Iverson v. Commissioner

27 T.C. 786, 1957 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 262
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedFebruary 15, 1957
DocketDocket Nos. 48050, 48051, 48052, 48053, 48054
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 27 T.C. 786 (Iverson 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
Iverson v. Commissioner, 27 T.C. 786, 1957 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 262 (tax 1957).

Opinion

Bruce, Judge:

Respondent determined deficiencies in the income tax of petitioners as follows:

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By amended answers to the petitions filed therein, respondent claimed additional deficiencies as follows:

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With respect to petitioners John and Alvilda Iverson, Docket No. 48053, respondent also determined that there was an overassessment in petitioners’ income tax for the year 1949 in the amount of $8,032.52.

The parties have agreed that no issue is presented for determination by the Court with respect to the deficiency determined against Edward and Mardrid Reite Davison for the year 1949, Docket No. 48051, and that certain adjustments which are covered by the stipulated facts may be reflected in a computation under Rule 50.

All of the issues involved in these consolidated proceedings have been disposed of by stipulation except the question whether petitioners have omitted gross income in excess of 25 per cent of the gross income stated in their returns for 1947 and 1948 and have thereby made applicable the 5-year period of limitations provided in section 275 (c), Internal Revenue Code of 1939.

FINDINGS OP PACT.

Some of the facts have been stipulated and are so found.

At all times material herein, John and Alvilda Iverson were husband and wife residing in Minot, North Dakota. For the year 1947 each filed a separate individual income tax return with the collector of internal revenue for the district of North Dakota. For the year 1948 John and Alvilda filed a joint return with the collector for the same district. Mardrid Reite Davison, Alvilda’s daughter by a former marriage, filed individual income tax returns for the years 1947 and 1948 with the collector of internal revenue for the district of North Dakota. For the year 1949 Mardrid and her husband, Edward Davison, filed a joint income tax return with the collector of internal revenue for the district of Montana.

During the years 1947 and 1948 John Iverson, Alvilda Iverson, and Mardrid Reite Davison owned interests in the following partnerships engaged in the wholesale and retail selling of electrical supplies and fixtures:

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In addition, during the same years, John Iverson operated with O. G. Aal the Maytag Electric Company located at Williston, North Dakota, which was engaged in the same business. For the years 1947, 1948, and 1949, each of the businesses filed a partnership return, Form 1065, with the collector of internal revenue for the district of North Dakota. For the years involved each of the partnerships kept its books and records on an accrual basis of accounting.

John Iverson did most of the directing of all of the stores, but each store had a general manager who supervised the employees and the buying of merchandise. Neither Alvilda Iverson nor Mardrid Reite Davison actively participated in the supervision or management of any of the stores.

Each of the stores, handled Maytag and Philco products such as washing machines, refrigerators, and radios, as well as other types of appliances, fixtures, and electric wiring supplies. Each store also had a repair shop and did repair work, including adjustments on new equipment, repairs on appliances sold mider a manufacturer’s warranty, repairs on trade-ins, and general repairs on appliances brought in by customers for servicing.

Records of the transactions carried on in all 4 stores were kept at the headquarters of the business in Minot, North Dakota. Each store sent in to the headquarters a daily cash slip showing wholesale and retail cash sales, cash received on account, and cash paid out. These slips were posted in ledgers kept in Minot. During the first 3 months of each year, Mardrid Reite Davison audited the ledgers and prepared the partnership tax returns for each store.

The income of the 4 businesses for 1947 and 1948 was reported on the partnership returns as follows:

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The cost of goods sold figures reported in the partnership returns were determined by adding to beginning inventory the cost of merchandise bought for sale (plus freight and excise taxes; less purchase discounts, merchandise transferred, claims, and credits) and subtracting from this total the inventory remaining at the end of the year. With the exception of bad debts (not deducted because credit sales were not reported) and some bonuses earned but not paid to employees and not accrued on the books, all other expenses were deducted on the returns, below line 18, as business expenses to arrive at the ordinary net income of such businesses. No capital gains or losses were reported by any of the partnerships for any of the years involved.

None of the returns reflected a breakdown of expenses between cost of goods sold and other expenses deductible from gross income. No records were kept segregating the expenses incurred in doing repair work from the expenses incurred in selling merchandise, and none of the stores maintained a cost system of accounting from which a cost analysis of each business could be made. A breakdown of expenses in which part of an expense is allocated to cost of goods sold and part to other expenses could only be made by extensive auditing and information furnished by someone familiar with the operation of each store.

In preparing the partnership tax returns, Mardrid adjusted the sales shown in the books and reported only cash. sales. The following amounts of credit sales were not reported:

194 7 1948
Maytag Electric Co., Glasgow, Montana-$17, 025.67 $10,038.43
Maytag Electric Co., Williston, North Dakota- 16, 095. 02 12,150.31
Maytag Electric Co., Minot, North Dakota- 28, 006. 07 24, 061. 52
Mandan Electrical Supply, Mandan, North Dakota- 20,103.35 19,310.25

Each partner’s allocable share of unreported credit sales is as follows:

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Each partner’s allocable share of partnership gross income, as stated in the partnership returns, together with his income from other sources, is as follows:

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On. their individual income tax returns for 1947 and 1948, each of the petitioners listed the net income each received from the partnerships and his respective total income received from all sources, including stock dividends, rent, and farm income, as follows:

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The percentage of each partner’s share of omitted credit sales to his share of partnership gross income as stated in the partnership returns plus other income is as follows:

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The percentage of each partner’s share of omitted credit sales to the total income stated in his individual return is as follows:

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Iverson v. Commissioner
27 T.C. 786 (U.S. Tax Court, 1957)

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Bluebook (online)
27 T.C. 786, 1957 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 262, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/iverson-v-commissioner-tax-1957.