Pfotzer v. United States

396 F. Supp. 961
CourtDistrict Court, D. Delaware
DecidedMay 27, 1975
DocketCiv. A. No. 4690
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 396 F. Supp. 961 (Pfotzer v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Delaware primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pfotzer v. United States, 396 F. Supp. 961 (D. Del. 1975).

Opinion

OPINION AND JUDGMENT

LATCHUM, Chief Judge.

This case is before the Court on cross-motions for summary judgment. Rule 56, F.R.Civ.P. All parties admit there are no genuine issues of any material fact and the question for determination is simply a matter of law.1 2The plaintiffs E. John Pfotzer and Elizabeth W. Pfotzer* seek to recover an alleged federal income tax overpayment of $3,187.47 on their joint tax return for the calendar year 1963 and the plaintiff Edmond Pfotzer (“Edmond”) seeks to recover a similar overpayment on his individual tax return for the calendar year 1963 in the amount of $8,338.71. All the plaintiffs are residents of Delaware. Jurisdiction exists under 28 U.S.C. § 1346(a)(1) and venue exists in this court under 28 U.S.C. § 1402.

In considering the government’s motion for summary judgment, the pertinent facts viewed most favorably to the plaintiffs, Hood v. McConemy, 53 F.R.D. 435, 440 (D.Del.1971) are as follows: On September 12, 1969 Edmond filed a claim with the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) for a refund of $8,338.71 from a federal income tax of $17,361.00 which he allegedly paid with his 1963 individual return.3 In that claim Edmond alleged a net operating loss of $6,444.42 for the year 1964, $8,382.32 for 1965, and $8,815.71 for 1966 arising through a partnership operation he had with John in which he and John were equal partners. Edmond used the total net operating loss of $23,642.45 for those three calendar years to reduce his alleged 1963 tax liability. He arrives at a $8,338.71 reduction of his 1963 tax by applying 1963 tax rates to the total net operating loss of $23,642.45 as follows:

“Schedule of Net Operating Losses arising through Partnership Return, E. & E. J. Pfotzer, P.O. Box 402, Barre, Vermont, Employer No. 03-0196916

Net Operating Losses:

Year District Operator

1966 $( 6,444.42) Burlington, Vt.

1965 ( 8,382.32) Burlington, Vt.

1964 ( 8,815.71) Burlington, Vt.

$(23,642.45) To be carried back to 1963

Income tax paid with 1963 income tax return $17,-361.00

Decrease in tax previously assessed:

Application of 1963 tax rates to above net operating loss carryback $23,642.45 = 8,338.71

Liability after application of carryback $ 9,022.29 Amount to be refunded $ 8,338.71"

(Docket Item 14, Exhibit A).

Thus, the basis of Edmond’s claim is that the income tax paid with his 1963 [963]*963tax return should be reduced by an amount which results from applying 1963 tax rates to his total net operating losses for the years 1964, 1965 and 1966.

On September 12, 1969 John filed a similar claim with the IRS for a refund of $3,187.47 from a federal income tax of $8,854.60 which he allegedly paid with his 1963 tax return.4 His claim for a tax refund was based on the same grounds as Edmond’s claim and was calculated in the same manner as Edmond’s claim by applying his total net operating losses for the years 1964, 1965 and 1966 to 1963 tax tables as follows:

“Schedule of Net Operating Losses arising through partnership return, E. & E. J. Pfotzer, P.O. Box 402, Barre, Vermont, Employer No. 03-0196916 Net Operating Losses:

Year District Director

$( 1,644.43) Burlington, Vt.

( 4,382.32) Burlington, Vt.

( 8,815.72) Burlington, Vt.

Total $(14,842.47) to be carried back to 1963

Income tax paid with 1963 income tax return $ 8,-854.60'

Application of 1963 tax rates to above net operating loss carryback, $14,842.47 = 3,187.47

Liability after application of carryback $ 5,667.13

Amount to be refunded $ 3,187.47"

(Docket Item 14, Exhibit B).

The plaintiffs filed waivers of statutory notice of claim disallowance on July 23, 1971, and the plaintiffs began this suit on July 16, 1973.5

The plaintiffs’ claims for tax refunds are based on the assertion that their 1963 tax liability should be reduced due to net operating loss carrybacks6 from 1964, 1965 and 1966. Jurisdiction of this court derives only from 28 U.S.C. § 1346 read in combination with 26 U.S.C. § 7422(a), which in pertinent part reads:

“(a) No suit . . . shall be maintained in any court for the recovery of any internal revenue tax alleged to have been erroneously or illegally assessed or collected . . . until a claim for refund . . . has been duly filed with the Secretary or his delegate, according to the provisions of law in that regard, and the regulations of the Secretary or his delegate established in pursuance thereof." (Emphasis added).

It is elementary that an untimely claim is not “duly filed.” Rock v. United States, 279 F.Supp. 96, 98 (S.D.N.Y. 1968). For a refund claim relating to a tax overpayment attributable to a net operating loss carryback to be timely, the claim must be filed within the- period:

“which ends with the expiration of the 15th day of the 40th month . following the end of the taxable year of the net operating loss . which results in such carry-back.” 26 U.S.C. § 6511(d)(2)(A).

Accordingly, a claim for refund based on a carryback of a net operating loss for the calendar year 1964 had to be filed by April 15, 1968 to be timely and [964]*964a claim for a refund based on a carry-back of a net operating loss for the calendar year 1965 had to be filed by April 15, 1969 to be timely. Plaintiffs’ claims were not filed until September 12, 1969 and consequently are barred to the extent they pertain to net operating losses for calendar years 1964 and 1965. Only the plaintiffs’ claims for a tax refund which were based on a carryback of a net operating loss for the calendar year 1966 were timely filed by the plaintiffs and thus only these claims will be further considered by the Court.

With respect to their 1966 net operating losses, the plaintiffs no longer assert, as they did in their claims filed with the IRS, that they are entitled to tax refunds based on applying their net operating losses to 1963 tax tables. Instead, the plaintiffs now, for the first time in briefs filed with this Court, argue that they had taxable incomes in 1963 which can be reduced by the amount of their 1966 net operating losses to effect a reduction of their 1963 tax liabilities.

The plaintiffs’ claims utterly fail to advance the grounds now presented to this Court as a basis for their claimed refunds. In fact, although the plaintiffs alleged that income taxes were “paid with” their 1963 returns, the claims contain no allegation that the plaintiffs had taxable income in 1963.

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Scott Paper Co. v. United States
943 F. Supp. 489 (E.D. Pennsylvania, 1996)
Pfotzer v. United States
527 F.2d 645 (Third Circuit, 1976)

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Bluebook (online)
396 F. Supp. 961, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pfotzer-v-united-states-ded-1975.