The Law Office of Lance R. Drury

Focus and practice areas

The firm handles tax law for individuals and businesses. Its clients are people and companies in disputes with the Internal Revenue Service and the Missouri State Tax Commission. The firm has operated since 2006. Its main office is in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri.

Tax controversy and tax resolution are the firm's main work. A tax controversy is a disagreement with a taxing authority over what a taxpayer owes. Resolution work is the effort to close that gap, whether through payment terms, a reduced balance, or a corrected return. The firm takes both federal and Missouri state matters.

In my opinion, the useful thing about a tax focused firm is that the same team sees the same problems many times over. A Missouri resident holding an IRS notice and a state notice can raise both with one office. The firm lists work on both fronts, federal and state.

How the firm approaches IRS cases

The firm follows an eight point plan for resolving IRS tax matters. Three of those steps appear on the site: filing a power of attorney, reviewing account transcripts, and negotiating a settlement. That sequence tells a client what the early work looks like before any talk of a final number.

A power of attorney lets the firm speak to the IRS on a client's behalf. It puts a representative between the taxpayer and the agency for calls and correspondence. Account transcripts then show what the IRS has on file, such as filed returns, reported income, penalties and running balances. General resolution work reads these records first, because they set the true size of a debt.

The settlement options the site names

Offers in compromise ask the IRS to accept less than the full balance owed. Installment agreements spread a balance over monthly payments. Penalty abatement asks the agency to drop certain penalties for reasonable cause. Innocent spouse relief can separate one spouse from tax debt tied to the other's return.

The right route depends on income, assets and the type of tax at issue. A person with steady income and little cash on hand tends toward an installment plan. A person whose finances leave little to collect may qualify for an offer in compromise. The firm also handles late or unfiled returns, federal tax liens, and bank and wage levies, which often bring a client through the door in the first place.

The wider tax and estate work

Away from active disputes, the firm offers tax planning and tax return preparation. Planning looks ahead at how income, a business, or a sale will be taxed, with the aim of fewer surprises at filing time. Return preparation puts that into the annual filing itself. For businesses, the firm lists tax compliance and state tax representation.

Payroll and sales tax problems get their own mention, and they matter to small companies. Payroll taxes are held in trust for the government, so the IRS treats shortfalls seriously. Sales tax sits with the state, which sets its own filing and audit rules. A firm that takes both federal and Missouri matters can meet a business on either side.

The attorneys state they can also help with estate planning, wills and trusts. A will directs where property goes after death. A trust can hold and pass assets under terms the person sets while living. These sit next to the tax work, so a client can plan an estate and settle a tax question with the same team.

How the team is built

The site names seven attorneys and support staff. Lance R. Drury is the founder and lead tax attorney, and he works from the Ste. Genevieve office. The other attorneys named are Maxence Besse, Matthew Johnson, Abigail Caldwell, Jordan Yarbrough, Amir Tavangar and Vala Tavangar.

Founder Lance R. Drury has practiced law in Missouri since 1984. That places him in Missouri practice more than two decades before the firm began in 2006.

Where the team studied

Maxence Besse was born and raised in Nice, France. He graduated summa cum laude from the University of Cote d'Azur with a law degree in 2021. He then attended Paris-Sorbonne University for a master's degree in business and finance law.

Amir Tavangar was raised in Los Angeles. He earned an undergraduate degree in business administration with a minor in business law from California State University, Northridge. He attended Rutgers University School of Law in Newark, New Jersey, and earned honors in criminal law, civil procedure and constitutional law.

Vala Tavangar is a licensed attorney in Illinois and was raised in Los Angeles. He earned an undergraduate degree from UCLA with a double major and graduated cum laude. He attended the University of Illinois College of Law on a full scholarship and graduated cum laude.

An economics background on the roster

Jordan Yarbrough was born and raised in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He started at the University of North Carolina at Asheville, then transferred to North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. He earned a bachelor's degree in economics there.

Where the firm works

The firm keeps its main office in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri. It also lists offices in St. Louis, Nashville, San Antonio and Houston. Those offices span Missouri, Tennessee and Texas.

Spanish-speaking assistance is available. For a tax matter, that can help early, when a client needs to explain records and read agency notices. Tax disputes run on documents and deadlines, so clear communication at the start shapes the rest of a case. A client who reads Spanish more easily than English can follow the filings that decide the outcome.

What the record shows

The firm's history comes down to two dates a client can verify. It has operated since 2006, and its founder has practiced in Missouri since 1984. As a reviewer, I read those years as a long run inside one field of law.

Tax work is the through line across the offices and the attorney roster. The firm pairs that focus with estate planning, wills and trusts, so a client with an IRS balance and a will to draft can bring both to one team. The firm has seven attorneys and support staff, and Spanish-speaking assistance is available for clients who need it.