Estate of Jack v. United States

54 Fed. Cl. 590, 90 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 7580, 2002 U.S. Claims LEXIS 329, 2002 WL 31686140
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedNovember 27, 2002
DocketNo. 01-410T
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 54 Fed. Cl. 590 (Estate of Jack v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Estate of Jack v. United States, 54 Fed. Cl. 590, 90 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 7580, 2002 U.S. Claims LEXIS 329, 2002 WL 31686140 (uscfc 2002).

Opinion

OPINION

HORN, Judge.

The parties have filed cross-motions for partial summary judgment to determine whether a Canadian citizen employed in the United States on the date of his death, who was admitted to the United States under TC and TN nonimmigrant, temporary professional classifications,1 was legally capable of forming an intent to be domiciled in the United States for federal estate tax purposes. The government argues that the holder of a TN Temporary Professional visa is legally capable of forming the intent to be domiciled in the United States for federal estate tax purposes. The plaintiff claims in her cross-motion for partial summary judgment that the intent to establish domicile by the holder of a TN Temporary Professional visa would be in direct violation of the terms of the visa, so that such an intent would be precluded. According to the plaintiff, “Dr. Jack’s nonimmigrant visa establishes Dr. Jack’s intent to depart, provides for his deportation should he fail to depart and, accordingly, precludes his forming an intent to remain indefinitely.” At the parties’ request, the question of whether Dr. Jack actually developed an intent to be domiciled in the United States is to be deferred until the legal question presented in the cross-motions for partial summary judgment is resolved.

FINDINGS OF FACT

Dr. Robert A. Jack was born in Winnipeg, Canada on March 7, 1947, and died in Davis, California on August 27, 1996.2 Until October, 1992, Dr. Jack resided and was domiciled in Canada, where he practiced veterinary medicine. In October, 1992, Dr. Jack was offered a two-year employment contract with the University of California in Davis, California, as Equine Medical Director in its School of Veterinary Medicine, for the period of January, 1993 through December, 1994. On November 2, 1992, Dr. Jack applied for admission to the United States as a TC class nonimmigrant and obtained TC Temporary Professional status, allowing him to be admitted to, and remain in, the United States for a period of one year. In December, 1992, Dr. Jack moved to Davis, California, under his TC Temporary Professional visa, and in January, 1993, commenced his duties as Equine Medical Director of the School of Veterinary Medicine.

According to the plaintiff, while living in California, Dr. Jack maintained bank accounts in Canada, continued affiliations with Canadian professional associations, remained a licensed Canadian veterinarian, maintained [592]*592his Canadian driver’s license and voter registration, and also maintained a Canadian mailing address.

On or about December 13, 1993, Dr. Jack obtained an extension of his TC Temporary Professional visa through December 31,1994. On or about December 2, 1994, Dr. Jack obtained TN Temporary Professional classification available under the newly-enacted NAFTA, enabling him to continue his employment in the United States. In January, 1995, Dr. Jack extended his contract with the University of California at Davis as Equine Medical Director in the School of Veterinary Medicine for two years, through December, 1996. Due to the January, 1995 contract extension, on or about May 25, 1996, Dr. Jack obtained an extension on his TN Temporary Professional visa through November 17,1996. Approximately three months later, on August 27, 1996, Dr. Jack died in Davis, California, at the age of forty-nine.

Following his death, Dr. Jack’s estate paid an estate tax of $15,415.00, as a non-resident not a citizen of the United States, based on the value of his gross estate in the United States, excluding assets outside the United States at the time of his death. The estate tax return was audited, and on May 24, 2000, a Notice of Deficiency was issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) assessing an estate tax deficiency of $80,443.00. The deficiency was premised on a determination by the IRS that Dr. Jack was domiciled in the United States on the date of his death. The IRS wrote: “As it has been determined that the decedent was domiciled in the United States at the date of death, the reported value of the taxable estate is increased by the entire value of the gross estate outside the U.S. pursuant to Section 2031 of the Internal Revenue Code.”

Therefore, according to the IRS, Dr. Jack’s assets outside the United States at the time of his death were subject to the estate tax of the United States. The parties agree that Dr. Jack’s Canadian assets are part of his gross estate for tax purposes only if he were domiciled in the United States at the time of his death and that such domicile requires that Dr. Jack intended to remain in the United States indefinitely at the time of his death.

On December 6, 2000, the IRS assessed plaintiff in the amount of $80,443.00 in additional estate taxes, plus $23,662.04 in interest. Additional interest of $377.96 and $1,044.49 was subsequently assessed. The Executrix of Dr. Jack’s estate paid the alleged estate tax deficiency and statutory interest on July 6, 2000, and the additional assessed interest on February 27, 2001 and April 26, 2001. Subsequently, on August 6, 2000, the Executrix of Dr. Jack’s estate filed an amended United States Estate Tax Return, Form 706-NA, which claimed a refund of estate taxes of $85,497.00.

The parties have filed cross-motions for partial summary judgment regarding whether an individual holding a TN Temporary Professional visa can legally form the intent to be domiciled in the United States, thus subjecting the individual’s foreign property to the federal estate tax of the United States.

DISCUSSION

The parties have filed cross-motions for partial summary judgment pursuant to Rule 56 of the Rules of the United States Court of Federal Claims (RCFC). RCFC 56 is patterned on Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (Fed.R.Civ.P.) and is similar both in language and effect. Both rules provide that summary judgment “shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” RCFC 56(c); Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c); see also Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 247-48, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986); Adickes v. S.H. Kress & Co., 398 U.S. 144, 157, 90 S.Ct. 1598, 26 L.Ed.2d 142 (1970); Telemac Cellular Corp. v. Topp Telecom, Inc., 247 F.3d 1316, 1323 (Fed.Cir.), reh’g denied and reh’g en banc denied (2001); Monon Corp. v. Stoughton Trailers, Inc., 239 F.3d 1253, 1257 (Fed.Cir.2001); Avenal v. United States, 100 F.3d 933, 936 (Fed.Cir.1996), reh’g denied (1997); Creppel v. United States, 41 F.3d 627, 630-31 (Fed.Cir.1994). [593]*593A fact is material if it will make a difference in the result of a ease under the governing law. Irrelevant or unnecessary factual disputes do not preclude the entry of summary judgment. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. at 247-48, 106 S.Ct. 2505; see also Monon Corp. v. Stoughton Trailers, Inc., 239 F.3d at 1257; Curtis v. United States, 144 Ct.Cl. 194, 199, 168 F.Supp.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

In Re the Marriage of quijada/dominguez
550 P.3d 153 (Arizona Supreme Court, 2024)
Kirk v. New York State Department of Education
562 F. Supp. 2d 405 (W.D. New York, 2008)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
54 Fed. Cl. 590, 90 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 7580, 2002 U.S. Claims LEXIS 329, 2002 WL 31686140, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/estate-of-jack-v-united-states-uscfc-2002.