Beneficial Corp. v. United States

9 Cl. Ct. 119, 56 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 6356, 1985 U.S. Claims LEXIS 889
CourtUnited States Court of Claims
DecidedNovember 4, 1985
DocketNo. 250-83T
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 9 Cl. Ct. 119 (Beneficial Corp. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Beneficial Corp. v. United States, 9 Cl. Ct. 119, 56 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 6356, 1985 U.S. Claims LEXIS 889 (cc 1985).

Opinion

OPINION

MOODY R. TIDWELL, III, Judge:

This is a tax refund case which comes before this court under section 166(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (hereinafter referred to as the Code) as codified in Title 26 of the United States Code. Plaintiff seeks a tax refund of federal income tax in the amounts of $21,137,455 and $8,559,114 for the taxable years 1976 and 1977, respectively. This case comes before us on defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment and plaintiff’s Cross-Motion for Partial Summary Judgment. Jurisdiction is conferred upon the court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1491. See Eastport Steamship Corp. v. United States, 178 Ct.Cl. 599, 605, 372 F.2d 1002, 1007 (1967).

FACTS

Plaintiff, Beneficial Corporation, is an accrual basis taxpayer engaged in the consumer finance business and keeps its books on a calendar year basis. Pursuant to section 166(c) of the Code and the Income Tax Regulations thereunder, plaintiff elected and established the reserve method of accounting for bad debts.

On audit of plaintiff’s returns filed for 1976 and 1977, the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service (hereinafter referred to as the Commissioner), found that plaintiff claimed additions to its reserve for bad debts exceeding those reasonably expected to be written off in the next succeeding year. The Service disallowed plaintiff’s additions to its bad debt reserve, resulting in deficiencies of $16,037,089 and $4,641,296 for the years 1976 and 1977 respectively. Plaintiff paid the resulting deficiencies and on or about November 4, 1982, filed timely claims for refund pursuant to section 6511 of the Code. On December 8, 1982, plaintiff’s claims for refund were disallowed by the Commissioner.

Plaintiff contends that the additions made to its bad debt reserve for the years 1976 and 1977 were reasonable and that the Commissioner abused his discretion by applying the Black Motor formula1 to this set of facts. Plaintiff further contends that the Commissioner abused his discretion by imposing the Black Motor formula upon plaintiff while permitting plaintiff’s competitors to take significantly larger deductions than what would be allowed under the traditional Black Motor formula.

DISCUSSION

Section 166(a)2 of the Code allows a deduction for bad debts which have become [121]*121worthless during the taxable year. This provision of the Code provides two ways in which the deduction may be claimed: the specific charge-off method or the reserve method. Under the specific charge-off method, bad debts are deducted (either in full or in part) in the taxable year in which they become worthless. In lieu of a deduction from income for specific bad debts, an accrual basis taxpayer may establish a reserve for bad debtsI.3 and deduct “reasonable” additions to that reserve under section 166(c)4 of the Code.

Generally, the reserve method is more advantageous than the specific charge-off method because it can accelerate the year of deduction for reasonably anticipated bad debts, permitting the taxpayer to defer taxes on the amount of income equal to his bad debt reserve. Additionally, it is a relatively simple way for handling large numbers of accounts. Once a taxpayer elects either the specific charge-off or reserve method, that election is binding for all subsequent years unless permission to change is received from the Commissioner.

I.

Plaintiff contends that where the outstanding receivables have an average maturity substantially in excess of one year, the current reserve should be large enough to cover those receivables which are expected to be charged-off in later years as well as those receivables expected to be written off in the next succeeding year. Therefore, plaintiff contends that the Commissioner abused his discretion in limiting plaintiff’s additions to its bad debt reserve to an amount which would cover only the actual charge-offs which reasonably could be expected to occur in the next succeeding year. In support of its position, plaintiff has directed the court’s attention to several affidavits which suggest that it would be inappropriate for the Commissioner to apply the Black Motor formula5 to a consumer finance business engaged in long term financing. Although the affidavits present an interesting argument from a financial accounting viewpoint, the court will not ignore the clear intent of Congress as revealed in the plain language of the statute and the holdings of this and other courts.

Prior to 1921, the revenue laws restricted taxpayers to the specific charge-off method. Under this method, a bad debt deduction was allowed only for debts ascertained to be worthless and charged-off within the taxable year. In the Revenue Act of 1921, later codified as section 166(c) of the Code, Congress authorized tax-payers to elect, in the alternative, to use the reserve method. It is clear from the language of the statute that a taxpayer has an absolute right to choose to deduct his worthless debts when they are ascertained to be worthless, but if, instead, he chooses to deduct additions to a reserve, he subjects himself to a reasonable and discretionary review of the additions to the reserve by the Commissioner.

Ordinarily, deductions based upon reserves are not allowed under the revenue laws and this was true originally as to bad debts. Section 166(c) of the Code repre[122]*122sents an exception to the general rule; it allows a deduction (in the discretion of the Commissioner) for a reasonable addition to a reserve for bad debts. It is clear that Congress was unwilling to give the taxpayer an absolute right to such a deduction and explicitly made it contingent upon the Commissioner’s discretion. When Congress so far departs from the customary practice as to permit such a deduction as to a bad debt reserve, the condition is as important as the permission. Krim-Ko Corp. v. Commissioner, 16 T.C. 31, 37 (1951). Generally, the Commissioner’s determination of deficiency carries a presumption of correctness. Welch v. Helvering, 290 U.S. 111, 115, 54 S.Ct. 8, 9, 78 L.Ed. 212 (1933). However, the Commissioner’s determination of what constitutes a reasonable addition to a bad debt reserve carries more than the usual presumption of correctness because of the discretion expressly vested in him by section 166(c). Mills & Lupton Supply Co. v. Commissioner, 36 T.C.M. 1173, 1174 (1977).

Plaintiff contends that the additions determined by its method were reasonable and that its position is supported by its officers and by several affidavits from distinguished persons in the field of accounting. However, it appears that plaintiff does not fully comprehend the latitude provided the Commissioner by the express statutory grant of discretion in section 166(c). It is not enough for plaintiff to prove that its method of computing its bad debt reserve was reasonable. It does not necessarily follow that merely because the method used by the taxpayer was reasonable that the determination made by the Commissioner was, therefore, unreasonable.

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9 Cl. Ct. 119, 56 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 6356, 1985 U.S. Claims LEXIS 889, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/beneficial-corp-v-united-states-cc-1985.