The Drake Law Tax Clinic provides law students practical, hands-on experience assisting in the resolution of disputes between low-income taxpayers and the Internal Revenue Service.

Law students are given the opportunity to handle all aspects of controversies with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), including interviewing clients, preparing cases for appeals conferences, appearing at the conferences, preparing offers-in-compromise, filing petitions with the United States Tax Court, negotiating settlements with the IRS and occasionally appearing before the Tax Court. The Clinic also provides students with high quality training that is transferable to both large firm and solo practices.

The Tax Clinic is independent and separate from the IRS and IDRF. Services are available for low-income taxpayers residing in Polk, Dallas, and Warren Counties. All telephone conversations and in person meetings are confidential.

Contact Information:
Drake University Law School Tax Clinic
2400 University Avenue Des Moines, Iowa 50311
Phone: (515) 271-3851
Fax: (515) 271-4100

Hours: Monday – Friday 8:00am – 4:30pm

Faculty & Staff

James Monroe, professor of law, supervises/instructs second and third year law students handling income tax law.

Mandi Plagman is the grants/project coordinator for the Tax Clinic.

Prospective Clients

The Drake University Law School Tax Clinic helps taxpayers who do not already have representation in their case and who cannot afford to pay for legal representation or tax assistance.  To be eligible for assistance, the taxpayer must have income that does not exceed 250% of the poverty level.  In determining eligibility, we will consider household income, the elements of the controversy, and the workload of the Tax Clinic. We will not accept cases in which more than $50,000 is in dispute in a single tax year.

The Tax Clinic can help clients for whom English is a Second Language by arranging an interpreter or translator. The Tax Clinic most frequently supports Spanish.

Although the Tax Clinic receives funding from the IRS, the Tax Clinic, its employees, and volunteers are not affiliated with the IRS.  A taxpayer’s decision to utilize services from the Tax Clinic will not affect the rights before the IRS.