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John Pontius

Pontius Tax Law, PLLC strives to resolve sensitive tax problems through trust, dedication, and value. The law firm was founded by John Pontius with offices in Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia. Mr. Pontius is a tax law attorney who represents individual and business clients with sensitive and serious tax matters before the Internal Revenue Service and state taxing authorities. His client base is local, national, and international.

Over the course of his career, Mr. Pontius has represented businesses and individuals with complex tax issues in the following areas: FBAR examinations, offshore and domestic disclosures, FATCA, FIRPTA, tax planning, unfiled tax returns, release of tax liens and levies, trust fund recovery penalty, IRS and state audit examinations, as well as Appeals, penalty abatement, U.S. Tax Court litigation, along with defense of tax fraud and evasion.

Before opening his firm, Mr. Pontius worked for five years at tax controversy firms in Rockville, Annapolis, and Bethesda. For the preceding two years Mr. Pontius worked in the international corporate tax group of KPMG in Tysons Corner, Virginia. He began his legal career as a Judge Advocate in the U.S. Army. Mr. Pontius earned his Tax LL.M. (Master of Laws) from the Georgetown University Law Center.

Mr. Pontius was selected to the Super Lawyers list for Maryland (2023-2024 and Washington, DC (2023). Mr. Pontius was selected to the Super Lawyers’ Rising Stars list for Maryland (2015-2020) and Washington, DC (2018-2020). Mr. Pontius was also selected to the Top Attorneys lists in Bethesda, Arlington, and Northern Virginia Magazines. Mr. Pontius has an Avvo rating of 10/10. From 2019-2020, Mr. Pontius served as the Co-Chair for the monthly Tax Practice and Procedure Round Table for the Section on Taxation of the Federal Bar Association. Mr. Pontius is a member of the Maryland State Bar Association Tax Section Council. In 2019 he was recognized as a Bar Leader by the Montgomery County Bar Foundation after serving as the Tax Section Co-Chair from 2012-2019. He is a third-generation Washingtonian. Mr. Pontius grew up in Rockville and attended Christ Episcopal School from kindergarten through eighth grade. He received his high school diploma from Landon School in Bethesda.

Education

Mr. Pontius received his Tax LL.M. (Master of Laws) from the Georgetown University Law Center, and he was a student extern to Judge Paris of the U.S. Tax Court. He received his J.D. from the Widener University Commonwealth Law School, and he was a member of the Trial Advocacy Honor Society. He received his B.A. in Economics from Gettysburg College, and he was a member of the Federal Reserve Challenge Team that won first place at the Baltimore branch.

Bar Memberships

Mr. Pontius is licensed in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia as well as the U.S. Tax Court and the U.S. District Courts for the District of Columbia and Maryland. Mr. Pontius is a member of the Tax Sections of the American Bar Association and the Federal Bar Association. He is also a member of the Tax Sections of the Maryland State Bar Association and the District of Columbia Bar. Mr. Pontius is the Chair of the State and Local Tax Committee of the Tax Section of the DC Bar. Mr. Pontius is also a member of the DC Office of Tax and Revenue’s Tax Advisory Board.

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Pontius Tax Law, PLLC

Pontius Tax Law, PLLC strives to resolve sensitive tax problems through trust, dedication, and value. The law firm was founded by John Pontius with offices in Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia. Mr. Pontius is a tax law attorney who represents individual and business clients with sensitive and serious tax matters before the Internal Revenue Service and state taxing authorities. His client base is local, national, and international.

Pontius Tax Law, PLLC


1300 I St NW
Suite 400E

Washington DC 20005

TESTIMONIALS
Client Reviews
John helped us with a DC tax audit and succeeded in getting us a "no change" final decision. The issues were related to two flow-through entities and the use of carry-forward operating losses -- something that the DC auditors struggled to understand and with which they did not have any...
Paul A
Mr. Pontius is extremely professional and was able to take care of my tax returns which includes international bank accounts quickly and at a very reasonable price. Would definitely recommend.
Karl
I received a fee this past November from the IRS for over $800 because of an error I made on my 2016 taxes. I called my cousin, John Pontius, and he immediately knew what steps needed to be taken. Thanks to him, the fee was cleared. A 10 minute conversation...
A.K.
As an American citizen living in the Middle East my local banker informed me that I needed to file FBARs and report my worldwide income to the IRS. Through the recommendation of another attorney at an international law firm, I was introduced to John Pontius. Mr. Pontius efficiently and effectively...
Kareem S
John handled a difficult IRS lien for my client. He was excellent in getting the lien released so we could close on the property. I would highly recommend John .
Bobbie M
We were seeking tax advice with managing two properties, LLC, as well as some future financial planning. John responded to my call in a timely manner and was happy to answer our questions while referring us to specialists who can manage our accounts on a more regular basis.
Janelle M
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