Marcus v. Commissioner

70 T.C. 562, 1978 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 84
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedJuly 31, 1978
DocketDocket Nos. 8256-72, 8257-72
StatusPublished
Cited by138 cases

This text of 70 T.C. 562 (Marcus 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
Marcus v. Commissioner, 70 T.C. 562, 1978 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 84 (tax 1978).

Opinion

OPINION

Hall, Judge:

These proceedings arise on this Court’s order dated April 7, 1978, directing petitioners to file a response with the Court showing why the matters set forth in respondent’s proposed additional supplemental stipulation of facts should not be deemed admitted for purposes of these cases, and on respondent’s motion filed April 10, 1978, to impose sanctions under Rule 104 (Tax Court Rules of Practice and Procedure) and requesting partial summary judgment.

In notices of deficiency dated August 9, 1972, respondent determined the following deficiencies and additions to tax:1

Docket No. 8256-72 (Charles)
Deficiency Addition to tax
Year in tax Sec. 6653(b)2 Sec. 665k
1957.$9,117.15 $4,558.58 $241.41
1958. 3,796.59 1,898.30 92.43
1959. 4,498.31 2,306.72
1960. 2,775.61 1,387.81
1961. 8,188.24 4,115.22
Docket No. 8257-72 (Anita)
Addition to tax Deficiency
Year in tax Sec. 6651(a) Sec. 6653(a) Sec. 665k
1957.$9,329.41 $2,270.45 $466.47 $251.32
1958. 3,654.84 851.81 182.74 92.43
1959. 4,433.43 1,046.46 221.67 114.24
1960. 2,559.60 550.60 127.98 57.38
1961. 8,014.43 1,914.59 400.72 210.16

I. Background

Petitioners filed their petitions on November 6,1972. In both petitions, petitioners alleged errors in respondent’s adjustments with respect to (1) unreported income reflected in unidentified bank deposits, (2) the disallowance of various itemized deductions, and (3) the additions to tax under sections 6651(a), 6653(a), 6653(b), and 6654.

These cases were first set for trial at Dallas, Tex., on May 7, 1974. On April 23, 1974, on petitioners’ motions, the cases were continued generally.

Following an unsuccessful attempt in September 1974 to meet with petitioners’ then counsel for purposes of entering into a stipulation of facts, respondent, on October 4, 1974, served interrogatories in docket No. 8256-72 (Charles) on petitioners’ then attorney. Attached to the interrogatories were 29 exhibits containing schedules of approximately 5,000 checks and 1,600 deposit slips on Charles’ and Anita’s joint accounts and on Charles’ separate accounts. The interrogatories requested Charles to classify each of these items.

On October 17, 1974, respondent also served a 64-page, 144-paragraph request for admissions in docket No. 8256-72 (Charles) on petitioners’ then attorney and on that same day served a request for production of documents on petitioners’ then attorney. With respect to docket No. 8257-72 (Anita), respondent served on petitioners’ then attorney a 5-page, 20-paragraph request for admissions.

Thereafter, on October 31, 1974, this Court set the cases for trial on February 3,1975, in Dallas, Tex.

On December 24, 1974, respondent filed motions for leave to file out-of-time motions (1) to have the requested admissions deemed admitted with respect to Charles and Anita, (2) for an order compelling Charles to serve answers or submit objections to respondent’s interrogatories or to impose sanctions under Rule 104, and (3) for an order compelling Charles to respond to respondent’s request for production of documents or impose sanctions under Rule 104. On the same day, respondent lodged the 3 out-of-time motions with the Court.

On January 28,1975, a hearing was held in Dallas, Tex., before Judge Fay on respondent’s motion for leave to file the 3 out-of-time motions. At that hearing petitioners’ then counsel orally informed the Court that he was considering withdrawing from the case. The Court reserved its ruling on these motions until the call of the calendar for the Dallas trial session on February 3, 1975.

On February 3,1975, at the trial session in Dallas, petitioners’ then counsel orally moved to withdraw as counsel in these cases. This motion was granted and Judge Fay instructed petitioner Charles Marcus as follows:

you’re going to have to get these facts out on the table, Mr. Marcus and I’m not just talking to hear myself talk. If there — if you don’t get counsel and there is not full and complete cooperation with respondent’s counsel by your new counsel, then the Court will entertain a motion to impose sanctions.
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Now whatever lack of cooperation there has been in the past, that’s over with. We’ve now arrived at a juncture where, if you don’t cooperate, sanctions will be imposed, and that’s the order of the Court.

By written order the same day, the Court continued the cases generally and denied without prejudice to renew respondent’s motion for leave to file out-of-time motions for (1) an order to have respondent’s requests for admissions deemed admitted by petitioners, (2) an order to compel answers to respondent’s interrogatories, and (3) an order to compel response to respondent’s requests for production of documents. The Court also stated in its order that “petitioner is hereby notified that upon his failure to proceed expeditiously as to the oral directions of the Court, the Court will be forced to take appropriate actions.”

On March 25, 1975, petitioners’ new counsel informed the Court by letter that he had been engaged to handle the pending cases. On June 30,1975, respondent filed a motion to consolidate these cases.

On July 1, 1975, respondent served on petitioners’ new attorney copies of the interrogatories previously served on October 4, 1974, and requests for admissions and production of documents previously served October 17,1974. Subsequently, on July 25,1975, respondent renewed his motions to compel Charles to answer interrogatories and produce the documents requested or impose sanctions under Rule 104. In addition, respondent on the same day filed motions with respect to both Charles and Anita to declare his requests for admissions deemed admitted.

A hearing was held on these motions and respondent’s motion to consolidate on August 27, 1975, in Washington, D.C. At that hearing this Court granted respondent’s motion to consolidate and by order dated September 4, 1975, directed the parties to submit a detailed stipulation of facts in accordance with Rule 91(a) by November 15, 1975. The Court also ordered the parties to report on the status of the cases at the call of the calendar for the Dallas trial session beginning December 1, 1975. The Court further ordered that action on respondent’s motions regarding discovery was to be held in abeyance.

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Bluebook (online)
70 T.C. 562, 1978 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 84, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/marcus-v-commissioner-tax-1978.