The Corporate and Tax Group consists of five units.
Tax Litigation & Collections Unit
The Tax Litigation & Collections Unit is responsible for enforcing the collection of Philadelphia taxes, water debt, and other receivables, representing the City and School District in trial and appellate tax cases, advising the administration and City Council on tax issues, and drafting tax legislation. It has five divisions:
- Business Tax Division
- Real Estate Tax Division
- Water Litigation Division
- Property Use & Transfer Tax Division
- Bankruptcy Division
To contact the Tax Litigation & Collections Unit regarding legal disputes or issues, email:
- lawrealestatetax@phila.gov about property tax issues.
- lawwaterdebt@phila.gov about water debt issues.
- lawbankruptcy@phila.gov about bankruptcy issues.
- lawbusinesstax@phila.gov for other tax issues.
Business Tax Division
The Business Tax Division represents the City of Philadelphia in all business tax petitions to the Philadelphia Tax Review Board and files delinquent business tax collection complaints over $35,000 in the Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia County. It also handles most appeals from those cases. In addition, the Division provides legal advice and helps draft legislation for both City departments and City Council. The Division also reviews and approves all Department of Revenue regulations and tax credit agreements involving business taxes.
Real Estate Tax Division
The Real Estate Tax Division is responsible for representing the City of Philadelphia in the collection of delinquent real estate taxes. The division handles one-third of the foreclosure portfolio directly and manages two-thirds of the portfolio assigned to outside counsel, including actions to have a receiver appointed to sequester rents from delinquent commercial property to be applied toward delinquent real estate taxes. The Division also litigates all tax assessment appeals, exemption appeals, and tax abatement cases appealed from the Board of Revision of Taxes (BRT) to the Court of Common Pleas. Finally, the Division works with the Department of Revenue to administer several low-income tax relief programs, including the Owner-Occupied Payment Agreement (OOPA) program.
Water Litigation Division
The Water Litigation Division is responsible for representing the City of Philadelphia in water petitions before the Philadelphia Tax Review Board and appeals from there to the Common Pleas Court. It also files lawsuits for all water delinquencies before the Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia County. In addition, the Division reviews regulations promulgated by the Department of Revenue’s Water Revenue Bureau and Philadelphia Water Department and provides representation to the Water Revenue Bureau in Water Rate cases.
Property Use & Transfer Tax Division
The Property Use & Transfer Tax Division is responsible for representing the City of Philadelphia and School District in the collection of delinquent Use & Occupancy taxes, Real Estate Transfer taxes, and Development Impact taxes. The Division provides legal advice for City Departments such as the Departments of Revenue and Records, and reviews Revenue regulations that pertain to those taxes. Lastly, the Division handles tax payoffs for liens, judgments and tax accounts, and represents the City in all RTT, U&O and DIT petitions to the Philadelphia Tax Review Board and in Common Pleas Court.
Bankruptcy Division
The Bankruptcy Division protects the City of Philadelphia’s interests in Chapter 7, Chapter 13 and Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases throughout the country. The Division defends against objections to the City’s proofs of claim and pursues objections to debtors’ plans of reorganization or liquidation to ensure proper treatment of claims and City interests. The Division also litigates adversary proceedings and contested matters in bankruptcy cases. Representation extends to many City departments, agencies, offices, and offices and the work often requires collaboration with various other Divisions in the Law Department including Code Enforcement, Affirmative Litigation and Commercial Law. The Division also handles business tax payoffs for liens, judgments, and business tax accounts.
Leadership
