Schuster v. Comm'r

2017 T.C. Memo. 15, 113 T.C.M. 1064, 2017 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 16
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedJanuary 17, 2017
DocketDocket No. 28217-14L.
StatusUnpublished

This text of 2017 T.C. Memo. 15 (Schuster v. Comm'r) 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
Schuster v. Comm'r, 2017 T.C. Memo. 15, 113 T.C.M. 1064, 2017 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 16 (tax 2017).

Opinion

NEIL S. SCHUSTER, Petitioner v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
Schuster v. Comm'r
Docket No. 28217-14L.
United States Tax Court
T.C. Memo 2017-15; 2017 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 16; 113 T.C.M. (CCH) 1064;
January 17, 2017, Filed

An order granting respondent's motion and decision for respondent will be entered.

*16 David J. Polashuk and Scott A. Schwartzberg, for petitioner.
David A. Indek, for respondent.
CHIECHI, Judge.

CHIECHI
MEMORANDUM OPINION

CHIECHI, Judge: This case is before us on respondent's motion for summary judgment (respondent's motion). We shall grant respondent's motion.

Background

The record establishes and/or the parties do not dispute the following.

*16 Petitioner resided in Florida at the time he filed the petition.

With respect to taxable year 2004, petitioner had Federal income tax (tax) withheld of $3,271 and made an estimated tax payment of $15,000. On April 15, 2005, petitioner filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form 4868, Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return (Form 4868), and included a $580,000 check with that form in order to pay what he believed was a reasonable estimate of the amount of tax due for his taxable year 2004 (April 15, 2005 payment). The IRS granted petitioner an extension of time to August 15, 2005, within which to file his tax return for his taxable year 2004 (2004 return).

On April 15, 2005, petitioner also remitted to the IRS an $80,000 payment on behalf of his mother (mother's $80,000 payment) with respect*17 to her taxable year 2004. The IRS erroneously credited petitioner's mother's $80,000 payment (misapplied mother's $80,000 credit) to the account that the IRS maintained for petitioner with respect to his taxable year 2004 (2004 account).

On August 15, 2005, petitioner filed with the IRS a second Form 4868 for his taxable year 2004. The IRS granted petitioner an extension of time to October 15, 2005, within which to file his 2004 return.

*17 The IRS received petitioner's 2004 return on October 21, 2005. In that return, petitioner showed total tax of $519,718, which was less than he had anticipated when he filed Form 4868 on April 15, 2005, and remitted his April 15, 2005 payment to the IRS. On November 28, 2005, the IRS assessed the total tax shown in petitioner's 2004 return (assessed 2004 total tax). In his 2004 return, petitioner elected to apply any overpayment for his taxable year 2004 to his 2005 estimated tax.

With respect to taxable year 2004, petitioner made payments totaling $598,271 (correct 2004 payments) that consisted of (1) tax withheld, (2) an estimated tax payment, and (3) his April 15, 2005 payment. As a result, when petitioner filed his 2004 return he had already paid in*18 full his assessed 2004 total tax of $519,718 and had an overpayment of $78,553 for his taxable year 2004 (correct 2004 overpayment).

In addition to assessing the total tax shown in petitioner's 2004 return, the IRS processed that return and showed in petitioner's 2004 account his correct 2004 payments of $598,271 and the misapplied mother's $80,000 credit (erroneous 2004 credit of $80,000). Because the IRS showed in petitioner's 2004 account not only his correct 2004 payments of $598,271 but also the erroneous 2004 credit of $80,000, the amount of the overpayment that the IRS showed *18 petitioner had in that account was erroneously increased by $80,000 from $78,553 to $158,553. Consequently, the IRS showed in petitioner's 2004 account and in the account that the IRS maintained for petitioner with respect to his taxable year 2005 (2005 account) that petitioner had elected to apply to his 2005 estimated tax the total amount of $158,553 that the IRS showed in each of those two accounts. (We shall refer to the erroneous 2004 credit of $80,000 that the IRS erroneously credited to petitioner's 2005 account as the erroneous 2005 credit of $80,000.)

With respect to taxable year 2005, petitioner*19 had tax withheld of $3,145 and made estimated tax payments totaling $500,000. On April 15, 2006, petitioner filed with the IRS Form 4868 and included a $450,000 check with that form in order to pay what he believed was a reasonable estimate of the amount of tax due for his taxable year 2005 (April 15, 2006 payment). The IRS granted petitioner an extension of time to October 15, 2006, within which to file his tax return for his taxable year 2005 (2005 return).

The IRS received petitioner's 2005 return on October 19, 2006. In that return, petitioner showed total tax of $1,012,169. On November 20, 2006, the IRS assessed the total tax shown in petitioner's 2005 return (assessed 2005 total tax) *19 and an addition to tax under section 6654(a)1 of $2,474 (assessed 2005 addition to tax). In his 2005 return, petitioner elected to apply any overpayment for his taxable year 2005 to his 2006 estimated tax.

With respect to taxable year 2005, petitioner made payments totaling $1,031,698 (correct 2005 payments) that consisted of (1) tax withheld, (2) estimated tax payments, (3) the April 15, 2006 payment, and (4) petitioner's correct 2004 overpayment of $78,553, which he had elected to apply to his 2005 estimated tax.*20

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Clark v. United States
63 F.3d 83 (First Circuit, 1995)
United States v. Wilkes
946 F.2d 1143 (Fifth Circuit, 1991)
Sundstrand Corp. v. Commissioner
98 T.C. No. 36 (U.S. Tax Court, 1992)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2017 T.C. Memo. 15, 113 T.C.M. 1064, 2017 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 16, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/schuster-v-commr-tax-2017.