Crowell v. Commissioner

102 T.C. No. 29, 102 T.C. 683, 1994 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 33
United States Tax Court·Decided April 28, 1994·No. Docket No. 364-93·Published·Cited by 73 cases

Opinion

OPINION

Dawson, Judge:

This case was assigned to Chief Special Trial Judge Peter J. Panuthos pursuant to section 7443A(b)(4) and Rules 180, 181, and 183.1 This Court agrees with and adopts the opinion of the Chief Special Trial Judge which is set forth below.

OPINION OF THE CHIEF SPECIAL TRIAL JUDGE

Panuthos, Chief Special Trial Judge: This matter is before the Court on respondent’s motions, one filed on March 1, 1993, and the other on March 8, 1993, each seeking to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and to strike a portion of the petition. The issues to be decided involve the scope of this Court’s jurisdiction in a so-called affected items proceeding. One of the central issues is whether the Court has jurisdiction to consider the validity of a deficiency notice for affected items on the ground that petitioners were not properly notified of the underlying partnership level proceedings.

Background

Donald V. Crowell and Joanne Currie-Crowell (petitioners) were partners in a partnership known as Wind 2 during the 1983 and 1984 taxable years. The Schedule K-l filed with the partnership’s 1983 return lists petitioners’ address as 4122 Oak Hollow Rd., Calabasas, California 91302 (the Calabasas address).2 In October 1989, petitioners moved to 2920 Salmon River, Westlake Village, California 91362 (Westlake Village address). Petitioners separated in August 1990. At that time, Mr. Crowell moved to 300 Rolling Oaks Dr., #146, Thousand Oaks, California 91361, while Mrs. Crowell continued to reside at the Westlake Village address. Petitioners listed the Westlake Village address on their Federal income tax returns for the years 1989, 1990, and 1991.

On October 5, 1987, respondent mailed petitioners a notice of the beginning of an examination of the Wind 2 partnership return for the 1983 taxable year. The notice was mailed to petitioners at the Calabasas address.

On September 13, 1991, respondent mailed a notice of final partnership administrative adjustment (fpaa) covering the years 1983 and 1984 to the tax matters partner for Wind 2. On October 16, 1991, respondent mailed a copy of the fpaa for the 1983 taxable year to petitioners at the Westlake Village address. Respondent asserts that a copy of the FPAA for the 1984 taxable year was mailed to petitioners at the Westlake Village address on the same date although respondent has not been able to produce a copy of the fpaa itself.3 No petition for readjustment was filed with respect to the fpaa for either 1983 or 1984.

On October 8, 1992, respondent mailed petitioners a notice of deficiency for affected items for the 1983 taxable year determining additions to tax for negligence under section 6653(a)(1)(A) in the amount of $229.25 and section 6653(a)(1)(B) in the amount of 50 percent of the interest due on $4,585, as well as an addition to tax for valuation overstatement under section 6659(a) in the amount of $1,375.50. The additions to tax are affected items in that they were determined by respondent with reference to a deficiency purportedly owing from petitioners as a result of adjustments to partnership items appearing on Wind 2’s 1983 partnership return. The affected items deficiency notice was mailed to petitioners at the Westlake Village address. Respondent did not mail petitioners an affected items deficiency notice for the 1984 taxable year.

Respondent assessed deficiencies against petitioners reflecting their share of adjustments to Wind 2’s partnership items for 1983 and 1984 on November 2, 1992, and November 9, 1992, respectively.

On January 6, 1993, petitioners filed a petition for redeter-mination with respect to the affected items deficiency notice listing their current address as the Westlake Village address. The petition attempts to place in dispute not only the additions to tax listed in the affected items deficiency notice for 1983 but also the deficiency (and interest) attributable to petitioners’ share of Wind 2 partnership items for the years 1983 and 1984. The petition includes the following allegations:

4. The determination of the tax, penalties and interest set forth in the said notice of deficiency are being contested on the following basis:
(a) The investigation of WIND 2 was conducted by the Respondent in a willfully negligent manner.
(b) The respondent did violate the Privacy Act of 1974 while conducting said investigation.
(c) For the tax year 1984, the Petitioners have already received a Final Adjustment Notice and paid the required tax, penalty and interest. Respondent is placing the Petitioners in double jeopardy.

The petition includes an allegation that petitioners did not receive the fpaa covering the 1983 taxable year until October 1992.

As indicated, respondent filed a motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and to strike on March 1, 1993. Respondent asserts that this Court’s jurisdiction is limited to the items set forth in the affected items deficiency notice for the 1983 taxable year. Respondent further asserts that petitioners have improperly attempted to contest the deficiency arising from adjustments to partnership items for Wind 2’s 1983 taxable year — a deficiency that respondent asserts was properly assessed when no petition for readjustment was filed with respect to the FPAA for 1983.

Respondent filed a second motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and to strike on March 8, 1993. Respondent asserts that petitioners were not issued an affected items deficiency notice relating to their investment in Wind 2 for the 1984 taxable year, and, therefore, there is no basis for this Court to exercise jurisdiction over 1984. Further, in response to petitioners’ allegation that they have already paid additional tax, penalty, and interest for the 1984 taxable year, respondent provided evidence that petitioners were mailed an affected items deficiency notice setting forth additions to tax stemming from petitioners’ investment in another partnership known as Sunbelt Energy on February 28, 1986. However, petitioners executed a consent to assessment with respect to the February 28, 1986, notice, on April 27, 1986.

On March 15, 1993, petitioners filed an objection to respondent’s motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and to strike pertaining to the 1983 taxable year. Significantly, petitioners’ objection includes an allegation that they were denied due process throughout the Wind 2 partnership proceedings because they did not receive the fpaa for 1983 until October 1992.

On March 22, 1993, petitioners filed an objection to respondent’s motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and to strike pertaining to the 1984 taxable year. It is evident from petitioners’ objection that they are attempting to contest the deficiency (and interest) attributable to petitioners’ share of Wind 2 partnership adjustments for the 1984 taxable year.

Respondent was directed to file a response to petitioners’ objections attaching thereto copies of the fpaa’s purportedly mailed to petitioners on October 16, 1991, for the Wind 2 partnership. Respondent filed a response to the Court’s order attaching thereto a copy of the fpaa for 1983.

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Crowell v. Commissioner, 102 T.C. No. 29, 102 T.C. 683, 1994 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 33 (tax 1994).

102 T.C. No. 29 (Crowell v. Commissioner) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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