Rathborne v. Commissioner

37 B.T.A. 607, 1938 BTA LEXIS 1010
CourtUnited States Board of Tax Appeals
DecidedApril 5, 1938
DocketDocket Nos. 83105, 84655.
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 37 B.T.A. 607 (Rathborne v. Commissioner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Board of Tax Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rathborne v. Commissioner, 37 B.T.A. 607, 1938 BTA LEXIS 1010 (bta 1938).

Opinion

OPINION.

Black :

These proceedings involve deficiencies in income tax for the years 1932 and 1933 in the amounts of $401.55 and $544.65, respectively. The principal issue is whether, under the stipulated facts, petitioner is taxable on any part of the $21,905.20 and $18,886.02 paid to him during 1932 and 1933, respectively, by the trustee of the trust estate created under the will of Joseph Rathborne, deceased, petitioner’s grandfather, and, if so, the determination of the respective taxable portions for the taxable years in question. In his income tax returns filed for the years 1932 and 1933, respectively, petitioner did not report as taxable income any part of the several amounts paid to him by the trustee. The respondent determined that of the amounts paid to petitioner, $4,987.66 should be included in petitioner’s taxable net income for 1932 and $6,652.59 for 1933. In his answer filed in Docket No. 83105, the respondent affirmatively alleged that of the $21,905.20 paid to petitioner during 1932 he should have [608]*608included in his taxable net income for that year the amount of $8,328.05, and has made claim for an increased deficiency for 1932 upon that ground. The facts are set forth in a stipulation of the parties, which we adopt as our findings of fact. Only such of the facts as seem necessary to a discussion of the issues are stated herein.

Petitioner is an individual and a resident of Westbury, Long Island, New York, having formerly been a resident of Harvey, Jefferson Parish, Louisiana.

The will of Joseph Eathborne, dated June 14, 1921, probated, proved, registered, and ordered executed on August 24, 1923, before the Twenty-eighth Judicial District Court for the Parish of Jefferson, State of Louisiana, contained provisions as follows:

Fourth: : I direct that all my just debts and charges and the foregoing expenditures and legacies and the costs, expenses and taxes of my succession together with any estate or legacy taxes of my succession, together with any estate or legacy taxes upon the foregoing legacies against my estate or against the said legatees, as well as like charges against my heirs, shall he paid out of any funds X may have on hand and out of securities I may have at my death, and out of the earnings of my trust estate before touching or disposing of my holdings in the Parish of Tangipahoa, La., or in any corporation or business I may there be engaged in and before disposing of my timber holdings elsewhere. But I require that my said securities, if needed for the purpose first stated, shall be sold without haste and to realize as much as possible their true value.
Fifth : I give and bequeath the rest and remainder of my estate, wheresoever situated, to my two grandchildren, Joseph Cornelius Rathborne and Kathlyn George Rathborne, share and share alike, including herein their legitime, the whole in trust, however, as hereinafter set out.
I hereby create a trust for the said rest and remainder of my estate and for the universal legacy aforesaid and I give and bequeath the said residue of my estate wherever situated to Canal-Commercial Trust & Savings Bank and to any Trust Bank succeeding to the same, in trust however, for the use and benefit of the said universal legatees, my said grandchildren, Joseph Cornelius and Kathlyn George Rathborne, and within the limitations and under the conditions and restrictions hereinafter imposed to-wit: * * *

The language immediately following that just quoted gave directions to the trustee regarding the sale of the shares of stock owned by the testator and the preservation of the investment made in certain timber lands, and it has no special application to the present proceedings. The sixth article of the will reads as follows:

Sixth : The Trustee shall proceed to invest my estate with the exception noted in Paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 5 of this will, in sound, safe, interest paying bonds, having regard at all times to the character of the security rather than to a high rate of return. * * * Within the limitation herein expressed the Trustee is authorized to sell, exchange or otherwise dispose of any securities belonging to my trust estate and to reinvest the same from time to time as opportunity permits. All sums received from sales of capital assets shall likewise be invested and reinvested under the authority hereinabove granted. All revenues in excess of the requirements of the several beneficiaries as herein[609]*609after set out and in excess of the carrying charges and expenses of nay estate shall likewise be invested and reinvested and form part of the capital of my trust estate.
The Trustee may from time to time and as required take from and pay out of the capital of the estate any sums of money needed for any of the purposes contemplated by this will or to make up deficiencies in revenues and needed for the payment to beneficiaries as hereinafter set out.

Then article 7 reads in part as follows:

Seventh: Trustee shall pay out (of) the revenues of the trust estate and out of the principal, should it be necessary to trench upon the latter as authorized in Article 6th hereof: * * *

Then followed a special legacy of $5,000 per annum to W. W. Rathborne, brother of the decedent, a special legacy of $30,000 a year to his daughter-in-law, Georgie W. Rathborne, mother of the two beneficiaries, and certain provisions for payment of income to the petitioner, Joseph Cornelius Rathborne, and his sister, Kathlyn George Rathborne. The trustee was to pay to them through their mother for their care and education adequate sums until they should respectively reach the age of 21 years. The will then provided as follows:

4th. After my grandson reaches the age of twenty-one years, the Trustee shall pay him the income of his share in the trust estate in the following proportions : One-third thereof during the first three years; one-half thereof during the next three years, and the whole thereof during the ensuing four years of this trust, payable in quarterly installments.
Should my grandson marry after reaching the age of twenty-one years and before the expiration of this trust, Trustee may advance to him out of the accumulation of interest and revenue and if necessary out of the principal a sum to acquire a home and to establish the same not to exceed One Hundred Thousand Dollars and shall in case of such marriage increase the allowance from the income to one-half the same or the whole thereof in the discretion of the Trustee. If such marriage occurs before his twenty-seventh year, the Trustee may also advance out of the funds in the manner last provided a sum not to exceed two hundred thousand dollars, if same should be needed to set my said grandson up in business or to put him forward in life.
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6th. In case the revenues of my trust estate should not be sufficient at any time to meet the charges imposed thereon in this paragraph the several beneficiaries shall suffer a diminution and loss of their several allowances, allowances in proportion to the deficiency and in case the revenue shall thereafter increase the allowances shall be resumed as provided herein.

The duration of the trust is specified as follows:

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Related

Swingle v. Commissioner
1959 T.C. Memo. 135 (U.S. Tax Court, 1959)
Muir v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
182 F.2d 819 (Fourth Circuit, 1950)
Letts v. Commissioner
3 T.C.M. 377 (U.S. Tax Court, 1944)
Garland v. Commissioner
2 T.C.M. 419 (U.S. Tax Court, 1943)
County Nat. Bank & Trust Co. v. Helvering
122 F.2d 29 (D.C. Circuit, 1941)
Letts v. Commissioner
41 B.T.A. 1172 (Board of Tax Appeals, 1940)
Rathborne v. Commissioner
37 B.T.A. 607 (Board of Tax Appeals, 1938)

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Bluebook (online)
37 B.T.A. 607, 1938 BTA LEXIS 1010, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rathborne-v-commissioner-bta-1938.