Category Archives: Tax Court

A Fire Is No Excuse

Today the Tax Court looked at a casualty loss case. Many times when casualty loss cases make their way to Tax Court, there’s a dispute about whether or not there really was a loss. Not today. A fire destroyed the … Continue reading

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Some Interesting Tax Court Cases

Yesterday, there were three interesting Tax Court decisions. Joe Kristan of Roth Tax Updates has an excellent post on the first case. In that case, Merlo v. Commissioner, the unlucky taxpayer found out the “gotcha” of incentive stock options. If … Continue reading

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An Affair in Tax Court

The scene is the doctor’s office, where the doctor is romancing his patient. Just a little problem: the patient is married to a policeman. The policeman finds out and vows to sue the doctor, or get paid a large sum. … Continue reading

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Being In Jail Is a Good Excuse

The IRS wants to place a levy or a lien against you. The IRS says they mailed the notice, but it ended up at the wrong prison (you were in Attica, but the letter was sent to Gowanda; both are … Continue reading

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Mom and Dad Said I Didn’t Have to Pay Taxes

No joking, that’s the argument a taxpayer used in Tax Court. Joe Kristan of Roth Tax Updates has the humorous details here. This Tax Court case is yet another entry in the “Don’t Try This Yourself” log. When you’re an … Continue reading

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Protestor Strikes Out

Many years ago, when I was running west coast operations for a telecommunications company, my office manger approached me with a problem. “There’s a gentleman out here who’s perfect for the in-house tech job, but he’s handed me these sheets … Continue reading

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“I Never Got It”

Assume that you’re a conniving individual. The pesky IRS sends you a notice of non-payment. You decide to either (a) ignore it, or (b) move, but not give the IRS your new address. What will happen? Today, the Tax Court … Continue reading

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It’s Not a Frivolous Court

…But they were phony arguments. Roy Stallard went before the Tax Court before. In Stallard v. Commissioner (T.C. Memo 1992-593), he was fined $8,000 for making frivolous arguments. Fast forward a few years. Mr. Stallard again finds himself in Tax … Continue reading

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Another Hobby Loss

In a recent unpublished opinion, the Eighth Circuit looked at a hobby loss case, Montagne v. Commissioner. One of the points we continually make is to document, document, document. The Montagnes had a horse-breeding “business,” but the Tax Court ruled … Continue reading

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Must I Go To the Nearest Library?

The Tax Court also looked at whether an attorney must go to the closest law library for research. In the case, the petitioner lived fairly close to Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles. However, he preferred the law library at … Continue reading

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