FindLaw Opinion Summaries - Tax Law

Ulrich v. Comm'r. of Int'l. Rev.

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 20:00:02 PDT

(U.S. 9th Cir., Administrative Law, Tax Law) In an appeal from the tax court's decision denying taxpayers' appeal from an IRS collection due process hearing, the order is affirmed where the taxpayers' waiver of their right to receive a notice of deficiency did not require acceptance by the IRS to become effective, and the taxpayers had waived their pre-collection right to contest liability.

US v. Root

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 21:00:02 PDT

(U.S. 3d Cir., Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence, Government Law, Tax Law, White Collar Crime) District court's conviction of defendant for tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States is affirmed where: 1) upholding the government's inclusion of multiple years of evasion in a single count was proper; and 2) the government's charge was not impermissibly duplicitous because the statutory language does not prohibit the government's decision to charge defendant for multiple years in one count and because analysis of the concerns traditionally associated with duplicitous charges demonstrates that defendant was not prejudiced by that decision.

Marriott Int'l. Resorts, LP. v. US

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:00:02 PDT

(U.S. Fed. Cir., Corporation & Enterprise Law, Government Law, Property Law & Real Estate, Tax Law) In a partnership-taxation case involving Marriott, United States Court of Federal Claims' grant of summary judgment in favor of the government is affirmed in its determination that in 1994 the obligation to close a short sale qualified as a liability under I.R.C. section 753 and that the IRS properly adjusted the outside basis of the Marriott partners for the 1994 tax year to account for the partnership's assumption of the obligation to close certain short sales.

Roberts v. Tishman Speyer Props., L.P.

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:00:02 PDT

(N.Y., Landlord Tenant Law, Property Law & Real Estate, Tax Law) In an action by tenants claiming that their landlords were not entitled to take advantage of the luxury decontrol provisions of the Rent Stabilization Law (RSL) while simultaneously receiving tax incentive benefits under the City of New York's J-51 program, the Appellate Division's order reversing dismissal of the complaint is affirmed where the RSL did not permit defendants to receive both types of benefits.

Republic Sav. Bank, F.S.B. v. US

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:00:02 PDT

(U.S. Fed. Cir., Banking Law, Contracts, Corporation & Enterprise Law, Government Contracts, Remedies, Tax Law) In plaintiffs' breach of contract claim against the U.S. government arising from the savings and loan crisis of the early 1980s, the decision of the Court of Federal Claims summarily awarding plaintiffs restitution damages is affirmed in part, reversed in part, vacated and remanded where: 1) government's challenge to the restitution award of $17 million for plaintiffs' capital contribution is rejected; 2) trial court erred in including, as part of the restitution award, the sale premium; 3) trial court erred by not reducing the award by $4.287 million, the value of the tax benefits plaintiffs received; and 4) trial court did not err in offsetting plaintiffs' award with the government's $3 million cash contribution.

US v. Rigas

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:00:02 PDT

(U.S. 3d Cir., Corp. Governance, Corporation & Enterprise Law, Criminal Law & Procedure, Securities Law, Tax Law, White Collar Crime) In a case involving the founder of Adelphia and his son, denial of defendants' motion to dismiss conspiracy charges in a Pennsylvania indictment, claiming that their conviction for conspiracy and substantive fraud counts in the Southern District of New York violated their right to be free from double jeopardy, is remanded as 18 U.S.C section 371 creates a single statutory offense and defendants established a prima facie case that there was only one conspiratorial agreement. However, denial of defendants' motion to dismiss tax evasion charges in the Pennsylvania Indictment is affirmed.

Garth v. Bd. of Assessment Rev. for Richmond

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 20:00:02 PDT

(N.Y., Administrative Law, Civil Procedure, Tax Law) In an article 7 tax proceeding challenging an assessment of petitioner's real property, the appellate division's order dismissing the petition is reversed where personal jurisdiction is not lacking in an article 7 proceeding where the petitioner omits the return date from the notice of petition.

Jamieson v. Comm'r of Internal Rev. Serv.

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:00:04 PDT

(U.S. D.C. Cir., International Law, Tax Law) In an appeal from the Tax Court's determination that the taxpayers owed alternative minimum tax (AMT), the order is affirmed where the Technical and Miscellaneous Revenue Act of 1988 made it crystal clear that Congress intended the 90% cap on the AMT foreign tax credit to supercede any preexisting treaty obligation with which it conflicted.

Jensen v. Franchise Tax Bd.

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 20:00:04 PDT

(Cal. App., Constitutional Law, Health Law, Tax Law) In plaintiff's challenge to the constitutionality of the Mental Health Services Act, which expands funding for mental health services for all Californians by imposing an additional tax of 1 percent on annual income in excess of $1 million, trial court judgment is affirmed as there is no constitutional infirmity in the Act as an income tax may be rationally based on a taxpayer's income level and ability to pay, and there is no need to show that a particular taxpayer personally benefits from a tax assessed for the public good.

Comm. Concerning Cmty. Improvement v. Modesto

Thu, 8 Oct 2009 20:00:02 PDT

(U.S. 9th Cir., Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Government Benefits, Government Law, Tax Law) In an action claiming that defendant city and county failed to provide plaintiffs, Latino residents of neighborhoods in the city, with adequate municipal services for discriminatory reasons, summary judgment for defendants is affirmed in part where: 1) given defendants' evidence of a lack of disparity in actual access to sewer services, plaintiffs' statistical evidence was insufficient to give rise to an inference of discriminatory intent; and 2) defendant-county presented valid reasons why it chose to undertake certain infrastructure projects first. However, the order is reversed in part where: 1) the district court erred in dismissing the parties' 2004 property tax agreement as merely an automatic renewal of a past action, and thus dismissing plaintiffs' claims on statute of limitations grounds; and 2) plaintiffs presented evidence of the discriminatory impact of certain city policies which, in turn, created a sufficient inference of discriminatory intent.

Estate of Farnam v. Comm'r. of Int'l. Rev.

Thu, 8 Oct 2009 20:00:02 PDT

(U.S. 8th Cir., Corporation & Enterprise Law, Tax Law) In a taxpayer's appeal from the tax court's decision disallowing a claimed deduction, the order is affirmed where an "interest" in a corporation under I.R.C. section 2057(a) is necessarily limited to an equity or ownership interest, and does not include a creditor's "interest" in an unsecured debt owed by the corporation.

Sugarloaf Funding, LLC v. US Dep't of the Treasury

Wed, 7 Oct 2009 20:00:02 PDT

(U.S. 1st Cir., Administrative Law, Government Law, Tax Law) District court's denial of defendants' motion to quash administrative summonses issued by the IRS related to an investigation into possible improper tax shelters is affirmed where: 1) the summonses are not overly broad; 2) the summonses were not issued for an improper purpose; 3) defendants' claim that the IRS is already in possession of the summoned documents fails; and 4) defendants' remaining claims are rejected.

Am. Boat Co., LLC. v. US

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 20:00:03 PDT

(U.S. 7th Cir., Corporation & Enterprise Law, Government Law, Tax Law) In a tax case where the IRS issued a Notice of Final Partnership Administrative Adjustment based on its determination that the defendants implemented an illegal tax shelter and misstated certain information on its tax documents resulting in significant tax underpayments, district court did not err in finding that defendant had reasonable cause for its tax position, and, consequently, that it was not subject to the accuracy-related penalty in 26 U.S.C. section 6662.

US v. Flowers

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 20:00:03 PDT

(U.S. 5th Cir., Contracts, Probate, Trusts & Estates, Tax Law) In an action by the U.S. seeking reformation of a trust provision that sought to pass part of an estate to a family member free and clear of tax obligations, summary judgment for defendants is affirmed where the government was unable to demonstrate any entitlement to the disputed money by virtue of its contract with defendant establishing a payment plan for past due taxes.

Faus Group Inc., v. US

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 20:00:01 PDT

(U.S. Fed. Cir., Commercial Law, Government Law, International Trade, Tax Law) Judgment of the United States Court of International Trade sustaining the United States Customs Service's classification of laminated flooring panels imported by plaintiff as fiberboard under heading 4411 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedules of the United States (HTSUS), subjecting them to a duty rate of 6% ad valorem, is reversed as the flooring panels should be classified within subheading 4418.90.40, the residual category for builders' joinery where it is subject to a duty of 3.2% ad valorem.