The Failure of Adversarial Process in the Administrative State

INTRODUCTION “Distrust of the bureaucracy is surely one reason for the clamor for adversary proceedings in the United States.”[1] In a series of hearings in 1997 and 1998, Congress heard allegations that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS or “Service”) abused taxpayers during the process of collecting taxes.[2] The resulting distrust of the tax bureaucracy led Congress to create a special adversary proceeding providing for judicial review of IRS collection decisions.…