IRS has to
ramp up into collection action, which nobody wants.
Speaker 2 (14:23):
Ooh ooh, yes, nobody wants. And that's why they're so
scared when they see that first letter. Do you have
any like just little.
Speaker 1 (14:30):
Tidbits for people to understand that when they first see
that letter, they need to open it and maybe bring
it with them to one of the legal a Society
of Greater Cleveland and take clinics or something of that
nature so they can fully understand the situation that they
are in, because the longer they ignore it, the worse
(14:50):
it make it.
Speaker 4 (14:51):
Yes, exactly.
Speaker 3 (14:53):
You know, it's so often in life, and it's true
with this, you know, it's small problems can quickly become
big problems, and big problems be come insurmountable ones. And
you know, unfortunately, again, we have a lot of clients
to come to us when it's either a big problem
or an insurmountable one, and we're trying to do more
triage work rather than just stopping the DIRS action. So
it's really really important for somebody if you get a
(15:16):
letter from the IRS. The benefit of going online is
you can verify if you're not sure. You know, again
in that narrative that I had said earlier, the lady
had not filed taxes for twenty five years. It gets
a letter from the IRS, immediately assumed it was a scam.
You can go online and check it for sure. IRS
dot gov. They have templates of exactly what their letters
look like. They give you the common ways to tell
(15:37):
for sure that it's from them, and that's a great
way to tell immediately, but also make sure that you're
on the right track to go seek out some legal help.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Thank you, thank you so so much for all this
amazing tax info on how we can.
Speaker 2 (15:50):
Avoid being scammed.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Because the scammers are out here, they are outside, and
they want your money.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
They're coming from your money.
Speaker 1 (15:58):
How do you know if the letters or forms or
notices that you receive are really from the IRS? When
it comes to like I think, people have gotten so
great at forging things, and when they know that you
are on the lookout for something because you've put your
name in for like this program that you gotta email
from or that you found on Google or something of
(16:21):
that nature, and now they have your info, they just
like I said, they just need a little bit more
to fully take your identity.
Speaker 2 (16:28):
How do we know we can go to these websites?
Which is what.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
Again Irs dot Gov.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
Thank you so much, mister Miller.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
Again, if you have any tax questions, give us a
call two one six zero o two seven to one
zero nine five nine two one six two seven.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
One zero nine five nine.
Speaker 1 (16:47):
You are listening to our voices today right here on
WOVU ninety five point nine f M. We'll be right
back after this short breaking you know how to avoid
these tax scams and all the text things you may
need to know because it's that's season and you don't
want them coming for you, because they will come. Welcome back,
(17:08):
man to our noise to slay right here on wv
I was trying to dance at the same time. That's
why my tone was a little like not tone, but
my rhythm just now was not catching because I was
moving with the music. It just wasn't working anyway. My
rhythm must be off this morning. But that's okay. The
rain has gone. I have mister Miller live in the
(17:29):
studio with me telling me all about how we can
avoid ty scams because it is that season and they
want your money. You had a saying earlier before the
break when we first started. If you get a pity,
they want a nickel.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
I like it. I like it.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
And again, if you, for some reason are under a
rock when it comes to legal aids, mission, look, they're
here to secure justice, equity and access to opportunity for
and with people who have low incomes.
Speaker 2 (17:56):
And again, if you you know.
Speaker 1 (17:58):
If you make a little bit too much, that's okay,
that's okay, they'll just give you a little advice on
your way out. But if you do, if you do
need some help, look, you can always visit l A
s c l e V dot org. L A s
c l e V dot org. Or you can give
them a call at eight eight eight eight one seven
(18:19):
three seven seven seven that's eight one seven three seven
seven seven. And for my Spanish speaking people, oh lie,
you can also call them at two one six five
eight six three one nine zero that's five eight six
thirty one ninety. I'm not that fluent to say the
numbers that flew that easily, but uh, hopefully you was
(18:40):
able to recognize those numbers and get the help that
you need if you are in need of any civil
legal help. Because they are here to help, and they
have some upcoming brief clinics coming up April fifth at
the Cleveland Public Library, the Memorial Nottingham Campus. That's one
seven zero oh one seven one zero nine Lake Shore Boulevard.
(19:03):
April twenty six, that will be going down at Greater
Cleveland Food Bank Community Resource Center right there on soft.
Speaker 2 (19:10):
Waterloo boo boo boot. We love it, we love it.
Speaker 1 (19:12):
And May tenth going down at the Fulton Campus CPLO
Cleveland Public Library, all between the hours of ten and eleven.
And this is just the intake hour to be clear,
They will be there for as long as the people
is there, Okay, all right, So but I do suggest
you get there between the hours of ten and eleven
(19:33):
so you can make sure to be seen because people
have questions, people have legal situations, and they are needing
the help just like you, So show up early.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
That's all I'm gonna say.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
And if you got any tax questions for us, right now,
right now, right now, give us a call, Give us
a call, give us a call. Two one six two
seven one zero nine five nine. That's two seven to
one zero nine five nine. And mister Miller, can we
just hot right back in that stupid Oh let's do it.
Let's do it. Is identity theft common door in tax
season or is it like the scammers are just scamming
(20:05):
year round.
Speaker 3 (20:07):
Well, the scammers they never stop. That's their hustle, right,
they never stop. So that's reality there. But the tax
season offers up a huge opportunity, so it rams up
for that main reason. You know, people are hungry, they
want their their refunds.
Speaker 4 (20:21):
They want to.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
Make sure that they can get it as quickly as
possible and as much as possible on the taxpayer side,
So the scammers are taking advantage of that and trying
to make sure, hey, you know, file your taxes as
quick as possible. File through me. I can get it
done tomorrow, and I can get you twice as much money.
That's just a huge incentive for the taxpayer, and it's
just sometimes too good for people to pass up.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
You know.
Speaker 3 (20:43):
The other part of it is it's really important to
understand that one of the scams that we see quite
common are people who are illegally claiming dependent credits, and
there is a rush to file there as well. And
again there's tax prepares out there that are counseling people.
They talk to, Hey, you know, you know your you
(21:04):
know nephew, you know, three times removed. Why don't you
claim them as a dependent because you bought them a
birthday card? But that's not the way the IRS tax
law works. But the person like, why I can get
a couple of grand extra, I'm going to do that
and okay, thank you tax prepared for this hot tip.
I'm going to give you, you know, a thousand of it,
you know, so you give them a thousand of it,
suddenly there's your money gone. So yeah, scams are unfortunately
(21:25):
way too prevalent around this time of year. And the
scammers are awake, you know that they're they're doing their
work right now.
Speaker 1 (21:31):
Of course, of course, like you said, they're awake all year,
but this is a special time where people are getting
lump sum. So, like I said, some are looking to invest,
some are looking to flip it and you know, double it,
triple it, caulled, druple it if they can't. But are
there common forms of identity theft this.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
Time of year?
Speaker 3 (21:52):
So the common ways that people will have their identity
stolen is well, the first one, it's one you would think, hey,
I don't care about it. It's deceased persons. That's one
of the most common ones that the IRS brings up.
And what happens is, you have the way the scam
works is the scammers are out there and they are
(22:13):
using every resource they can find. One of those is
printed obituaries. So people who are trying to put a
great dedication to a loved one sometimes put too much
information in an obituary, So the scammers start trolling that
for some information, maybe cobbling it with maybe they have,
you know, soci security numbers that they found on the
(22:33):
Internet and on the on the you know, on the
various sites, things of that nature, and then they're going
to use this, yeah, and then they're going to use
this to then file tax returns for the deceased in
the deceased person's name. And then, you know, a person
who's already grieving is now getting letters in that deceased
person's name from the I R S that says, hey,
(22:55):
you know, why why did you claim these credits?
Speaker 4 (22:57):
The same types of issues, so.
Speaker 3 (22:59):
That one's a little a bit tricky for the IRS
and for the taxpayer to deal with. A lot of
times it's you know, trying to prove up that you
have you know that your loved one has deceased, which
is you know you're in a grieving process. You don't
think about, hey, I now I have to protect that
person's identity. One of the common things that I encourage
people to do is is, especially if a spouse of
(23:22):
yours does pass away, to submit their death certificate to
the credit bureaus because a lot of the information scammers
are relying on their getting from.
Speaker 4 (23:30):
The credit bureaus.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
But if the credit bureas have it out there at
this person's deceased and they have noticed of that, it
puts everybody on notice that hey, this is somebody that
we shouldn't be obviously lending money to, which is in
the normal sector the scams are going on, but also
helps in the future if the IRS does come forward,
I did what I had to.
Speaker 4 (23:48):
I don't know how they got this information.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
How long can legally help a victim of tax fraud? Like,
is there a certain time frame that you have to
get help before they're just like, oh, well it happened,
you gotta pay.
Speaker 3 (24:04):
Yeah, So it goes back to our notice. Right, if
you get the notice from the I R. S you
have to move on it because there are statutory deadlines
and triggers that happen that that moved the collection process forward.
And when you get to a certain point, the i
R S could just say listen, this is just what's owed.
And then you're left in a situation where your only
(24:24):
result is to try to make some type of an
offer to the I R S or to otherwise amend
a tax return and maybe get it looked at again
by the I R S. But sometimes people are just stuck.
And when you get to that point, a lot of
times you have clients who are reaching out to us
in those circumstances, and you know, we can see if
(24:44):
you contact that us day one, we might have been
able to stop this whole process.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
That's why it's important to open your mail. I know
it's a scary thing. Your anxiety start spiking, your hand
starts sweating, you're breathing heavy for no reasoning, and then
you're like, what's going God, I'm just.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
Not gonna deal with it.
Speaker 1 (25:03):
No, No, you can't be like the anxiety mosquito. You
have to handle a business, or your business will handle
you like it is that simple. Something my dad told
me a long time ago, and when I was about
twenty five, I realized, yeah, it was right. But you know,
(25:26):
with time comes revelations. Ten years from now, I will
learn even more than I have from that point from then.
But again, if you have any types questions, give us
a call, let us know. Mister Miller is here to
answer any of them. Two one six, two seven, one
zero nine five nine. That's two seven, one zero nine
(25:47):
five nine. And you mentioned some deductions and credits. You
said some things about credits, and something that's very prevalent
within our community is people claiming babies that's not theirs, right,
And I'm just being honest, I'm.
Speaker 2 (25:58):
Being real with you. That is thing.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
What should you do if you noticed your cousin has
claimed two of your children and you got like two
and they're like, oh whatever, you got like other ones?
Speaker 2 (26:12):
What's the problem. They're like, girl, it's not your baby.
You don't take care of this child. I take care
of this child. What should they do?
Speaker 1 (26:21):
Because honestly, in our community, this happens a lot and
it brings up a lot of turmoil on the family, right.
So I just want to know for the people that
have experienced this, or I may be currently experiencing what
they can do to protect themselves. But maybe, you know,
(26:42):
maybe they don't want their cousin in jail right.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
Right, So yeah, it'll make Thanksgiving dinner awkward. You can
always you can always report them the IRS, but I understand,
you know, family.
Speaker 4 (26:52):
That makes it very, very difficult.
Speaker 3 (26:55):
The first thing to realize is it is the first
to file the IRS has a rule and place it
says the first to file for dependent credit, They're going
to assume that's a legitimate credit unless they found that
it's different in the future. So you know, file your
return if you definitely, if you are entitled to a refund,
filed as soon as possible when the taxing season opens.
(27:16):
The other thing is the I r S is very
well aware and they really are trying to help people
avoid these types of situations. One of the ways that
they've done this is you can apply to make sure
that the dependent can only be claimed by you. You
can also apply for your own identity protection PIN as well.
(27:37):
Those two things together will help protect for somebody filing
and claiming a dependent that doesn't belong to them, that
does belong to you. The other part of it is
keep your documentation in line. You know you said it right,
but you know that the reality is uni that the
you know, family situations, you know, there are a lot
more fluid. Sometimes you are taking care of your grandchild
(27:59):
or your and there are provisions in the I r
S Code that allow you in certain circumstances to claim
those credits even if it's not a direct uh, you know,
son or daughter of yours. So it's really important to
make sure you're using a tax repayer that can guide
you with that if you don't think that because I
actually have clients sometimes who aren't claiming children that I
(28:19):
think that they could and get the credits for that
as they as they could as well. So very important
to make sure that you're you know, protecting yourself as
much as possible by reaching out to the I r
S for those protections that they have in place. But
those are things that you have to ask them for.
The ip pen, for example.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
That's an awesome thing to know for especially parents that
may be you know, fighting over custody things of that nature.
Speaker 2 (28:46):
Whereas like oh I want to file, I want to file.
Speaker 1 (28:48):
I want to say, it's like, let's just go ahead
and put this in place now. So we're not arguing
later on throughout this force or whatever situation they may
be going through. Like you said, people are receiving their
TAXT refunds usually around the same time, right, and it's
(29:10):
usually around the same amount.
Speaker 2 (29:12):
But if I get a.
Speaker 1 (29:14):
Check for, say, like I don't know, fifty grand right
from the irs, should I keep it?
Speaker 3 (29:22):
You probably shouldn't. If you know you're not entitled too,
you probably shouldn't. You know, Yes, that's right. I didn't
know there's a bell there. I should should have reached
around to hit it myself. You definitely don't want to
keep something you know you're not entitled to.
Speaker 2 (29:37):
It'll make it.
Speaker 4 (29:38):
Yeah, that's awesome, it's too tempting.
Speaker 3 (29:40):
But if you are receiving that large of a refund,
you know, it goes back to what I said. If
it if it feels or sounds too good to be true.
If somebody says, hey, I just got you fifty thousand
dollars refund this year, and you're like, I'm used to
five six seven because of my dependent credits, then your
alarm bell should start going off in your head and
not like the ones we have here.
Speaker 1 (30:01):
Yeah, yeah, because everybody makes mistakes. Every entity at some
point makes mistake. I think I saw a story not
too long ago someone account was up eighty mil or
something of that nature from their bank and.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
They sadly had to give it back. I would have
been sad too.
Speaker 3 (30:16):
I feel like the banks should like give you a
toaster or something when that happened.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
Yeah, yeah, you should give me something, because now I
was like my mom, you know, hot and ready and
just happy.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
Now he's just like, oh that was a mister, I'm
so sorry. Don't go anywhere.
Speaker 1 (30:32):
You are listening to our voices today having a great
conversation with mister Patrick Miller of the Legal a Society
of Greater Cleveland talking about how you can avoid some
tight scams which you should be looking out for. And
after the break, I want to know you know what
you think people should be doing with their touch money
just a little bit. And again we have some amazing
upcoming clinics. Look, they are brief advice clinics. If you
(30:57):
have any civic.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
Legal issues, you can come.
Speaker 1 (31:02):
Bring as much paperwork with you that you can, such
as your IDs, such as any letters from the IRS,
such as any letters from anybody you know who you
have are having the Legal issue with and they can
see if they can help you with legal services at
zero dollars, no cost to the clients with low incomes,
(31:24):
helping ensure fairness for all in the justice system, because
let's be real, if you got the money to pay
for a good lawyer, nine times out of ten, your
situation may end up a lot different, whether you're in
the wrong or right. And that's just the reality of
the world that we live in. And Legal as mission
is to secure that justice, secure that equity and that
access to the same opportunities that the wealthy have, which
(31:46):
is great legal representation. Don't go anywhere you are listening
to our voices today, will be right back. Welcome back
to our voices today right here on WWU Night five
point nine FM. And if you are just tuning, and
I have mister Patrick Miller from Legal a Society of
Grid to Cleveland telling us all about tax scams and
how we can avoid them, because look, the people want
(32:09):
your money. The scammers are scamming, and you are not
an exception.
Speaker 2 (32:14):
Okay. If they get a.
Speaker 1 (32:15):
CODEO of information, they will absolutely utilize it. So we
are here to let you know how you can keep
it safe and you can always visit l A s
c l e v dot org if you would like
to see if you need any help, if you may
be able to handle it by yourself, if you need
(32:36):
a lawyer, if you just need a little bit of
civic legal advice, please please give them a call.
Speaker 2 (32:42):
Go to the website eight eight eight eight.
Speaker 1 (32:45):
One seven three seven seven seven, And again that website
is l A s c l e V dot organ.
If you have any questions, please give us a call
right now, right now, right now, two one six two
seven one zero nine five nine. And mister Miller doing
a break. You've mentioned credits, which was super appropriate and
aligned because when we came back, I wanted to ask
(33:05):
you about some credits that people normally do have the
benefit of filing with right because a lot of times
we just don't know what credits we are eligible for,
and if we don't have a good prepare we just
again won't.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
Know and so we're missing out on money. We don't
like that.
Speaker 4 (33:26):
I don't like it either. Yeah, there's too many people.
Speaker 3 (33:28):
The IRS, they put out all kinds of reports and
they do they're aware that there's actually a lot of
credits that people probably don't rightfully claim just in general,
and I'll talk specifically about twenty twenty one, but the
general ones each year that the average taxpayer should be
looking at are things like the Child tax Credit, additional
(33:49):
child tax Credit, earned income credit. Also, if you are
in school, or if you have a dependent who is
in college. When I say school, i'm at college, there
are certain credits that you can receive that are educational
based as well, just by the mere fact of somebody
being in college. So those are the common ones that
we see a lot of our clients being eligible for.
(34:12):
Those are things to look out for. The earned income
credit is just what it sounds like if you're earning money.
Sometimes in certain circumstances, even if you are not employed
and you aren't earning a lot of money, then you're
probably entitled to earned income credit, Child tax credit and
additional child tax credit starts with a child. But remember
what I said earlier. Child has a more expansive view
(34:36):
and sometimes includes dependence of yours as well, So think
about that. If you're taking care of a family member
in house and they are with you for more than
half the year, you might be entitled to those credits
as well. Specifically with twenty twenty one. I want to
bring this up unit because the deadline is quickly approaching.
So in general, if you're entitled to a refund from
(34:57):
the IRS and you don't claim it with in three
years of the due date of the return, even if
you were entitled to that refund, the IRS says too bad.
And it's funny if you think about it, because if
you owe the IRS money, they'll chase you down for years.
They don't they don't care about the three year rule.
But if you if they owe you money, you have
to claim within three years. And in twenty twenty one,
(35:20):
we had special credits. There were the payments that were
tied to COVID. They're called EIP credits. And if you
do not and if you're the listening public, if you
are not aware if you received all of the money
that you were supposed to receive during COVID, it's very
important go back on your tax records or call the IRS.
(35:40):
You can get those tax records pretty quickly and check
the CV you receive the refunds that you're entitled to.
The IRS just put out a news bulletin about a
month ago and they said they estimate that there's still
over a million people out there that they know probably
are entitled to the credits that the IRS cannot just
give them. Those that that money that they have to
(36:01):
file something with the IRS. It adds up to over
a billion dollars that the IRS is going to kind
of skate away with this year if they don't pay
you that refund. So it's really important if you are
not sure, please consult with it with somebody. Make sure
that you understand that you can still file. The most
common group out there that we're seeing this have happened
(36:22):
to were people who did not file for a number
of years and didn't receive any governmental benefits.
Speaker 4 (36:29):
So if that.
Speaker 3 (36:31):
Sounds like you in twenty twenty one, if you hadn't
worked for a consecutive number of years, or if you
didn't and you didn't receive any government benefits, specifically from
Social Security, there's a good chance you didn't get all
of your COVID money because they were either given it
to people that they knew were on the Social Security
roles or they had filed taxes regularly. So it's really
really important that you do that at this time.
Speaker 1 (36:53):
Wow, thank you, thank you, because a lot of people
like you said don't know that the iras opened and
they only got three years.
Speaker 2 (37:00):
Get your money. If someone just.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
You know, doesn't know and they're like, well, I have
this paperwork, what should I do?
Speaker 2 (37:08):
I don't know what to do, mister Miller, what should
they do?
Speaker 3 (37:12):
Always always, always look out and call us and we're
here for you. Then UNI keeps on giving you the number.
I can't do it in Spanish either, but just do
your best. Just just call us. We were we can
help you at intake. We can help you if you
if you meet our our our necessary public to assist,
we could assist you there. We are here to help.
(37:35):
I mean that, that's what our mission is, is why
we're here.
Speaker 2 (37:37):
Can you help these fraudulent p p P people? The
listening came out the list drop.
Speaker 3 (37:47):
Yeah, rightfully, I would be nervous. I usually when we're
helping them, it's it's it's indirectly, it's something that we've uncovered.
Actually that again that narrative. I said earlier that the
actual issue is that the person had used the SBA to.
Speaker 4 (38:05):
Acquire the PPP.
Speaker 3 (38:06):
Loans, and they in order to do that so that
the scam work this way. In order to do that,
you had to show the IR you had to show
filed returns. So they filed a fraudulent return in our
clients under our client's social security number. Used that then
to get a PPP loan. Then it was SBA that
was actually coming forward and saying, hey, she owes us
(38:29):
all this money back. And so not only from the
IRS was she getting letter she was also getting letters
from the Small Business Administration, which again she said, I've
been you know, widowed solid security recipient for twenty five years.
Speaker 4 (38:40):
Why would I have dealt with either.
Speaker 3 (38:41):
Of those two government agencies? You know, So it's just
really important if you are on that list. I guess
what it is. UNI is a lot of times, you know,
people are like, well, you know they might know that, hey,
they might have had some they might have been a
little bit complicit in it. Right, I knew I didn't
have a business. I've had a gentleman just telling me
this recently. I knew I didn't have a business. I said, great,
(39:03):
the I r S isn't gonna say okay, too bad. Now,
We're just gonna punish you and throw you in prison.
A lot of times they'll say okay, thanks for coming forward.
Now there might still be a penalty involved. Sometimes we
can get that completely removed, but if there is something
that's still left over that you owe the I r
S A lot of times that's where we start. Well,
can we settle with the irs for less? But if
you ignore the irs, that's when they're coming out after
(39:25):
I mean the I R s when they file a
federal lean against somebody. They can come after your underwear.
You know, that's my joke with people, But they really can.
They come after everything and anything you have.
Speaker 2 (39:35):
Say they're coming for your draws, Wow, but they are.
Speaker 1 (39:39):
They really truly are. They will come for everything that
you own. It will leave you naked and unafraid. I
will hope you be unafraid because at that point, which
you guys lose. But that's so awesome to know that
if you fraudulently, knowingly fraudulently got your triple P on,
(40:01):
you don't you're not automatically sentenced to jail. And I
think that's a lot of people trying to avoid the
situation that they have put themselves in, trying to avoid jail,
not realizing, like you just said, mister Miller, you might
have to just pay a penalty. You might have to
pay the r r S back over some years, but
that doesn't automatically mean you're going to jail. So please
(40:23):
take care of your business before take care of you.
Legal Aid Society of Greater Cleveland is here to help
you with that, So take.
Speaker 2 (40:30):
Advantage of it. Don't just you know, let it sit
there in the corner and unaddressed, because it's going to
address you again.
Speaker 1 (40:40):
If you want that website, it's l A s c
L e V dot org. L A s c L
e V dot org. And of course you can always
show up to one of these upcoming clinics again that
had the memorial Nottingham Campus cp L Cleveland Public Library.
That is another one that that was April fifth, That
(41:00):
is April twenty sixth at the Greater Cleveland Food Bank
Community Resource Center on the South Waterloo End and May
tenth at the full ten Campus Cleveland Public Library, all
between the hours of ten and eleven. That is the
hour that you should arrive with all your necessary pay
per work. But understand it may be align, you may
(41:23):
wait a little bit, but it's going to be worth
it because you need to address these situations or a
gird or again or again they're gonna take care of you,
and you don't want that. That's why Legal Lady is
here to help you. Because if you cannot afford a lawyer,
you are in that situation where you are low incoming,
you are trying to figure things out. Legal Aid Society
is here to help you in so many different sectors,
(41:45):
whether it be economics and education, justice, housing, domestic violence, education, employment,
family law, health of foreclosure, immigration, this is obviously a
big one right now. But size taxes, I'm just saying,
public benefits, utilities, and tax.
Speaker 2 (42:05):
Look any civic issue. Again.
Speaker 1 (42:07):
Legal eight mission is to help you, so take advantage
duh eight eight eight one seven three seven seven seven
again eight eight one seven three seven seven seven. Is
there anything else you would like to leave here with
the listening audience that DOOV you missed the middlers.
Speaker 3 (42:23):
Just a reminder on the resources UNI you've been doing
a great job on our end as well two other ones.
IRS dot gov again is the way you can screen
a lot of things, get some information about the letters
that you might receive from the IRS. ID theft dot
go o V is a good way that you can
report if you are feeling that you might be a
(42:44):
victim of identity theft. They have ways of making sure
they can coordinate that through all the government agencies and
give you some advice and next steps on how to
protect yourself in the future. And you can always reach
out to the State of Ohio as well. They don't
have as comprehensive online, but they do have some guidance
on how to handle that. But really, truly, what UNI
(43:05):
was saying is absolutely accurate. Make sure you are seeking
out our help. We are here to help you. That's
what our mission is. Every single person legal aid. That's
why we are there. We do not charge you anything.
It just a minute to pick up the phone and
call us, or you know, a couple of minutes to
come into one of our brief advice clinics. It's going
to give you a lot of knowledge which is going
(43:29):
to give you a little bit of peace of mind.
So please please make sure you take advantage of our resources.
Speaker 1 (43:34):
Thank you so much again, mister Miller for joining us
here on our voices today. Ninety five point nine FM
Mission Driven twenty four seventh. Happy seventh anniversary to us. Yeah,
I'm gonna say it, because we've earned it. We earned
that recognition and look, we are the voice of the community,
and we are the voice of the programs and the
organizations out here helping those communities. So look, connect with us,
(43:56):
stay connected with us. Understand that we are and media
outlet that is like no other and that is purposely done.
Speaker 2 (44:06):
Thank you. This is WOVU Studios.
This is WOVU Studios. Welcome to our voices today, and
yes I know I can't see. That's why I spend
the wheels of still. Look, hey, y'all, our voices today
right here on WOBU ninety five point NINEFM with your
beloved Unicorn of the Land DJ Black Unicorn aka Union,
(00:24):
and I have something very special for you all in
store for today because it's tax season. Yes, we know
it's tax season. They coming for the money. They're coming
for the money. They're coming for the money, and you're
probably coming for yours too, You like I want it back,
I want it back. So look, we have a very
special program for you all with Legal A Society here
(00:48):
with me joining me today is mister Patrick Miller from
the Legal A Society here to answer any tax questions
you may have. And when I say any tax questions
you may have, meaning you can give us a call
call in with your questions live right now, right now,
if you have any, and mister Miller be happy to
assist if he is able to which I'm sure he
(01:10):
is because he has a vast history of doing so.
When I'm getting to it right after, I give you
the number to call two what's six two seven, one
zero nine five nine. That's two one six two seven
one zero nine five nine. If you have any type
questions at all, please feel free to give us a call. Look,
we are here to help. Legal a Society of Greater
(01:31):
Cleveland is here to help. And if for some reason
you just don't know about legal a society you need
is here to educate you and let you know what
is obtainable and here to help you out. Legal as
mission is to secure justice, equity, and access to opportunity
for and with people who have low incomes through passionate
legal representation and advocacy for systematic change. And these services
(01:57):
are at zero calls, So if you are within the bracket,
you don't have to pay anything, and if you are
over it a little bit, they'll still give you a
little bit of vice on your way out.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
They handle cases that impact basic needs such as health,
shelter and safety, economic and education, access to justice. Look
look look their attorney's practice in the areas of consumer rights,
domestic violence, education, employment, family law, health, housing, foreclosure, immigration,
public benefits, utilities and taxes.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
And that's what we are here for today.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Well, at least mister Patrick Miller is here today, who
is the staff attorney and the Economic Justice Law Practice
Group at the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
He came to.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
Legal Aid in twoenty and twenty four last year and
practices consumer, bankruptcy and tax law. Patrick spent over ten
years in private practice, so he knows how they think.
Speaker 2 (02:54):
Prior to joining at.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
Cleveland State University's College of Law as an undergrow yes,
college law as an undergrad and he tendically leants a
university and obtained a bachelor degree with a double major
in history and social studies.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
Hello. Hello, Hello, mister Miller.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
How are you. I I've never heard.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
I need you to get closer.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
People goad. I'm sorry about that. I've never heard taxes
sound so exciting. You and you did it. You made
taxes sound exciting.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
Thank you, Thank you.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
You know, taxes are are not our favorite thing. But
we all have questions about taxes, whether you have personal taxes,
business taxes. There's so many different things going on, so
many things are changing as well, so let's talk a
little bit about it.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
But first let me let me talk to you a
little bit. Is that okay? Do you like being a lawyer?
Speaker 3 (03:44):
Yeah, I love it, especially legally. It is a great
place to practice law, really helping out people.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
They make it easy for you, they.
Speaker 4 (03:50):
Make it super easy for you.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
I love it. I love it.
Speaker 1 (03:53):
So do you enjoy the rim of which you practice
or have you felt like you wanted to change?
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Like your a little bit. There's so many different.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
Yeah, it's a good point. I think that it's something
I fell into. I think when I went to law school.
I don't think anybody comes out expecting to do consumer work.
You know, you look at a corporate jobs, You're looking
at different things, and it's something I fell into.
Speaker 4 (04:16):
But it's something I love.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
I love people, I love helping out people, and economic
justice is where it's at. So I don't see myself
ever moving from it.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
I love it. I love it.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
So what has your experience been since you've been at
Legal eight since last year leaving the corporate realm?
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Like I say, you know what I think? So how
has it been for you now being on the non
profit sector of it? Now?
Speaker 3 (04:40):
Absolutely, it's it's been really eye opening. It's it's really
it's relaxed. I try to tell my friends it's it's
a relaxed way to practice law, not that we're not,
you know, fierce advocates for our clients, but we don't
have to worry about the dollars and cents. I think
a lot of lawyers out there in private practice, and
it's not to diminish them, but there in private practice
(05:01):
they have people, they have their family that they're trying
to keep fed and then their business operating, so they
have to make certain concessions on a day to day basis.
We don't do that illegal aid. We can go as
fierce and be as fierce advocates need to be for
our clients. And honestly, it's been refreshing.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
I love that. Again.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
If you have any tax questions, you can give us
a call two one six two seven one zero nine
five nine because mister Patrick Miller is here to answer
any tax questions you may have. But let's get start it.
Now that tax season is here. What scam should we
be looking out for it? Because, as I like to say,
the scammers be scamming, okay, and they are out here,
(05:37):
fiercely out here trying to get your information. And they
get one little info, they get your number, they try
to call you and get the rest of it. So
let's talk about the scammers and how we can stay
away from this tax season, especially this big lump sum.
People are looking to invest their money. They're looking to,
you know, make your flip as people like to say, invest. Wait,
(06:00):
are the scams the hot scams out here these days?
Speaker 3 (06:03):
You nailed it before when you said they're coming for
your money? I mean everybody out there. If you're entitled
to a penny, somebody's trying to take a nickel from you.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
And that's just reality.
Speaker 3 (06:11):
And the unfortunate thing that we see from a lot
of our clients is exactly what you said. It's not
just the investment component of it. A lot of people
need this to just maintain their livelihood on a day
to day basis. They rely on their income tax refund
to make sure that they can maintain their household budget
throughout the year or maybe catch up on some bills
that fell behind. So there's unfortunately a lot of actors,
bad actors out there coming for the money. Some of
(06:33):
the common scams credits and refunds misinformation that's out there.
So the common way that this would work is somebody
will say, well, I can promise you a larger return
this year, and if you hear that, you know it's
probably too good to be true. And the reason why is,
you know, taxes are pretty consistent, the refunds are consistent
year to year. So if you are if someone saying
I can double what you got last year, you know,
(06:55):
look at it as scams right away. And the way
it would work is they're trying to have you claim
credits that are viable and available for certain businesses, typically
like a fuel credit or a family health credit for example.
But the reality is that most individuals can't qualify for
that credit. So you use their you know, purported tax advice,
(07:17):
You file the tax return, you think you're getting it
twice or three times what you normally receive, and then
all of a sudden you instead get a letter from
the IRS that says you don't get a refund. In fact,
you're gonna owe us money on a penalty because they
view it as a fraudulent return. So that that's one
very common one that we see. The other one that
we see very common are dishonest tax prepares another option,
(07:43):
right right, tax prepares In general, I think that a
lot of people rightfully see, well, I'm entitled to a refund,
why do I have to go to you know, H
and R Block or any of the businesses out there
to get my taxes filed. The reality is you don't
necessarily have to. You can prepare it on your own.
You could also use other tax prepairers. We have to
be very cautious. A lot of people, a lot of
(08:04):
scammers out there, will use that tax preparer idea and say, well,
we have, you know, a way for you to get
this refund, but at the end, we're just going to
have you file it with the IRS. And that's a
big red flag because if they're not going to put
their name on it, first off, they're violating IRS law,
but also that's a big indication that they're not confident
(08:26):
in what they're telling you to file with the IRS.
So again, you signed the return, you send it, and
then the IRS comes back again with, you know, again
a letter saying that this is a fraudulent return or
these credits are being denied. Also, nowadays, social media is
really expanding a lot of those scams in terms of misinformation.
(08:47):
And I think the reality is, you know, ten fifteen
years ago, the only place people could file taxes would
be in a brick and mortar establishment, but now everything
could be done digitally, So you know social media out
there is swoop in and you have a lot of
people on TikTok explaining how you can cheat the government,
or how you can get a lot more than what
(09:07):
you're entitled to, or again going back to those credits
and expanding your refunds, and and you're looking at that
and again, unfortunately in our society, you see a TikTok
with a person who has a large following, and you think, well,
it must be legitimate, or else nobody would be following them. Instead,
think about it, the person's promised and extra money to everybody,
So everybody wants to know that trick. But it's usually
(09:28):
is just that it's a trick, and they're just trying
to try to get information from you so that they
can either steal a portion of your refund, charge you
a ridiculous fee up front for a return that they
know is not valid, or in some circumstances just kind
of hold on to your data for a year or
so so they can use it in the future.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
M because I mean, at that point you're not really
looking out for it. They think you're not correct. Most people,
you know, they you know life continues, right.
Speaker 1 (09:57):
Yes, most of the time we do forget, and that's
just the reality of it, and some people are really
really going it.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
I'm not one of those people. Unfortunately. How do you
recognize that you have been a victim of a tax scam?
I'm like, how will I know?
Speaker 3 (10:13):
So?
Speaker 2 (10:14):
UNI.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
A lot of times it's our clients that are calling in,
and the first kind of shout over the bow is
the fact that they're getting a letter from the I
R S and they get confused or they get concerned.
The other easier way is if you don't receive your refund,
you know, in the normal quick way that you normally do,
that means the IRS might be looking at it for
(10:35):
some reason. So you know they're going to receive a
letter from the I R S. They're not certain what
it means because they said, well, I just gave the
information about tax prepairer and they filed this. I don't
know why I'm getting this letter. And then the next
statement is and I keep on calling the tax prepairer
and for some reason they're not picking up the phone,
or they're not responding to my texts anymore, or you know,
(10:56):
I can't find their Facebook or their their TikTok or whatever.
I can't find her handle anymore out there.
Speaker 4 (11:01):
So those are the.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
Common ways, you know, right off the bat, if your
tax repair disappears when you're trying to talk to them,
if you receive a letter from the IRS, you know,
or even from other government agencies. So for example, we
had somebody recently who she had not filed taxes for
twenty five years, gets a letter from the IRS and
ignores it because she thought that that was a scam.
Speaker 4 (11:24):
It wasn't.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
But then she gets a letter from Social Security who
received her income information purported income information from the IRS
that was used to gain a fraudulent refund from the IRS,
and it impacted her Social Security and her Medicaid because
they're all tied together, so you know, trying to undo
that for somebody who hadn't even messed with the IRS
(11:45):
for twenty five years. So those types of things. If
you're receiving a letter from a government agency stating that
there's something wrong, some discrepancy, either with the benefits that
they can give you in the future because of your
income or directly from the IRS, you very well might
have been victim of this.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
Sk Thank you thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
You're listening to our voices today right here on WOVU.
If you have any tax questions, please give us a
call right now, right now, while we have mister Miller
here live from Legal a Society of Cleveland two one six,
two seven one zero nine five nine again two seven,
one zero nine five nine. And so you you mentioned
(12:21):
those fraudulent tax prepares. What do I do if I
do have a situation where the tax prepared just runs
off and I have no idea what's going on.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
I thought he was filing.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
I haven't heard anything, and I will go off to
you know, go ahead and finish the process. But they
tell me it's already done, or I'm getting a call
from the IR rest, which will never happen. They always
send letters.
Speaker 2 (12:48):
Can we talk about that.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Yeah, it's a really good point, Uni, I'm glad you
brought it up.
Speaker 4 (12:52):
The IRS exactly.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
They will not contact you by text. They won't contact
you by TikTok by the telephone directly unless you've already
engaged them in conversation. Carry your pigeons. They only use
the mail. So do not be, you know, tricked by
anything else other than a letter from the I R.
S in regards to you know, what do you do next.
(13:17):
It's not a bad idea to give legal a a call.
Speaker 4 (13:19):
You were right before.
Speaker 3 (13:20):
Un even if you don't necessarily qualify for our services,
we can't give people general advice. My general advice for
those people who I cannot help directly with the IRS,
as I say, go right to the source. It's IRS
dot gov. It's it's their website. It's it's complicated, it's
it's a chunky website. It's because there's so much information
out there though, But you can start with that. The
(13:42):
other thing is the letter that the IRS sends is
highly detailed. Read it thoroughly and it'll tell you what
to do if you have questions about what they're sending you.
And that first letter from the I R S, I
have found a lot of clients are either scared of
it because it says IRS on it, or they disregard it.
That's that first one is so very important to start
(14:04):
acting on because that gets you ahead of the system
and starts helping the IRS understand, Hey, this is somebody
who might have been you know, who is innocent in
this matter, who needs some R who needs our help.
So they're able to better deal with that rather than
somebody who just ignores it. Then the IRS has to
ramp up into collection action, which nobody wants.
Speaker 2 (14:23):
Ooh ooh, yes, nobody wants. And that's why they're so
scared when they see that first letter. Do you have
any like just little.
Speaker 1 (14:30):
Tidbits for people to understand that when they first see
that letter, they need to open it and maybe bring
it with them to one of the legal a Society
of Greater Cleveland and take clinics or something of that
nature so they can fully understand the situation that they
are in, because the longer they ignore it, the worse
(14:50):
it make it.
Speaker 4 (14:51):
Yes, exactly.
Speaker 3 (14:53):
You know, it's so often in life, and it's true
with this, you know, it's small problems can quickly become
big problems, and big problems be come insurmountable ones. And
you know, unfortunately, again, we have a lot of clients
to come to us when it's either a big problem
or an insurmountable one, and we're trying to do more
triage work rather than just stopping the DIRS action. So
it's really really important for somebody if you get a
(15:16):
letter from the IRS. The benefit of going online is
you can verify if you're not sure. You know, again
in that narrative that I had said earlier, the lady
had not filed taxes for twenty five years. It gets
a letter from the IRS, immediately assumed it was a scam.
You can go online and check it for sure. IRS
dot gov. They have templates of exactly what their letters
look like. They give you the common ways to tell
(15:37):
for sure that it's from them, and that's a great
way to tell immediately, but also make sure that you're
on the right track to go seek out some legal help.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Thank you, thank you so so much for all this
amazing tax info on how we can.
Speaker 2 (15:50):
Avoid being scammed.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Because the scammers are out here, they are outside, and
they want your money.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
They're coming from your money.
Speaker 1 (15:58):
How do you know if the letters or forms or
notices that you receive are really from the IRS? When
it comes to like I think, people have gotten so
great at forging things, and when they know that you
are on the lookout for something because you've put your
name in for like this program that you gotta email
from or that you found on Google or something of
(16:21):
that nature, and now they have your info, they just
like I said, they just need a little bit more
to fully take your identity.
Speaker 2 (16:28):
How do we know we can go to these websites?
Which is what.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
Again Irs dot Gov.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
Thank you so much, mister Miller.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
Again, if you have any tax questions, give us a
call two one six zero o two seven to one
zero nine five nine two one six two seven.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
One zero nine five nine.
Speaker 1 (16:47):
You are listening to our voices today right here on
WOVU ninety five point nine f M. We'll be right
back after this short breaking you know how to avoid
these tax scams and all the text things you may
need to know because it's that's season and you don't
want them coming for you, because they will come. Welcome back,
(17:08):
man to our noise to slay right here on wv
I was trying to dance at the same time. That's
why my tone was a little like not tone, but
my rhythm just now was not catching because I was
moving with the music. It just wasn't working anyway. My
rhythm must be off this morning. But that's okay. The
rain has gone. I have mister Miller live in the
(17:29):
studio with me telling me all about how we can
avoid ty scams because it is that season and they
want your money. You had a saying earlier before the
break when we first started. If you get a pity,
they want a nickel.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
I like it. I like it.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
And again, if you, for some reason are under a
rock when it comes to legal aids, mission, look, they're
here to secure justice, equity and access to opportunity for
and with people who have low incomes.
Speaker 2 (17:56):
And again, if you you know.
Speaker 1 (17:58):
If you make a little bit too much, that's okay,
that's okay, they'll just give you a little advice on
your way out. But if you do, if you do
need some help, look, you can always visit l A
s c l e V dot org. L A s
c l e V dot org. Or you can give
them a call at eight eight eight eight one seven
(18:19):
three seven seven seven that's eight one seven three seven
seven seven. And for my Spanish speaking people, oh lie,
you can also call them at two one six five
eight six three one nine zero that's five eight six
thirty one ninety. I'm not that fluent to say the
numbers that flew that easily, but uh, hopefully you was
(18:40):
able to recognize those numbers and get the help that
you need if you are in need of any civil
legal help. Because they are here to help, and they
have some upcoming brief clinics coming up April fifth at
the Cleveland Public Library, the Memorial Nottingham Campus. That's one
seven zero oh one seven one zero nine Lake Shore Boulevard.
(19:03):
April twenty six, that will be going down at Greater
Cleveland Food Bank Community Resource Center right there on soft.
Speaker 2 (19:10):
Waterloo boo boo boot. We love it, we love it.
Speaker 1 (19:12):
And May tenth going down at the Fulton Campus CPLO
Cleveland Public Library, all between the hours of ten and eleven.
And this is just the intake hour to be clear,
They will be there for as long as the people
is there, Okay, all right, So but I do suggest
you get there between the hours of ten and eleven
(19:33):
so you can make sure to be seen because people
have questions, people have legal situations, and they are needing
the help just like you, So show up early.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
That's all I'm gonna say.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
And if you got any tax questions for us, right now,
right now, right now, give us a call, Give us
a call, give us a call. Two one six two
seven one zero nine five nine. That's two seven to
one zero nine five nine. And mister Miller, can we
just hot right back in that stupid Oh let's do it.
Let's do it. Is identity theft common door in tax
season or is it like the scammers are just scamming
(20:05):
year round.
Speaker 3 (20:07):
Well, the scammers they never stop. That's their hustle, right,
they never stop. So that's reality there. But the tax
season offers up a huge opportunity, so it rams up
for that main reason. You know, people are hungry, they
want their their refunds.
Speaker 4 (20:21):
They want to.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
Make sure that they can get it as quickly as
possible and as much as possible on the taxpayer side,
So the scammers are taking advantage of that and trying
to make sure, hey, you know, file your taxes as
quick as possible. File through me. I can get it
done tomorrow, and I can get you twice as much money.
That's just a huge incentive for the taxpayer, and it's
just sometimes too good for people to pass up.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
You know.
Speaker 3 (20:43):
The other part of it is it's really important to
understand that one of the scams that we see quite
common are people who are illegally claiming dependent credits, and
there is a rush to file there as well. And
again there's tax prepares out there that are counseling people.
They talk to, Hey, you know, you know your you
(21:04):
know nephew, you know, three times removed. Why don't you
claim them as a dependent because you bought them a
birthday card? But that's not the way the IRS tax
law works. But the person like, why I can get
a couple of grand extra, I'm going to do that
and okay, thank you tax prepared for this hot tip.
I'm going to give you, you know, a thousand of it,
you know, so you give them a thousand of it,
suddenly there's your money gone. So yeah, scams are unfortunately
(21:25):
way too prevalent around this time of year. And the
scammers are awake, you know that they're they're doing their
work right now.
Speaker 1 (21:31):
Of course, of course, like you said, they're awake all year,
but this is a special time where people are getting
lump sum. So, like I said, some are looking to invest,
some are looking to flip it and you know, double it,
triple it, caulled, druple it if they can't. But are
there common forms of identity theft this.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
Time of year?
Speaker 3 (21:52):
So the common ways that people will have their identity
stolen is well, the first one, it's one you would think, hey,
I don't care about it. It's deceased persons. That's one
of the most common ones that the IRS brings up.
And what happens is, you have the way the scam
works is the scammers are out there and they are
(22:13):
using every resource they can find. One of those is
printed obituaries. So people who are trying to put a
great dedication to a loved one sometimes put too much
information in an obituary, So the scammers start trolling that
for some information, maybe cobbling it with maybe they have,
you know, soci security numbers that they found on the
(22:33):
Internet and on the on the you know, on the
various sites, things of that nature, and then they're going
to use this, yeah, and then they're going to use
this to then file tax returns for the deceased in
the deceased person's name. And then, you know, a person
who's already grieving is now getting letters in that deceased
person's name from the I R S that says, hey,
(22:55):
you know, why why did you claim these credits?
Speaker 4 (22:57):
The same types of issues, so.
Speaker 3 (22:59):
That one's a little a bit tricky for the IRS
and for the taxpayer to deal with. A lot of
times it's you know, trying to prove up that you
have you know that your loved one has deceased, which
is you know you're in a grieving process. You don't
think about, hey, I now I have to protect that
person's identity. One of the common things that I encourage
people to do is is, especially if a spouse of
(23:22):
yours does pass away, to submit their death certificate to
the credit bureaus because a lot of the information scammers
are relying on their getting from.
Speaker 4 (23:30):
The credit bureaus.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
But if the credit bureas have it out there at
this person's deceased and they have noticed of that, it
puts everybody on notice that hey, this is somebody that
we shouldn't be obviously lending money to, which is in
the normal sector the scams are going on, but also
helps in the future if the IRS does come forward,
I did what I had to.
Speaker 4 (23:48):
I don't know how they got this information.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
How long can legally help a victim of tax fraud? Like,
is there a certain time frame that you have to
get help before they're just like, oh, well it happened,
you gotta pay.
Speaker 3 (24:04):
Yeah, So it goes back to our notice. Right, if
you get the notice from the I R. S you
have to move on it because there are statutory deadlines
and triggers that happen that that moved the collection process forward.
And when you get to a certain point, the i
R S could just say listen, this is just what's owed.
And then you're left in a situation where your only
(24:24):
result is to try to make some type of an
offer to the I R S or to otherwise amend
a tax return and maybe get it looked at again
by the I R S. But sometimes people are just stuck.
And when you get to that point, a lot of
times you have clients who are reaching out to us
in those circumstances, and you know, we can see if
(24:44):
you contact that us day one, we might have been
able to stop this whole process.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
That's why it's important to open your mail. I know
it's a scary thing. Your anxiety start spiking, your hand
starts sweating, you're breathing heavy for no reasoning, and then
you're like, what's going God, I'm just.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
Not gonna deal with it.
Speaker 1 (25:03):
No, No, you can't be like the anxiety mosquito. You
have to handle a business, or your business will handle
you like it is that simple. Something my dad told
me a long time ago, and when I was about
twenty five, I realized, yeah, it was right. But you know,
(25:26):
with time comes revelations. Ten years from now, I will
learn even more than I have from that point from then.
But again, if you have any types questions, give us
a call, let us know. Mister Miller is here to
answer any of them. Two one six, two seven, one
zero nine five nine. That's two seven, one zero nine
(25:47):
five nine. And you mentioned some deductions and credits. You
said some things about credits, and something that's very prevalent
within our community is people claiming babies that's not theirs, right,
And I'm just being honest, I'm.
Speaker 2 (25:58):
Being real with you. That is thing.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
What should you do if you noticed your cousin has
claimed two of your children and you got like two
and they're like, oh whatever, you got like other ones?
Speaker 2 (26:12):
What's the problem. They're like, girl, it's not your baby.
You don't take care of this child. I take care
of this child. What should they do?
Speaker 1 (26:21):
Because honestly, in our community, this happens a lot and
it brings up a lot of turmoil on the family, right.
So I just want to know for the people that
have experienced this, or I may be currently experiencing what
they can do to protect themselves. But maybe, you know,
(26:42):
maybe they don't want their cousin in jail right.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
Right, So yeah, it'll make Thanksgiving dinner awkward. You can
always you can always report them the IRS, but I understand,
you know, family.
Speaker 4 (26:52):
That makes it very, very difficult.
Speaker 3 (26:55):
The first thing to realize is it is the first
to file the IRS has a rule and place it
says the first to file for dependent credit, They're going
to assume that's a legitimate credit unless they found that
it's different in the future. So you know, file your
return if you definitely, if you are entitled to a refund,
filed as soon as possible when the taxing season opens.
(27:16):
The other thing is the I r S is very
well aware and they really are trying to help people
avoid these types of situations. One of the ways that
they've done this is you can apply to make sure
that the dependent can only be claimed by you. You
can also apply for your own identity protection PIN as well.
(27:37):
Those two things together will help protect for somebody filing
and claiming a dependent that doesn't belong to them, that
does belong to you. The other part of it is
keep your documentation in line. You know you said it right,
but you know that the reality is uni that the
you know, family situations, you know, there are a lot
more fluid. Sometimes you are taking care of your grandchild
(27:59):
or your and there are provisions in the I r
S Code that allow you in certain circumstances to claim
those credits even if it's not a direct uh, you know,
son or daughter of yours. So it's really important to
make sure you're using a tax repayer that can guide
you with that if you don't think that because I
actually have clients sometimes who aren't claiming children that I
(28:19):
think that they could and get the credits for that
as they as they could as well. So very important
to make sure that you're you know, protecting yourself as
much as possible by reaching out to the I r
S for those protections that they have in place. But
those are things that you have to ask them for.
The ip pen, for example.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
That's an awesome thing to know for especially parents that
may be you know, fighting over custody things of that nature.
Speaker 2 (28:46):
Whereas like oh I want to file, I want to file.
Speaker 1 (28:48):
I want to say, it's like, let's just go ahead
and put this in place now. So we're not arguing
later on throughout this force or whatever situation they may
be going through. Like you said, people are receiving their
TAXT refunds usually around the same time, right, and it's
(29:10):
usually around the same amount.
Speaker 2 (29:12):
But if I get a.
Speaker 1 (29:14):
Check for, say, like I don't know, fifty grand right
from the irs, should I keep it?
Speaker 3 (29:22):
You probably shouldn't. If you know you're not entitled too,
you probably shouldn't. You know, Yes, that's right. I didn't
know there's a bell there. I should should have reached
around to hit it myself. You definitely don't want to
keep something you know you're not entitled to.
Speaker 2 (29:37):
It'll make it.
Speaker 4 (29:38):
Yeah, that's awesome, it's too tempting.
Speaker 3 (29:40):
But if you are receiving that large of a refund,
you know, it goes back to what I said. If
it if it feels or sounds too good to be true.
If somebody says, hey, I just got you fifty thousand
dollars refund this year, and you're like, I'm used to
five six seven because of my dependent credits, then your
alarm bell should start going off in your head and
not like the ones we have here.
Speaker 1 (30:01):
Yeah, yeah, because everybody makes mistakes. Every entity at some
point makes mistake. I think I saw a story not
too long ago someone account was up eighty mil or
something of that nature from their bank and.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
They sadly had to give it back. I would have
been sad too.
Speaker 3 (30:16):
I feel like the banks should like give you a
toaster or something when that happened.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
Yeah, yeah, you should give me something, because now I
was like my mom, you know, hot and ready and
just happy.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
Now he's just like, oh that was a mister, I'm
so sorry. Don't go anywhere.
Speaker 1 (30:32):
You are listening to our voices today having a great
conversation with mister Patrick Miller of the Legal a Society
of Greater Cleveland talking about how you can avoid some
tight scams which you should be looking out for. And
after the break, I want to know you know what
you think people should be doing with their touch money
just a little bit. And again we have some amazing
upcoming clinics. Look, they are brief advice clinics. If you
(30:57):
have any civic.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
Legal issues, you can come.
Speaker 1 (31:02):
Bring as much paperwork with you that you can, such
as your IDs, such as any letters from the IRS,
such as any letters from anybody you know who you
have are having the Legal issue with and they can
see if they can help you with legal services at
zero dollars, no cost to the clients with low incomes,
(31:24):
helping ensure fairness for all in the justice system, because
let's be real, if you got the money to pay
for a good lawyer, nine times out of ten, your
situation may end up a lot different, whether you're in
the wrong or right. And that's just the reality of
the world that we live in. And Legal as mission
is to secure that justice, secure that equity and that
access to the same opportunities that the wealthy have, which
(31:46):
is great legal representation. Don't go anywhere you are listening
to our voices today, will be right back. Welcome back
to our voices today right here on WWU Night five
point nine FM. And if you are just tuning, and
I have mister Patrick Miller from Legal a Society of
Grid to Cleveland telling us all about tax scams and
how we can avoid them, because look, the people want
(32:09):
your money. The scammers are scamming, and you are not
an exception.
Speaker 2 (32:14):
Okay. If they get a.
Speaker 1 (32:15):
CODEO of information, they will absolutely utilize it. So we
are here to let you know how you can keep
it safe and you can always visit l A s
c l e v dot org if you would like
to see if you need any help, if you may
be able to handle it by yourself, if you need
(32:36):
a lawyer, if you just need a little bit of
civic legal advice, please please give them a call.
Speaker 2 (32:42):
Go to the website eight eight eight eight.
Speaker 1 (32:45):
One seven three seven seven seven, And again that website
is l A s c l e V dot organ.
If you have any questions, please give us a call
right now, right now, right now, two one six two
seven one zero nine five nine. And mister Miller doing
a break. You've mentioned credits, which was super appropriate and
aligned because when we came back, I wanted to ask
(33:05):
you about some credits that people normally do have the
benefit of filing with right because a lot of times
we just don't know what credits we are eligible for,
and if we don't have a good prepare we just
again won't.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
Know and so we're missing out on money. We don't
like that.
Speaker 4 (33:26):
I don't like it either. Yeah, there's too many people.
Speaker 3 (33:28):
The IRS, they put out all kinds of reports and
they do they're aware that there's actually a lot of
credits that people probably don't rightfully claim just in general,
and I'll talk specifically about twenty twenty one, but the
general ones each year that the average taxpayer should be
looking at are things like the Child tax Credit, additional
(33:49):
child tax Credit, earned income credit. Also, if you are
in school, or if you have a dependent who is
in college. When I say school, i'm at college, there
are certain credits that you can receive that are educational
based as well, just by the mere fact of somebody
being in college. So those are the common ones that
we see a lot of our clients being eligible for.
(34:12):
Those are things to look out for. The earned income
credit is just what it sounds like if you're earning money.
Sometimes in certain circumstances, even if you are not employed
and you aren't earning a lot of money, then you're
probably entitled to earned income credit, Child tax credit and
additional child tax credit starts with a child. But remember
what I said earlier. Child has a more expansive view
(34:36):
and sometimes includes dependence of yours as well, So think
about that. If you're taking care of a family member
in house and they are with you for more than
half the year, you might be entitled to those credits
as well. Specifically with twenty twenty one. I want to
bring this up unit because the deadline is quickly approaching.
So in general, if you're entitled to a refund from
(34:57):
the IRS and you don't claim it with in three
years of the due date of the return, even if
you were entitled to that refund, the IRS says too bad.
And it's funny if you think about it, because if
you owe the IRS money, they'll chase you down for years.
They don't they don't care about the three year rule.
But if you if they owe you money, you have
to claim within three years. And in twenty twenty one,
(35:20):
we had special credits. There were the payments that were
tied to COVID. They're called EIP credits. And if you
do not and if you're the listening public, if you
are not aware if you received all of the money
that you were supposed to receive during COVID, it's very
important go back on your tax records or call the IRS.
(35:40):
You can get those tax records pretty quickly and check
the CV you receive the refunds that you're entitled to.
The IRS just put out a news bulletin about a
month ago and they said they estimate that there's still
over a million people out there that they know probably
are entitled to the credits that the IRS cannot just
give them. Those that that money that they have to
(36:01):
file something with the IRS. It adds up to over
a billion dollars that the IRS is going to kind
of skate away with this year if they don't pay
you that refund. So it's really important if you are
not sure, please consult with it with somebody. Make sure
that you understand that you can still file. The most
common group out there that we're seeing this have happened
(36:22):
to were people who did not file for a number
of years and didn't receive any governmental benefits.
Speaker 4 (36:29):
So if that.
Speaker 3 (36:31):
Sounds like you in twenty twenty one, if you hadn't
worked for a consecutive number of years, or if you
didn't and you didn't receive any government benefits, specifically from
Social Security, there's a good chance you didn't get all
of your COVID money because they were either given it
to people that they knew were on the Social Security
roles or they had filed taxes regularly. So it's really
really important that you do that at this time.
Speaker 1 (36:53):
Wow, thank you, thank you, because a lot of people
like you said don't know that the iras opened and
they only got three years.
Speaker 2 (37:00):
Get your money. If someone just.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
You know, doesn't know and they're like, well, I have
this paperwork, what should I do?
Speaker 2 (37:08):
I don't know what to do, mister Miller, what should
they do?
Speaker 3 (37:12):
Always always, always look out and call us and we're
here for you. Then UNI keeps on giving you the number.
I can't do it in Spanish either, but just do
your best. Just just call us. We were we can
help you at intake. We can help you if you
if you meet our our our necessary public to assist,
we could assist you there. We are here to help.
(37:35):
I mean that, that's what our mission is, is why
we're here.
Speaker 2 (37:37):
Can you help these fraudulent p p P people? The
listening came out the list drop.
Speaker 3 (37:47):
Yeah, rightfully, I would be nervous. I usually when we're
helping them, it's it's it's indirectly, it's something that we've uncovered.
Actually that again that narrative. I said earlier that the
actual issue is that the person had used the SBA to.
Speaker 4 (38:05):
Acquire the PPP.
Speaker 3 (38:06):
Loans, and they in order to do that so that
the scam work this way. In order to do that,
you had to show the IR you had to show
filed returns. So they filed a fraudulent return in our
clients under our client's social security number. Used that then
to get a PPP loan. Then it was SBA that
was actually coming forward and saying, hey, she owes us
(38:29):
all this money back. And so not only from the
IRS was she getting letter she was also getting letters
from the Small Business Administration, which again she said, I've
been you know, widowed solid security recipient for twenty five years.
Speaker 4 (38:40):
Why would I have dealt with either.
Speaker 3 (38:41):
Of those two government agencies? You know, So it's just
really important if you are on that list. I guess
what it is. UNI is a lot of times, you know,
people are like, well, you know they might know that, hey,
they might have had some they might have been a
little bit complicit in it. Right, I knew I didn't
have a business. I've had a gentleman just telling me
this recently. I knew I didn't have a business. I said, great,
(39:03):
the I r S isn't gonna say okay, too bad. Now,
We're just gonna punish you and throw you in prison.
A lot of times they'll say okay, thanks for coming forward.
Now there might still be a penalty involved. Sometimes we
can get that completely removed, but if there is something
that's still left over that you owe the I r
S A lot of times that's where we start. Well,
can we settle with the irs for less? But if
you ignore the irs, that's when they're coming out after
(39:25):
I mean the I R s when they file a
federal lean against somebody. They can come after your underwear.
You know, that's my joke with people, But they really can.
They come after everything and anything you have.
Speaker 2 (39:35):
Say they're coming for your draws, Wow, but they are.
Speaker 1 (39:39):
They really truly are. They will come for everything that
you own. It will leave you naked and unafraid. I
will hope you be unafraid because at that point, which
you guys lose. But that's so awesome to know that
if you fraudulently, knowingly fraudulently got your triple P on,
(40:01):
you don't you're not automatically sentenced to jail. And I
think that's a lot of people trying to avoid the
situation that they have put themselves in, trying to avoid jail,
not realizing, like you just said, mister Miller, you might
have to just pay a penalty. You might have to
pay the r r S back over some years, but
that doesn't automatically mean you're going to jail. So please
(40:23):
take care of your business before take care of you.
Legal Aid Society of Greater Cleveland is here to help
you with that, So take.
Speaker 2 (40:30):
Advantage of it. Don't just you know, let it sit
there in the corner and unaddressed, because it's going to
address you again.
Speaker 1 (40:40):
If you want that website, it's l A s c
L e V dot org. L A s c L
e V dot org. And of course you can always
show up to one of these upcoming clinics again that
had the memorial Nottingham Campus cp L Cleveland Public Library.
That is another one that that was April fifth, That
(41:00):
is April twenty sixth at the Greater Cleveland Food Bank
Community Resource Center on the South Waterloo End and May
tenth at the full ten Campus Cleveland Public Library, all
between the hours of ten and eleven. That is the
hour that you should arrive with all your necessary pay
per work. But understand it may be align, you may
(41:23):
wait a little bit, but it's going to be worth
it because you need to address these situations or a
gird or again or again they're gonna take care of you,
and you don't want that. That's why Legal Lady is
here to help you. Because if you cannot afford a lawyer,
you are in that situation where you are low incoming,
you are trying to figure things out. Legal Aid Society
is here to help you in so many different sectors,
(41:45):
whether it be economics and education, justice, housing, domestic violence, education, employment,
family law, health of foreclosure, immigration, this is obviously a
big one right now. But size taxes, I'm just saying,
public benefits, utilities, and tax.
Speaker 2 (42:05):
Look any civic issue. Again.
Speaker 1 (42:07):
Legal eight mission is to help you, so take advantage
duh eight eight eight one seven three seven seven seven
again eight eight one seven three seven seven seven. Is
there anything else you would like to leave here with
the listening audience that DOOV you missed the middlers.
Speaker 3 (42:23):
Just a reminder on the resources UNI you've been doing
a great job on our end as well two other ones.
IRS dot gov again is the way you can screen
a lot of things, get some information about the letters
that you might receive from the IRS. ID theft dot
go o V is a good way that you can
report if you are feeling that you might be a
(42:44):
victim of identity theft. They have ways of making sure
they can coordinate that through all the government agencies and
give you some advice and next steps on how to
protect yourself in the future. And you can always reach
out to the State of Ohio as well. They don't
have as comprehensive online, but they do have some guidance
on how to handle that. But really, truly, what UNI
(43:05):
was saying is absolutely accurate. Make sure you are seeking
out our help. We are here to help you. That's
what our mission is. Every single person legal aid. That's
why we are there. We do not charge you anything.
It just a minute to pick up the phone and
call us, or you know, a couple of minutes to
come into one of our brief advice clinics. It's going
to give you a lot of knowledge which is going
(43:29):
to give you a little bit of peace of mind.
So please please make sure you take advantage of our resources.
Speaker 1 (43:34):
Thank you so much again, mister Miller for joining us
here on our voices today. Ninety five point nine FM
Mission Driven twenty four seventh. Happy seventh anniversary to us. Yeah,
I'm gonna say it, because we've earned it. We earned
that recognition and look, we are the voice of the community,
and we are the voice of the programs and the
organizations out here helping those communities. So look, connect with us,
(43:56):
stay connected with us. Understand that we are and media
outlet that is like no other and that is purposely done.
Speaker 2 (44:06):
Thank you. This is WOVU Studios.
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