Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips, Inc. v. New York State Tax Commission

69 A.D.2d 550, 419 N.Y.S.2d 768, 1979 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 11836
CourtAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
DecidedJuly 26, 1979
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 69 A.D.2d 550 (Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips, Inc. v. New York State Tax Commission) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips, Inc. v. New York State Tax Commission, 69 A.D.2d 550, 419 N.Y.S.2d 768, 1979 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 11836 (N.Y. Ct. App. 1979).

Opinions

OPINION OF THE COURT

Greenblott, J. P.

Under a master franchise agreement, dated August 27, 1970, petitioner, Arthur Treacher’s Fish & Chips, Inc., granted A.E.K. Enterprises, Inc. (A.E.K.) permission to operate five Arthur Treacher’s Fish and Chips restaurants. On December 19, 1976 petitioner and A.E.K. entered into a written agreement whereby petitioner agreed to purchase the restaurants of A.E.K. and terminate the master franchise agreement.

By a notice and demand for payment of sales and use taxes due, dated September 23, 1977, the Department of Taxation and Finance notified petitioner that, pursuant to subdivision (c) of section 1141 of the Tax Law, it was liable for the unpaid sales taxes due from A.E.K. in the amount of $221,973.78. The notice also included a bulk sale assessment of $19,000, excluding penalty and interest. On November 21, 1977, the State Tax Commission issued a warrant against petitioner for the total amount of the taxes due—$228,271.07. Pursuant to subdivision (a) of section 1138 of the Tax Law, on December 20, 1977, petitioner, to preserve its rights, requested a hearing by the State Tax Commission to review the determination.

On January 19, 1978, petitioner commenced this proceeding to: (1) annul the September 23, 1977 notice and demand for payment of sales and use taxes due; (2) vacate the warrant issued by the Tax Commission; and (3) permanently enjoin respondents from collecting the sales taxes, penalties and interest for which petitioner has been determined liable. [552]*552Special Term dismissed the petition and referred the matter to respondents for an administrative hearing.

The first issue presented by this appeal is whether the notice and demand for payment of sales and use taxes due was properly issued against petitioner and whether respondents are authorized to proceed administratively against petitioner to recover the unpaid sales taxes.

Subdivision (c) of section 1141 of the Tax Law requires a bulk purchaser to notify the State Tax Commission of the proposed sale at least 10 days before taking possession. If the purchaser fails to give the 10-day notice, the purchaser becomes "personally liable” for the seller’s unpaid sales taxes, and "such liability may be assessed and enforced in the same manner as the liability for tax under [art 28]” (Tax Law, § 1141, subd [c]). Petitioner concededly did not notify the State Tax Commission of its purchase of A.E.K.’s assets. Therefore, the unpaid sales taxes of A.E.K. became a personal liability of petitioner which can be assessed and enforced pursuant to article 28 of the Tax Law.

Subdivision (a) of section 1138 of the Tax Law provides that where a return required by article 28 is not filed or is incorrectly filed, the State Tax Commission may issue a notice of determination to the "person liable for the collection or payment of the tax” (emphasis added). It is readily apparent that the statute clearly distinguishes between a person liable for collection of the tax and one liable for payment of the tax. Here, since A.E.K. filed incorrect sales tax returns for the period in question, the State Tax Commission was authorized to issue the notice against petitioner. By failing to comply with subdivision (c) of section 1141, it became the "person liable for the * * * payment of the tax” (Tax Law, § 1138, subd [a]; emphasis added). Thus, the administrative procedures authorized by subdivision (a) of section 1138 properly became applicable (see Harcel Liqs. v Evsam Parking, 61 AD2d 967). Moreover, section 1138 does not provide that the administrative procedures specified therein are applicable only to those persons required to file a return, here, A.E.K. To the contrary, the statute provides, without specifying who filed the return, that where a return is not filed or is filed incorrectly, then the State Tax Commission may issue a notice against the "person liable for the collection or payment of the tax” (emphasis added). During the period in question, petitioner’s seller was of course responsible for the collection of the tax. However, [553]*553since petitioner failed to comply with the provisions of subdivision (c) of section 1141 of the Tax Law, it became personally liable for payment of A.E.K.’s unpaid sales taxes.

Petitioner’s reliance upon Matter of Parsons v State Tax Comm. (34 NY2d 190) is misplaced. In Parsons, the Court of Appeals explained that where a corporation properly filed its sales tax returns, the State Tax Commission may not utilize the provisions of subdivision (a) of section 1138 to recover from the officers and directors the taxes which the corporation failed to pay (34 NY2d, at p 196). The court concluded that the provisions of section 1138 were not applicable since "correct and sufficient returns for the amounts owing were duly filed by the corporation” (34 NY2d, at p 196). The unmistakable implication of Parsons, however, is that if the corporation had filed incorrect returns, then the administrative remedies authorized by section 1138 could properly be utilized by the State Tax Commission against the corporate officers and directors. Thus, in the case at bar, A.E.K., as noted, filed incorrect returns and, therefore, section 1138 became available to assess and enforce the liability for the tax against petitioner. Finally, Matter of Long Is. Reliable Corp. v State Tax Comm. (60 AD2d 727) should be limited to its "narrow” holding that a bulk purchaser held liable for the seller’s unpaid sales taxes need not post an undertaking or a deposit as a prerequisite to review thereof by way of an article 78 proceeding.

The second question is whether subdivision (b) of section 1141 of the Tax Law, which authorizes issuance of a warrant against a person liable for the tax, violates procedural due process. That section, an additional remedy to recover tax, empowers the State Tax Commission to issue against a person liable for the tax a warrant directed to either the Sheriff or an officer or employee of the Department of Taxation and Finance and ordering them to levy upon and sell the real and personal property of that person to satisfy the tax due. The warrant must be filed with the county clerk within five days after issuance and upon entry into the judgment docket, it creates "a lien upon the title to and interest in real and personal property of the person against whom the warrant is issued” (Tax Law, § 1141, subd [b]). The warrant must then be executed and returned to the State Tax Commission, together with the money collected to satisfy the tax, within 60 days after its receipt. Here, the State Tax Commission issued a warrant against petitioner on November 21, 1977, directing an [554]*554employee of the Department of Taxation and Finance to levy upon petitioner’s property to the extent of $228,271.07, plus interest. The warrant was filed in the Albany County Clerk’s office on November 23, 1977. As appears from the record, however, no steps have yet been taken to execute the warrant.

We conclude that under the circumstances of this case, issuing and filing the warrant did not in and of themselves violate procedural due process. The only consequence of filing the warrant with the county clerk was to impose upon petitioner’s personal and real property a lien, which, of course, did not entail a physical seizure of petitioner’s property subject to the warrant. Petitioner has been deprived neither of the use or possession of its property nor of the incidents of ownership. As explained in Morse, Inc. v Rentar Ind. Dev. Corp.

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Bluebook (online)
69 A.D.2d 550, 419 N.Y.S.2d 768, 1979 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 11836, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/arthur-treachers-fish-chips-inc-v-new-york-state-tax-commission-nyappdiv-1979.