1. DOJ Attacks Offshore Accounts!

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced that its investigation of offshore tax evasion will expand to include Europe's largest bank, HSBC in London, and Credit Suisse in Zurich. The increasing scrutiny of illegal offshore tax schemes comes as the Wall Street bailout and turmoil in the banking and financial services industries generate more interest in IRS Whistleblower Program claims.

DOJ and IRS continue to investigate UBS, Switzerland's largest bank. Scrutiny of Credit Suisse and HSBC reportedly includes whether the two banks may have helped U.S. clients hide up to $30 billion from U.S. tax authorities. The IRS and DOJ investigations highlight differences in U.S. and Swiss law. Switzerland does not criminalize routine tax evasion, and bank secrecy rules in Swizerland prohibit disclosure of account holder information in these cases.

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