James M. Mullikin v. United States

952 F.2d 920, 1991 WL 274902
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedMarch 13, 1992
Docket90-6456
StatusPublished
Cited by23 cases

This text of 952 F.2d 920 (James M. Mullikin v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
James M. Mullikin v. United States, 952 F.2d 920, 1991 WL 274902 (6th Cir. 1992).

Opinions

DOWD, District Judge.

I. INTRODUCTION

Defendant-appellant the United States of America appeals the district court’s grant of partial summary judgment in favor of plaintiff-appellee James M. Mullikin, Jr. (“Mullikin”) in this tax refund suit. Mulli-kin, an accountant, prepared eight quarterly employment tax returns, Forms 941, for Vaneo International, Inc. (“Vaneo”) for the years 1982 and 1983. Mullikin also prepared nine Wage and Tax Statements, W-2 Forms, for Vaneo employees in 1982, and ten W-2 Forms in 1983. In preparing the tax documents, Mullikin failed to include the portion of wages paid to Vaneo employees in cash. As a result of Mullikin’s failure to include cash wages, Vanco’s liability for payroll and withholding taxes, and the employees’ respective tax liabilities were understated.

The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) subsequently made the determination that Mullikin’s actions with respect to the various tax forms constituted the aiding and abetting of the understatement of tax liability in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 6701 and assessed penalties against Mullikin in the total amount of $99,000.00.

Pursuant to the assessment challenge procedure set forth in 26 U.S.C. § 6703(c)(1), Mullikin paid fifteen percent of the assessed penalties within thirty days of the notices of assessment and filed claims for refund of the amounts paid. The IRS denied one claim for a refund and failed to address the second claim within the time specified by the Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”). Accordingly, Mullikin filed suit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky seeking a [922]*922refund of the portions of the penalty assessments paid.

The parties filed cross-motions for summary judgment and on July 13, 1990, the district court sustained Mullikin’s motion for partial summary judgment finding first that the five year statute of limitations contained in 28 U.S.C. § 2462 applies to the assessment of penalties pursuant to Section 6701 and that Section 2462 barred the assessment of any penalties relating to tax forms filed more than five years before the dates of the respective notices of assessment. The district court further found that the phrase “taxable period,” as used in Section 6701(b)(3), is the equivalent of calendar year and that only one penalty per person per calendar year can be assessed against an individual for violations of Section 6701. Accordingly, the district court found that even though Mullikin prepared on the designated quarterly basis four Forms 941 for Yanco in 1983, the IRS could only properly assess one $10,000.00 penalty against Mullikin for the four Forms 941 prepared for 1983.1

The United States appeals the district court’s grant of partial summary judgment in favor of Mullikin and argues that the district court erred in both its application of the statute of limitations contained in Section 2462 to the Section 6701 penalty assessments, and in its determination that only one penalty per person per calendar year can be assessed for violations of Section 6701.

Two issues are present for our review. First, this Court must decide whether the five year statute of limitations contained in 28 U.S.C. § 2462 applies to penalty assessments made pursuant to 26 U.S.C. § 6701 for the aiding and abetting of the understatement of tax liability. Second, the Court must determine whether only a single penalty per person per calendar year is properly assessable under Section 6701 or whether a separate penalty may be assessed for each of four false quarterly Forms 941 prepared.

For the reasons set forth below, the Court finds that the district court erred in applying the five year statute of limitations contained in 28 U.S.C. § 2462 to the assessment of penalties pursuant to Section 6701. Accordingly, the Court reverses that portion of the district court’s opinion finding the assessments for the tax forms relating to 1982 barred by the statute of limitations found in Section 2462. The Court further finds that the district court erred in its determination that the IRS could only assess one $10,000.00 penalty against Mulli-kin for the four Forms 941. The Court reverses the judgment of the district court and remands the case to the district court with specific instructions that the district court issue an order in accordance with this Court’s opinion.

II. FACTS

Plaintiff-appellee Mullikin was engaged in the practice of providing accounting services. In the performance of his profession, Mullikin prepared IRS Forms 941, Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Returns, for Vaneo for the eight calendar quarters of 1982 and 1983.2 Mullikin also prepared nine W-2 Forms, Wage and Tax Statements, for Vaneo employees for the 1982 calendar year and ten W-2 Forms for Vaneo employees for the 1983 calendar year. The IRS subsequently determined that Mullikin, in preparing the Forms 941 and the W-2 Forms, omitted cash compensation paid to Vaneo employees; this omission resulted in the understatement of Van-co’s employment tax liability and the employees’ income tax liability.

The IRS determined that Mullikin’s actions constituted the aiding and abetting of the understatement of tax liability within the meaning of 26 U.S.C. § 67013 and pro[923]*923ceeded to assess penalties against Mullikin for each of the documents prepared. In Notices of Penalty Charge dated November 14, 1988, the IRS notified Mullikin that he had been charged with penalties pursuant to Section 6701 for the nineteen W-2 Forms. Mullikin was assessed $9,000.00 in penalties for the W-2 Forms for calendar year 1982, and $10,000.00 in penalties for the W-2 Forms for calendar year 1983, representing the total of $1,000.00 each for the nineteen W-2 Forms prepared by Mulli-kin.

On November 21, 1988, the IRS sent Mullikin Notices of Penalty Charge in the amount of $80,000.00, representing the total of $10,000.00 each for the eight Forms 941 prepared. The total amount of penalties assessed against Mullikin pursuant to Section 6701 was $99,000.00.

Pursuant to Section 6703(c)4, Mullikin paid fifteen percent of the amount of the penalties assessed against him within thirty days of the notices of penalty assessment and filed claims for refunds.5

The IRS notified Mullikin in a letter dated May 15, 1989, that his claims for refund of the money paid with respect to the penalties relating to the Forms 941 were denied. Then, on June 13, 1989, within thirty days of the denial of his claim for a refund, Mullikin filed his complaint in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, seeking a refund of the $12,000.00 and an injunction against collection of the remainder of the penalties.6

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Bluebook (online)
952 F.2d 920, 1991 WL 274902, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/james-m-mullikin-v-united-states-ca6-1992.