If you’re a Los Angeles tax lawyer, you might know the names Robert Jason and Matthew Krane.

I mentioned in a previous post that the Office of Professional Responsibility of the IRS was cracking down on bad tax preparers, in a move to raise the overall standard of quality in the industry. But what happens when the issue involves something a little more than bad tax advice and inadequate return preparation?

What happens when a tax attorney is involved in a real tax scam, say, one of the largest tax evasion schemes in U.S. history?

Perhaps that’s a question to ask former Hollywood tax lawyer, Bob Jason. I met Mr. Jason today and heard his story of mistake and remorse. Mr. Jason was a prominent tax attorney in Los Angeles at one time. In his practice, he had met celebrities such as Angelina Jolie and Arnold Schwartznegger. He was one of the big boys of tax, yet it was the Power Rangers that took him down.

The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, to be exact. Well, perhaps not the action heroes themselves, but the tax evasion scam involving their producer, Haim Saban. Haim Saban allegedly came to his tax advisor, Matthew Krane, asking for  a way he could avoid paying any tax on his billions. Matthew Krane set Saban up with a tax evasion scheme (essentially a tax shelter) set up by Quellos Group, an investment firm based out of Seattle.

While Haim Saban was able to clear his path, he was by no means issued a “get out of jail free” pass. Indeed, Saban had to pay $250 million in back taxes to the government. His ticket to freedom? He testified that his limited education had contributed to the fact that he was not understand that a tax shelter was illegal.

His attorney, Matthew Krane, however, did not suffer the same fate. And unfortunately for Bob Jason, Krane called on him for some tax work involving Quellos. While the details of Jason’s involvement with Quellos has been kept under wraps, he plead guilty to tax evasion after the IRS discovered that $400,000 had been wired to his creditors as payment (or kickback?) for his services with Krane.

In my brief encounter with Mr. Jason, his exact charges weren’t too clear to me. But what was clear was that in front of me stood a man who had some real remorse about decisions he made in his life. And although he currently works as a tax advisor, he was disbarred and has become somewhat of a pariah in the Hollywood tax lawyer circles.

While Robert Jason’s mistakes were nowhere near as bad as Matthew Krane’s (in addition to the tax fraud, a search of Krane’s home revealed crystal meth, fake passports, date rape drugs and horse tranquilizers. Unfortunately for Jason, he will be equated with Krane for a long time to come.

What is the one lesson that the Bob Jason case has to teach? That even a competent tax advisor is not above the law. Always report your income, even if you don’t think you can get caught.

Uncle Sam is always watching.