Old Colony Trust Co. of Boston v. Commissioner

69 F.2d 699, 13 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 761, 1934 U.S. App. LEXIS 3638, 1934 U.S. Tax Cas. (CCH) 9170, 13 A.F.T.R. (RIA) 761
CourtCourt of Appeals for the First Circuit
DecidedMarch 14, 1934
DocketNo. 2871
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 69 F.2d 699 (Old Colony Trust Co. of Boston v. Commissioner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the First Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Old Colony Trust Co. of Boston v. Commissioner, 69 F.2d 699, 13 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 761, 1934 U.S. App. LEXIS 3638, 1934 U.S. Tax Cas. (CCH) 9170, 13 A.F.T.R. (RIA) 761 (1st Cir. 1934).

Opinion

WILSON, Circuit Judge:

This is an appeal from a decision of the Board of Tax Appeals involving an individual income tax for the year 1928. The issue is whether a sale of stocks in November, 1928, was a sale of capital assets, or a sale of slocks resulting in taxable net income.

The facts out of which the issue arose are as follows:

In 1926 one Joseph P. Kennedy made arrangements to purchase 40,000 shares of class A common stock and 8,000 shares of class B preferred stock of the R. C. Pictures Corporation, the name of which was afterward changed to1 the F. B. O. Productions, Inc. — • the corporation and stock will be hereinafter referred to as F. B. O. C'o. and F. B. O. stock —for the sum of $1,160,000; and on February 5, 1926’, and later on July 21, 1926’, entered into an agreement with the petitioner’s intestate, Guy W. Currier, for Currier to acquire 50 per cent, of this stock at a proportionate share of the cost.

On July 7, 1926’, Currier and Kennedy jointly purchased 7,500 shares of F. B. O. class B common stock, at $4 per share, from Thompson and Poucher; and on November 18, 1926, purchased jointly 2,500 shares of F. B. O', class B common stock from one Williams at $12 per share.

Prior to October 19, 1927, they acquired jointly in equal shares for $30',000 the rights [700]*700in a motion picture called “The Moon of Israel,” and on October 19 organized a corporation under the name of The Gower Street Company, hereinafter referred to as The Gower Co., and each subscribed for 5 shares of its capital stock of the par value of $100, which was issued to them for a cash payment of $1,000.

The rights in the moving picture, “The Moon of Israel,” were then transferred by them to the new corporation for 300 shares of its capital stock, which was issued to Currier and Kennedy in equal amounts. The activities of The Gower Co., as far as appears in the record, were confined to receiving income from this picture, which was distributed through the F. B. 0. Co. and in transactions concerning F. B. O. stocks.

On or about November 9, 1927, Currier and Kennedy jointly purchased 40,000 additional shares of P. B. 0. class B' common stock from one Powers at $7.50’ per share.

On January 6; 1928; The Gower Co. purchased from Currier and Kennedy the 10,-000 shares of F. B. O. class B common stock, purchased by them of Thompson, Poueher, and Williams, at $6 per share, or for the sum of $60,000, being the cost to Currier and Kennedy, and gave in payment to each of them the corporation notes for $30,000; payable on demand. On the same day The Gower Co. purchased of Currier and Kennedy ■.the 40,000 shares of F. B. 0. class B common stock which they purchased of Powers, at the price of $7.50 per share, or a total of $300,-000, and gave in payment the corporation notes to each of them for $150,000, payable on demand.

On February 15, 1928, The Gower Co. sold to B. F. Keith Corporation, hereinafter referred to as the Keith Co., at $15 per share, the 40,000 shares of stock originally acquired by Currier and Kennedy of Powers, on which transaction The Gower Co. made a gain of $300,000.

Oh the same date The Gower Co. purchased from Currier and Kennedy the 40,000 shares of F.’ B. O. class A common stock, and the 8,000 shares of F. B. 0. preferred stock for the sum of $890,000, payable in demand notes of the corporation, and assumed and agreed to pay the National City Bank, which held a claim on this stock, the sum of $270,-000, thus making the purchase price of this stock $1,160,000, being the same as the original cost to Currier and Kennedy,

The F. B. 0. class B common stock had no voting power, but, under an agreement or understanding with the Radio Corporation, when it acquired certain F. B. 0. class B common stock, and with the Keith Co. when it aequiredaof The Gower Co. 40,000 shares of the F. B. O. class B common stock, and with the F. B. O. Co., the capital structure of the F. B. 0. Co. was changed. The F. B. O. class A common stock was changed into 40,000 shares of no par value stock, all F. B. 0. class B common stock was changed into no par value stock, the 8,000 shares of F. B. O. preferred stock was changed into 55.475 shares of no par value, and all the new no par value stock was given votihg power. As an incident to the change, each holder of F. B. O. class B common stock was given an option to purchase a certain percentage of the new no par value stock, resulting from the change in the preferred stock, for each share of the old common stock held by him. By this arrangement 26,950 shares of the 55.475 shares of the no par value stock, resulting from the ehange in the preferred stock, were taken by others than Currier or Kennedy, The Gower Cb. retaining 28,525 shares.

Prior to the changes in the capital structure of F. B. O'. Co., The Gower Co. had acquired of others than Currier and Kennedy 10,654 shares of F. B. O. class B common stock, and also 3,500 shares of F. B. O. common stock purchased of one De Witt at $7 per share.

On March 1, 1928, and on July 7, 1928, The Gower Co. sold a total of 7,000 shares of the Thompson, Poueher, and Williams stock at $15'' per share and paid the notes given to Currier and Kennedy at the time of the purchase of the shares of them.

On October 4, 1928, The Gower Co. was the owner of 3,000 shares'of no par value F. B. O. stock, purchased by Currier and Kennedy of Thompson, Poueher, and Williams on July 7, and November 18, 1926, at an average of $6 per share; 40,000 shares of no par value F. B. O. stock converted from the original purchase of class A stock — according to the stipulation of facts — at $9 per share; 28,525 shares of no par value F. B. O. stock converted from the 8,000 shares of preferred stock at a cost to Currier and Kennedy of $411,370.90; and also1 3,500 shares of no' par value F. B. O. stock converted from class B stock purchased of De Witt by The Gower Co., as well as 10,679 shares purchased by The Gower Co. of others than Currier and Kennedy during the year 1928 and prior to October 4, 1928.

On October 4, 1928, The Gower Co. voted to sell to Currier and Kennedy the 3,000 [701]*701shares originally purchased of Thompson, Poueher, and Williams; 40,000' shares of F. B. 0. stock converted from tho original purchase of class A stock hy Currier and Kennedy on February 5; 1926; 28,525 shares of tho converted preferred shares of F. B. O. stock acquired by Currier and Kennedy by their original purchase on February 5, 1920, and 3,475 shares of F. B. O. stock acquired by The Gower Co. directly of De Witt, all at the same price Currier and Kennedy purchased them, to be determined by the treasurer of The Gower Co.

By this transaction Currier received 37,-500 shares of F. B. 0. no par value stock for the sum of $406,844.45. In payment Currier and Kennedy gave up any notes each of them held of The Gower Co., and gave their individual notes for the balance payable on demand.

On November 25, 1928, Currier sold all his F. B. O. stock thus obtained hy him from The Gower Go. at $35 per share. In reporting his income tax for that year, he reported as ordinary net income tho difference in the cost of tho Do Wilt shares, or $7 per share, and the selling price of $35; or a profit of $48,636 as subject to both normal and surtax.

As to the difference between the cost of the balance of the stock so acquired from The Gower Co.

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

Related

Pickwick Corp. v. Welch
21 F. Supp. 664 (S.D. California, 1937)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
69 F.2d 699, 13 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 761, 1934 U.S. App. LEXIS 3638, 1934 U.S. Tax Cas. (CCH) 9170, 13 A.F.T.R. (RIA) 761, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/old-colony-trust-co-of-boston-v-commissioner-ca1-1934.