You need a court proceeding with the judge ruling that the contract needs to be set aside.

I was given the most up to date tax information (~$55K + court costs and fees).

I am studying tax liens myself as they seem appealing.

Full authority to my knowledge means court confirmation is NOT required.

This house is so appealing because it is move in ready, but I am going to look around and see if there are any good homes available for cheaper.

Therefore, you are typically looking for older mortgages going into default.Most court house investors have ties to a title company or understand enough about the system to do themselves.  

This to protect you in court. 

But instead of searching for desperate sellers, consider appealing to their greed.

Does your court post this information?

I'm not a lawyer or tax advisor so my opinion is that I wouldn't want to represent myself in court if I were sued or fight the IRS if they filed a tax lien on me.