F. E. McGillick Co. v. Commissioner

42 T.C. 1059, 1964 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 43
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedSeptember 18, 1964
DocketDocket No. 93658
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 42 T.C. 1059 (F. E. McGillick Co. v. Commissioner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Tax Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
F. E. McGillick Co. v. Commissioner, 42 T.C. 1059, 1964 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 43 (tax 1964).

Opinion

FisheR, Judge:

In his notice of deficiency, respondent determined a deficiency in petitioner’s Federal income tax for the taxable year ended December 31, 1955, in the amount of $54,164.16 and additions to tax in the amount of $15,883.18 for such year under section 6651(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.1

The deficiency is based upon respondent’s determination that petitioner forfeited its right to elect the installment method of reporting-sales of real estate in 1955 when it failed to file a timely return for that year.

Petitioner lias conceded liability under section '6651 for additions to tax for 1955 because of its failure to file a timely return for that year. The additions will be applied to the tax as ultimately determined.

FINDINGS OF FACT

Some of the facts have been stipulated and, together with the exhibits attached thereto, are incorporated herein by this reference.

The F. E. McGillick Co. (hereinafter referred to as petitioner) is a corporation organized hi 1932 under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, with authorized and issued capital stock of 50 shares. The principal place of business of petitioner during 1955 was 306 North Homewood Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa. At all times since its organization, petitioner has been engaged in the business of buying and selling real estate, holding real estate for investment, and renting and managing various properties owned by it. Petitioner also owned and operated a motion-picture theater in 1950 and 1951 and received income therefrom.

The Francis Edward McGillick Foundation (hereinafter referred to as the foundation) was created in 1937 as a trust under the laws of Pennsylvania, by F. E. McGillick (hereinafter referred to as Mc-Gillick) . From at least 1949 the foundation has held 49 shares of the stock of petitioner and McGillick’s wife, A. Louise Schultz McGillick, has been the absolute owner of one share of petitioner’s stock.

The foundation received no income from 1937 through 1948. Petitioner, by deed dated December 30,1949, transferred to the foundation income-producing rental properties it had held.

At all times involved herein, including the years 1949 through 1956, McGillick and his wife were the sole trustees of the foundation and constituted the board of directors of petitioner. McGillick was the president of petitioner and the presiding officer of the foundation. His wife was secretary to both petitioner and the foundation.

On March 15, 1951, the foundation made an application in writing to respondent for a ruling exempting the foundation from Federal income taxation as a religious, scientific, literary, or educational organization under the provisions of section 101(6) of the Code of 1939. In the application, the foundation reported information pertaining to the business activities and income of petitioner. It supplied respondent a balance sheet and a profit-and-loss statement of petitioner involving the year 1950. The figures contained in the application reflected that all of the petitioner’s income was distributed to the foundation without any reduction for income taxes. The application, however, did not request respondent to determine petitioner exempt from income taxation.

The application was prepared by petitioner’s bookkeeper, R,. F. McShane, at the direction and under the supervision of McGillick.

On October 3, 1952, respondent advised the foundation, in writing, that it was neither organized nor operated exclusively for purposes coming within the meaning and intent of section 101(6), Code of 1939, and further advised that the foundation would be required to file Federal income tax returns. After receiving said ruling, the foundation’s trustees requested a reconsideration of the ruling by letter dated October 16, 1952. The ruling was affirmed on March 17, 1953. Correspondence concerning the ruling continued between the respondent and the foundation until December 29,1953.

Petitioner filed Federal income tax returns for the years prior to 1950 but did not file income tax returns for the years 1950 through 1954. At no time did petitioner make an application to respondent for a ruling that it was an organization exempt from Federal income taxation, nor did it ever file information returns required of an exempt organization.

For the years 1950 through 1955, McGilliek had petitioner’s bookkeeper prepare and file, for the foundation, information returns of an organization exempt from tax. McGilliek directed that there should be attached to each of the foundation’s information returns concurrent information regarding petitioner, consisting of petitioner’s balance sheet, statement of profit and loss, and a reconciliation of net income and analysis of surplus. McGilliek regarded the attachment of such information as sufficient to satisfy filing requirements of the Federal income tax laws.

In August 1952 respondent began an audit of petitioner for the year 1950. The audit eventually covered the years 1950 through 1954. After respondent denied the foundation’s request for tax exemption on October 3, 1952, an agent of respondent informed McGilliek that a return for petitioner was required as the foundation had been denied tax-exempt status and that in no case would petitioner, because of the various business activities in which it was engaged, have the right not to file a return.

McGilliek disagreed, stating that no return was required to be filed by petitioner, since, he believed, petitioner was exempt from taxation because the foundation owned the petitioner’s stock and, as far as Mc-Gillick was concerned, the foundation was exempt from taxation. McGilliek never referred to any statute, regulation, or court decision as the basis for his claim that petitioner was exempt from Federal taxation.

Respondent determined deficiencies in tax against petitioner for the years 1950, 1951, and 1952 and against the foundation for the years 1949 through 1952. Statutory notices of deficiency involving the foundation’s and petitioner’s income tax for these years were duly mailed to the foundation and to petitioner. Petitions were filed with the Tax Court by the foundation and petitioner requesting a redeter-mination of such deficiencies in income tax.

Prior to the mailing of the statutory notice of deficiency to petitioner for the year 1950, respondent notified petitioner in a 30-day letter that its income was taxable. A protest to 'said letter was prepared by petitioner in which the only reason given for petitioner’s income being exempt from taxation was that the foundation was an organization exempt from taxation and that it owned petitioner’s stock.

On February 8,1954, counsel was engaged by petitioner to represent it in contesting the proposed deficiency. The same counsel was employed by the foundation. Prior to this time McGillick never sought advice with respect to whether the income of petitioner was exempt from taxation.

The proceedings before the Tax Court involving petitioner for the years 1950 through 1952 and the foundation for the years 1949 through 1952 were placed on the Tax Court calendar for March 1956 at Pittsburgh, Pa.

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

Related

Sundance Ranches, Inc. v. Commissioner
1988 T.C. Memo. 535 (U.S. Tax Court, 1988)
Gibson v. Commissioner
89 T.C. No. 83 (U.S. Tax Court, 1987)
Estate of Broadhead v. Commissioner
1972 T.C. Memo. 195 (U.S. Tax Court, 1972)
Silver Queen Motel v. Commissioner
55 T.C. 1101 (U.S. Tax Court, 1971)
Harper v. Commissioner
54 T.C. 1121 (U.S. Tax Court, 1970)
National Western Life Ins. Co. v. Commissioner
54 T.C. 33 (U.S. Tax Court, 1970)
Griffin v. Commissioner
1965 T.C. Memo. 91 (U.S. Tax Court, 1965)
F. E. McGillick Co. v. Commissioner
42 T.C. 1059 (U.S. Tax Court, 1964)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
42 T.C. 1059, 1964 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 43, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/f-e-mcgillick-co-v-commissioner-tax-1964.